Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special Pays Tribute to One of the Worst Christmas Movies Ever Made

For the uninitiated, 'Santa Clause Conquers the Martians' was a low-budget children's fantasy film about... well, the title gives away a good chunk of the story. Martian parents fear that their Martian children have become too formal and cerebral for their own good, as they are educated by computers. An ancient Martian sage named Chochem (Carl Don) posits that their planet's children need joy and imagination, and - having seen it on Earth's rogue TV signals - suggests they kidnap Santa. (John Call) from his home planet. Bitter Martian Voldar (Vincent Beck) and lazy Dropo (Bill McCutcheon) kidnap two children from Earth (Victor Styles and Donna Conforti) to lead their ship to the North Pole where the real Santa lives. Santa Claus will be forced to make toys for Martian children, despite the efforts of Martian saboteurs.

The film also features a robot attack. Dropo is eventually promoted to the role of Martian Santa. A well-known anecdote: one of the Martian children, Girmar (a portmanteau of "girl" and "Martian") was played by a nine-year-old Pia Zadora.

"Santa Claus conquers the Martians" is just as ridiculous as its title. It went down in history as a cinematic gaffe that, despite everything, made its way onto the television airwaves for decades. "Martians" also attracted a new generation of fans thanks to a 1991 episode of "Mystery Science Theater 3000." Very occasionally, the movie will find its way onto the midnight movie circuit around December. Kevin Bacon is therefore not an outsider. There are many who watch "Martians" every year around Christmas for yuck.