Now entering Kids Next Door recap: Operation: N.A.U.G.H.T.Y.
Ninnies
Almost
Undo
Greatest
Holiday
This
Year
Sector V is framed by the Delightful Children for the theft of Santa's REINDEER system and need to team up with the Elfa Strike team to get it back.
Tropes:
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Once it becomes clear that no, they can't control the REINDEER, the Delightful Children beg Sector V to get it away from them.
- An Ass-Kicking Christmas: It's a KND Christmas special, of course. It features a Badass Santa, a holiday-themed superhero team, and a Storybook Opening in the form of a flashy comic book.
- Badass Santa: Based on Professor X, no less! He also happens to be the only one who can handle the REINDEER system.
- Bait-and-Switch: The Elfa Strike Team accuses Sector V of having the Reindeer which is Numbuh 3's gift. So when Wintergreen opens it, he finds it's a Secret Surprise Reindeer Monkey, a Christmas variation of a Rainbow Monkey.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Numbuh 3 asks Snow Angel to show off her snow-controlling powers, which she then uses to try to crush Numbuh 3 with a giant snow fist.
- Berserk Button: Numbuh 1 is not happy when yet another attacker destroys his treehouse. Numbuh 3 is also not happy when Elfa Strike tries to take her present for Numbuh 4.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Sweet, kindly Numbuh 3 gets infuriated when Wintergreen tries to take the present she bought for Numbuh 4 and single-handedly takes down the Elfa Strike Squad. It also turns out she's not as forgiving as she pretended to be about being the only one on the team who remembered to get Christmas presents for the others. When she gets her hands on the REINDEER, she's far scarier than the Delightful Children were under its influence.
- Big "WHY?!": How Numbuh 1 starts his meltdown over his treehouse being taken away again.
- Blood Knight: True to his Wolverine Wannabe persona, Wintergreen is very excited when “Sector V” breaks into Santa’s workshop.Wintergreen: Looks like Christmas is comin’ early for me!
- Catchphrase Insult: Just like the character he spoofs, Wintergreen calls his enemies "Bub".
- Change the Uncomfortable Subject: When Numbuh 3 realizes that no one else in the Sector got presents for each other, Numbuh 1 awkwardly points out that they are almost back at the treehouse.
- Chekhov's Gun: Numbuh 4's French fries, which he uses as his own makeshift Christmas gift.
- Chew-Out Fake-Out: When Numbuh 4 gives Numbuh 3 in her REINDEER-affected form some half-eaten fries for her Christmas present, it seems like she’s going to freak out on him. Instead, she says it’s the best gift he’s ever gotten her - granted, it’s also the only one he’s ever gotten her.Numbuh 3: THIS...IS THE ABSOLUTE...sweetest gift you’ve ever gotten me!
- Christmas Episode: This is the show's only Christmas special.
- Cigar Chomper: Wintergreen breaks off the bottom of a candy cane and holds it in his mouth like a cigar.
- Curbstomp Battle: Elfa Strike wipes the floor with Sector V. Then Numbuh 3 gets angry...
- Elfa Strike team also manage to defeat the Faculty Four (and threaten to do the same to Edna).
- Didn't Think This Through: Edna Jucation declares that once she and the Delightful Children get rid of Christmas, Substitute Teacher’s Day will be the most popular holiday. Cue both Sector V and the members of Elfa Strike pointing out that there are several other holidays that are more popular.
- Dirty Coward: Edna Jucation proves to be just as cowardly as the Delightful Children. She sends the Faculty Four to fight Elfa Strike for her, and after Elfa Strike defeats them, she can only tremble in fear and threaten to call in another team to fight them.Edna: Y-Y-You runts! You st-stay away from me! Don't make call the Arbor Day Avengers for backup!
- Dude, Where's My Respect?:
- Edna Jucation bemoans how everyone always focuses on Christmas and never thinks of Substitute Teachers Day. Even Flag Day is held in higher esteem, much to Edna's irritation.Everyone: [admiringly] Santa!
Edna Jucation: See?! That is exactly what I'm talking about! - As the REINDEER system corrupts her, Numbuh 3 vents her frustration over how her friends never got her presents for Christmas.
- Edna Jucation bemoans how everyone always focuses on Christmas and never thinks of Substitute Teachers Day. Even Flag Day is held in higher esteem, much to Edna's irritation.
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: When Santa sarcastically asks if the Delightful Children are finally going to stop being evil, conniving brats when they claim they're not getting coal this year, they snap at him that they are good children and they're going to prove it by stealing everyone else's presents, not realizing that this statement proves exactly why Santa gives them coal every year.
- Exact Words: Numbuh 3 has a Reindeer on her. A Reindeer Monkey, that is.
- Expy:
- The members of Elfa Strike are blatant parodies of the X-Men: Wintergreen is Wolverine, Nutcracker is Nightcrawler, Coniferous is Colossus, and Snow Angel is a combination of Storm and Angel. The name Elfa Strike references Alpha Flight, the Canadian team of heroes Wolverine used to be part of before he joined the X-Men.
- Santa Claus is basically Professor X, while his REINDEER system is based on Cerebro.
- The Faculty Four is very much a school-themed Fantastic Four: Mr. Physically Fitastic is Mr. Fantastic, The Unintelligible Tutor is The Invisible Woman, Thesaurus Rex is The Thing, and The Human Text is The Human Torch.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: When Sector V enters the REINDEER chamber, the Delightful Children's laughing has noticeably become much more muted and far less bombastic. Sure enough, they couldn't control the REINDEER and quickly begin begging Sector V for help.
- Frame-Up: The Delightful Children frame Sector V for the theft of the REINDEER by dressing up like them when they invade Santa's workshop.
- Funny Background Event: As Numbuh 3 and Snow Angel have a pleasant chat, Numbuh 2 continually runs around in the background, getting bitten by Nutcracker.
- Get a Room!: Santa’s reaction to seeing Numbuh 3 hugging a blushing Numbuh 4:Santa: Alright, you two, take it under the mistletoe.
- Gift-Giving Gaffe: Numbuh 3 was planning to give Numbuh 4 a special Reindeer Monkey for Christmas. Needless to say, when Numbuh 4 realizes this, he's not happy since he's made his hatred for the franchise very clear in the past.
- I Warned You: Santa explicitly warned the Delightful Children not to use his REINDEER system, saying only he can handle it and that the sheer power would roast them. They don't listen and quickly pay the price.
- Knockout Gas: When the Delightful Children disguised as Sector V infiltrate Santa’s workshop, they shoot the elves with suction cup darts that release sleeping gas.
- Lawyer-Friendly Cameo:
- The Ash Ketchum look-alike, first seen in "Operation: A.R.C.H.I.V.E.", can be seen among the children within the REINDEER system.
- When the "partridge in a pear tree" lands on Numbuh 3, Danny Partridge pops out and waves at the audience.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: The special is narrated by Tom Kenny doing an impression of Stan Lee.
- Oh, No... Not Again!: Upon seeing their treehouse missing, Numbuh 1 has an epic meltdown at how someone took away their base again.Numbuh 1: Ohhhh, WHY?! Why does everyone always take my treehouse? Every! Single! Time! Who’s jumping on the "take Nigel’s pride and joy" bandwagon now?!
- Pants-Pulling Prank: Numbuh 3 does this to Wintergreen in order to get her gift for Numbuh 4 back, exposing his Goofy Print Underwear with candy canes on it.
- Punny Name: Edna Jucation's name is a pun on "education".
- Saving Christmas: With Elfa Strike's help, Sector V must stop the Delightful Children from placing every child on the naughty list, and reaping every gift on the planet for themselves.
- Secret Room: Santa’s sleigh is accessed by pulling a stocking hanging on a fireplace which puts out the fire and spins the hearth around to a secret passageway.
- Ship Tease:
- When Numbuh 3 realizes Numbuh 4 forgot to get her a Christmas gift, she asks “Don’t you like me?” Then Numbuh 5 chimes in, “Yeah Numbuh 4, don’t you liiiiike Numbuh 3?”
- Numbuh 3 is incredibly happy about Numbuh 4 giving a present to her for Christmas because he got her one at all, even if it was just leftover French fries. Numbuh 4 also blushes when Numbuh 3 embraces him.
- In The Stinger, Kuki is shown clearing off the top of her dresser to make room for the fries, blushing and smiling at them when she finishes.
- Shout-Out:
- Santa and Elfa Strike are clearly based on Professor X and the X-Men, while the Faculty 4 are based on the Fantastic Four. There's also a brief mention of the Arbor Day Avengers.
- Going the extra mile - many scenes throughout the episode are drawn as faux-comic book pages, complete with a breathless Stan Lee-esque narrator.
- The narrator's description of Snow Angel is a parody of Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.
- When the Delightful Children and Numbuh 3 are overpowered by the REINDEER, they start to transform into The Grinch.
- Santa and Elfa Strike are clearly based on Professor X and the X-Men, while the Faculty 4 are based on the Fantastic Four. There's also a brief mention of the Arbor Day Avengers.
- Skewed Priorities: After the group sees that the treehouse is gone.Numbuh 2: [looking at the rings] Hey, this tree is 560-years-old.
- Special Edition Title: With the normally-white background turned green, snow falling in the background, and the title decorated by Christmas lights.
- Spotting the Thread: Elfa Strike realizes that they've been had once Numbuh 5 explains that she and the rest of Sector V were at the Rainbow Monkey Superstore for most of the daynote , meaning they couldn't have also stolen the REINDEER at the North Pole.
- The Stinger: Numbuh 3 clears off the top of her dresser in her room so that she can place the leftover French fries on it. Once she leaves, however, Numbuh 4 sneaks in, take a bite of one of the fries, and runs off with them once he sees the coast is clear.
- The Twelve Spoofs of Christmas: The Elfa Strike team attacks Numbuh 3 by dropping literal versions of the items mentioned in “The Twelve Days of Christmas” on her.
- Wham Shot: Wintergreen has Numbuh 3's Reindeer... as in a Rainbow Monkey with reindeer antlers.
- With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: There's a reason that only Santa can handle the REINDEER. Anyone else in the episode who tries (the Delightful Children and Numbuh 3) is left struggling with the power and physically deformed by it, as well.
