My Favorite Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Balloons

 When the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade began in 1927, called a Christmas parade then, one of the features was a big Felix the Cat balloon. In the old days, the balloons would be released into the air at the end of the parade. Since the 80's the balloons have taken the form we know today, featuring all kinds of popular characters. Awhile back I mentioned a few reasons I love the parade and of course there was no way I could cover every balloon. And while I still can't mention them all, here are the ten best that I love to see every year.

And we'll overlook the disaster these balloons have caused over the years, let's just look back at the good stuff.

Underdog

What is it about this one that makes it so iconic? It seems like when any show wants to mention the balloon's it's either Woody or this one. Even though Underdog is hardly a massively popular characters. And yet shows from Friends to Will & Grace bring it up.

Top 8 Everybody Loves Raymond Thanksgiving Episodes

Every year as Thanksgiving rolls around I do a special sitcom article. Either a review of a single Thanksgiving episode, or an overview on an entire run of Thanksgiving episodes from a specific series. This year I decided to focus on Everybody Loves Raymond since they had a Thanksgiving show almost every year. Just like my Friends article last year, since I already reviewed the series there is no need for an in depth look at these episodes. This is a ranking. ELR Thanksgiving episodes were usually special, but which episode was better?

#8.”No Thanks”

This is actually a classic episode, when Debra tries to one up Marie by showing that her little insults don’t bother her. Leading to one of the best Marie/Debra scenes in the series. So if it’s so classic why so high? Because it’s a Thanksgiving episode for maybe three minutes.

Five Thanksgiving Episodes I DO NOT Like

Well, they can’t all be gems. Yeah I’ve talked about great Thanksgiving episodes, but of course there are plenty of stupid one’s. I already mentioned a couple when I discussed Roseanne, Frasier, and Home Improvement but are there any more? Sure.

Here are five Thanksgiving episodes which I just found lame. And of course this is all opinion, if you like these episodes than that’s cool.







Family Ties, “No Nukes Is Good Nukes”

I know people will disagree with me on this one so let’s get it out of the way. Oh season one Family Ties, why did you have to be so lame? This is a sensitive one but it rubs me the wrong way. It’s Family Ties at the Keaton’s so what are Steven and Elyse planning to do? They’re planning to protest at an anti-nuclear weapons rally. In 1982. Ok ok the Cold War was alive and well and the two are doing what they have every right to do, but why on Thanksgiving? Course they get arrested, just Will and Uncle Phil on “Fresh Prince”. Thought at least this was for a cause, a lot the “A Different World” episode with a similar setup but there the cause was topical and the arrests a pure accident. Of course the family shows up at the prison with Thanksgiving dinner, like on that Christmas episode of Step by Step. Hmmm. Maybe that’s my real issue with this episode, not the politics but the fact the plot is so damn cliched!

Top 10 Friends Thanksgiving Episodes

Normally for Thanksgiving I like to go over sitcom Thanksgiving episodes. Except for the two years I did nothing that is. In the past I've either reviewed one episode for a series, or an overview of an entire series worth of episodes. But so far I haven't talked about one sitcom that was almost synonymous with Thanksgiving. Which show?

Yep, Friends did a memorable and clever Thanksgiving episode ever year. Well, nearly every year. And I decided it was finally time to decide which was the best, and the worst. From the looks of it I am not the first to do this. By any means. Oh well, every list is different so there's that. Here's my list anyway. Here are my top 10 Friends Thanksgiving episodes, from worst to best.

#10."The One With the List" (Season 2)

When I said they did great Thanksgiving episodes every year, meet the exception. Season two gave us no real Thanksgiving episode unless you count the B story here which I really don't. But I needed 10 episodes, so....

A Look at Home Improvement Thanksgiving Episodes .

Three years in a row now I have celebrated Thanksgiving with a special review of a Thanksgiving episode or episodes. After doing The Cosby Show, Roseanne, and Frasier (and with my look at Everybody Loves Raymond coming next year) the last few years, the next logical choice was an easy one.

 

This series didn’t do a Thanksgiving every single yar, but when they did they really did a nice job with it. Well, for the most part. As I looked over the episodes I realized that looking them over gives a nice overview of how this show was so good and then jumped the shark towards the end. Let me explain what I mean:



“A Frozen Moment” (1993)

This is sort of a Christmas episode also, but only because the B story involves Tim going overboard with the family Christmas card. Which of course results in crazy costumes and Tim causing the snow machine to break the window of the house. All in all, tame stuff. And the Thanksgiving parts are really nice, you feel like you’re watching Thanksgiving dinner at a real families house. Yeah I’m sure there aren’t to many families who literally go around the table talking about what they’re thankful for, but it is a TV show.

Analytical Episode Review:Frasier, “A Lilith Thanksgiving”

Wow, I haven’t done one of these since my Super Bowl article. Yikes. It is hard to pick episodes that I hope people will be familiar with. Since it’s Thanksgiving I decided to single out a Thanksgiving episode. I covered all the Roseanne episodes two years ago and did a Cosby episode last year. Not to mention listing ten episodes I loved in a very early article. In fact it seems I’ve mostly talked about episodes I like. Are there Thanksgiving episodes that drive me crazy? Oh my yes, the one I wanted to discuss today comes from a little show called:

 

There were two Thanksgiving episodes involving Lilith. One called “The Apparent Trap” was pretty good. This one….ugh. Let’s discuss it.

“A Lilith Thanksgiving”

Aired Nov 26,1996

Ten Reasons I Love The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

There are just some traditions that I have had my whole life, and probably always will. As I have hit the age of 40, a lot of things I grew up with are gone. Bob Hope Specials? Gone. New Year’s Rockin Eve with Dick Clark? Gone. Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon? Gone. But there is one that I am pretty sure isn’t going anywhere soon.

 

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is an institution, and I could do a whole aricle on the history of this wonderful event. How it started and the issues it’s had, good and bad.  But that’s boring and can be found elsewhere. Instead, here are ten things I love about the parade which still airs every Thanksgiving Day on NBC.






10.The Broadway Shows

This part probably bothers people, and I’ll be honest I can find it boring too, but in order to kill an hour before the parade can get to Herald Square NBC shows off some Broadway shows that are playing. And it’s cool seeing these since I don’t follow this stuff. I still remember Bebe Neuwrith singing “All That Jazz” long before I saw the movie Chicago. Nice. I also saw Kristen Chenowith perform a song from Wicked, which while I have not seen it is one I want to.

Analytical Episode Review:The Cosby Show, “Cliff’s Wet Adventure”

Today I am going to take a look at one of my favorite Thanksgiving episodes. Sitcoms have given us a LOT of Thanksgiving episodes, some are flat out classics (see WKRP and Cheers). I figured that since I did a whole bunch of Halloween episodes, and will be doing my top 8 Christmas episodes starting in a week or two, that it was only fitting to look at least one Thanksgiving show. Which did I choose? I decided to discuss an episode of a series I have discussed a lot this year:

Cliff’s Wet Adventure

This episode first aired on Nov 16, 1989. Yes my friends this episode is 25 years old as of Monday! Wow!!!!

Special Look at Roseanne Thanksgiving Episodes

I wanted to do something special for Thanksgiving, but wasn't sure what to talk about. But then I remembered this show, and I have a lot to say about these episodes. I decided that the only way to do it correctly is as a whole article. So today I am taking a look at all the Thanksgiving episodes of Roseanne. And be warned, some ranting is coming!

Roseanne was of course the classic 90's sitcom which portrayed an average blue collar family just trying to get by. It was funny but more importantly, it was real. Well as real as it got back then anyway. This show is more famous for its Halloween shows, but there were Thanksgiving episodes which ranged from personal favorites to gut wrenching awful. Let's take a look:

"We Gather Together"

The first and one of my favorite Thanksgiving episodes. It does what Roseanne did best, portray regular struggles of an average family. The show is filled with story lines competing for attention, and yet the show manages to find sufficient time for them all. We have Dan's mother with a new boyfriend while his father flirts with Crystal, Jackie stressed out from her mother and announcing she is becoming a cop, and Roseanne trying to find the best way to tell her parents she has booked a nice hotel room for them. All the characters feel real (this was an early episode, before Bev became a cartoon character) and the situations entirely familiar. It feels like we are peeking in on some family's Thanksgiving dinner, and I love it.

Top 5 Thanksgiving Special’s I Watch Every Year

This is a two part article, the second being about my favorite Thanksgiving sitcom episodes. Here, I want to talk about specials. Unlike Christmas and Halloween, there really aren’t that many Thanksgiving specials around. I guess when you think about it, Thanksgiving isn’t that exciting a holiday. There are no costumes or scary decoration. There are no presents, no stress and aggravation trying to find the perfect gift. No legendary characters to make dozens of stories about. I mean, how many times can you tell the story of the 1^st Thanksgiving? However, over the years there are a few specials which have made it onto TV and I wanted to share them with you. It would not be Thanksgiving without these shows.

#5. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.

Top 10 Sitcom Thanksgiving Episodes

Thanksgiving is a great subject for sitcom episodes. When a show involves a family, or a close group of friends, then it seems only natural to do a show about the characters giving thanks. It’s an opportunity to get the cast together for one episode and have some fun. Over the years almost every sitcom has done at least one Thanksgiving themed show.

I wanted to talk about the sitcom episodes that did a Thanksgiving show the best. Not all of them do it well. I just watched the Happy Days episode, and it was so lame! Full House’s episode was so corny, and other shows will set an episode on Thanksgiving but the story has little to do with the holiday. Of course WKRP in Cincinnati had the most infamous episode, involving a supermarket being bombed by live turkeys. It doesn’t make this list because I never really saw it.

I was going to do a typical top 5, but there were just so much I wanted to cover it was impossible so I expanded to a top 10, the first one I ever did.

#10.Seinfeld, “The Mom and Pop Store”. I know what you’re thinking. After making a big deal about how sitcoms do great Thanksgiving episodes because it’s a chance for characters to come together and give thanks, the first show I put on here was the antithesis of all that. However, this show is a pretty cute episode. One subplot had Jerry wondering if he was invited to a party at Tim Whatley’s house which overlooked where the Balloon’s for Macy’s parade are blown up. Another subplot involved Mr.Pitt’s desire to hold the rope under Woody Woodpecker. This is by no means a traditional Thanksgiving show, but then again this is by no means a traditional sitcom.