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The holiday season comes with all kinds of traditions. From special desserts to the annual family bust-up. Whether you like a feel-good story at this time of year or something a little more spine-tingling, there’s magic enough for everyone.
In this episode, Charlotte and Megan explore their Christmas fears, the sexiest muppets, and the depths of their Christmas guilty pleasures.
Most Christmas stories involve fantasy of some kind – be it a more speculative fiction element or a saccharine and unrealistic fantasy of a perfect life or romance. These stories give us hope. But hope is something we find when we have obstacles to overcome, and such obstacles aren’t always lighthearted… or of this reality.
Many of these obstacles play out with supernatural or speculative elements. Dickens’ A Christmas Carol features ghosts, classic film It’s a Wonderful Life asks ‘what if George Bailey were never born?’, while one of Netflix’s many trashy (yet oh so addictive) holiday specials The Holiday Calendar
Let’s not forget the Pagan origins of the holiday revolves around the Winter Solstice. The history of celebrations at this time of year comes from having overcome the worst of the season – moving past a time of isolation and bitter cold. It was a celebration of survival against the odds. And the more fearful the odds, the more there was to celebrate!
Mentioned in this episode:
- It’s a Wonderful Life
- A Christmas Prince
- A Christmas Carol
- The Holiday Calendar
- Christmas Inheritance
- The Princess Switch
- Goosebumps Books
- Point Horror Books
- Chilling Christmas Tales
- M R James
- IT by Stephen King
- The Yule Cat
- Family Guy
- White by Tim Lebbon
- The Terror by Dan Simmons
- Scrooged
- Gremlins
- Die Hard
- Haunting Christmas Tales
- Mysterious Christmas Tales
