The Christmas Raccoons

Here we are with Day #3 of the POP CULTURE ADDICT'S ADVENT CALENDAR!  And if I'm correct with my scheduling, I'm supposed to talk about a holiday special, either in television or movie form.

I think because I'm crunched for time this weekend, I'll stick with a television special.  After all, they generally run shorter.

So, today, I'm going to share with you a classic Christmas tale that many of you in the United States might not remember seeing.  Truth be told, I missed the original run when it aired, as it was in December 1980 and I was still in the womb at that time.  But in Canada, this was the television special that kicked off a long-running Canadian animated series that I absolutely adored when I was a kid, and still love today.  In fact, there's a part of me that would love it if CBC decided to bring this show back.

Of course, maybe I also want them to bring back the colour changing markers that they released around the same time as the show too.  Those markers were the best invention ever!

No, I'm talking about the Canadian cartoon series "The Raccoons".  I did an entry about them around Canada Day one year, but it was more or less a generic entry.  This time around, I'll be talking about the television special that kicked off the Raccoons series - "The Christmas Raccoons"!

This is the episode that introduces us to married couple Ralph and Melissa Raccoon, their best friend Bert, the antagonist Cyril Sneer, his son Cedric, and a human family consisting of the father, Ranger Dan, and his two kids Julie and Tommy.  Oh, and we musn't forget the family pet, a giant dog named Schaeffer.

So, the story begins with a bit of a mystery.  Ranger Dan is noticing that pine trees have been disappearing at a rather alarming rate - even more than in previous years.  I suppose it could have something to do with the fact that the story starts two days before Christmas and many people who use real Christmas trees usually decorate them the week before the big day.  But with trees disappearing at such a high rate, it's enough for concern.

But Ralph, Melissa, and Bert are completely oblivious to the tree mystery.  They're too busy decorating their own home for the holidays - a gigantic pine tree that they lovingly call the "Raccoondominium".  I like it.  Very catchy!

It's not until the Raccoons discover the news about the disappearing trees that we learn who is behind it.  The evil, materialistic, greedy Cyril Sneer is the one who is chopping down all the trees because he thinks that he can use the wood from the trees to make a huge profit.  Of course, not everyone seems to agree with Cyril's plan.  Cyril's own son Cedric thinks that it is a really terrible idea because he will soon eliminate the entire forest and then there will be no trees left to harvest.

But Cyril decides that chopping down trees is the way to go, and just to prove a point, he levels an entire row of trees one by one - and one of those trees happen to be the Raccoondominium!  And to make matters worse for the Raccoons, the Raccoondominium is taken away by Ranger Dan's children as their brand new Christmas tree!

So, with the Raccoons homeless, Cyril filled with greed, and Christmas just around the corner, is there any hope for a Christmas miracle in store?

The answer is YES!  And, as a special bonus treat, if you CLICK HERE, you can watch the special live!  But take advantage of it while you can because who knows how long it will be up!