Hey all! Merry Christmas everyone! Today on this lovely holiday I have taken it upon myself to review an anime that has something to do with Christmas, so here it is! Story/Plot - 6 - It feels like your typical shoujo story, and surprisingly, despite Christmas being in the title, the story doesn't really have anything to do with Christmas, as it doesn't use it as the foundation or main driving force for its narrative but rather something extra for the plotline. It's more so centered around romance, like your typical shoujo. However, what's interesting here is that even if it is themed as being aromance story, it actually doesn't really dive deeply into it nor does it bide in it. I mean, Fujioka and Seiko become an established couple before the halfway point, so the romance can't go anywhere from there at that point. It feels more like the romance theme and the love triangle is used as a device to explore Mizuki's character, which I find clever, which brings me to the next section.
Characters - 6 - This is where things get pretty good, but it's also where my thoughts are rather conflicted. First of all, the character development was very well done and neatly balanced despite the short time span. The use of characterization through clever... how should I say this? Symbolism? Well, anyways, this is something very noteworthy of this anime. Mizuki is often characterized and represented through things such as snow, or should I say, winter; or in this anime's case, perhaps even Christmas. This is where my main gripes begin though. Mizuki, in my opinion, is an awfully unlikable character. Whatever sympathy for her that the story tried to make the audience feel throughout this OVA, especially nearing the end, fell flat for me. Mizuki's reasoning for her actions and her personality is explained, and she is aware of how unlikable she is, however that doesn't make her character more likeable. She's almost a complete brat up until the end. Other than that, the other characters are nothing to write home about. Fujioka has a nice semi-detailed personality so that's nice as well.
Visuals - 5 - Very standard shoujo-styled art from its era. The animation is also average and sometimes lacking in some parts. However, good animation isn't needed for a story such as this one, for it can convey and execute everything it needs to without high quality animation.
Audio - 7 - The voice acting was pretty good! Especially Mizuki's voice actress, she did a really good job! The music set the tone for the scenes pretty well, and I found it to be good.

Overall: I think this OVA is good. It's lacking in a few areas but pretty well done in others. If you're looking for something Christmas-themed to watch that isn't overly preachy like the massive amount of mediocre to jarringly bad specials or films released in the west, this is something you may or may not consider watching. I personally recommend it if you're tired of that crap and just want to watch something that feels like it had actual effort put into it. O score: 6/10 | S score: 6/10 | Final Score: 6/10 (woah O_O wtf).