Tis the Podcast

It's hard to believe, but 2018 is now over. Join the elves in a reflective look at the past year, discuss this Christmas season, plans for 2019, and talk Christmas music in our year-end wrap up!

Merry Christmas, everyone! We hope that Santa was good to you, and hope you have a wonderful day celebrating with your family and friends. Our little gift to you this year is a special, mini, bonus episode in which the elves read one of their favorite holiday short stories: O. Henry's The Gift of the Magi. We hope you like it, and enjoy the story as much as we do.  *Note* - Sorry for the bad audio...

Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! This week, just in time for TBS' annual 24-hour-marathon, the elves discuss the much beloved, 1983, quintessentially American holiday Classic, A Christmas Story. But while many people have fond memories of this film, there is no unanimous praise for little Ralphie Parker or his quest for a Red Ryder Carbine Action BB Gun on this episode, as a battle so fierce that it...

This week, one week out from Christmas(! Can you believe it?!), the elves discuss the cult classic, criminally underrated, 1985 holiday film, Santa Claus: The Movie. While a formative film in the childhoods of both Julia and Anthony, Thom is going in completely fresh, and the discussion yields some interesting differences in how he views certain aspects of the story compared to how his two cohosts...

Happy Monday, Christmas Fanatics! This week, the elves are changing pace ever-so-slightly by diving headfirst into their first religious Christmas film in a while, 2006's "The Nativity Story", an adaptation of The Christmas Story - a.k.a., the greatest story ever told. How does it rank on list that also includes films such as Daddy's Home 2? You'll have to tune in and listen into the episode to fi...

Happy December, Christmas Fanatics! This week, to kick off Christmas month - and our second month of undisputed holiday classics (whether you love them or not) - the elves discuss a beloved animated fairy tale, Rankin/Bass' Frosty the Snowman and its lesser-known sequel, Frosty's Winter Wonderland. In addition to talking about the lovable, endearing snowman, Roald Dahl, Artemis Fowl, Disney, Hallm...

Happy Sunday afternoon, Christmas fanatics! While we'll be in your feed once again tomorrow morning with our regular episode, today - as an end of the weekend treat - we decided to drop a very special bonus episode on Netflix's brand new original holiday movie, The Christmas Chronicles. While critics think it's a mess, albeit a fun one, people on the internet seem to be going crazy for it. As for...

Happy last week of November, Christmas fanatics! We hope you all had wonderful Thanksgiving weekends! This week, to help ease you back into a full week of work, the elves discuss the beloved 1994 Christmas Classic, Miracle on 34th Street. Join Julia, Thom, and Anthony as they make a return trip to New York at Christmas and gush over Richard Attenborough's portrayal of Kris Kringle, who definitely...

We hope you're enjoying your Thanksgiving holiday! As a way to say thanks for your continued support, here's a bonus episode featuring our friends from Christmas Past, Can't Wait for Christmas, Tinsel Tunes, Weird Christmas, and Christmas Creeps. Enjoy!

We're sticking with our "Christmas Classics" this week as the elves discuss the 1996 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, Jingle All the Way. Julia, Anthony, and Thom discuss this movie, Sinbad the Entertainer, Black Friday mayhem, what they miss from bygone Christmases, and much more. Cozy in up in that favorite chair, next to your tree, which is now doubt lit already, and enjoy!

Our two months of "Christmas Classics" continues this week, as the elves revisit the Home Alone franchise (for the first time since the podcast's third episode!) and cover Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. Julia, Thom, and Anthony join Kevin McCallister as he takes a holiday journey into the New York City of Christmases past - back when airline travel was still lax, the World Trade Center was still...

Happy November, Christmas Fanatics! We are officially in the Christmas season (Finally!), so if you haven't decorated yet or started your shopping, you better get on it! To celebrate the holiday season finally being upon us, Julia, Thom, and Anthony kick off two straight months of "Christmas Classics" with a return to the world of Rankin/Bass by covering 1974's The Year Without a Santa Claus! Will...

This very special episode is 1/2 of a Christmas crossover partnership with our friends at Christmas Past. In this episode, the elves are visited by Dr. Tara Aveilhe to discuss the history of Christmas ghost stories and the inspiration behind Charles Dickens' iconic novella, A Christmas Carol. Be sure to check out the very special episode of Christmas Past and hear Julia and Anthony talk about the ...

Happy Halloween, Christmas fanatics! Spooky month draws to a close this week, as the elves discuss Season 3, Episode 8 of the television show, Supernatural, entitled "A Very Supernatural Christmas"! Joining their conversation is special guest Joanna Wilson, of ChristmasTVHistory.com amongst many other things. Much like the Winchesters' classic 1967 Chevy Impala takes them to many unexpected places...

This week, the elves are back talking about the 1984 cult classic, Gremlins. Set at Christmas time, is this movie a Christmas movie or does it fall short? Get some intense Gremlins history, learn about it's connection to other 80's films, and find a hidden Christmas movie alum hidden in the film. In additon,we continue our countdown to Christmas, discuss where the ghosts of Christmas past and futu...

This week, Julia, Thom, and Anthony discuss the iconic, 1982 cartoon "The Snowman", based on Raymond Briggs' children's book of the same name. While beloved by many, especially in the UK where it is to Christmas what classic holiday specials like Charlie Brown and Rankin/Bass are to those Stateside, how will it hold up when it comes under scrutiny from the elves? Is it even a Christmas movie? In a...

It's October which means it's time for our annual Spooky Month here at Tis the Podcast. This week, the elves cover 1974's cult classic "Black Christmas". During the episode, they discuss the horror genre, movies they loved, ones they didn't, tropes found in horror films, and the impact of this film on the future of cinema. Turn out the lights, set the alarm, and sit back for another dose of Christ...

Happy October, Christmas Fanatics! And welcome to the start of "Spooky Season"! To kick things off this week, Julia, Thom, and Anthony cover ABC Family's 1996 original movie, "Christmas Every Day" which has one foot in spooky month, and one foot in literary month, as it is loosely based on William Dean Howells' 1892 short story of the same name. So settle in, let that cool autumn breeze wash over...

This week, Tim Babb of "Can't Wait For Christmas" podcast joins Julia, Thom, and Anthony to discuss the 1983 Disney classic, Mickey's Christmas Carol! Amid all of the laughs and behind-the-scenes trivia in this episode, there's a lot of love for this film to go around amongst all of the hosts, but is it enough to shake up the top of our Christmas Canon List? Throw open the windows and let in that...

Literary Month continues this week as Julia, Thom, and Anthony discuss the 2016 movie, The Christmas Project, based on Matthew Buckley's books Chickens in the Headlights and Bullies in the Headlights. Is this movie anything more than a weak attempt at trying to replicate what A Christmas Story did in 1983 in a much more juvenile fashion, or is there actually merit to this 80's set story about "elv...

Literary month continues this episode, as the elves board another train - though sadly, this one isn't taking them to the North Pole or to Hogwarts; this week, Julia, Thom, and Anthony discuss the 2017 film The Christmas Train, based on the David Baldacci book of the same name. How does the movie compare to the novel? Where does it rank next to other Hallmark movies we've covered thus far, and aga...

This week, the elves kick off Tis the Podcast's inaugural Literary Month with 2004's Christmas with the Kranks, based on the 2001 John Grisham best-seller, Skipping Christmas. We discuss several Christmas themes, including the idea of skipping Christmas altogether (spoiler alert: all the elves think this is a terrible idea). Grab your favorite Yuletide drink, turn the A/C way up, and ring in the B...

Happy One Year, everybody! Can you believe Tis the Podcast is already a year old? Julia, Thom, and Anthony sure can't! Instead of talking one specific movie this week, the elves take time to reflect on the year gone by, discussing what movies they were too hard and easy on, talking Rankin/Bass and the Grinch, and briefly reviving the Christmas in Hollis debate; they also reveal their own personal...

Join Julia, Thom, and Anthony as they discuss the very Hallmark-esque, infamous, Netflix Original Christmas movie, "A Christmas Prince". Also in this episode, in honor of Tis the Podcast's upcoming one-year anniversary, Anthony bestows his co-hosts with an anniversary gift (which you can view on our Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Reddit pages) courtesy of Rosie Baker. So settle back with a cup...

We're back this week with the 2017 cartoon, All I Want for Christmas is You. The elves discuss their thoughts on Mariah Carey, her wildly successful Christmas song, the book based on it, and her movie based on the book. Sit back, grab some hot cocoa, and enjoy!