NBC's Christmas programming block felt too corporate

The Hollywood Reporter

NBC's two-hour Wednesday block of Christmas in Rockefeller Center and A Legendary Christmas with John and Chrissy "had all the warmth of a fixed rictus," says Robyn Bahr. Christmas in Rockefeller Center, in particular, was a "monotonous stream of advertisements interrupted by awkward hosting, wan celebrity Christmas carols, cloying inspirational segments and cringey NBC corporate plugs repeating contiguously until someone flipped a switch to bedazzle a 72-foot Norway spruce," says Bahr. Meanwhile, A Legendary Christmas didn't work. "I like that this special predominantly features people of color, and the stars' heart is apparent, but none of the post-modern setup nourishes their talents or gives their natural chemistry opportunity to bloom," says Bahr.