Woody the Talking Christmas Tree comes out of hibernation at N.S. mall

Woody the Talking Christmas Tree, which lit up social media last year after a long-awaited return, is back in business at a major Nova Scotia mall.

Crowds of mallgoers, many of whom were families with small children, were at Dartmouth’s Mic Mac Mall Saturday to rouse the talkative conifer from its seasonal slumber.

The tree, which greets shoppers with a high-pitched voice emanating from its large, pale, robotic face, woke up after Santa Claus himself led the crowd into a spirited wake-up call.

“Well, shake my branches!” Woody exclaimed, blinking open its round, perpetually surprised-looking eyes. “Look at everyone! Hi everyone!”

Lindsay Cochrane, the marketing manager at the Mic Mac Mall, said it was an exciting day.

“We’re so happy to wake up Woody today. He’s been very sleepy, he had a really big journey from the North Pole,” she said. “He brought the magic back with him this year.”

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Woody — or at least a previous version of Woody — used to be a holiday mainstay at the mall, but it was in hibernation for 15 years before making its big comeback last year.

After seeing the response from last season, Cochrane said bringing back the talking tree was no question.

“Everyone loved him so much. We had to bring him back,” she said. “Everyone missed him so much.”

Cute or creepy?

The tree’s return last year was met with both happiness and confusion, with people taking to social media to talk about their memories of Woody or make jokes about what some believe to be its nightmare-inducing appearance.

A viral video of Woody even made an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last November, where Fallon remarked: “Some people think it’s cute while other people think it’s a little creepy.”

Those who attended Saturday’s event to check out the famous tree also got an early Christmas gift — a seedling so people can grow little Woodys of their own.

Cochrane said Woody will be at the mall this year until Dec. 23. People can see it from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.

While it may have stolen the show, Woody wasn’t the only tree at the mall Saturday.

The Nova Scotia Tree for Boston — an annual thank you to the U.S. city for sending medical personnel and supplies to Nova Scotia within hours of the Halifax Explosion in 1917 — also made a special appearance at the event, before it was slated to take part in the annual Parade of Lights.

— with files from Skye Bryden-Blom