[8.3/10] The main theme of *Arthur’s Perfect Christmas* is fantastic. This Xmas special exists to teach the titular aardvark (and the young viewers in the audience) that just because a holiday diverges from your expectations doesn’t mean it’s bad. In fact, sometimes the things you don’t expect -- delicious authentic Bethlehem cuisine, alternate talking dolls, and kind gestures from unanticipated relatives -- can make it the best holiday ever.

That’s a sweet and vital lesson. You don’t have to be a cartoon aardvark to look forward to the end of the year when the weather starts to chill and the prospect of merriment raises your spirits in anticipation, especially when you’re a kid. But life rarely aligns perfectly with our expectations, and Arthur learns that bit by bit, in a relatable way.

The special opens with Arthur’s dream of a “perfect Xmas,” one where his parents prepare the traditional seasonal meal, the tree is decorated just the way he likes it, snow falls all around, and the day itself is a nonstop conga line of joy. Then, the special slowly but surely knocks all of these hopes down.

Arthur’s dad is planning middle eastern dishes instead of the usual trimmings and deserts. His sister, DW, decorates the bottom half of the tree in her “fluffy” sort of way rather than in the traditional way Arthur prefers. It doesn’t look like it’s going to snow. And worst of all, Arthur’s perfect gift for his mom gets wrecked.

That gift becomes the symbol for Arthur’s hopes and disappointment and eventual elation at the holiday season. The special does a nice job of establishing how Arthur broke his mom’s glass bird and managed to find a replacement while shopping for Xmas presents. It teases us with amusing canine tug of wars and chases involving the gift, and an amusing fantasy sequence where Arthur imagines himself venerated over being a “perfect little angel” around the holidays. It represents the thing he most wants to go right around the holidays

Then, when he drops it by accident while retrieving it from its safe place, it’s the last straw. On top of everything else that’s gone wrong, he can’t handle it. His Uncle Fred, preternaturally clumsy himself, comes to comfort his nephew, and then performs one of those selfless gestures that fuels the holiday season. He takes the tea set he bought for his sister after having crushed hers the prior Xmas and relabels it as from Arthur, giving his nephew the gift of making his mother’s day.

It is, in short, a gesture of kindness that made three people’s holiday at once, the sort of transitive property of merriment that proves both a neat trick from a writer’s perspective and clicks as a fable of how things can go differently than you planned but still turn out wonderfully.

The other two major stories are very nice as well. I’m particularly fond of the one between Buster and his mom. I have plenty of folks in my inner circle who stress themselves out over making the holidays just right. There’s a really warm undercurrent to this one, with the relatable story of a mom wanting to make Xmas perfect for his son after her divorce, and Baxter doesn’t want to see his mom so stressed out. It’s mutual strains of empathy running aground on one another, which is a good look for this show.

The notion of “Baxter Day” and inventing a holiday where Buster and his mom can just relax, free of the pressure to make Xmas into something flawless, is a sweet resolution. It gives us a catchy song with memorable animated sequences. But it also gives us a child and a parent trying hard to care for one another, and relieve the pressure the holidays can create so that they can enjoy it together. I don’t know what’s more worth celebrating than that.

As a Jew, I also really liked Francine and Muffy’s story. As Kyle Broflovski memorably conveyed in a less family-friendly Xmas special, there’s something a little rough about celebrating a different holiday in December than all your friends, one that they don’t quite understand. That’s illustrated well with the characteristically oblivious Muffy not hearing Francine’s protestations that she can’t come to Muffy’s party because her family’s celebrating Chanukah that night.

Their breaking point comes when Muffy excoriates her best friend for not being at the party and, when Franchine rightfully objects, declaring that “It’s not like Chanukah is as important as Xmas.” A schism emerges, one that makes Muffy realize how empty her holiday (and all her toys) seem without Francine.

So she does what good friends do -- she learns about how and why Chanukah is important to Francine, from the family heirlooms to the warmth of the communal gatherings to the sense of connection to her people throughout history. Just the depiction of Jewish traditions in a major special -- from serious things like lighting candles to informal things like eating Chinese food and going to the movies -- is really nice to see. And it’s especially heartening to watch Muffy *get it*and come to appreciate what the day means to her friend.

Beyond those three major stories, there’s all sorts of other nice little grace notes and running gags that help the episode feel populated and full of life. On the diversity front, we get Scandanavian holiday celebrations via the moose classmate (whose name I don’t know, but whose decorated antlers are delightful), a Kwanzaa celebration from Brain, and a homework-planning jaunt from Mr. Ratburn.

The special also features an amusing recurring bit about Binky’s failed attempts at culinary creations, culminating in him surreptitiously resorting to store-bought cookies. There’s also some really amusing back and forth between Pal and Uncle Fred’s dog, with some low key *Looney Tunes* vibes. Plus there’s other amusing imagine spots, commentary on crowded malls and annoying holiday music, and surprisingly hilarious one-liners.

But the other element that puts this one over the top is D.W.’s presence here. Maybe it’s just that Arthur and D.W.’s relationship is the sibling dynamic on TV most like the one between me and my little sister when we were growing up. Whatever it is, there’s something that feels so right and lived-in about their back-and forth, from D.W. blaming her brother for foreseen issues with her letter to Santa, to Arthur’s grumpiness about his sister’s tree decorations and annoying toy jingle (with a brief interlude from the inevitable “Crazy Bus” rendition).

Even D.W. gets a good story too, when she wants the year’s hot toy and her parents can’t find it for her. She throws a temper tantrum over Santa failing to give her what she asked for, until she realizes that the talking duck she got instead is actually pretty great. The moment feels so real, and it gives her a nice little arc as well.

Whether it’s ironic or appropriate, you just can’t go wrong with *Arthur’s Perfect Christmas*. The special balances each of these stories and elements well, mixing humor and well-observed vignettes of families around the holidays in a way that touches on real anxieties and hopes during this time of year, while packaging them in an age-appropriate way that makes them accessible to young viewers and moving for older viewers. Funny, incisive, and relatable, this is one holiday special that does almost everything perfectly, even as it reassures the audience that some of the best things happen when the perfect becomes the unexpected.