YMMV / The Santa Clauses

• Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: More than a few viewers found Noel to be excrutiating in the first season, existing only to be a Too Dumb to Live Plucky Comic Relief character whose humor revolving around his fanboyism of Santa and love with Betty did not come off as funny and endearing as intended. The second season expanded on his backstory and relationship with Betty, put him in the position of Head Elf for a time, and gave him Character Development that showcased smarter and more serious moments for him while still maintaining the same personality quirks from before, sold well by Devin Brice's performance, to the point of winning over previous detractors.
• Surprisingly Improved Sequel: Critics and fans consider the show to be an improvement over the third movie in the franchise.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: Due to the passing of Jay Thomas, the Easter Bunny from the previous films has been replaced with a radically different interpretation played by Tracy Morgan. With the franchise revolving around a Legacy Character for Santa Claus, explaining that the previous Easter Bunny also retired and handed down his mantle to a successor would have perfectly fit the established themes while also paying homage to his original actor. Instead, Morgan's new Easter Bunny is simply retconned into the franchise's history and Thomas' original version is completely ignored.