REVIEW: 'Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol' Accomplishes The Mission To Lift The Holiday Spirit
- Moriba Forde
- 1h
- 4 min read
It's the most wonderful time of the year to witness the return of Prep & Landing. The greatest Christmas elves the world has ever known mean serious business when the "Snowball Protocol" is activated to prove that Christmas classics are not dead.
In 2009, Prep & Landing became a Christmas household name as a 3D animated special that introduced us to elves Lanny & Wayne. For two more years, they invited our families to spend Christmas with them to watch their sequels, Operation: Secret Santa, and Naughty vs Nice. Now they're back after a long hiatus to give audiences the Holiday hijinks they've been missing.
Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol follows Wayne & Lanny picking up the pieces after a holiday mission goes off the rails. The mess they created has Wayne thinking that he is in trouble with Santa Claus, leading him to create an even bigger mess by accidentally exposing more of their misfortunes. The ordeal is hilarious as it sounds, especially with Dave Foley and Derek Richardson voicing Wayne and Lanny. Joining them are Sarah Chalke, returning as Maggie, along with newcomers Manny Jacinto as Renato, Dulcé Sloan as Janice, Danny Pudi as Chef Geoff, and Christopher Swindle as the Big Guy himself, Santa.
Christmas As Usual
Christmas often loses its magic as we get older. The holiday becomes more commercialized while the world grows more cynical. Still, when a great Christmas special comes on, there is a magical force that pauses everything wrong, allowing us to escape into a world where innocence meets imagination. Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol proves to be capable of accomplishing that magic. The animation style, voice performances, storytelling, and nostalgia work in harmony to create a priceless Christmas experience.
Dave Foley and Derek Richardson return to their roles as Wayne and Lanny in a way akin to brothers finally returning home after being away overseas for a long time. They may have been gone for years, but the love they share for their characters and this lore remains tethered to solid foundations, allowing their organic chemistry, charisma, and wit to shine equally. They are not the only returning actors who shine; Sarah Chalke ensures it. She portrays Maggie with a maternal energy that parallels her character's type A personality, which makes her an interesting tritagonist and the perfect one to keep Wayne and Lanny in line.
Prep & Landing's newcomers Manny Jacinto, Dulcé Sloan, Danny Pudi, and Christopher Swindle fit into this world naturally, voicing Renato, Jenice, Cheff Geoff, and Santa Claus, respectively. Jacinto, Sloan, and Pudi are magnetic and hilarious as they play this diverse set of characters; however, Christopher Swindle stands above them as the Big Guy. He gives Santa a surprising amount of range and depth for a 22-minute special. The way Santa transitions from being an imposing boss to the warm and loving Father Christmas is a masterclass in subverting expectations, culminating in a cathartic experience that embodies the spirit of Christmas.
The Only Time Change Is Not Good
It's a shame to see the Prep & Landing specials limited to roughly twenty minutes. Then again, that may be my greed talking because none of them needs any more time to deliver an emotional and entertaining experience. Despite its arrival after fourteen long years, The Snowball Protocol leaves Prep & Landing's identity intact, thanks to the original creators Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers-Skelton returning to their roles as executive producers.
They seem to adhere to the saying: "if it's not broke, don't fix it." In this day and age, where nearly every other film/series is a reboot or revival, it is common to see beloved franchises compromise their identities in an attempt to appeal to new demographics, only to end up alienating their established fan bases. Deters and Wermers-Skelton avoid making this mistake by putting their trust in the world they have already created. Prep & Landing's first three specials showcased visuals on par with Disney's theatrical features, so anything less than that caliber would be disrespectful to the animators. Instead of taking unnecessary risks, the duo prioritizes telling a new story to make Christmas lovers smile, laugh, cry, and enjoy doing it all over again with the ones they love. The results speak for themselves.
Prep & Landing For The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
At the core of The Snowball Protocol is not only a Christmas story, but a tale that makes family and friendship synonymous. Wayne and Lanny transition from being colleagues to friends, but ultimately, they are brothers, whether they know it or not. Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers may not be brothers by blood, but are family nonetheless, along with Derek Richardson, Sarah Chalke, Christopher Swindle, and the rest of the cast and crew. Together, they produce the labor of their love: Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol.
Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol premieres on Disney Channel on November 27th, then on Disney+ the following day, and on Freeform on December 13th.
Rating: ★★★★★
About Prep & Landing: The Snowball Protocol
Premiere Date:Â November 27, 2025
Producers: Kevin Deters, Stevie Wermers, Colleen Evanson, Melissa Kurtz, Carson Loveday, Shea Wageman
Writers: Kevin Deters, Colleen Evanson, Hilary Helding, Stevie Wermers, Chris Williams
Director: Shane Zalvin
Production:Â Disney Television Animation, ICON Creative Studio
Distribution:Â Disney Channel, Disney+, Freeform, ABC
Cast: Derek Richardson, Dave Foley, Sarah Chalke, Christopher Swindle, Dulcé Sloan, Danny Pudi, Manny Jacinto
Synopsis: Christmas elves Lanny and Wayne panic when their holiday missions go awry, leaving Wayne thinking he’s in BIG trouble with Santa and accidentally revealing other merry mishaps.