Unfortunately, due to a programming error, the jolly robotic saint soon turned into a mad murderer when his standards were set too high.
After pursuing the parrot to the top of a tall building, Fry is saved from plunging to his death by Leela.
Unfortunately, Fry and Leela's safety is short-lived, as sundown finally comes and the robotic Santa Claus makes his appearance and attacks the two friends, who seek solace in their loneliness and begin to fall in love with each other.
Fry and Leela take refuge in the Planet Express building after being saved by Bender and his homeless robot friends, but Santa breaks in through the chimney and claims that they "all have been very naughty", apart from Dr. Zoidberg, whom he gifts a pogo stick.
Thanks to some quick thinking by Zoidberg, who uses the pogo stick to cut the wires to the Christmas lights, which then electrocutes Santa, the crew manage to force him back into the chimney, where an explosion sends him and his mechanical reindeer tumbling into the stratosphere.
The plot for this episode was one of the first storylines that Matt Groening and David X. Cohen came up with aside from the series' pilot.
When they made a second episode featuring Robot Santa it was delayed for nearly a year before being broadcast in a later time slot.
According to Ken Keeler, co-executive producer of the series, they could have chosen any number but chose to include an interesting one instead.