Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo

"Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo" is episode 110 of Comedy Central's series South Park which originally aired on December 17, 1997.

Plot
This classic Christmas-themed episode of South Park opens as the school children rehearse for their Christmas play. They are performing a Christian Nativity, and Kyle's mother, Sheila Brovloski, is angered by the play because Kyle, a Jew, plays the role of Joseph (which would have technically been historically accurate). She demands that religious elements be taken out of the public school Christmas pageant. Kyle suggests the non-religious Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo as a replacement, but is dismissed.

Mrs. Brovloski's demands trigger uproar in the town, and so it is decided that anything offensive to anyone will be removed from the Christmas celebrations, including Santa Claus, wreaths, trees, stars, lights, and candy canes.

Meanwhile, Kyle feels low for being "a lonely Jew on Christmas," and is embarrassed by his mother's actions. He turns to Mr. Hankey for solace, who, it turns out, is an actual piece of talking poo. Kyle tries to bring Mr. Hankey to the masses, but no one believes him. After flinging Mr. Hankey (who looks like a normal piece of poo to everyone else) at Cartman and slipping more poo into Mr. Mackey's coffee, Mackey declares Kyle a "clinically depressed fecalphiliac on Prozac" and has him committed.

Ultimately, the school Christmas pageant is stripped of all semblance of Christmas, as it is all deemed offensive by someone. Instead, the children present a minimalist song and dance created by Philip Glass. The parents, horrified by the terrible pageant, begin blaming one another for destroying Christmas, and a fight breaks out. Finally, Mr. Hankey reveals himself to everyone, restoring the spirit of Christmas. The town releases Kyle and apologizes to him, and they all watch Mr. Hankey fly away with Santa Claus.

Trivia

 * This was the first full-length Christmas-themed South Park episode.
 * This is the first episode in which Kenny doesn't die. When the words "The End" appear before the credits, Kenny cheers in relief.
 * Three popular South Park songs debuted in this episode: "Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo", "Kyle's Mom is a Stupid Bitch", and "The Lonely Jew on Christmas."
 * First appearances of Mr. Mackey and Priest Maxi.
 * After the credits run, we see a short scene where Jesus sings Happy Birthday to himself, over a cake.
 * The original Christmas episode was supposed to be Damien, with Jesus and Satan boxing each other.
 * Sheila Brovloski (Kyle's mother) complains about Kyle playing Joseph of Arimathea. In fact, Mary's husband was Joseph of Nazareth.