This season on “Ted Lasso” we got a heart-warming holiday episode. But that isn’t enough. There’s a new stop-motion animated short, crafted in the style of Christmas classics like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” that just premiered on YouTube and Apple TV+ (watch it above).
The new special, dubbed “The Missing Christmas Mustache,” features the voice talent of Jason Sudeikis, Hannah Waddingham, Brendan Hunt, Jeremy Swift, Juno Temple, Brett Goldstein, Phil Dunster and Nick Mohammed, who appear as stop-motion versions of their TV show characters. (One of the best flourishes is that when Goldstein’s Roy Kent curses, a small Christmas bow appears over his mouth.)
The short concerns what happens when Ted loses his trademark mustache, an event that sends him on a soul-searching journey to discover the true meaning of Christmas. And wouldn’t you know it, he does discover the true meaning of Christmas.
There are also some fun inside jokes/Easter eggs for fans of the Emmy-winning series (which wrapped up its second season earlier this year), like when Jeremy Swift calls after Nick Mohammed and says, “Never change,” a hat-tip to Nate’s heel turn this season.
And while it probably won’t totally scratch your “Ted Lasso” itch, this animated short is nicely animated and very funny, a little Christmas treat to tide us over until season 3 drops sometime next year.