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First and Last: The Simpsons Christmas Specials
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In this episode, Satsu is joined by Andrew to bring back the old sub series First and Last! This time we are focusing on two holiday classics from The Simpsons: Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire and Oh Come On All Thee Faithful. But how does the first episode of Chatsunami hold up 36 years later? Why is the final episode so heartfelt? And how do the two compare?
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Transcript
Reflecting on the Past Year
00:00:02
Speaker
Another year done. Yep, I think that this year has been a good one. No shenanigans and or hijinks here. Did someone say Boo-urns? What? No! How did you even get in here? I had a key.
00:00:18
Speaker
Of course you did. Alright, lay it on me. What grand finale of the year do you have planned this time? So, picture this. We bring back the first and last series, but with a Simpsons twist. And? No, that's it. Just a review of the holiday classic Simpsons episode, Simpsons Roasting on Open Fire.
Reviewing 'Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire'
00:00:35
Speaker
Oh! Whoa, that actually took me by surprise, I'm not gonna lie. For a second there I thought... Wait a second, what do you mean, last? Well, we have to log into Disney Plus to get this. That's bad. But it's a surprisingly touching episode. That's good. But it stars Darren Brown. That's bad. The episode is also two episodes in one. Huh?
00:00:54
Speaker
That's good. Can we review now? Fine. Welcome to Chatsunami.
00:01:02
Speaker
Hello everybody and welcome to the final episode of Chatsunami in 2025. My name's Satsunami and joining me is none other than the lore master of The Simpsons himself, it is Andrew. Andrew, welcome back. Thank you for having me back. i don't know if I actually should be called a lore master for this one. I think you might be overestimating my knowledge of The Simpsons with that one. Oh, poppycock, I'm sure you I'm sure I'm not shining a spotlight on, you know, all of the Sunsons fans looking at you in the audience
Personal Holiday Plans and Recording Challenges
00:01:32
Speaker
right now. Say the line. Yay!
00:01:37
Speaker
But yeah, how are you doing tonight? I'm doing well, thank you. We're now, at the time of recording, just kind of leading up to Christmas. We were taking in a Christmas market and we'll be soon heading off to the UK to celebrate the holidays. And by the time this episode comes out, you will be in the yeah UK celebrating with your family. I will be recovering from post-Christmas turkey dinner, no doubt.
00:01:59
Speaker
I'll be like, you know that scene with the monkey? Mojo. Pray for Tatsu. That'll be me and Bogson Day. Or rather, that'll be me today. You know, to keep up the illusion. Yes, that is me today. Right now. Yeah, we do record the on the day of. where It's actually live. We're actually live right now. It puts a real strain on the podcaster's vocal cords, you know? Nice reference. Thank you. There's going to be a lot more, trust me, because, yeah, you and I were going back and forward saying, what should we do to, you know, cap off the year? And I think last year, did we not do water the Rohirrim? Because time is a flat circle. I keep thinking, was that last year? Was that the year before? i think that was last year, wasn't it I think it was last year because you did a reaction episode with Mario McAllister initially, and then we did our longer review later that month. I think it was a Boxing Day episode
Memorable Simpsons Episodes and Characters
00:02:50
Speaker
or something like that. Yeah, because usually the final episode of Chat Tsunami always lands on a Friday, of course, but for the end of the year, it usually lands a couple of days after christmas but of course this time it's landing on boxing day and we don't really have a say in the way that the calendar goes we're not julius caesar that wasn't a simpsons reference by the way that was just a very niche history joke but yeah so we thought what can we do and you of course brought up the idea of bringing back the first and last series which is some Something that you and I have been dying to bring back, but we've not really found the best topic. We've going back and forth, what one should we do? The last one that we were going to do, of course, was Doom, but ever since we said, oh let's do that episode, a new Doom game has come out since. I'm wearing it some sort of curse as well, because after we did the last one, we you lost your co-host. Yeah.
00:03:46
Speaker
For legal reasons, I didn't lose him. He was just lost to the void. i don't know if I'm going to somehow disappear after this one. I don't feel so good, Mr. Setsu. Hopefully not. Hopefully not. But yes, that existential horror aside. So yeah, we went back and forth and of course we landed one of our favourite topics of all time. That of course being The Simpsons. And seeing as yesterday, technically was Christmas Day. According to that wee boy in A Christmas Carol, we decided to talk about the very first Christmas special of The Simpsons, Simpsons Roasting in an Open Fire, and the most recent one, which apparently came out last year, which I didn't realise. I thought there would have been one sooner, but apparently not. And that, of course, is Oh Come On All The Faithful, which I've heard a lot of people say that it should have been called Do Come On All The Faithful, but... It's quite mouthful. Yeah, exactly. It's the Simpsons. Mouthful of donuts. But yeah, before we go on and talk about these episodes, and there is a lot to talk about, what is your experience, see, just in a general sense, of the holiday specials? Do you have any honourable mentions or ones that you remember really well? The first one for sure, the one that we are going reviewing today, that one sticks out pretty well. And then the one several seasons in, i can't remember what the season is or what the name of the episode is called, but essentially Bart accidentally burns down the Christmas tree and all their presents and then has to hide it. That one sticks out to me. And then the one where Bart shoplifts, that's another big one for me. The Simpsons episodes are very Bart-centric, I generally find. Yeah, for the most part, I would say. Because even the Funzo one. That's true, that's another one that's often played. Because i was watching a couple of them just to kind of refresh myself and you're right, the shoplifting one is actually one of my favourite episodes of the series just purely because it's got a lovely message at the end and the whole bone storm joke is just hilarious. And you've got so many quotable lines in that one. You've got the putting challenge, you've got the thrill house joke. It's just a fantastic episode.
00:05:49
Speaker
Funzo one, yeah, I remember liking bits of it and other bits I was like, yeah, I don't know. There was an episode that I completely forgot about except for one scene where Homer sells a baseball card that Mr Burns gives him to comic book guy and he gets all this money and they go out as a family to splash the cash and Homer selfishly buys some himself like a really expensive gift as an astro. Ball or Astro Babble, something like that. You know, it's the one where he wraps it up and is starts speaking to him. And it's like, the time is so-and-so. The moon is waxing. And Marge goes, what was that? And Homer grabs Maggie and goes, woohoo, Maggie's first one.
00:06:30
Speaker
know why i find that so funny but that's the one where i think he watches mr magoo's a christmas carol and he decides to renounce his ways and become the nicest person in the springfield and ned becomes jealous of him there's a lot of really good episodes though and ones that i would say are probably not as good again that comes with the territory towards the later seasons doesn't it Yes. I mean, as with the case with many of the later season episodes, the Christmas episodes are no exception. They just are not as interesting or as memorable. I can't even really recall most of the later season Christmas episodes, and I've seen all of them. When I think of later season episodes, I still end up thinking about the teen seasons or even the 20 seasons, not even into the 30 seasons. was like, oh yeah, that one where Gil stays with him over the holidays and there's the Christmas grumble, grumpus thing that's supposed to be Grinch. And I was like, wait, no, that's like season 18 or 17 or something like that. It's not even that late because there's two episodes i'm just looking them up now there's one called tis the 15th season and then there's one 15 seasons later that's tis the 30th season there is quite a few of them there was one with i think martha stewart comes in and tries to redecorate marge's home there's a syshow bob one as well there are a lot of them surprisingly there's a hallmark movie one i think as well where the town's being used to make a hallmark movie and it's not going to plan or something like that oh
00:07:55
Speaker
Oh yeah,
Origins of 'Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire'
00:07:56
Speaker
remember that. That was a semi-recent one. Because whenever I think of films being made in Springfield, I think of the Radioactive Man film. oh oh yeah they just bleed them dry and they have to run back to hollywood oh such a good one but yeah it's quite interesting to look at the very first episode of the simpsons which of course was a christmas special and i always find this really weird that of all types of episodes you know because obviously they couldn't start with a clip show but yeah of all things i was surprised that they started with a christmas episode But I didn't learn until recently, and i was saying this to you, that the reason they started with it was actually due to a production issue. So apparently the first episode was but supposed to be Some Enchanted Evening, which was the babysitter one, which is a really brutal one. I don't like that episode. episode I have to say because it's one of the few that feels least like The Simpsons in season one and it ended up being the finale which is so interesting that what was supposed to be the intro episode and also is the one that is like the worst animated I find for the most part oh yeah it feels like a pilot episode is the final of the season it's such a bizarre situation in there Yeah, because if you look at, and this is a scene everyone seems to point out, where the babysitter threatens to basically hurt them if they don't listen to her, and Bart puts on the video, but he walks backwards and he puts the video in backwards, and his hands all, I don't know, it's just it's all off-model and everything. And apparently that was the reason since it was supposed to be the first episode and it was animated by, and I'm going to totally butcher this name, Klasky Chupo. Chupo? Is it Chupo? It's Chupo. Klasky Chupo. Klasky Chupo. See, I always see it and I go, oh yeah, it's that. But yeah, the same company that did things like the Rugrats and think the Wild Thornberrys, I could be wrong on that. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, that kind of design. And I do like their animation style, but I feel as if obviously it is quite clunky in the earlier seasons, and that is something we'll get into talking about this episode. But going from... this episode to the new one, which is a completely different style because it has been over 30 seasons later. We're on season 37 now as of recording this episode, which is absolutely insane. See, without any further ado, will we jump into it and see which one of these a is better, but B, how they hold up?
00:10:23
Speaker
Yeah, let's do with an examination of both episodes. And of course, we'll be right back after the final messages of 2025. Welcome to Chatsunami, a Scottish variety podcast that discusses topics from gaming and films to anime and general interests. Join me, your host, Satsunami, as well as the rest of our Chatsunami team for our takes on these very important pop culture topics. Sir, it's clearly a trap. I accept copies! That happens three times in the film. Every time that general goes, don't do this one thing, he goes, do you know what I'ma do? It's the exact thing.
00:10:59
Speaker
It doesn't well. She had the pointy teeth. What was that about? She looked like Bilbo when he wants the ring back. turned into him. I just want the lightsaber one more time. Parasite says, no, you will get back into your office and work. No, says the man in Zoom. yeah Trousers are for the working man. You're bursting into your hotel room. Honey, we need to go.
00:11:22
Speaker
Leave the kids. You can milk an odish. That's the worst thing you've ever said on any of the episodes. If that sounds like your cup of tea, then you can check us out at our website, chattsunami.com, as well as all good podcast apps. As always, stay safe, stay awesome, and most importantly, stay hydrated.
00:11:45
Speaker
Stay classy and have a man. This has been chattsunami. I'm sorry. What?
00:11:59
Speaker
We're Seismic Cinema, I'm Colin, I've probably not seen it. Paul's watched it in the wrong order. And I'm James and I've probably written an essay on it. And that's Seismic Cinema, we believe in the power of escapism.
00:12:15
Speaker
Oh, thank God for that. That'll do. And we are back. So let's talk about Simpsons roasting over an open
Introduction to the Simpsons Family Dynamics
00:12:22
Speaker
fire. Andrew, going on to you. See, overall, when you rewatch this, what were your thoughts on it? Did you like it? Yeah, I mean, it's very kind of sweet introductory episode to The Simpsons. I know they were kind of forced upon them given the delay in the timeline of episodes coming out that they ended up being Christmas episode for the very first episode, it which is so unusual for any show to start with a Christmas episode. But they have such a wonderful story that they tell through this episode and it really kind of endears you to a lot of different characters. and It really gives a good introduction to the characterization of so many of these characters as well. Whereas, again, and this was completely unintentional because it wasn't supposed to be the first episode, but you're introduced to characters and you kind of have to get their deal straight away. that You're introduced to so many of the ensemble cast. You see Principal Skinner, you get to see Grandpa, you get to see Paddy and Selma. You get to see Moe the Bartender and Barney. like There's so many different characters. And then you're introduced to their pet dog by the end of the episode, Santa's Little Helper. There's a lot of kind of heartfelt moments in this and there's a lot of introductions to characters in this episode. And it' so it's so interesting. Oh, Mr. Burns and Smithers as well. Oh yeah, of course. That is the interesting thing, because as we said before, the message is there that this wasn't supposed to be the first episode, but that explains why in the following episode, Santa's little helper isn't in the house. something I never really noticed watching them growing up or re-watching them, but then you think about it and you go, yeah, where is Santa's little helper? He's not always there, but you know, you think, oh, maybe he's in the background or maybe he's in another room, but no, because of the order, he's just not a part of the Simpsons family until that point. But you're completely right, it is quite a sweet story, and something I find quite interesting about it as well is it feels a lot more realistic. in terms of Simpsons stories, doesn't it? In terms of comparing it to real life rather than the later ones where they were quite wacky and zany because it begins with Homer and Marge going to the Springfield Elementary Christmas pageant and then it's them getting ready for the holidays and everything and then they're going out gift shopping and they're doing very relatable things, aren't they? Yeah, it feels very of its time as well. It kind of reminds me of Nativity's. Well, more like the Griswolds from National Lampoon. There's a lot of similar beats in this episode to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, which very of its time because it came out a similar time to this. And yeah, there's a lot of relatability in mostly Homer because like Homer becomes a kind of a parody of himself as the series goes on. Whereas at this point, to he is just kind of this down on his luck bozo. Even the case of he felt like he let his family down by not having the money for Christmas when there was kind of a dependency to get the Christmas bonus which was not a case of marge was also kind of expecting the bonus for their christmas shopping as well and so because burns decided none of them were getting it he didn't have that money anymore so it wasn't his fault in that situation and then the money that marge had set aside was then spent on bart and so they're in a situation where they just didn't have the money for christmas as a result of reasons that weren't down to themselves other than perhaps poor parenting on the part for bart Yeah, because I know that's Bart's whole thing back then.
Early Simpsons Episodes: Bart and Homer
00:15:30
Speaker
He was the rebellious young child and he was not liked, ironically enough, by the American government the time, I think. Yeah, Bush Senior hated him. Oh, that's so funny, that clip. For anyone who doesn't know, there's a clip of, I think it was a speech by George Bush Sr. where he was saying that families should be a lot more like the Waltons and less like the Simpsons, which was really weird. And i think the Simpsons replied to that with a clip of Bart saying like, oh, we are just like the Waltons, we're both praying for the end of the Depression or something. like that it was really tongue-in-cheek back and forth but it was crazy to think that the president was calling out a cartoon which clearly wouldn't happen nowadays of course definitely not we have like to remain apolitical on this channel but
00:16:16
Speaker
you maybe if you didn't laugh off you cry but anyway yeah have admit that really annoyed me in the episode where bart decides that he's gonna get a tattoo he's gonna be rebellious and he's gonna get this tattoo that says mother on it i like that in his little vision of him getting it that he's so convinced that marge will love this tattoo but also like such a sweet gesture and also makes him look dangerous something that she would want i love that it makes you look so dangerous and cool and he's like yeah and the thing is, I know obviously why they do it. You wouldn't have a story otherwise. You wouldn't have Homer at the edge trying to save Christmas as it were. But it's the fact that he went into a tattoo shop and even back then, and surely that would be grounds for saying, give us the money back or we'd sue you. But obviously the plot has to happen. So as you said, they spend all the Christmas savings on getting rid of the tattoo. And there's no repercussions for Bart other than the fact that ah he's got a bit of arm pain for a while because of it. And I get it, you know, he's a child, he's made a stupid decision and whatnot, and that means that Homer has to go and find a second job to try and get that extra bit money for Christmas. And it's something that I really love about the early seasons of The Simpsons, that Homer, as you were saying earlier, he is a bit of a doofus, he's a bit of an idiot, but he's very well-meaning for his family. He wants the best for them, and he will try to provide that as best he can. Whereas the later seasons kind of dilutes that aspect of his character and makes it more about, oh, the wacky and the goofiness. Yeah, i mean, there's a scene and where Homer finds out about the bonus and he gets home and he's all upset and he heads up the house and he looks at his house he looks at Flanders' house and then the animate, his head just dropping and kind of linger on it for a couple of seconds. And I felt like that was like a really well done animation moment in the show. Like it really tugs at your emotional strings there in a very meaningful way. Because I felt as if the whole dynamic of the family as well felt very real. You know, like when they're putting up the lights and Lisa and Bart are really underwhelmed by They just see one or two light bulbs light off and they're like, oh. Yeah, that exact scene happens in a National Lampoon Christmas vacation. There's a lot of comparisons there and a very, very kind of similar reaction from the kids in that situation. But yeah, it was that was very funny. But I think what was great was when Homer comes back into the house and then Bart and Lisa run into his arms and say how much they missed him and his reaction is what? Why? Because Patty and Selma were there and they were sick of seeing it. The writing for that scene shows like such brilliant characterization for all of the characters there that it spells out the relationship of Bart and Lisa to Homer that they would not normally do this And we've not really seen much of the interaction between them and Pally and Selma, but we know already of how horrible and boring and whatnot it was for them that they would then run into Homer to get away from it for that reason. I thought that small kind of interaction is such beautiful characterization that you won't see better at in most of the show. i have to say they're quite brutal towards Homer in that episode. I know that's the trope of, oh, the wickeds. sisters-in-law kind of thing but i can't remember what line it is think it's at the end where they're wondering where homer is and marge is worrying thinking oh we should phone the police and they're like oh i bet he comes stumbling through the door smelling like cheap perfume or something and i was like jesus christ
00:19:44
Speaker
for a Christmas special. Yeah, I feel like that was uncharacteristic of them. They would think that he's so repulsive that no other woman would be interested in him. They'd be more likely say he'd come in smelling of booze. Yeah, that was definitely something they applied later on, but just they were really harsh and there is like a kind of sweet scene where they're basically trash talking Homer in front of Lisa and Lisa says, don't trash talk my dad because my future prospects for a partner depends on the image of her dad and everything. And it's just the way that they look really speechless at her after coming away with this at eight years old and they go, just watch a cartoon. And they're watching the happy little elf, which I think is only a thing in season one and two, maybe three, but it is something that kind of got phased out and it's in the background more and No, there's a lot of really standout scenes in this episode, especially when Homer, of course, decides that he's gonna be a mall Santa. And again, Bart is just such a little you-know-what in this episode. I know he's a child, but really annoys me when he's like, oh, I'm gonna terrorise this mall Santa after ruining Christmas. And then he finds out, of course, that Homer is doing this just to try and save Christmas. Something One thing that found quite actually interesting about the writing of this episode is see when Barney comes up to him and says he's going to the dog track on Christmas Eve. And Homer actually seems really regretful about doing that, which is something you wouldn't really see in the later seasons, would you? No, he would kind just like, yeah, OK, I'll go along with this wacky idea that potentially puts my family's money at risk. And in this situation, all he has is $13. He's not going to be able to do anything with $13 anyway. you're almost like, yeah, sure. Why not? Why not try and get more from the dog tracks? He then, of course, does the stupid decision of changing his bet. I said to my wife, if he instead had bet $12 of the dollars on Whirlwind, I think was the name the dog that he was supposed to bet on, and then $1 on San's Little Helper. And if San Isle Helper had won, he would have gotten like $100. And if Willowind had won instead, he would have gotten $120. So he would have still probably doubled or other 10 times his money either way. Instead, he decides he's going to bet $13 on Isle Helper to try and get $1,000 essentially. Do you know, I was thinking the exact same thing. It's like a shimmer thought where I was like, huh, why Didn't he split up his bet? I know why, obviously, has to happen for the plot, but was like... Well, it's because he saw the dollar signs more. He saw that instead of, like, $130, that he would have $1,300. And so he'd have, like, a really good Christmas, and it would make up for the lack of the Christmas bonus. But, yeah, no. If he'd been sensible, which, of course, we know he's not gonna be, it's The Simpsons, then he should have split up that bet. I hope someone got fired for that blunder.
00:22:25
Speaker
What I quite liked the transition of Marge telling Paddy and Selma that Homer had said, he's taken Bart caroling. And it cuts to Bart and Barney singing, we're in the money, we're in the money. So they are singing. And Death Thrill is just a clever transition. And it's one those kind of things where I don't feel like the writers are on that same kind of wavelength now to be able to similar jokes. And this is something that I've spoke about in past Simpsons episodes where the thing that I love about early Simpsons up to about season seven, eight, how they managed to marry the heartwarming aspect of it and the relatability with The comedy in kind of outlandish situations, but not too outlandish that you can't really relate to. You know, because the whole idea of Homer becoming a mole santa and everything in secret is kind of a goofy premise, but it's not unbelievable that this is a man that wants to try and do what's best for his family. I mean, for goodness sake, he goes out and he steals a tree and nearly gets shot in the process, which I do love that when he brings it home and Patty and Selma are like, why is there a birdhouse in And he's like, oh, that's just a decoration. But actually one scene, and I don't know if you noticed this as well, but you know the scene before he decides to become a mall Santa, and I find this scene quite heartbreaking in some ways, where he goes out and he tries to get discounted presents for everybody. Oh, yeah. Yeah, but doesn't get Lisa anything. I always noticed this. You mentioned Marge and you mentioned Maggie and you mentioned Bart, but you didn't mention Lisa at any point. Yeah, because he gets Marge tights or something. He gets Bart paper, which I find quite funny. And he got Maggie a chew toy, like a pork chop, which I find funny because it's the scene later where he bumps into Flanders. And I do love that scene, not in a sadistic way, but do love that contrast of saying, this is my present, this is my present, and all the presents are his, you know, but he's just got this crappy bag of these disc-hinted items. Just junk. Yeah, and it's like Rod saying, Mr. Simpson, you dropped your pork chop. up and he just squeezes it and he's like give me that. My wife was like that's not his voice who's that? And was like yeah and I hadn't quite figured him out. Because I have to say I do have a soft spot for early season Homer voice where he's like let's go out for some chocolate frosty milkshake. You have that kind of really weird deep voice. I like another kind of early season bit of Bart's twist mouth when they kept poking his arm he's like quit. I love that. I know Matt Groening apparently hated that. Yeah he hates the twist mouth. The kind of rubber neck and face. His eyes are going to the shop and his mouth going to the back door. You're like, it's so weird, but at the same time, there's such a charm to such a familiarity to that you think, oh, that's The Simpsons, or rather, that's The Old Simpsons.
Animation Style and Nostalgia
00:25:10
Speaker
I wouldn't say the animation is great in this one, but there's a kind of warm nostalgia to I don't think it's bad, though. There lots of early season one Simpsons episodes that are much worse. As we mentioned, some Enchanted Evening. The animation in that is substantially worse than this one. I think Simpsons of the Wild, whatever it's called, when they go out in the RV. Yeah, that is a weird, weird episode. I think that's really bizarrely animated. think there's lots that are much worse than this. I think that as far as season one goes, I think this is really good. It's a weird kind of one where, because it's become the first episode, that your first episode is now better than lot of what followed. Yeah, and I think because this was the, think, eighth episode that was penned and written. I was trying to find that out. was trying to look to see where it was supposed to air. Yeah, again, I don't know how far, even though it was the eighth one to be written, I don't know if that would have coincided with the run order, if you know what mean.
00:26:03
Speaker
probably, which again would be quite weird because there's not a lot of episodes in season one. It's like quite a short season because I think season two is like 22 episodes, I want to say. Season one's weirdly short in comparison to the rest of them. So overall, though, the animation isn't spectacular in Simpsons standards, but to mirror what you were saying, i don't think it's bad either. I think it's got that quite warm charm to it that you watch it and you can relate to the struggles of it that this holiday day and obviously nothing's changed in 2025 but the fact that families at that time of year are so pressured into making Christmas this big extravagant event and they want to try and get the best presents and whatnot and obviously just by luck they managed to see the the owner of Santa's Little Helper the dog release him and say you know get out of here because he's just sick of him losing all the time but then he runs to them and then they adopt him at Christmas and it's something lovely I love that line that Homer says about him being a loser he's pathetic he's a Simpson I love that who's a Simpson that's so good apparently
00:27:11
Speaker
as well, and this is something don't know, in the commentary track, apparently the writers and such, they were praised for this episode for bringing awareness to the whole issue of dogs getting abandoned at these racetracks. Apparently it's a big issue, or it was back then and probably is still now if I'm being cynical, but they didn't know about that. It was just purely by coincidence that they were like, oh, okay, that's interesting, but it's still good. And See, as a closing point for this particular episode, yeah, I would say this is a pretty solid Simpsons Christmas special, which I know is a weird thing to say it's the very first one and everything. Of course, it's going to be rooted in nostalgia. It's most likely going to be one of the first episodes that you're going to watch if you're going to go back to the beginning to compare and contrast. But yeah, I would say this is such a heartfelt episode, and it's definitely an episode of its time, because as I said, I love the beginning when they go to the Christmas pageant at the school, and you know, he's whispering to the other dads being like, oh, you got roped into this too, oh god, how long is this going to take and everything, and it just felt so... 90s, you know, well, late 80s, early 90s, but that kind of blended them into one. But it felt of that time and it was just something quite nostalgic because obviously in Scotland, I don't know about you, but we didn't really have pageants or anything like that. Christmas pageants, of course. We had more reenactments of the nativity for the hundredth time every year. But you always had that kind of thing and you'd think back and go, well, you wonder if parents felt the same. But yeah, it's definitely an episode of its time, but it is fantastic i really enjoy it we did mention in that christmas pageant for one thing maggie's wearing the cutest little outfit ever oh yeah is that the star it's the star and like she wears it again in later seasons it's one that i always really thought was really cute and my wife adores she has wanted one for our son for ages now and we haven't ended up finding a little star outfit but it's very very cute And then also, feel like we should mention Lisa's performance. e
00:29:16
Speaker
I didn't want to, but you know. It's not particularly PC anymore, where she plays this Pacific island, or like, she says of the South. i assume like it means like the South Pacific. I mean, yeah to be fair, that is the theme, which is very weird to have it as a theme, where it's like Santa's, or sorry, it's traditions all over the world. They did frame it as like Santa's across the world or or something, I'm pretty sure. Yeah. Yeah, because they have Janie, or not Janie, because it feels like a different character, but it's the same voice. That's a problem throughout season one. But yeah, she talks about Sinterklaas or something to do with Germany. And then Ralph, but not Ralph, he's Doppelgast. comes out and he talks about a Japanese Santa or something that has eyes in the back of their head and I did find that funny when he turned around and he's got the goggles in the back of his head but one of the eyes pops out and all the parents gasp and they're like ooh it's quite I don't know I just felt that was quite a nice touch but yeah Lisa having and i think people have brought up the animation that it looks like she's supposed to have a bodysuit on or something but she's jumping around the stage and as you said like a very thin grass suit and the mask and everything yeah and she's like a fire breather or something it just it feels really weird it's one of those things of its time they thought were being very progressive by referencing but looking back was doing kind of the opposite i don't get theme of it because immediately after she does the fire breathing or fire bending whatever you want to call it after she does that it immediately jumps into bart's grade doing jingle bells i know it's a cartoon and everything but you think it would be swapped over yeah you would think the older class would be doing something more advanced like that and having like and individual performances whereas the younger class should be doing a group project together Yeah, and I know why they did it, because obviously they want Bart to start singing Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, and gets you dragged out halfway through the performance. Never have I seen someone dragged off so fast than the kid who sang my ding-a-ling. The show was over. But that whole beginning feels like a bit of a fever dream. And then, of course, it cuts from that chaos to, yeah, them getting ready for Christmas. And one scene before we move on I want to point out as well that for forgot to mention was, say, when Marge is writing the letter. And I feel as if this is quite thingy about a lot of families where she's writing the letter. And Bart! We love Bart! It's so good. It's like when she's saying things like, oh, Homer sends his love and things. She's like, Mart. Mart. Mart. Word of light.
00:31:59
Speaker
I love it. It's just how angry he is in comparison. It's so telling as well, the scene where she hides the Christmas money from even Homer. which is such a red flag for the relationship that she does from her side, from obviously for that Homer can't be trusted. It's such a red flag. Of all the Homers to hide the money from, it feels as if season one the Homer would be a little a bit more responsible in comparison. Well, sorry, scratch that. I say that, but this is the same Homer who, and I want to say season one, but it could be season two, when it buys the bowling ball for Mark. Yes, which they reference in the other episode that we're going to read to touching on. And that is probably the perfect place to go on to that. But before we go on, is there any final thoughts that you want to bring forward for this episode? Not especially, not much more than what you've already said. I think it is a very special episode. I think that it is very touching and that... It's one where, in addition to your annual Christmas movies that we'll be watching, I often like to put on Christmas specials from different TV eight show episodes, and this is one that we probably watch almost every year, and so I recommend that this becomes part of the rotation if you're into The Simpsons. I imagine you are already familiar with this episode, but it is a very special one. I do love watching it each year. And that, of course, leads us on to the most recent Christmas special, which, surprisingly, it took me a while to actually re-find this episode, because I didn't realise it was a Disney plus exclusive which is such a wild thing to see in 2025 but here we are because it's not attached to a particular season that if you're on disney plus above season one is a thing that says like specials and then you go in that and then there's the christmas episode there's one of lisa ah where she like kind of time travels or something and then there's a national geographic one They're alright, those ones. From what remember, I didn't remember hating them, but I just kind of watched them and went, eh. Yeah, they were okay. I mean, as far as Modern Simpsons goes, they're fine. So they came out in season, like around season 33 or 36. And season 35, 36, Simpsons were kind of getting back in the groove of decently written episodes. There was quite a few episodes that were well done and felt a bit more like akin to... Not necessarily the golden years, but the teen seasons, I would say. See, this might sound like a controversial point here, but I would say that I prefer a lot of the, well, not all of them, but i prefer a lot of the newer stuff compared to a lot of the mid to late teen seasons, because it something that I did notice when I was watching some of the Christmas specials and they were kind of in the early to mid-teen seasons. And something that really annoyed me, I think it's something you brought up in our Simpsons month where a lot of the humour based on that was kind of family guy-esque. It was very homophobic and everything. It wasn't like, oh, what's the joke here? Oh, gay's the joke. Or, oh, this is the joke. vulgarity, that kind of thing, me clutching my marge pedals here, but you know, there wasn't really a good punchline, it was just gross-out humour, or it was just, again, homophobia was the punchline. Yeah, I do think they've lost their edginess in the recent seasons for sure. No, they've definitely dulled down the edges. I wouldn't say there's as much of a bite or social commentary, but I think the animation's definitely gotten a lot better. But I mean, in terms of when they moved to Disney+, it was quite robotic, you know, that kind of digital type animation. But now it seems a lot more fluid. And especially for this episode, we're going to talk about Oh, Come On, Only Faithful. I really like the animation. I was surprised at how they blended the old type of animation with the new if that makes sense yes that was going to be one of the points that i brought up in my notes that the animation is so elevated i think that's not necessarily a case of oh this is the new seasons animation the newer seasons are like this and they're a really good kind of thing i think that there was a lot of budget put into this special and we're going to get into a little bit more depth, but there's a lot about this that feels so much more elevated than any of the newer episodes. I will go as far to say, and I'm getting ahead of myself a little bit here for what we're going talk about. I'll go as far to say that this is the best written Simpsons anything for the last 20 years. I think that there's a lot to praise about this episode. We'll get into Yeah, there's one caveat I have for that. But yeah, as you said, will get into that.
00:36:16
Speaker
And of course, the premise of the episode is one I have to admit, I really don't
Ned Flanders' Crisis of Faith
00:36:22
Speaker
like. It's Derren Brown, the, what would you call him? Hypnotist? Mentalist? I think mentalist is a good term for him. Yeah, he's very popular in the UK, but heard, but he's not really as popular. I was going to say, is he still popular in the UK, though? Because I knew he had those specials 10 plus years ago. Like, is he still doing stuff? He's doing The Simpsons.
00:36:43
Speaker
That's the only thing I've seen him in. Maybe he I don't know if watch Channel 4 that much to see. Darren Brown. He was everywhere at one point. For a while, yeah, he was really into a lot of the stuff he was doing. When he had those specials where he was hypnotising people, was one where he hypnotised someone into being an assassin, essentially. The one that lingers with me the most, I talk about it quite often, is where he hypnotises someone into thinking they're in a zombie apocalypse. And he has them go through the different stages to try and bring about personal improvements in them through these new horror situations. And it's super messed up. But like, I found it very interesting. I don't think that anything that he does actually works. There may well be a hypnotism aspect to it. But think the lasting impacts of by doing this, I've changed this person's mindset on X. Like, I don't think that's the case. Because even at the end of the zombie one, you can kind of tell when they're interviewing him about but like where his life's at now, that nothing's really changed for him. Yes. It's definitely a two-way thing, especially when it comes to hypnotism. You know, it's like the person who's getting hypnotised has to buy into it and play along with it, if you know what i mean. But yeah, in this episode, as I said, i don't think he's been relevant for a while, and I could be wrong. And he could be listening to this getting ready to fly over in his Channel 4-shaped helicopter. Oh my God, don't hypnotize me. No, not again I won't go back.
00:38:03
Speaker
I have actually been hypnotized before. Oh yeah, was that the one at uni? Yeah, I was in Freshers Week. My very first week of university, hypnotist came to a performance thing for our first year. And I was one of the people that got pulled up. And I can legitimately say, and part of it was, I think there was an element of me playing along with it. And the scenario kind of made me more inclined to just be hypnotized. agreeable but there was some weird kind of aspect to it that I did feel like I kind of was under some level of suggestibility yeah it was very strange I mean I can say from personal experience that it does kind of work but I don't think to the extent of what people like Darren Brown are doing if I had a penny for every time I talked about hypnosis and chatsunami I would have two pennies which isn't a lot but as I said it's weird as happened nice doofenshmirtz reference Yeah, thank you. Of course, the other instance being the interview with Cindy from the Hypno Wellness podcast. Another great episode, by the way. Definitely go check out. But yeah, going back to the episodes, I did not like his whole inclusion. Again, I find it weird that they brought in Derren Brown. They even make jokes. Oh, who's Derren Brown? We don't know and everything. And you're like, this is becoming less of a joke and more of a roast to Derren Brown. Yeah, it seemed kind of sad, didn't it? Mel was like, I have Britbox and even I've not heard of you. He's like, okay then. It's also weird hearing Britbox said in The Simpsons, I was like, oh no, is this where we're in The Simpsons? But yeah, the whole thing is he tries to make Springfield, which has been ranked the least Christmassy town into the most Christmassy town. And through hypnosis, which I find quite funny, he turns Homer into quote-unquote Santa to become a more thoughtful partner and a thoughtful person.
00:39:48
Speaker
person and the whole town buys into the placebo effect believing he's Santa and initially when I saw this book I thought eh this is an okay episode it's nothing special I wasn't a big fan as I said of Darren Brown I wasn't a big fan of Homer being Santa because we've already seen that several times even Ralph being his elf I thought yeah, that's so okay. But the bit that really turned it for me, and I think this is the thing that everybody praises, is when they're in the town hall and Ned Flanders basically has a breakdown because Deren Brown's saying things like, ooh, all of you just believe in a mystical person in the sky and blah, blah, blah. And, you know, Ned starts to compare that to his own religion, his own faith. He has a breakdown. We don't know why initially. We're like, oh, right, that's weird because he's been challenged before for comedic effect. But then they have quite possibly one of my favourite scenes of the series. Honestly, it nearly made me tear up. when he is talking to Marge and he's talking about how he has lost two wives in the series, which is so bloody tragic. And I hope they don't give him another wife because the first wife, I think you mentioned this in Simpsons Month, was because the voice actress for Maud wanted more money. So they killed her off in like season 11, I think. Yeah, could have just recast her. it was such a weird choice to be like, no, screw you, we're just go to kill your character. Yeah, it was so mean-spirited. But they killed her off, and then they paired Ed with Edna Hrabopo. And that was a shame, because the voice actress for Edna died in real life. So instead of recasting her, they decided just to kill her off on the show. And that was really heartbreaking, because obviously they had to kill her off-screen. You know, I'm not saying that it would have been dignified to give her the mod treatment and shoot a t-shirt, cannon at her but jesus you know what i mean though it's like they didn't do anything comedic for it and i'm glad they didn't yeah she died off screen didn't she yeah it's just like a picture of at his house and he's got the black armband it's really sad but in this moment he's talking to marge about how in the morning he puts a post-it note and he writes wee messages to maude and he texts Edna's phone because that's the way they would communicate and everything. Then eventually there's a scene that becomes a turning point in his life where he's texting Maud's number and then it turns out somebody has gotten her number allocated. to them now so therefore they can't keep texting it and then he kind of realizes that this whole ritual as it were is pointless honestly it broke my heart see when they said that he stopped leaving notes for mods on the mirror was just heartbreaking how did you feel about that it was really sad the adna thing you can i can't do that anymore unfortunately because of the number being reallocated but you could still do the mod one
00:42:39
Speaker
But I guess if he thought that once he kind of reexamined one routine, he kind of reexamined both of them and didn't feel it was necessary to do that anymore. It was very sad. And you do feel for Ned, who kind of becomes the butt of the jokes. And around the time that Maud died in the show, Homer was this jackass Homer point where he was like, he'd make fun of the fact that Maud had gone or just be very forgetful about that fact. i think there was one scene, of the seasons where he was like, who? And Ned was like, Maud, you fell into her grave during the funeral. was like, Jesus Christ. There's a throwaway line where he also says that he blocked the ambulances from coming into Reviver. Oh, yeah, yeah. There was a scene where they're trying to hustle Ned at one point, and they try to convince him that Maud had ordered a custom and Bible, and were scam Ned for money by using Maud. That was really messed up as well. Oh. It's horrible. But that's what I wo love about this episode, because Homer technically is out the way for the most part of this episode. He gets dehypnotized and everything, and he still decides to be Santa, but he gets arrested. And then in a funny scene, Ralph lights him out of the jail cell. That's quite a funny scene. But at the same time, that's a very B-plot side of it. But the majority ever since the scene of Ned's breakdown takes place, that becomes the focal point of this episode, which I think was a great choice. Because if it was a whole, oh, Homer's being silly again, it's like, ah great, here we go. But this diving. into grief and especially for someone although he's been flanderized which let's face it he's the one that coined the term he went from just a typical successful middle class family man to a religious zealot as it were i did love the de-godifying of his house that was very funny yeah where he takes off the stained glass window everything thing takes off the stained glass window he he goes into the medicine cabinet and takes out the thing that's just essentially just praying for good health and actually puts like real medicine in there and he's also got the normal mug and the devil full coffee rather than the decaf yeah and indeed it's just regular mug i feel as if that part of the episode does drag though because there's a scene where bart tries to scare them into getting back into religion and It didn't feel as if it was necessary, but it does lead to one of my favourite scenes of the episode where Ned and the boys, they go to the Simpsons' house and as they're bonding over hot chocolate, Lisa tells a story, and this is something genuinely didn't expect in this one, she tells a story from Buddhist... mythology and essentially it talking about a blind sea turtle who lives at the bottom of the ocean every hundred years it surfaces and puts its head through the middle of it every hundred years it surfaces for air and it just so happens that on this occasion that it surfaces its head through a floating ox yoke which is quite a
Lisa's Philosophical Insights and Ned's Redemption
00:45:28
Speaker
beautiful thing, because the whole lesson of the story is it's all about, you know, chance in this vast ocean. What are the odds of this sea turtle emerging there? And then it equates to basically that's the same as the chances of you being born in this life and everything, and it's a really sweet moment. And of course, you know, it gives Ned a lot to think about and Yeah, there's some hit or a miss comedy scenes and things, but... I didn't particularly like Bart's cutaway to the Charlie Brown scene. I felt like that was very family guy. It was very family guy, but I have to admit, it did give me a chuckle. It's just what he says. You know, when we did the Charlie Brown dance, I was faking it, and I don't why I found that. That's so funny. I was like, okay, that that got a chuckle. But know what you mean. It does feel more, A, like Family Guy, but also feels a lot more like the modern Simpsons humour, as opposed to what we're talking about with the older stuff. For sure. What I did appreciate... appreciate and I mentioned this or other I know this down quite early on is what's quite good about this episode is that they don't linger on jokes I've mentioned this I think on Chatsunami before and I've said it so much to others about The Simpsons is that one of the big problems I have with modern Simpsons is that they kick a dead horse they do not know when to have a joke disappear and then just to leave it they linger on it for too long or they keep trying to add on to it and you don't need to they often do that in modern Simpsons as time filler And what is so great about this episode is I don't think there's any examples that I can think of where they do that. And yet this episode is twice as long as any other modern Simpsons or rather any other Simpsons episodes, period. There's none of that. And I want like praise it so highly that they refrained from that. And I don't know if they had a different writing team on this than they typically do, because it is. It's so much better, I think, than most of what else you'll see. No, it is, because as you said, a lot of the jokes that are made in the newer stuff, it does tend to linger, but I can't think of many moments in this one, because that of course leads to the finale of this episode, which is one of my favourite and most infuriating scenes, I would say, of the episode, because I really do not like how this episode ends, and I'll go into that rant in a minute, but essentially Ned goes out and he's walking and he has this crisis of faith and he meets Professor Frank who is of course as we know a man of science, Hoy Gliven and he says oh why don't you come on board I'm about to do a deep sea dive and he dives in this submersible craft and they see these think it's like I can't remember the name of it but it's like these types of aquatic life that are just in this big conga line and everything and it all looks beautiful there's the angelic music in the background I thought their discussion was some of the best writing seen in years to The Simpsons when he says oh do you believe in God and Professor Frank says well as a man of science I have to keep an open mind and everything and but I'm not necessarily ruling out the idea of intelligent life or an intelligent creator. And I thought that was so refreshing, you know, it wasn't just this Reddit tier atheist argument of, you know, oh god, it's not real, don't be so stupid, Flanders, kind of thing.
00:48:46
Speaker
It's like they treated the subject with a lot of respect, you know, without going too far in either direction. They weren't overly praising religion and they weren't overly praising science. They had that compromise in the middle which was so damn good and of course we have the first slanders f-bomb in this episode which is bleeped but yes which is so funny though it's just i love the animation for that where he's like what the bleep frank his face just looks so horrified going well we you say that now And of course, as they are rising, the submersible blows up and everything. And Flanders, he drifts up. Both of them drift up. And in an odd twist of fate, he finds himself in the eye of the ox yoke, which, of course, as we were talking about before from the mythology, and that sparks his faith again. And I loved that. I thought, that's incredible. This is such a good episode and then the ending happens the twist happens and i really did not like that but sorry before i go on to that quickly is there anything you want to say about that particular scene no i thought it was very beautifully done at the time it does devalue it slightly with what's about to be revealed but it is a very sweet scene it is very nice to see ned regaining his kind of appreciation for life And I was going to kind of bring this up later, but I think it's kind of worth sort of saying now. And this is kind of a quote from my wife watching it and kind of what she thought by the end of it, that we both appreciated that it told a story of Ned believing in God and Christianity again without the message strictly being about God or Christianity. There was no divine intervention that helped him to believe. It was him regaining faith on his own terms through just a general kind of appreciation for life and what he perceives as God's creation. I do love that about it because faith is, and not even just Christian faith, we talk about Buddhist faith as well in this episode, but it's such an important part of people's lives, especially for the holidays and especially for this time of year where people might be alone or they need that extra support that other people might not be able to provide. And especially with Ned losing two wives, I've got and having to bring up two children on his own. It was fascinating to see them treat it with such dignity. You can't see it now if I'm drawing what that looks like on the board, but...
00:51:07
Speaker
ah Can I borrow a feeling? Maybe not. But it was so interesting. And you're right, because it didn't feel as if they overly hit you over the head saying, oh, it's because of God and everything arose because of this. It just it felt very natural that Ned found his place within his belief system. It wasn't that people were trying to force something on him that he didn't want. He wasn't doing out out of fear. And have to admit, although I don't like the whole bark, trying to prank them thing. I did like that idea that he was trying to get them to fear Satan so that they'd believe in God again. And Marge rightfully scorns them and says that's not how that works. But yeah, as you said, and your wife said, he did it on his own terms and everything. And that was so beautiful to stay Now, the thing I hated was when that was all undone, because Derren Brown comes back at the very end and he says that he orchestrated the whole thing, except for the ox-yoke thing, which they try to leave ambiguous, but I feel as if the damage is done by then, when they're like, oh, we got Patti LaBelle to sing in the background, we orchestrated all the fish going around and everything. We filmed it in a controlled environment. that They weren't actually at that severe depth. They weren't actually in danger there. I did not like that. I did not like that at all. That is the one thing that I hate about this episode and I can see why people hated the episode. For all the Ned stuff, I don't get why people hate that. But this is the moment that I think really ruined the ending for me. I would say. Yeah, it does cheapen it. I do agree that it does cheapen it by having it be revealed that it was all fake and whatnot. But I still appreciate it regardless.
00:52:47
Speaker
I still thought that it was still well done. They could have gone away with not including that scene. I just wish they did. But I did appreciate the end where Homer accidentally gives Maggie's present to Darren Brown and he misconstrues it as being that he's actually Santa. I did quite like that scene. Yeah, that was quite funny.
00:53:03
Speaker
Was it like a $20 gift card to Applebee's or something? And then it shows the montage at the end, Maggie's cuddling the gift card. Well, it's quite interesting as well, and I don't actually remember it for a lot the other Christmas episodes, but I feel as if it's fitting for this first and last episode. because you know at the end of the first episode where there's like a freeze frame and it looks like a Christmas card and it says Merry Christmas from The Simpsons written on the screen and they do exactly the same thing in this episode. Granted, I don't like the way they frame it because Homer and Marge have just opened a book that's sexy Sudoku or something like that and you know, Bart and Lisa are kind of giggling on the stairs. I find that a really weird way to frame that end of the episode but yeah they have exactly the same thing and then Merry Christmas from The Simpsons which I think is still a nice touch it did leave you kind of fuzzy at the end being like oh well at least you're together and whatnot but yeah overall I would say that although it's not gonna hit the same heights as the old episodes and I think that is the pit of the later seasons a lot of people have said that oh the simpsons is just as good as the old seasons and i can see why they're not and i think that's just purely because the old seasons are a product of their time and especially comparing these two episodes they're both a product of their time that i don't think that this episode would have worked as well in the past and vice versa do you yeah Yeah, I think it works well because of its aging. Also, due to the circumstances of both Maud and Edna having passed. Edna only passed within the show's context and the actress's context for the actress within the last few years, want to say. I think it was actually 2013. It was 2013 that Edna's actress passed away? Yeah, let me double check that. Yep, Edna Cabralpo died in season 25 following the rule passing. Wow, that was 12 years ago. I thought it was like a few years ago. That's crazy, okay. That is what I thought. not going lie. Yeah. All right. Fair enough. Yeah. So, I mean, if we're looking back, though, at the older episodes, like the kind of golden age type episodes, she was still around at that point. So it wouldn't quite worked. But I mean, if you're looking into the 20 seasons, perhaps it could have worked. But I don't know. It's tough. I think where we're at with the animation now and where we're at with where the writing is with Disney Plus, I don't think this episode could have been made in the 20 seasons because I don't think they were writing with enough pedigree for it to have been pulled off. I think it would have fallen flat. I think it came the right time. Yeah, absolutely. Because I feel as well that a lot of the newer seasons, and this is the last point, I swear, but I feel as if a lot of the newer seasons are depending on nostalgia baiting for a lot of things. I've brought this up in past episodes. One of the ones I hate with a passion is the Homer going through the hedge. oh they reference it so much and i don't get it because it's like a one-off thing that happened and ironically enough it was between flanders and homer so i don't know why they keep making meta jokes of that it's just it's a pain it's like the frosty chocolate milkshake thing like they reference frosty chocolate milkshakes so much for a while yeah he almost says it once or twice i think because i don't remember i'm saying that i mean i'll have to re-watch the season now thank you no Yeah, I don't think he says it that much. But yeah, again, that's the state of the Simpsons now that it's people who have dropped off in the late teens, early 20s seasons. And now because of Disney+, they've come back to the later ones. And yeah, there's a bit of a mix.
00:56:36
Speaker
But in terms of Christmas specials, I do think that this is a really good job at it. I think what they did, although I don't agree with the Derren Brown stuff, as I said, and everything, i feel as if if you did chop that out, this would have been the perfect episode, to be quite honest. This would have been one of the best. It could have been one that rivaled the early run, but unfortunately they need a special guest star nowadays, so... don't know. I think, oh I mean, you you you could have potentially found a catalyst for Ned's breakdown, but I do appreciate where Darren Brown's kind of role played in that particular story. And then the Homer stuff was largely filler to this element of the story, but it also was what kind of started it off. So I think it would have been pretty tricky to have brought the Ned stuff in without having that B plot that in some ways the Ned story was the B plot, but became the A plot. But oh honestly, if you're listening to this in Boxing Day or a couple of days after, definitely go watch these episodes. I know we're saying, yeah, this is good, this is bad, but find out for yourself, to be honest, if you can, of course, if you've got a Disney Plus subscription, then definitely go check out these episodes because they do have their charm in different ways and it is nice to see the kind of passage of time and how it's affected the show in some ways better than others, but definitely go check them out for yourself and Yeah, it makes a kind of nice footnote to the Christmas season, doesn't it? Yeah, for sure. It is a lovely ending to the holiday season. I hope everyone's enjoyed themselves over this festive season and they've enjoyed all the content that Chatsunami's brought you for 2025 going into Yeah, and on that note, and for the final time for this year, Jesus, I can't believe that. Thank you, Andrew, for joining me in the final episode for 2025. Thank you so much for having me. I'm looking forward to all the different projects that we'll have in store for 2026. There was a long period where I wasn't able to be on on the show with the birth of my son, and which has been a wonderful kind of experience. And I'm really looking forward to having his interest become my interest and vice versa. You'll make a podcaster of him yet. Exactly. so maybe we'll have a little guest star in years to come. I mean, I've heard him in the background try to put his input in, so I think he'll be a good podcaster for sure. Yeah, I mean, he he has about as much to say as Joe Rogan, so. True. Ooh. That controversial footnote to end. it ends, chance of Nami. But yeah, at the time of this coming out, I'm currently in the UK and I will be for a few weeks, so hopefully Satsu and I will be able to hang out and maybe even record an episode in person, which we've never done thus far, so we'll see. Surprisingly so, but yeah, I'll definitely we bring the mics when we meet. For sure. And yeah, if you hear an episode in January or any time later in the year, then you'll know we succeeded. But as always, thank you all so, so much for listening to the podcast in 2025. Honestly, we couldn't have done it without your support. So thank you so, so much. And yeah if you want to listen to more episodes from this year, as well as all the way up to 2020, God, this podcast is old. Then you can check us out on our website, chatsanami.com. as well as all good podcast apps. I also want to thank our amazing Pandalorian patrons, Robotic Battle Toaster, Go State, and Cryptic 1991. Thank you so, so much for supporting the show. And as always, if you want bonus content, early access, access to our Twitch VODs, Let's Plays, that kind of thing, we've got a pleasure plethora of content there, are so if you want to support us, then check us out at patreon.com forward slash chat tsunami. This podcast is, of course, a prime member of the PodPack Collective. For further information, check us out on our Twitter slash x page, PodPack Collect. But for the final time of the year, i can't believe I'm saying that, stay safe, stay awesome, and most importantly, do you want to finish it off, Andrew? Stay faithful.
01:00:18
Speaker
Say the line, Andrew! ah Stay hydrated.