The Santa Clauses Season 1 Episode 5 Review: Chapter Five: Across the Yule-Verse

The Santa Clauses Season 1 Episode 5, “Chapter Five: Across the Yule-Verse,” perfectly sums up the strengths and flaws of the series. 

What works, works incredibly well. Unfortunately, some stories still feel rushed, and characters are not given enough time in the spotlight. There is also still a lot of confusion about exactly how we are supposed to feel about the newest Santa. 

For starters, the return of the best Jewish Christmas Elf comes not a moment too soon. David Krumholtz reprising his role as Bernard is exactly what this series needs.

His lore is both hilarious and poignant. The fact that he has given up an immortal life as an elf to marry a human woman, Dame Vanessa Redgrave, no less, just makes him all the more endearing.

Underneath Bernard’s sarcastic exterior is someone who would give up immortality for true love. He’s showing signs of age, and yet this is what makes him even more lovable.

It’s too bad The Santa Clauses has waited this long to re-introduce a character that was always the heart and soul of this story. He could have done so much to elevate the stories that the series is trying to tell. 

One of the best parts of this penultimate episode is the exploration of the Yule-verse. We’ve already met La Befana, which is the Italian representation this writer wants and needs. Here, Papai Noel, Krampus, and Saint Nicholas of Myra himself are incorporated into the story.

This is another storyline that could be used far more. The idea of exploring various Christmas traditions is a smart one. Further, exploring the evolution of Santa Claus over time is interesting enough. This would have made a great premise for a series of its own. 

The lore of The Santa Clauses is also further explored. This is an interesting development, the fact that Scott Calvin is the first human Santa Claus, and was chosen to navigate his own time. 

This development kind of makes the earlier part of this season all the more confusing. There is room for everyone around the holiday season. Why not lean into this messaging, and explore how this time of year has captivated generations?

It’s also a curious storyline to continue to develop Scott Calvin as a mostly terrible father. The Santa Clauses has solidified that Scott is more concerned with Christmas’ supposed cancellation than with spending the holiday season with his family.

While it’s effective to show Scott as a wildly imperfect human being, the show seems to have a hard time deciding where this character’s arc should go. It took most of the season for Scott to get to the point where he was willing to move from the North Pole and pass the Santa torch.

Now, all of that work is undone as Scott is told that he isn’t meant to retire yet. What is the point of that previous journey, where Scott realizes he needs to spend more time with his family?

He has no trouble dropping his family and returning to the North Pole to save Christmas.

It really is a shame that Scott’s family is used as little more than a prop in the series. It’s too bad that there’s only one episode left to give Carol, Cal, and Sandra any character development at all. 

In other character development news, it’s still evident that the show is struggling with Simon. Is he meant to be a villain? An anti-hero? The one true Santa the franchise has waited for? The last one seems unlikely, but it’s a possibility nevertheless.

Particularly in this episode, he’s actually shown to be incredibly sympathetic. The way he navigates his wife’s illness and impending death makes it really difficult to totally cheer for his demise as Santa.

While it’s always cathartic to see tech bros face their downfall, Simon’s impending doom feels empty. If the last episode of the season has him finding the true meaning of the holiday season, that would be fine, except again, there’s hardly been enough time to show this in a satisfactory way.

While the penultimate episode of The Santa Clauses introduced some of the best characters and possible storylines, it all feels like it’s too little too late. It’s all the more disappointing, knowing what this show could have been.

The first four episodes feel like a lot of wasted potential. 

At this point in the series, any possible resolution feels pretty empty. Either Scott becomes Santa again, and everything he’s been through will have been for nothing, or Simon takes the reigns while being set up as at least villain-adjacent.

With one episode left, nostalgia alone might not be enough to bring this story to a satisfying close. 

What did you think of this episode of The Santa Clauses? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Santa Clauses airs Wednesdays on Disney+.

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