‘Smiling Friends’ Christmas Special Air Times Revealed on Adult Swim

Smiling Friends is celebrating the holidays.

Air times have been revealed for the two Christmas specials of the Adult Swim animated sitcom.

 Per TV Insider, Season 1’s “Charlie Dies and Doesn’t Come Back”and Season 2’s “Pim Finally Turns Green” actually aired on Friday, but worry not. Both episodes will air again on Christmas Day, albeit a bit early. In “Charlie Dies and Doesn’t Come Back,” airing at 4:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, Pim and Charlie argue while fetching a Christmas tree for the office on Christmas Eve, and a tree falls on Charlie, killing him.

He awakens in Hell, which has frozen over as Satan is suffering from a bout of depression. Charlie offers to make Satan smile on the condition that he sends him back to Earth if he succeeds, which he ultimately does, but Satan tries to back out of their deal, though God reveals it was all a test. He sends Charlie back to Earth during his funeral. The episode serves as Gilbert Gottfried’s final acting performance before his death in April 2022, having voiced God. There is also a puppet version that aired on April Fool’s Day in 2024.

Airing at 4:45 a.m. ET on Christmas, Season 2’s “Pim Finally Turns Green” involves the Friends building a snowman out of garbage, naming it Rotten, who comes to life after Pim attaches a radioactive daffodil to its head. After Pim decides to teach him about the pleasures of life, Rotten wants to go to the beach, but Pim denies him, so he suffers an existential crisis after learning about the concept of death. Charlie enlists Bill Nye to teach him that death is natural. Eventually, the Friends go to the beach, and Pim puts Rotten in a cooler, but he melts when another beachgoer knocks it over.

The title and description for the episode are intentionally false, as the official description reads, “After eating a mysterious artifact found at an ancient burial ground, Pim suddenly and mysteriously turns bright green to everyone’s dismay.” The episode acts as Season 2’s finale.

Created by Zach Hadel and Michael Cusack, Smiling Friends premiered in 2022 after airing an unannounced pilot episode on April Fool’s Day 2020. The series, now in its third season, revolves around the surreal misadventures of a small charity and its four employees dedicated to spreading happiness. Cusack and Hadel provide the voices alongside Marc M.