Watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer last night, I was struck by just how much of a dick all the adults and authority figures are. Rudolph's abusive dad. The gym coach (who doesn't even need an adjective as I'm sure we all understand that gym coaches are by definition bastards. Hermy's asshole boss. And of course, the king tool of the piece, Santa. (note: Yukon Cornelius, aka Kevin Gillespie, clearly doesn't count as an authority figure.. he's a loner, Dottie, a rebel...) Y'know, I understand that they were stuck with the plot that the song lyrics gave them. And obviously they were trying to support the misfit lifestyle and teach a lesson about how it's okay to be different. But I really think it's a problem when your story requires Santa Claus to be a complete asshole.