Frozen as a 1970s Rankin/Bass Stop-Motion Special: What If?

Puppets, a banjo-strumming narrator and a snowman who never stops smiling.

First, who were Rankin/Bass?

REAL: Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass made the holiday specials many families still watch every year: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964), Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970) and The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974). They called their puppet stop-motion "Animagic." REAL: much of the puppet animation was done in Japan by Tadahito Mochinaga's studio.

Their specials had a signature recipe: a famous singer narrating, catchy songs, stiff but charming puppets and a misfit who saves the day. REAL: Burl Ives narrated Rudolph as Sam the Snowman. Fred Astaire narrated Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town as a mailman.

So: what if Rankin/Bass made Frozen in 1975?

Elsa becomes a mysterious Snow Queen

Glowing eyes, icy robes and a calm, mysterious smile. Her powers aren't a secret she's afraid of. They're an ancient prophecy. Instead of "Let It Go," she sings a slow, whispery waltz, and a blizzard swirls across the kingdom.

Anna becomes an earnest puppet

Big glass eyes that never blink. A mouth that's always a little behind the words. Jerky, bouncy steps. Her catchphrase, "Love will fix everything!", is said with total confidence, usually right into the camera.

Kristoff becomes the narrator

Of course he does. Every Rankin/Bass special needs a singing narrator. Kristoff wanders the snowy hills with a banjo, singing a melancholy ballad about how winter is beautiful and cruel.

Bonus: Sven is replaced by Whiffle, a talking owl who only speaks in rhymes.

Olaf becomes a felt puppet with a stitched-on smile

Button eyes. Slow, careful speech. And that smile that never, ever moves. He's not exactly funny. He just stands there. Smiling.

Hans becomes a classic villain

No twist. He's bad from the start, with a curly mustache and a castle on a volcano. His big number features a chorus of dancing goblins. In the finale, he drops Anna through a trapdoor and cackles. (She's fine. She lands in a snowbank.)

The ending: bittersweet, Rankin/Bass style

Elsa vanishes into the mountains, believing she can't be cured. Anna becomes queen and searches for her every winter. Kristoff walks off into the snow, still singing. In the last shot, the spring sun comes out, and Olaf slowly melts. Still smiling.

It would air every December for 50 years.

What the original nails

Frozen's big twist is that "true love" is between sisters, and that Elsa's fear, not her power, is the real danger. "Let It Go" works because it's the moment she stops hiding.

What our version breaks

Rankin/Bass made Elsa's powers a prophecy, not a feeling, so she never has to face her fear. And Hans being obviously evil removes the surprise that taught kids to look past a charming smile. Our version is cozy and spooky, but it loses the two ideas that made Frozen a phenomenon.

The lesson

A special's charm comes from its style. A story's power comes from its surprises. Rankin/Bass is a perfect style, but you can't use it to tell a twist that depends on fooling the audience.

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