TV MOOOOM! PHINEAS AND FERB ARE BEING DISCUSSED IN THIS THREAD!

[The Spectacular Professor]

[font="Comic Sans MS"]I feel like a complete idiot not having started this thread earlier, so here it is. At long last, we have a [b]Phineas and Ferb[/b] thread, only about two or three years late.

So I suppose I should explain the show, right? Here we go.

Imagine, if you will, a show about a bipedal platypus who is a secret agent, something like a cross between James Bond and Indiana Jones, but a monotreme. Anyway, this platypus is engaged in an eternal struggle with the evil Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, a hilariously incompetent mad scientist whose evil schemes tend to revolve around ridding himself of petty irritations. Sounds cool, right?

Now take all that and condense it. You now have the SUBplot of [b]Phineas and Ferb[/b].

The A-plot of every episode revolves around the titular characters, two stepbrothers aged "less than fifteen", as they try to make the most of every day of Summer. This usually involves building some kind of enormous and elaborate contraption in order to perform a certain task or taking over some kind of professional operation and rigging it to be more fun. Throughout all this, they are continually hounded by their well-meaning yet extremely neurotic older sister, Candace, as she attempts to "bust" them by snitching about these escapades to their mother. Typically, Candace's efforts are accidentally thwarted by the antics of Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Perry, the aforementioned secret agent platypus and the boy's pet.

But that's not really the appeal of the show. The series thrives on its quirky sense of humor, along with some very clever pop culture references and some hilarious bouts of subtext that should definitely keep the parents of the show's demographic just as entertained as the kids themselves. All in all, it's the best thing on the Disney Channel right now.

Oh, and the network mandates at least one song per episode, which has managed to result in some of the catchiest tunes in an animated program since [b]Animaniacs[/b] back in the 90's.

So anyway, discuss this awesome show. DO IT.[/font]

[Lilt]

[b]I have to say, the mention of the Animaniacs got me interested in this show. (Also, a recommendation from a good friend.)

Still, even with that recommendation I haven't gotten around to watching it yet.

If I'm more of a Nick toon fan, would I still like this show? I'm not up to date on the Disney cartoons. Darkwing Duck is still one of my favorites though.

Oh and here's the big important question. Does the platypus have a name?

I'm loooking forward to watching this soon.[/b] Edited August 7, 2010 by Lilt

[Nony]

[quote name='Lilt' date='07 August 2010 - 12:32 AM' timestamp='1281166361' post='699009']
[b]Oh and here's the big important question. Does the platypus have a name?[/b]
[/quote]

[quote name='NeedMoarRope' date='07 August 2010 - 12:12 AM' timestamp='1281165159' post='699008']
[font="Comic Sans MS"]Typically, Candace's efforts are accidentally thwarted by the antics of Dr. Doofenshmirtz and [b]Perry, the aforementioned secret agent platypus[/b] and the boy's pet.[/font]
[/quote]

There's yer answer. :V

Anyway, yeah, this show. I like it. I need to watch it more often (btw, when IS the show on these days?). I remember the getting the band back together episode was a lot of fun; I even showed my mom the "Fabulous" song and she loved it. lol Edited August 7, 2010 by Miss Anonymous

[The Tentacle]

The playtpus and mad scientist immediately bring [b]Danger Mouse[/b] to mind. 

[chibi-master]

It's about time, Ace.

This has got to be one of the most terrific shows I've seen in my 15 years of life. I actually had watched a few episodes of this series and liked it, but after hearing Ace rant about it in the Padded Room Party, I decided to go out of my way to watch it more often. I was not disappointed. The characters break the fourth wall and do so with style and panache. Endless wit from the characters and clever plots have this show making it into my list of Top 5 Greatest Cartoons. The art style is clean and simple, cute actually. I have to say, though, that the subplot is my favorite part of the show. Speaking of which, the show does a great job of tying the subplot and A-plot together without any mess! I'm very impressed every time I see this show, and I will continue watching with glee. *dons her Agent P shirt*

"Aren't you boys a bit young to be doing this?"
"Yes. Yes, we are." Edited August 7, 2010 by chibi-master

[Lilt]

[quote name='Miss Anonymous' date='07 August 2010 - 11:34 AM' timestamp='1281173671' post='699015']
There's yer answer. :V

Anyway, yeah, this show. I like it. I need to watch it more often (btw, when IS the show on these days?). I remember the getting the band back together episode was a lot of fun; I even showed my mom the "Fabulous" song and she loved it. lol
[/quote]

[b]Thanks Anonymiss. :V

My reading skills were sucking that day.

I'm going to have to youtube the songs then. I'll start off with the Fabulous one.[/b]

[quote name='chibi-master' date='07 August 2010 - 06:36 PM' timestamp='1281198972' post='699032']
The characters break the fourth wall and do so with style and panache.
[/quote]

[b]Now I have to watch it. I like shows that break the fourth wall, unless it's done terribly like in a lot of shows I've seen.

But if they fail at it, I guess it wouldn't be breaking the fourth wall then? I guess they just damage it and don't pay.[/b] Edited August 7, 2010 by Lilt

[The Spectacular Professor]

[quote name='Lilt' date='07 August 2010 - 12:31 PM' timestamp='1281209478' post='699040']
[b]Now I have to watch it. I like shows that break the fourth wall, unless it's done terribly like in a lot of shows I've seen.[/b]
[/quote]
[center][media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2-QB-dIoEU#t=01m10s[/media][/center]

[font="Comic Sans MS"]Here's the best example of fourth-wall-breakery the show has produced thus far, if you want a preview. (Skip to 1:10 if it doesn't do it for you).[/font] Edited August 7, 2010 by NeedMoarRope

[Lilt]

[b]So that's from the one hour special?

And wow, actually I just saw that one on TV. I didn't catch the whole thing, but what I saw I liked.

I laughed so hard when the Caramelldansen. Here's an example of Caramelldansen in case someone isn't familiar with it. (I really liked how Phineas and Ferb did it though.) The music is great in this show!

EDIT: I found the actual Caramelldansen scene![/b]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgEbs4vu4_w[/media] Edited August 8, 2010 by Lilt

[chibi-master]

I finally got the chance to watch the hour long special and I was VERY pleased. I really like the voice actors and actresses, and I think Isabella's did a great job with her song in Paris. The caramelldansen part was, of course, adorable.

[Lilt]

[b]Okay, the bad news is, they only seem to be playing the special. Not that that's really bad news, since it's a good special. I just want to see the normal episodes.

The good news is, I have the episodes on demand! So I'm going to watch them back to back right now. XD[/b] Edited August 25, 2010 by Lilt

[The Spectacular Professor]

[font="Comic Sans MS"]Yeah, Disney has a weird airing schedule for P&F. It's practically the network's favorite show, since it brings in big ratings from outside its demographic as well as its target audience, but you wouldn't know it from the way they air it. New episodes come out about once a month these days, and at least three of the last ten were specials of some kind, so those end up getting aired repeatedly after the premiere. It's really weird, though, because despite that, they have a marathon about once every four months and Phineas and Ferb are kind of the unofficial mascots of Disney XD at the moment.[/font]

[Lilt]

[b]So is the XD of Disney XD on purpose then? Because I just finished watching the show and I can't stop making that face.

Also, is Perry kind of like Monkey on Dexter's Lab? (He was a superhero and Dexter had no idea.) Or do Phineas and Ferb realize he's a secret agent?[/b]

[The Spectacular Professor]

[quote name='Lilt' date='25 August 2010 - 08:35 PM' timestamp='1282793705' post='699853'][b]Also, is Perry kind of like Monkey on Dexter's Lab? (He was a superhero and Dexter had no idea.) Or do Phineas and Ferb realize he's a secret agent?[/b]
[/quote]
[font="Comic Sans MS"][i]Perry[/i]? A secret agent?

That's absurd! He's a platypus. They don't do much.[/font] Edited August 26, 2010 by NeedMoarRope

[Lilt]

[quote name='NeedMoarRope' date='26 August 2010 - 06:29 AM' timestamp='1282796981' post='699859']
[font="Comic Sans MS"][i]Perry[/i]? A secret agent?

That's absurd! He's a platypus. They don't do much.[/font]
[/quote]

[b]You're right! What was I thinking?

Is this show still ongoing by the way? Or did I discover it too late?[/b]

[Petie]

[color="#0000FF"]It seems to still be ongoing, or at least it was throughout the summer.[/color]

[color="#0000FF"]As for the show itself, it was recommended by a friend and had said friend not been 22, I would have thought it to be like any other show targeted at little kids and likely would have ignored it but our tastes usually align pretty well so I gave it a shot and I have to say, I do really enjoy it. It's one of the few, in my opinion anyway, good new cartoons I've seen in a long time.[/color]

[Lilt]

[b]Thanks Petie.

Also I just came up with another comparison. I haven't seen too many episodes though, so feel free to prove me wrong anyone.

On Dexter's Lab, Dexter has to constantly try to hide his secret lab from his parents. Another comparison, although not as close to Phineas and Ferb since Dexter actually invents stuff, would be The Fairly Odd Parents. Timmy has to hide his fairy godparents from his parents and everyone else.

So are most of the Phineas and Ferb episodes like this? The only difference between this comparison I've seen so far is that Phineas and Ferb don't seem to care who finds out what they're up to, especially since most of their inventions disappear by chance at the end of the episode. Not that this is a bad formula for a show. It's worked for lots of shows in the past and I like how they change it up from all of the other shows with similar concepts.[/b]

[The Spectacular Professor]

[font="Comic Sans MS"]For the most part, Phineas and Ferb don't really feel the need to hide any of their creations. They're completely unaware that they might get in trouble for any of it, and sometimes they even encourage Candace to show their mom. On top of that, they even seem to invite the other neighborhood kids and even a few adults to enjoy their latest project. On the few occasions their mom does see what they did that day, she usually only gets to see the low-key parts, like the completely normal-looking top floor of their clubhouse, or the project was for her anyway, like the time they set up an entire birthday celebration for her. There are a few instances where she actually does see the entire project and grounds them, but those all get retconned by the end of the episode somehow.

There is one episode where they have to knowingly hide their project, though. It's called [b]The Beak[/b], and it's basically a parody of common superhero cliches. Phineas and Ferb accidentally become superheroes for the day (long story) and Phineas ends up having to keep Isabella out of the loop so the bad guy doesn't target her. It's a pretty fun episode, so if you manage to catch it while it's on, be sure to check it out.

And Petie's right, the series is still ongoing, it's just that the premieres of new episodes has slowed to a trickle over the past couple of months. They had a new one called [b]Nerds of a Feather[/b] air a few days ago (they go to a comics and movies convention, a bunch of nerdy shenanigans take place, all great fun). I think they've also announced a third season for next year, once they finally run out of episodes they can bill as being from the second season.[/font] Edited September 1, 2010 by NeedMoarRope

[chibi-master]

A thought struck me the other day... Isn't it kind of odd that Agent P, as awesome as he is, always seems to get captured by Dr. Doof? You'd think he'd have learned to check ahead of time, but I guess not.