21 Years Ago Today, King of the Hill’s Most Tragic Christmas Episode Debuted With a Shocking Twist

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Twenty-one years ago today, King of the Hill broadcast its last Christmas episode, and it took a surprisingly somber approach to the holiday. While King of the Hill recently returned with a new season on Hulu, that season didn’t have a chance to feature any holiday cheer. Throughout its original run, the show often celebrated Christmas, but the final Christmas episode was particularly heartbreaking.

Today marks 21 years since King of the Hill broadcast its last Christmas episode, “Ms. Wakefield.” The episode centers around the Hill family unexpectedly hosting an elderly woman who wishes to spend her final days at their home. It’s a surprisingly emotional and memorable story, unfolding in a way that’s both chaotic and touching – which explains why it still resonates with viewers after all this time.

Miss Wakefield Debuted 21 Years Ago Today

In the ninth season of King of the Hill, the episode “Ms. Wakefield” follows the Hill family as they get ready for their yearly Christmas party, including a Secret Santa gift exchange (where Bill prides himself on giving great presents). Their preparations are interrupted by an unexpected visit from Ms. Wakefield, an elderly woman who grew up in their house and simply wants to revisit happy childhood memories. However, it quickly becomes clear that she has ulterior motives, and they’re quite troubling.

After years of loss, including her sister and the rest of her family, Ms. Wakefield expressed a desire to spend her final days in her childhood home – a place where she found happiness. Understandably, Hank and Peggy were upset by this request. She repeatedly tried to return to the house, even attempting to sneak in, but the Hills kept asking her to leave, leading to a frustrating back-and-forth.

Eventually, Ms. Wakefield causes a public disturbance, leading the neighbors to blame Hank for his unkindness towards her. She begs him to let her pass away peacefully, even attempting to do so at their Christmas party. However, noticing the discomfort she’s causing, she changes her mind. Hank then understands she was simply very lonely. He invites her to join them for Christmas every year, and she’s never seen or mentioned again, not even in the recent Hulu revival, alongside other characters who disappeared from the show.

What Happens to Ms. Wakefield?

The episode was particularly heartbreaking, featuring Ms. Wakefield directly asking Hank to allow her to pass away, and her isolation was especially poignant during the holiday season. Before this, the episode was quite chaotic, with Hank and the others attempting to thwart Ms. Wakefield’s mischievous behavior – Bobby was even scared of her! Dale, in his own way, tried to convince her to die at his house so he could open a haunted bed and breakfast. Despite all the unusual circumstances, the core of the story was a lonely, elderly woman who had accepted her fate. It’s sad that her story is never revisited after this episode.

One thing King of the Hill often did was introduce interesting characters who only appeared once. This episode is similar, but it’s especially sad because we never find out what happens to the elderly woman featured in it. It’s probably safe to assume she passed away during the show’s time jump to later seasons, but since King of the Hill never made another Christmas episode, we don’t get any closure, which makes the story even more depressing.

There’s this one character, and honestly, she just felt like a Christmas character. It’s a little sad because the show stopped doing Christmas episodes towards the end of its run on Fox, so we never saw her again. What really gets me is that Hank and the guys promised she was always welcome, but they never actually followed up with her. It’s a surprisingly poignant detail, and with the revival happening now, it hits differently – it feels a little too real, like how life sometimes goes.

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2025-12-19 22:15