Loving or Hating Christmas: Dash & Lily and the Logic of Contemporary Christmas Fiction

Christmas fiction is often organized around a very clear opposition: characters who love Christmas versus characters who hate it. Dash & Lily places this tension at the center of its narrative and uses it to explore relationships, expectations, and the meanings associated with the holiday season. Released on Netflix, the series tells the story of two teenagers who never meet face to face but communicate through a red notebook they leave in different spots around New York City.

Lily is enthusiastic about Christmas and experiences the holidays as a ritual filled with family traditions, crafts, and collective celebrations. Dash, by contrast, is cynical and solitary, and openly expresses his rejection of everything Christmas represents. The series doesn’t rely on supernatural or magical elements, but rather on a classic romantic narrative device known as “will they or won’t they,” intensified by the fact that the protagonists don’t actually see each other until the very end.

What makes Dash & Lily particularly interesting is that, while it fits into a familiar format, it offers an implicit reflection on the meaning of Christmas today. In a context where many traditions are deeply shaped by consumption and marketing, it’s not surprising that some characters (and people) experience these dates with enthusiasm while others feel rejection. The series suggests that so-called “Christmas magic” depends less on the holiday itself and more on the possibility of connection, play, and meaningful encounters with others.

Beyond its light and romantic tone, the series works as an example of why we keep returning to this kind of story every December: because it provides a narrative space to think about relationships, emotions, and routines—even when we know that many of these traditions are relatively recent constructions. Perhaps that is where its true appeal lies.