Christmas is a little extra special this year.

“Jeff Dunham’s Very Special Christmas Special” premiered Sunday night on Comedy Central. Dunham, ventriloquist extraordinaire, trotted out his puppets for an hour-and-a-half of Christmas-themed stand up.

Though not as funny as his other specials, “Arguing With Myself” and “Spark of Insanity,” “Christmas Special” manages to showcase his penchant for puppetry.

Dunham’s comedy is at its best when he sticks to his straight man role, letting his motley crew of puppets draw out the laughs. For this special, Dunham is joined by crotchety, old Walter; Achmed the Dead Terrorist; Bubba J, the redneck; Peanut, a hyperactive, purple ape-type thing; and Jose Jalapeno on a Stick, which is exactly what he sounds like.

Dunham mixes things up a bit by adding music. Brian Haner, YouTube’s “Guitar Guy,” plays as Achmed sings “Jingle Bombs,” his take on “Jingle Bells.” The other time music is used, when Dunham and Peanut read “The Night Before Christmas,” is a funnier bit because it involves the two going back and forth.

Despite Dunham’s jokes being a little on the lame side, there is no denying he is a talented ventriloquist and performer. There are a few times when he argues with his puppets and you can’t help but say, “Wow.” Though not always a riot, he is at least able to keep the audience interested with the extreme personalities of his puppets.

For fans of Dunham, “Christmas Special” is a must see. For casual fans, there are enough jokes to get you through it, but barely. And for people interested in watching a ventriloquist perform stand up, I suggest watching one of his earlier sets first.

Editor’s Note: This is the first part of a continuous series of coverage of TV Christmas Specials. Come back next Friday to see a review of Stephen Colbert’s “A Colbert Christmas” before it airs.