A Miser Brothers’ Christmas 2008

Santa Claus (Mickey Rooney) is at the helm of a bustling workshop as Christmas looms, with the elves producing toys and breaking into a chorus of the festive number It’s Christmas Time!. He learns from his assistant Bob (Peter Oldring) that output is up 18% from last year, and he’s shown a gleaming new Super Sleigh by the factory’s historically youngest mechanic elf, Tinsel (Susan Roman).

Across town, the Miser Brothers—Heat Miser (George S. Irving) and Snow Miser (Juan Chioran)—gather for a family reunion overseen by Mother Nature (Patricia Hamilton). The two brothers spar over their reach and influence on the planet, a dispute Mother Nature steps in to calm. She also warns that the North Wind (Brad Adamson) could end up taking Santa’s duties if anything goes wrong, fueling the North Wind’s own craving for power. He belts out a defiant line in song:

No Santa, Just Me!

With this motive in mind, he orders two minions to target Santa’s Super-Sleigh. Santa attempts to test the new craft, but a malfunction injures his back, forcing him to lie low while the conflict between Heat and Snow escalates. In the fallout, Mrs. Claus (Catherine Disher) and, by extension, Mother Nature, come to suspect the two brothers of foul play. Dr. Noel (voiced by Susan Roman) estimates that Santa will need two to three weeks of rest before he’s back on his feet, pushing Christmas well into the post-holiday period.

To compensate, Mother Nature assigns the Miser Brothers to run the toy factory. On their first day, production is down about 22%, according to Bob. Snow’s minions chill the toys into icy versions, while Heat’s minions burn them into coal-like copies. The brothers and their followers trade duets that revisit the familiar “Snow Miser” and “Heat Miser” numbers, igniting a side-by-side clash that grinds the assembly line to a halt.

In a bid to coax cooperation, Mrs. Claus recounts a long history of sibling sniping that begins in infancy, emphasizing the value of family ties with a stirring performance of Brothers Should Be Friends. The message sinks in, and the brothers gradually start collaborating again, each taking turns singing about the other as the factory hums back to life.

But the North Wind’s plan to shatter the fragile truce surfaces once more. He schemes to keep Santa on the sidelines so he can seize control, forcing Santa to deliver the toys under rough conditions. On Christmas Eve, the North Wind’s minions secretly attach heating and cooling units to the sleigh, arming it with planetary-scale climate control and reigniting new tensions between the Miser Brothers. Santa must pilot the sabotaged sleigh in a race against time.

Just before departure, Tinsel discovers the sabotage, and Heat, Snow, and a crew of young reindeer rally to pull Santa free from a vortex conjured by the North Wind. The ordeal earns North Wind a royal punishment from Mother Nature, who consigns him to household chores at her home for thousands of years. In the end, the Miser Brothers earn a place on the nice list, help deliver the presents for Santa, and even exchange gifts with one another, closing the year with a newfound sense of partnership.