20 Christmas TV Episodes that Deserve a Holiday Rewatch

10. “…To Save Us All from Satan’s Power” – The Sopranos, Season 3

This is as Christmas-y as the boys from Jersey can get. The holidays are a good time to reminisce for Tony Soprano, who still is not over Sal Bonpensiero’s death from Season 2. Tony had to make a decision as a boss and clip one of his best guys because he was working for the FBI. He recalls the moment he knew Sal had flipped: during a 1995 Christmas party for the neighborhood kids. No one could touch his Santa suit, and it never makes sense to Tony until this Season 3 episode.

The scene above is one of the more memorable moments, where Bobby Bacala, the surliest Santa in the world, hears a resounding…well, let’s just say we can’t repeat it here…from a bratty little kid. This makes Tony realize that Sal was a henchman that could never be replaced.

Family is probably the most important thing to a mafioso, and Tony sometimes struggles between his mob family and his Soprano family. When the lines get blurred for these Jersey boys, people can wind up hurt, or worse. Tony exemplifies this by giving his sister Janice a warped Christmas present: A severely beaten Russian mobster laying under a Santa’s sled display, topped with Ol’ St. Nick’s hat. He also beats up Meadow’s boyfriend Jackie for cheating on her at the Bada Bing. We admire Tony for his dedication to his family, but even the spirit of Christmas is no match for his sharpened edge.