Decider’s Sitcom Advent Calendar Day 11: ‘The Office’ Employees Endure The Yankee Swap From Hell

The Christmas season is here and that means one major thing for TV devotees: re-watching all of your favorite festive sitcom episodes! In celebration of the season and the tradition of TV comedies getting all holly jolly for one episode a year, Decider presents our very first Sitcom Advent Calendar. Every day leading up to Christmas, Decider’s resident sitcom elf Brett White will share one holiday-themed sitcom episode for you to stream to make your days merry and bright.

---

Decider’s Sitcom Advent Calendar Day 11

The Office, “Christmas Party”

Season 2, Episode 10
Original Airdate: December 6, 2005
Written By: Michael Schur
Directed By: Charles McDougall

Office Christmas parties are such a thing–they’re such a thing that they even made a major motion picture about them! So of course The Office regularly reveled in all the awkward workplace holiday traditions, even though they straight up nailed it with their first Christmas episode. When Michael Scott turns Secret Santa into Yankee Swap, the Dunder Mifflin employees have to fight for their gifts that were picked out just for them.

Christmas Trope Count: 12 (All About Christmas, Decorating Indoors, Terrible Gift, Perfect Gift, Santa’s In The Cast, Christmas Party, Tree Disaster, Mistletoe Joke, Secret Santa, Carols)

This episode is just overflowing with gifts that are both terrible and perfect, depending on who gets them. Angela’s creepy “babies playing jazz” poster is only a perfect gift if she gets it, although everyone agrees that a video iPod (oh, how 2005 this is!) is a perfect–albeit totally out of place–present.

Christmas Carol Count: 2 (“We Wish You A Merry Christmas,” “Christmas In Hollis”)

A Second Helping: “Secret Santa” (Season 6, Episode 13) 

Day 1: Full House, “A Very Tanner Christmas”
Day 2: How I Met Your Mother, “How Lily Stole Christmas”
Day 3: The Golden Girls, “‘Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas”
Day 4: Black-ish, “Black Santa/White Christmas”
Day 5: Step By Step, “Christmas Story”
Day 6: Home Improvement, “Yule Better Watch Out”
Day 7: Fresh Off the Boat, “The Real Santa”
Day 8: Cheers, “Christmas Cheers”
Day 9: Family Matters, “Have Yourself A Merry Winslow Christmas”
Day 10: The Odd Couple, “Scrooge Gets An Oscar”

Watch The Office's "Christmas Party" on Netflix