Over its 22 seasons, Family Guy had its share of Christmas episodes to unwrap, each filled with farce and some of the weirdest but heartfelt outtakes. Peter Griffin has dragged his kin into some dysfunctional situations, but he makes up for it by giving his family a good Christmas—or at least trying in his own way.
He's Peter, so our highest expectation of him won't be "Father of the Year," but he's pretty tolerant in our eyes, despite his rude treatment of Meg and binge drinking at The Clam. Peter's not perfect, but we accept him for who he is.
As it'll be Christmas tomorrow, we're looking at some "freakin' sweet Family Guy episodes that brought in the cheer, as well as the jeers, because, you know, the holidays propensate some minor hiccups. It's all part of the fun, though, so what can you do?
Get ready to celebrate Christmas with the Griffins with these episodes!
The 5 best Family Guy Christmas episodes
"A Very Special Family Guy Freakin' Christmas" (season 3)
We're starting off with the very first Christmas episode, "A Very Special Family Guy Freakin' Christmas." When Peter accidently donates the family's presents, and fails to get them back, Lois, and he heads back to the mall to redo the shopping on Christmas Eve. This task shouldn't be attempted as you know you'll have last-minute gift buyers, and the merch is usually sold out.
On top of this, Stewie questions the existence of Santa, and places himself on the "Nice List" by being the Baby Jesus in the town's play.
There's plenty of Y2K jokes and references that bring back our holiday memories from the era.
By the way, we're still waiting for the entire episode of KISS Saves Santa.
"Road To The North Pole" (season 9)
The hour-long episode of "Road To The North Pole." Inside this fun and gloomy bundle, Seth MacFarlane's dada, Ron, narrates the special and adds his own fun and equally acidic humor.
In "Road To The North Pole," Stewie and Brian embark on a journey to the North Pole to murder Santa, following a bad experience with a mall one (Peter's fault and Brian's oblivious rudeness). Despite Brian's vigorous contestment that "Santa isn't real" and fighting Canadian weather elements, the duo make their excursion up to the real Santa's Village. However, it's not the merriest place to be, for it became a Christmas dystopia with an overworked Santa, cannibalistic reindeer, and mutated elves. The stress and selfishness of the holidays lead to the climax.
To help lighten the load, Brian and Stewie volunteer to help, only to discover that delivering presents in on night is as easy as Santa made it appear. As a last resort to save Christmas and its tradition, Santa makes the request of eveyone getting one gift, which everyone agrees to.
"Road To The Northpole" has a permanent spot on my yearly watchlist, because it's one of FG's best. The episode also features two musical numbers that I love to sing along to, so I have added them to my holiday playlist.
"Christmas Guy" (season 12)
"Christmas Guy" has Stewie in the soul of the episode, for he makes a special request for his Christmas present. At first, it started with wanting the carnival at the mall, and when he got it, he realize that it wasn't what he truly wanted.
All Stewie wanted was to have his best friend back, and with the help of Vinnie, the Griffins' second dog, they were able to reunite young Stewie with his special someone. It was the sweetest tune in the style of Family Guy.
Vinnie was voiced by Tony Sirico, who dropped plenty of HBO's The Sopranos references throughout.
"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!" (season 11)
Peter tells his own rendition of how Jesus was born and became the Messiah. As a Catholic with questions, it's a wonderful story to share during the hoidays, as it teaches us about goodwill and humanity. Then, the critical side in me wonders if it truly happened, as science hold keys to nearly every lock in the universe.
Stewie is the Baby Jesus once again, as he played the role in "Freakin' Christmas," linking the two episodes together.
"Gift of the White Guy" (2024 Hulu special)
"Gift of the White Guy" is an extension of Family Guy's 25th anniversary, streaming exclusively on Hulu, instead of Fox. The episode had Easter Eggs from older holiday pieces, which made it fun to watch.
The plot has Peter searching for a White Elephant gift for his office's mandatory Christmas party. He must get it back, as Lois treasured it as a child. In another arc, Stewie tries to erase himself from Santa's Naughty List by being good but has a mishap. It happens, Stewie, so no worries.
More Family Guy Christmas episodes
After you finished watching thee great episodes, here are some more!
- "The 2,000 Year-Old Virgin"
- "Christmas Crime"
- "Christmas is Coming"
- "Don't Be a Dickens At Christmas"
- "How. the Griffin Stole Christmas"
- "The First No L"