This episode is noteworthy for all kinds of reasons. First, among the many things OTH does well is flashbacks, flashforwards and alternate universes. Those episode are usually automatic wins in my book and this one is no exception. OTH also works off a crazy timeline that prevents holidays on our calendar from matching up with the Tree Hill calendar. Even this episode aired the first week in December, though it was clearly meant to be the only Christmas episode we’d likely ever get. Like The O.C.’s Chrismukk-huh?, we have a main character–Lucas–unconscious. And like Beverly Hill 90210’s It’s A Totally Happening Life, we have a spin on the classic Christmas movie It’s A Wonderful Life. The O.C.’s episode teased us with the return of Marissa while this show actually gives us Keith back, even if it’s just as a ghost and only for this episode. It tugs on heartstrings again and again, especially with Haley also unconscious, pays respect to the past, asks a powerful question (does it pay to be a good person?) and sets up a huge story arc for the rest of the season with Lucas trying to find out who really killed Keith. It’s one of my favorite episodes of the entire series.
It’s impossible to look at holiday shows on The O.C. and not include (almost) every one. So sit tight because that’s what I’ll be doing here. We begin in season one where the idea of Chrismukkah is first introduced. Seth explains that with his Jewish dad and WASPy mom, he created the holiday to get the best of both worlds. Ryan has trouble embracing the holiday when he is reminded of his horrible years growing up (via a drunk Marissa) and Seth receives presents from both Summer and Anna, after which they ask him to choose which girl he wants to be with. A pivotal episode for both that triangle and because it sets up the Chrismukkah tradition.
2. Episode 1.14, The Countdown
Like in the real world, the very next week brings New Year’s Eve. Seth plans to stay home so he can avoid the Anna-Summer issue and Ryan is thrown for a loop when Marissa says she loves him and introduces a new friend, Oliver. Sandy and Kirsten end up at a swingers party where temptation just ends up reaffirming their love for each other. The episode culminates in Ryan’s mad dash to kiss Marissa at midnight–and tell her he loves her, making one of The O.C.’s most memorable endings.
3. Episode 2.6, The Chrismukkuh That Almost Wasn’t
It’s a year later and Ryan isn’t with Marissa and Seth isn’t with Anna (or Summer). Seth’s Chrismukkuh dinner gets bigger and bigger with plans for the Cooper-Nichols to attend, plus Marissa, Summer and Ryan’s newish girlfriend, Lindsay. Lindsay’s enthusiasm surprises Ryan, who worries what will happen when a long-hidden truth is revealed: Caleb is her father. When the truth comes out and major drama ensues, Seth thinks they should cancel the holiday–until Summer comes to the rescue. I’ve never been a Lindsay fan but she deserves credit for creating a Chrismukkah prop: the Yamuclaus
4. Episode 3.10, The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vahkkah
Though Ryan & Marissa and Seth & Summer are all back together, this year’s Chrismukkah doesn’t seem to be shaping up any better than season two’s. Marissa is preoccupied by a hurt Johnny and Kirsten is sad that it’s her first Chrismakkuh without her dad (despite last year’s drama between them) and her last with Seth and Ryan still in high school. The episode is a win for me because the Judaism factor is at a higher level with the incorporation of both Seth and Ryan’s Bar Mitzvahs. We see Seth’s via flashback, adding a layer of goodness to his lifelong love of Summer, and we see the gang come together to give Ryan one (though it’s real purpose is to raise money for Johnny’s surgery).
5. Episode 4.7, The Chrismukk-huh?
We know I’m a sucker for flashbacks and, by extension, alternate universes, which makes this quite possibly my favorite of all the Chrismukkahs. Ryan and Taylor’s accident turns Newport on its head, looking at what might’ve happened if Ryan never existed. While most of it involves some comedic pairings, like Summer & Che and Sandy & Julie (plus Che & Julie), there’s also a surprising emotional component: Taylor finds out that, in this world, Marissa may be alive. The possibility prevents Ryan from wanting to return to the real world but he ends up losing her all over again when he learns that Marissa never survived her drug overdose several years back since he was never there to rescue her. Intelligent viewers knew there was no chance of Marissa/Mischa Barton coming back but the writing and editing sucked us in anyway, getting our hopes up and our hearts broken.
Tomorrow we look at another alternate holiday universe, this time on One Tree Hill.
TeenDramaWhore 