161 Thoughts I had While Watching Olive, the Other Reindeer

So this year, I received the greatest gift of all from my best friend Marisa — a new animated Christmas movie to watch! While we were chatting one day this week, she asked if I had ever seen the Christmas special Olive, the Other Reindeer. Having no idea what this special was, I looked it up on YouTube. Since my post from two years ago about 81 thoughts I had while watching the Grinch movie got so many views these past 2 years (gotta get them clicks, y’all!), I figured I’d share all of my thoughts with you on my first watchthrough!

Follow along here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s54sLlRNmHc

Reading the YouTube comments as the credits are rolling…one of the comments says “wait this wasn’t a fever dream?” LOL. Oh boy, now I’m excited.
Another comment talks about how this story happens because a flea misheard something? Hmm…nope, not getting it.
Wait, Olive doesn’t look like a reindeer at all…is she…a dog? The “other” reindeer…oh, okay, she’s a dog who saves Christmas…got it.
One of the rat’s voices sounds like someone from the Rugrats, maybe Betty? Will look it up later and report back…
It’s official, this Christmas special has everything – reindeer in the title, a singing dog, and a penguin who sells fake Rolexes..It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…
Wait, the penguin was smuggling in nudie mags to the zoo? Did I hear that correctly?
The voice of the penguin sounds familiar…is that Steve Buschemi?
Nope, it’s not. Ignore me.
Okay, now I’m confused. In this world, the anthropomorphized animals are supposed to still do “normal” animal things? While all while buying Christmas trees and selling fake Rolex’s? Who has the time?!
I’ll say what we’re all thinking — Tim is a real jerkhead…he yells at Olive for living her best damn life then says “Christmas is cancelled.” Fun fact: this is a red flag. Run from these relationships, friends.
AH NO! Why does the flea have a human face?! Why?!?! Fido is nightmare fuel.
Poor Olive, I’m sorry Tim is a jerk. Make Santa shove him down the chimney or something.
Well damn, that radio is a fossil…
LOL a pitch that only dogs can hear. Hoping the rest of the movie lives up to the humor and confusing precedents it’s setting.
Legitimately expected Santa to just say “ho ho ho” and nothing else.
“ALL OF the other reindeer” oh I get it, now they think he said “Olive.”
Nope, just Fido. So far, Fido is my least favorite character. Not a fan of the flea-man. But Tim also sucks. I’m starting a petition for Olive to run away and live with Santa, who’s with me?
“Barking like an idiot” poor dogs…really getting a bad rap in this one.
“Tim would rather have you be a reindeer than do dog stuff.” Who cares what Tim wants? Yeet that jerk down a well.
Fine, Fido, I’ll give it to you — great hiding spot — sitting in a sleigh ornament. Game recognize game.
OH SNAP! Now we have a Tim vs Fido situation. I’m beginning to wonder if the commenter on the video means that Fido is mishearing Tim here? I don’t think he is, I think Fido is pitting Olive against Tim…hmmmm, nefarious…
A…trout…fondue…?
Literally resisting the urge to go back and watch this scene 300 times to make sure I’m right about Fido FLAT OUT LYING about not hearing Tim.
Poor Olive, taking this HUGE weight on her shoulders. Honestly, bring back the penguin with the nudie mags. Everyone else is butts. See what I did there? 😉
So this was released in 1999. Will Olive call Fido on…a land line?
Okay, DEFINITELY bring back the penguin. He smuggled files into the zoo to help the monkeys get free. Calling it now: Olive is the hero, Martini the penguin is the unlikely best friend who just wants to help the little guy, and Fido is the killer.
This mailman is confusing and giving me the creeps…first he doesn’t like Olive…she claims he used to chase and kick her…?!?! Literally, WHO is on team Olive at this point besides me? And he doesn’t like Christmas? Maybe it’s because they’re overworked and understaffed over the holidays?
Oh great, he’s going to sing. I guess we’ll find out…
*In Olaf voice* In summeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeer!
Oh damn, it’s a banger.
“Christmas! Bah-buggin-hum!” Okay, so did this go platinum? Haven’t heard this good a non-Disney villain song since “How Bad Can I Be?” by Ed Helms playing the Onceler in the Lorax.
He thinks Christmas cards are bad? Woof, I hope he retires before the age of the internet comes and he has to start delivering *gasp* packages.
Oooooh killing trees for consumerism. “Christmas! Bah-buggin-hum” walked so “How Bad Can I Be?” could run.
And an anatomy lesson? This song has everything.
Actually, you know what this song almost sounds like? “It’s Tough to Be a God” from Road to El Dorado. Although nothing can touch that movie, no comparison here. Can’t do Miguel and Tulio like that.
“You can’t do anything!” Okay, look…I am SICK of the Olive hate, when she has done nothing except be forced to buy a fake Rolex, get berated for not barking, get lied to by a flea, and apparently kicked by a postal worker. Olive, you deserve better.
Okay, so I had to Google what “hand cancel” meant. Very clever. For anyone else unaware: “Hand-canceling is when each stamp on your envelope is marked (or “canceled”) using a hand stamp instead of by a machine.” Savage roast.
I had to rewind and pause the video literally 3 times to read the sign for the bus station. Hate that font. “Maine Hound,” I think?
MY BOY MARTINI IS BACK.
“Riding or chasing?” The attendant asks. Okay, so I am beyond royally confused by this world. Humans readily accept that animals can talk and have emotions yet they’re kept in zoos and are still expected to do typical animal behaviors? I am at a loss here.
Also, he allows Olive entry when she says she’s “riding” as opposed to “chasing.” What would he do differently if she were “chasing.” And would she even have to enter the terminal if she were just chasing the bus? So many things deserve an explanation.
OKAY SO THAT VOICE IS DEFINITELY PHIL DEVIL AND I WILL NOT HEAR OTHERWISE.
Google was not helpful on that one. But I’m right, right?
C’mon Olive, let Martini go with you. I know you’re mad he’s not voiced by Steve Buschemi, but let him have his growth arc, too!
THE MAILMAN! Sir, if you are not singing, get off my screen.
Wait, can mailpeople take people…or dogs…into custody? Sounds…not like a thing.
Martini, my fave penguin, staying true to form here.
Even the other people in the bus station know that the mailman can’t take people into custody. Get involved, bystanders!
“I’ll root for you on court TV!” Yep, definitely the average bystander response.
Will Martini be moved? Will he set aside his own motives and journey to help Olive? He has to, or else I’ll need to make new predictions for the roles everyone’s playing…
Mission Impossible theme! You know it’s going down now.
Taking the mailman down with pens…hmmmm…not as smooth as I would expect from Martini, but he used what he had on him. Plus, he ended on a boss line. I’ll rank that takedown 7/10. Let’s pump up these action scenes…what kind of action adventure movie is this, anyway??
Wait, back up…so now Olive misheard Santa, too? I thought she heard him correctly and was only going because Fido convinced her she had to leave and was being replaced. I was trying to make a point here, but now I’m just mad at Fido all over again.
Props to the empathetic bus driver. Even though the shape of your face looks JACKED UP. I pledge my allegiance to you, sir, even if no one else will.
Oh wait, me and Olive will apparently…”One nation, Richard Stands…”
Oh lol those aren’t even the words leading up to that part of the pledge. Wow.
Okay, so she’s accepted the theory that because she isn’t like other dogs, she’s obviously a reindeer. Airtight logic. If she was actually convinced of this at the beginning, either I missed it or they didn’t spend enough time on it. But it’s my blog so I’m never the problem. One nation, Buffalo Sauce Everywhere.
Rich Stands, literally the only person/animal to believe in Olive without lying to her or trying to arrest her, is the true MVP.
Martini needs to write a book on business, I’ve decided.
Hmmmm…40 degree temperatures. I wonder where this was made because that must be celsius, right? I can’t tell since most of the creatures are animals and the humans are dressed for all different weather! But wasn’t there snow on the ground at the zoo? But that wouldn’t be around even in 40 degree Fahrenheit weather…now I’m second guessing everything! This isn’t an action adventure movie…it’s a psychological thriller…I can’t wait to see what the posters looked like…
Olive is confusing me a bit. Here, she has unshakable faith and confidence, when in her dog house, and while out in the world, she just seemed like a scared, timid dog? This character development is confusing…
Martini is just spitting truth. “Years of practice…plus jet packs”…going into every job interview from now on telling them this is how I do anything.
“Sometimes, in life, you just know exactly what to do.” Olive, you and I have very different views on life. Please come and tell me what to do all of the time.
Dick Stands, coming in with more of the blind confidence. Not exactly sure that this is what we needed, Dick.
Damn, the driving physics in this show don’t make any sense to me either…you can drive a bus down a hill with no breaks and play bumper cars on the highway? Terrifying.
Okay, I take back everything I said about Martini taking him down with pens. Martini is the king of stationary takedowns. Plus, the mail car spinning out of control? 9/10. Would’ve been 10/10 had the car exploded.
DAMN STRAIGHT YOU WERE TOO HARD ON HER, TIM! NO ONE FEELS SORRY FOR YOU.
Lmao at Martini sounding like every hun that’s ever lived. But also, I want to hear why he claims it wasn’t a pyramid scheme so soooooooooo bad…
Prediction: since Olive is not like other dogs, she won’t want bones and peanut butter, but prefers carrots like reindeer enjoy.
OOOOOHHHH nope. Olive, my friend, just be a dog trying to save Christmas. You’re not a reindeer, you know you’re not a reindeer. Own it.
Also, bones come with dressing?
Also also, someone give me credit for not making a single dirty joke while saying “bone.”

Whoops, nevermind.
Deep fried candy canes…hmmmm…not sure how I feel about that one. But I am intrigued…
I TOLD YOU REINDEER FOOD WOULD COME UP. So all of my predictions are right and Fido is the killer. Should I stop watching now or…?
Santa Claus scheduling press conferences like a freaking celebrity or head of state. Do you think he needs a publicist? Hold on, I have to update the ol’ resume…
That’s it, Martini is on board. Olive’s plan can’t fail now. Also his one liners are LEGENDARY.
Honestly, props to the mailman. This guy is dedicated.
Did he say “poisoned mistletoe?” I swear, I hear worse than Fido. And why couldn’t we have gotten that whole song? I feel cheated.
Is the mailman forging children’s letters to Santa?! GASP! Or is it something he wrote as a child because something happened?! The plot thickens.
Okay, so I’m embarrassed to say that I had to look “Deus ex machina” up but here we are: “Deus ex machina is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence.” I smell another Martini takedown out of nowhere.
One of the best points in the show so far. This mailman may be willing to break the rules and cross borders to stop Olive, but he can’t stop her from opening her own mail. Could it be…his Achilles Heel?!
Okay, so Martini may not have been there, but I still count that as orchestrated by him in spirit.
Oh wow, throw out all of the subcontext, we’re just actively calling out plot devices now.
“Look it up!” In an…encyclopedia…? On Altavista?
Wait, they missed the bus? Didn’t they get there in a bus? With a bus driver? I pledge allegiance to Dick Stands?!

Oh, I guess that’s the end of his route?
“You could always sell watches.” Martini is my new career coach.
A bar with Christmas-themed ruffians? NOW this movie has everything.
“She can fly like a bird…the kind of birds that fly, I mean.” Martini, the original wing man.
And now they’re throwing her like a football. Will the Olive abuse ever end?
SORRY, ARTURO?!?! If reindeer have nothing else, they always have the AUDACITY.
Okay, I’m over the abuse…when do they break into “I’ve Got a Dream”?
Are we about to get a speech from our hero…?
That’s right, Olive! Make them reflect on their actions! Vladimir collects ceramic unicorns…
So far, this movie should be called: “How to Accept Fake BS Apologies from Your Abusers.” Looking forward to the sequel: “Olive Burns the Whole Damn Place to the Ground.”
With about half of the movie left, I legitimately wonder what direction this all will take? This is feeling like we’re closing in on the end?
Another musical number, of course!
90s grunge. Who’d’ve guessed?
Oh yup, it’s “I’ve Got a Dream.” Called it!
I don’t trust that bunny, either.
More clever names, YAAAAASSSSS!
Prediction: someone later calls Martini a puffin and he’s thrown into a fit of rage where he destroys everything. Apparently, I woke up this morning and chose violence…
Poor Olive, sad lil baby. Forget about Tim, Olive, he sucks…Martini is much better.
Oh look! His car freshener is the same one Olive gave to the mice at the beginning!
Seriously, Martini and his office supplies are going places.
I’m sorry, Martini…you wonder if there’s a…casino…?
Wait, I recognize that reporter’s voice, too…maybe also Rugrats? But I’m thinking Animaniacs, too…
Martini the agent now believes this is going to work. Faith fully restored.
Wow, Santa’s casino fortress is highly guarded by an alarmed fence and an elf in a cardboard box. I could not make this stuff up.
Oh snap! Martini has an idea!
Give the elf a faulty watch, then have him call Martini who apparently had the number for the payphone directly in front of the elf’s guard shack and talked to him from it…he’ll never know! Brilliant!
Martini just threw the phone up and it magically landed on the cradle. I am officially convinced that Martini can do everything. Could Martini be…Santa himself…?
Hmmmmmmm…I’m beginning to think that this plan was hinged on the guard elf being a complete dingus…
I’d know that mail truck anywhere! Quick Martini, fool him, too!
Oh good, the mailman lost the lipstick…that was not a good shade on him.
Mrs. Claus’ voice was definitely on some Nickelodeon shows.
Okay, so this is the first time I’m noticing Blitzen’s leg sticking up in his stall…what’s wrong with him, exactly…?
“We always get the crazies on Christmas Eve.” Yeah, you and Walmart. I don’t make the rules.
Olive, coming in quick with the airtight logic.
This is proof that confidence can get you anywhere. BRB going to the airport, stealing a pilot’s uniform and telling them I can fly. “Can you afford not to find out?” WELL? CAN YOU?!
To Olive, the glory, to Martini, the press. See? It all worked out!
Typical. A woman is about to save Christmas, and all the media can talk about is whether or not she’s housebroken.
Holding my breath here…she’s clearly a dog, and they seemed sure the sleigh wouldn’t fly with only 7 reindeer…will the sleigh fly?!
Her little legs are going so much faster than the others! More commentary on how women have to work harder than men to achieve the same goals? Hmmmmm…this movie’s deep.
C’mon Olive! You can do it!
Aaaaaand I’m breathing again. Whew…go Olive!
I still don’t trust that bunny.
Fido’s singing makes me want to saw my ears off. Bring back the ruffians!
That mailman JUST WON’T QUIT. Although his idea to steal the toys is similar to Martini’s original plan…I wonder if they team up? Is he really a changed penguin? Wait, we haven’t heard Martini sing yet!
Peck him in the eyes, Martini!
I find it very interesting that now the sleigh is flying, we’re not seeing Olive at all anymore…hmmmm…
Knew it! Mailman had a backstory where he was “slighted by Santa.” All of the best villains have one.
I’ll tell you one thing, Fred Claus would say that the mailman should’ve gotten a toy train. Where’s Vince Vaughn when you need him?!
So upon Googling “lichen,” it looks like it’s a moss? And there’s one called a “reindeer lichen”? Wow, this movie is teaching me a lot…it’s not a psychological thriller…it’s a documentary!
No, the implications of the mailman having Santa’s toys, so his sack must’ve had something else did not dawn on me until now. But this is a bit reminiscent of Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas where the Grinch is giving everyone jury duty and eviction notices in their mail. This movie really paved the way for some modern-day classics.
Okay, so now we’re going to pretend it’s some big revelation that the postman is the one who did this? He’s been after her the whole time, Santa knows he sent a bunch of fake letters, and Santa’s toy sack is full of mail…did we really need Olive’s nose for this one?
Now I see, though, that it’s what sets Olive apart as a dog that is going to save Christmas. You see that, kids? You don’t need to be housebroken to save Christmas. That’s the moral of the story.
It makes sense that the movie wasn’t close to over before…there was no final mailman battle when Olive evaded him before. We need that 10/10 Martini take down!
I have to give it to the mailman though…he’s pretty recklessly brave for continuing to drive while Santa is legitimately trying to land his sleigh on the mail truck.
So far, spectacular fight scene. Can’t wait to see what Martini has in store…
Martini…just made him pass out with a toy?! That’s IT?! He was just fighting with a dog in the door while driving with his foot and Santa’s sleigh hovering above and a TOY makes the mailman pass out? 3/10 takedown. The most unrealistic movie I’ve ever seen.
I would worry about my boy Martini taped up in the back of a crashed mail truck, but king penguin has got this.
Yup, a penguin driving a car. Makes about as much sense as anything else.
Oooooh, so Amway is the “not technically a pyramid scheme” he was talking about before. Thanks for clearing that up for me! I wasn’t going to sleep tonight.
Big Ben is a Rolexxx, amazing!
Ooooh, what did the pope get? A phillies cap? Simply because of the “P”? Or is the pope a Phillies phan?
And the hunchback got a backscratcher. Classic.
The monkeys escaped! Congrats and merry Christmas, monkeys!
Wow, you know Martini has turned a corner when he decides to help the mailman out delivering junk mail on Christmas Eve! What a character arc!
Arctic fog?! And there’s no Rudolph?! Does Olive get us out of this predicament, too?
Oh yes she doooooooes! Taking them to the only place in the world baking gingerbread cookies…makes perfect sense!
“Comet, the other dog”!!!! Amazing. So humble.
Just take the compliment, Olive! No need to get all sappy.
I love the practical elf. Hey Santa, maybe put him out in the guard shack? He’ll probably protect the place better than the guy doing it now.
Wait, more confusion…so the zoo animals are there to entertain the public of their own volition? Except for the monkeys who were trapped there and escaped? Can anyone explain this to me?!
Sequel idea: the mailman penguin in “A Wish for Wings that Work.” Instant classic. Oh Dolores… [Editor’s Note: you keep your filthy, late-90’s, CG abomination FAR AWAY from my Bloom County!!!]
Yeah, Tim! You ungrateful swine! Your dog saved Christmas! Maybe now you can be less of a jerkface!
Nope, we can’t forgive you, sorry. Go die in a hole.
The mailman becomes a penguin and the penguin becomes a mailman…this isn’t a documentary, it’s Freaky Friday!
Final thoughts: no one should’ve let Drew Barrymore sing. It was a terrible idea. Also, Fido’s the killer, I’ve decided, and no one can tell me otherwise.

Well, that was adorable. I really enjoyed this new-to-me Christmas classic and recording my thoughts for you all! I hope you had a good time following along with me and reading all of my ramblings!

What did you think? Had you seen this Christmas special before this year?