A Mike the Meerkat Christmas (2020 film)

A Mike the Meerkat Christmas is an American comedy adventure film and the first television film in the Mike the Meerkat franchise. It is produced by Netflix and distributed by Cartoon Network Studios. It stars the returning voices of Lennon Richardson, Gabriel Combs, and Colbi Shofler.

The film was released on Netflix on December 25, 2020. It received critical acclaim for its plot, casting, performances, humor, and heart.

Plot
On Christmas Eve, Mike sets up the Christmas Tree. Bowser tries to put the Star on top, but realizes that he is too short and adds “growth potion” to his Christmas list. Mike and Harold wrap some late presents for friends, including Bowser, who promises to stay up all night and watch for Santa Claus.

Mike and Harold dose off to Christmas music as Bowser overhears some footsteps on the roof. He discovers Santa entering the room and leaving. He then notices more footsteps and discovers a new figure, who claims his name to be “Jacky Claus”, stealing the presents. Bowser knocks him out for questioning.

Jacky Claus wakes up by the fireplace, where Bowser prepares to question him. Jacky is revealed to be Teddy in disguise, who is sent on a mission to end Christmas. Bowser wakes up Mike and Harold as Teddy escapes and they chase after him on his Giant Sleigh. They jump into the sleigh as they are pulled away from Animal City. Mike finds a new sleigh and Bowser activates it. Harold disguises himself as Santa Claus so they aren’t arrested for property damage and they fly to find Teddy and find out who’s behind his evil plot.

As they fly by the Police Station, Harold’s disguise falls off and the sleigh is shot at. Mike finds Teddy in the building and they park, but are nearly arrested. Teddy bombs the Police building, badly injuring the officers. Harold calls an ambulance while Mike and Bowser chase after Teddy. They lose him in the wind and discover that he bombed the sleigh. Harold repairs the sleigh while Bowser searches for Reindeer. Mike finds an abandoned Warehouse and discovers an evil Santa Claus named Krampus, who discovers Mike and is revealed to be the cause behind Teddy’s evil plot.

Mike finds Bowser, who got the Reindeer, and tells him about Krampus and Teddy. Harold finishes fixing the sleigh as Mike tries to come up with a plan to steal the presents back and save Christmas before it’s too late. At the Warehouse, Bowser (disguised as an Elf), overhears Krampus’ plan to wipe out Christmas, which is to steal the presents and feed on the Children’s despair. Krampus discovers Bowser and rips off the costume, capturing him and hanging him near the fireplace. Mike and Harold grab the sleigh and save the presents, but don’t realize that Bowser is still in the building.

Mike and Harold are chased by Teddy and an army of elves as they try to steal the presents back. Harold defeats the elves and they hide near a building, realizing that they forgot Bowser. Krampus attacks Bowser and threatens to throw him in the fireplace. Bowser throws Coal at Krampus, which turns out to be his weakness. Bowser escapes with a bunch of coal and meets up with Mike and Harold in the snow, realizing that they need to return the presents before 3 AM, which gives them two hours to deliver the presents to everyone in Animal City.

Krampus and the Elves chase after them. Eventually, Mike and Harold deliver all the presents except one and Krampus catches them on top of the last house, which turns out to be their house. As Mike, Harold, and Bowser prepare to fight Krampus, Santa Claus arrives and punishes Krampus for ruining Christmas, sending him into a Coal pit. Santa thanks Mike and gives him a new Laptop (as Krampus broke it earlier in the film), Harold gets a TV, and Bowser gets an old present that he asked for as a child. Mike and Harold return to bed while Bowser apologizes for not believing in Santa, and he forgives him and sends him to bed.

The Next Day, Mike wakes up Harold and Bowser to tons of presents. Mike, Harold, and Bowser celebrate Christmas and donate some of their toys to the homeless. They realize the true meaning of Christmas and Bowser begins to believe in Christmas, despite not believing in it most of the film. In the End, Christmas is saved and everything goes back to normal. However, Teddy arrives and gets a bag of coal for Christmas.

Voice Cast
Additionally, Gabriel Combs portrays Santa Claus in the film, as well as doing the vocal effects for the reindeer and the elves in the film.
 * Lennon Richardson as Mike, an African Meerkat who is friends with Harold and Bowser and has to save Christmas.
 * Lennon Richardson as Harold, a St. Bernard who is friends with Mike and Bowser and has to save Christmas.
 * Gabriel Combs as Bowser, a Box Turtle who is friends with Mike and Harold and has to save Christmas.
 * Will Arnett as Krampus, Santa Claus’ arch enemy who plots to end Christmas and ruin everyone’s whole year.
 * Colbi Shofler as Teddy, the enemy of Mike who becomes allies with Krampus and plots to ruin Christmas for everyone.

Reception
The film received critical acclaim for its plot, casting, performances, humor, and heart. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 85% score, based on 585 reviews, with an average rating of 8.77/10. The website’s critical consensus reads, “Mike the Meerkat celebrates the holidays with a fun Christmas special that contains all the charm, humor, and action that the films hold.” On an A+ to F Scale, the film received a “B+”.

Release
The film was released on Netflix on December 25, 2020. It is unknown if the film will be released on Blu-Ray, DVD, or Digital platforms at this time.

Possible Sequel
During production of the film, Combs stated that there will possibly be a franchise of Mike the Meerkat holiday films, with this being the first film, and a potential sequel being a Halloween special.