Phineas y Ferb

Phineas and Ferb has to be the smartest and most adult show ever created for an under-12 audience. Seriously, what other show features songs that rhyme 'didactic' with 'anti-climactic', uses the Freudian model for the human mind as a key story device, tosses in movie references, artistic motifs and literary allusions obscure enough to challenge a film scholar, sneaks in a psychedelic drug trip or two thanks to some toxic moss, and then cuts away to its secondary plot arc in a secret world where everybody's pet is a government crime fighter? Did I mention that every song cleverly parodies a different genre, style, period or artist, or that each secondary crime fighting plot intrudes momentarily on the main story line at just the right spot in each episode to wreak the most havoc? Though the show's target audience likely catches little of this, they no doubt appreciate the creative richness that informs it all. And most importantly, the show's popularity proves that they find it all FUN.

Instead of dumbing down recycled versions of older entertainment forms, such as the sitcom, to make it 'age-appropriate' for pre-teens, the creative team behind P&F have created a true original, loaded with enough wit and charm to satisfy Noel Coward, and enough science fiction outrageousness to satisfy a Doctor Who fan. Every show carries the same upbeat message to seize every opportunity for adventure, because it might not come again, while never condescending to its viewers or getting preachy.

There is a lot of truly awful kids' programming out there. It's great to see something which genuinely transcends the perceived boundaries of what a kids' show should be and goes out and demonstrates what it CAN be.

Exst many reasons to say that Phineas and Ferb is a great TV show, but only need two:

1- It isn't repetitive because there's no build up:

This show is not story driven, it's comedy driven. Because of that, it doesn't get repetitive because the focus is always the characters and the story takes a backseat. We don't go into an episode to see if Candace will succeed, we go to see how she will fail. We know that Perry's going to defeat Doofenshmirtz, so we want to see what's his new scheme is and how Perry's going to defeat him. It doesn't create expectations, so it doesn't bore us. A good example is the Roadrunner. We know that the Coyote will fail, but we still enjoy it immensely. We never expect the Coyote to win because we don't expect him to. Same with Phineas and Ferb, we know that Candace's going to fail, so we don't expect her to win. This, in turn, makes the show anything but repetitive, since the focus is always the intricate comedy.

2- Good until the end:

Different from what a lot of people think, the quality the show only decreased slightly. When you think about it, no other cartoon has managed to stay so tight and consistent after seven years in the air. The comedy was still great, and even when they were going trough a lack of ideas, they refused to give up, which gave us great episodes even towards the very end. The decrease in quality was natural and inevitable, and it passed trough the harder phases a lot better than others shows in their seasonal rots. Heck, the two last episodes are considered one of the best of the entire show. This show avoided seasonal rot entirely.

So there it is. That's why we love Phineas and Ferb so much. It's a very consistent show that definitively left it's mark in the world of animation. I wouldn't be surprised if this show gets remembered as a classic in the near future. This a AWESOME SHOW!!! LONG LIVE TO PHINEAS AND FERB!!

"Phineas and Ferb" is by far one of the funniest shows to hit Disney Channel where I couldn't stop laughing after the first episode. It's not like other cartoons on Disney Channel such as "The Replacements", "Kim Possible", "The Emperor's New Groove", "The Proud Family", or any other cartoon where those shows can't even find a laugh.

The premise involves two stepbrothers with different backgrounds trying to make the best of their summer vacation. Phineas (voiced by Vincent Martella of Everybody Hates Chris) always has something on his mind where his wacky inventions and ideas also work; he's also a nice kid trying to make sure that everybody around him is happy. His stepbrother, Ferb, (voiced by Thomas Sangster) is from England where not only does he share the same ideas as Phineas, but he's very silent with the exception of having a couple of one liners towards the end of each segment. Each of the short segments (rounding to eleven minutes)always has the two brothers doing something new from making a beach, having a circus, inventing a big-ass roller coaster ride, recreating chariot races on the streets to making a toy factory. The subplots in each segment involve Candace (voiced by Ashley Tisdale of High School Musical fame), Phineas older sister and Ferb's stepsister, always wanting the boys in the act while their parents never make it on time to see the event while the kids pet platypus named Perry gets to be a secret agent when nobody's around going after a crazy doctor madman who barely resembles Roger Bart from "The Producers".

While the subplot of the platypus I could care less, I love watching "Phineas and Ferb" where it doesn't really bore me to death unlike both the animated shows and the live action versions made by Disney with their moral ethics.

Nice cartoon!

I started watching this recently with the kids, and I think I get more out of it than they do. The visual ref to North by Northwest in "Bigfoot", Doofenschmirtz' awkward introduction of his new nemesis to Perry the Platipus, all the musical numbers (watchable on You Tube)...I no longer try to explain to my kids why it's funnier to me than it is to them. That said, they do enjoy it. Although I think they are humoring me.

Not to mention the vocal casting. Yes, it's THAT Richard O'Brien as Dad, with guest shots by Barry "Brad" Bostwick.

Tisdale who?

This show is original, has good songs, is funny and is memorable. Ferb is literally a god.