Our take
A low-key Christmas episode carried by one big piece of news. Most of the comedy comes from the borrowed tree and the dubious bargain flights, while the banana-spider subplot is the weakest strand, as the A.V. Club agreed. What lands is the announcement itself: a chimney mishap followed by a real, uncertain family moment, and Haley's storyline gives the season its spine.
What happens
Haley and Dylan plan to tell the family on Christmas Eve that Haley is pregnant, partly because Phil and Claire leave the next day on a ten-day holiday. The right moment never comes. Jay and Gloria's house is overrun with spiders that arrived in a package from Gloria's relatives in Colombia, so Jay, Gloria and Joe have to move out and Claire suddenly has to host Christmas. Her mood is not helped when she learns Phil has booked their flights through a dubious discount website, with long layovers and seats in the very back of the plane. Phil, meanwhile, has once again borrowed the family Christmas tree to dress a house he is showing, and Claire ends up dragging a tree and a sack of presents down the street. Alex, the only one who knows the secret, turns grey with the strain of keeping it. Finally Dylan, dressed as Santa, gets stuck in the chimney, and Haley tells everyone. Phil is delighted and Claire comes round, though both wonder what lies ahead.
Can the kids watch it?
Best for children of 12 and up: the BBFC gave this episode a 12, mostly for jokes and references aimed at adults.