Review: ‘Christmas in Rockefeller Center’: Holiday entertainment only a network exec could love

Santa Claus giveth, and Santa Claus taketh away.

After watching ABC’s surprisingly festive “CMA Country Christmas” on Monday night, I wondered if this might be the year when each of the big television networks finally figures out how to do a holiday special that doesn’t feel labored or corny or like a mere excuse for corporate cross-promotion.

Then I caught “Christmas in Rockefeller Center.”

NBC’s annual tree-lighting ceremony, broadcast live Wednesday from a very rainy New York City, made all the old mistakes. But, honestly, I would’ve forgiven most of them if the show hadn’t also featured Pentatonix.

This five-person a cappella group emerged a few years ago from NBC’s “The Sing-Off” — synergy! — and in the beginning, it was harmless enough. Recently, though, Pentatonix has become a scourge: You can’t turn on TV now without being assaulted by one of the group’s increasingly goofy performances.

Here it tried to turn itself into the Soweto Gospel Choir for a vaguely South African riff on “O Come All Ye Faithful,” which was exactly as embarrassing as it sounds.

Talent bookers of America: Please stop the madness.

What else brought more pain than pleasure? How about the sexless duet between Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, a real-life couple giving “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” all the passion of a public-radio weather report? Tori Kelly whiffed too in “O Holy Night,” presented for some reason as a turgid alternative-rock tune.

Then there was Neil Diamond, who looked like he’d been made to sing at gunpoint.

Two other old-timers fared better, though they were clearly there at the behest of Comcast’s paymasters. Singing a selection from her NBC movie “Christmas of Many Colors,” Dolly Parton was the picture of elegance as she sat on a chair and accompanied herself simply on a sparkly acoustic guitar.

And Tony Bennett, soon to be honored in an NBC special pegged to his 90th birthday, found room for himself in “The Christmas Song,” still taking liberties with a deeply familiar melody.

But the warm feelings those two engendered were quickly squandered. Having repeatedly teased a grand finale with Alec Baldwin and Kate McKinnon — a.k.a. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton from “Saturday Night Live” — Wednesday’s production lamely passed on the opportunity for some sharp political comedy and just had the actors push a button to switch on the tree’s lights.

I guess the war on the Christmas special is back on.

Twitter: @mikaelwood