Released with little fanfare and modest box office, The Nightmare Before Christmas gradually attained a significant audience of millennial children through home video and, by the early years of the 21st century, was widely seen as a seasonal favorite of the same stature as A Christmas Story (1983) or Miracle On 34th Street (1947). These days, the film is a holiday staple whose merchandise clogs department store and pharmacy shelves right alongside comparable items featuring Snoopy or The Grinch.
Ryan is joined by Cheryl and Toby for a discussion of this yuletide perennial. Thematic topics for this one include the movie's oft-debated metaphors regarding cultural appropriation, the NAACP's complaints about Oogie Boogie being a minstrel show stereotype, Jack Skellington's ties to both Disney princesses and the midlife crisis, and how the socio-political hierarchy in Halloween Town is supposed to function (Cheryl argues that pumpkins are an invasive species in this universe).
