Thanksgiving is a time for family, food, and fun. Apparently, it’s also a time for animated shows to exploit annual holiday traditions. Whether it’s television aimed at kids or adult animation, they all seem to be pretty interested in presenting us with variations on the classic scene of a family around a table eating turkey.

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Often, these special editions are pretty great. We give thanks to 10 of the best animated thanksgiving specials in the list below.

"A Chipmunk Celebration" - Alvin And The Chipmunks

This Alvin And The Chipmunks special is aimed at kids, so it isn’t some sort of artistic piece of high culture. What it is, however, is a nice celebration of Thanksgiving from some characters who are much less annoying in their cartoon form than in the 3D animation film series.

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Way back in 1994, this episode saw Alvin, Simon, and Theodore sign up to take part in a town play. However, they all get a little stressed when their roles are swapped around. Everything is fixed by the final scene, and we get to see the Chipmunks having Thanksgiving dinner with Dave.

"Happy Hank’s Giving" - King Of The Hill

In the 1999 episode, "Happy Hank’s Giving," (good pun, eh?) the Hills are preparing to celebrate Thanksgiving. Given that this is King Of The Hill, it’s a lot less family-friendly than Alvin And The Chipmunks, but that’s not to say it isn’t just as good. In the episode, Bill asks to spend Thanksgiving with the Hills, but they’re flying to Montana. He has to spend the holiday alone (eating a ready meal prepared in a roasting pan) until flight delays mean a group Thanksgiving dinner is spent at the airport. It isn’t the traditional meal this time though, as they tuck into propane-heated pizza.

"A Winnie The Pooh Thanksgiving" - Winnie The Pooh

"A Winnie The Pooh Thanksgiving" is a 1998 special that earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Children’s Program. In the delightful hundred acre wood, the group of friends gathers to have Thanksgiving dinner, with each character bringing something interesting, including Pooh’s trademark honey, Tigger’s ice cream, and Eeyore’s thistles.

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When Rabbit tells them Thanksgiving is a time for special items, Pooh kickstarts a mission to find these so-called 'special' items. Everyone knows Winnie The Pooh is directed at children, but it’s still a lovely watch.

"A Brown Thanksgiving" - The Cleveland Show

While The Cleveland Show didn’t quite have the longevity of its Family Guy counterpart and has since been canceled, allowing the Brown family to return to Quahog, it did have a few great episodes. "A Brown Thanksgiving" was a chance for Cleveland to celebrate Thanksgiving with his new family but a fair few things take unexpected turns. Cleveland vomits on the dinner table, Federline’s car is stolen by homeless men, and it is revealed that Donna’s Uncle Kevin had a sex change to provide a strong female role model for her. It's a weird one, but strangely heart-warming.

"Turkey In A Can" - Bob’s Burgers

bobs burgers

The long-running animated sitcom Bob’s Burgers is no stranger to Thanksgiving specials. In fact, in their 9 seasons, there have been 8 episodes centered on thanksgiving. The best of the bunch comes from season 4.

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"Turkey In A Can" introduces a genuinely interesting and cleverly explored mystery about a turkey in a toilet alongside the classic one-liners the show has become known for. The pseudo-CSI approach this episode takes is unique, with Bob and Louise both investigating the case of who put the turkey in the toilet in their own ways.

"Bugs Bunny’s Thanksgiving Diet" - Looney Tunes

With Looney Tunes encompassing so many characters, shows, spin-offs, and whatever else you can think of, it’s hard to narrow it down to one Thanksgiving special. However, the 1979 special "Bugs Bunny’s Thanksgiving Diet" allowed Bugs Bunny to take center stage and host a wide range of cartoons. This included Bugs’ own Rabbit Every Monday, the classic Birds Anonymous and Canned Freud. Each provided a great example of classic animation. Something often overlooked in the Looney Tunes canon is that the legendary Mel Blanc provided the voices of almost every character that appears. Impressive.

"Kung Pao Turkey" - American Dad!

With a guest appearance from Mariah Carey playing the character of Laura, the episode "Kung Pao Turkey" sees Stan forced to host Francine’s parents for Thanksgiving. Instead of the football he was looking forward to watching, Stan decides to spend the day dressing up as things that might scare his in-laws into leaving.

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When Stan eventually leaves his family dinner and is turned away from a soup kitchen for not being homeless, it is Laura and Marvin who provide the lesson for this episode, giving Stan a new perspective on family as he returns.

"Thanksgiving" - Family Guy

Now in its 18th season, Family Guy seems to be showing no signs of slowing down. Part of that, like everything else on this list, comes from their ability to latch on to cultural staples and use them to their advantage. Episode 6 of season 10, simply titled "Thanksgiving," follows the Griffins and their neighbors, who are all having Thanksgiving dinner. Unexpectedly, Kevin (Bonnie and Joe’s son) has returned from Iraq. Despite telling his family he had been in a coma following an exploding turkey incident the year before, it turns out he had deserted the army. Joe quickly arrests his son, but thanks to some intervention from the spirit of Thanksgiving, the two end up reconciling.

"A History Channel Thanksgiving" - South Park

I suppose it’s pretty hard for a show like South Park to produce a heartfelt, emotionally raw episode to pay tribute to the wholesome family-central holiday of thanksgiving. This is the show that likes to draw Muhammed, remember.

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"A History Channel Thanksgiving" ends with one of their classic moral learnings, but along the way, we’re treated to a few less-than-festive moments: Natalie Portman opens her ‘wormhole’, Kyle, Stan, and Kenny are held at gunpoint by an angry Native American, and Cartman panics about a supposed stuffing shortage.

"Homer vs. Dignity" - The Simpsons

Arguably the greatest show of all time is currently airing its 31st season during its 30th year of production. As such, there are a fair few festive specials of The Simpsons. Their most recent thanksgiving episode collided with their famous Treehouse Of Horror franchise for the first time, but arguably the best thanksgiving episode they’ve ever produced made the holiday take a back seat. After becoming Mr. Burns’ ‘prank monkey’, Homer is supposed to throw fish guts from the Thanksgiving Day parade float while dressed as Santa. He doesn’t do it, but we do still get to see Burns throw fish guts directly into the often problematic eye of Lenny.

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