Phineas and Ferb

**Phineas and Ferb** is an American television series created by Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh.

It focuses on stepbrothers Phineas and Ferb during their summer vacation. Every day, the boys undertake the construction of a grand project, or embark on a spectacular adventure, to make the most of their time.

The series premiered on Disney Channel and Disney XD on August 17, 2007 and aired for four seasons until June 12, 2015.

## Plot

The show follows the adventures of stepbrothers Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher, who are between eight and ten years old. They live in the fictional city of Danville in an unspecified tri-state area, as they seek ways to occupy their time during their "104 days of summer vacation". Often these adventures involve elaborate, life-sized and ostensibly dangerous construction projects, which are usually unrealistic in scale given the protagonists' ages (and are sometimes physically impossible). Phineas' older sister Candace Flynn has two obsessions: unveil Phineas and Ferb's schemes and ideas, and winning the attention of a boy named Jeremy.

The subplot almost always features Phineas and Ferb's pet platypus Perry, who works as a secret agent identified as Agent P, for an all-animal government organization named O.W.C.A. ("Organization Without a Cool Acronym"). His regular objective is to defeat the latest scheme of Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz, a mad scientist driven largely by a need to assert his evilness who is often defeated by his own ineptitude. The two plots intersect at the end to erase all traces of the boys' project just before Candace can show it to their mother, which usually leaves Candace very frustrated.

## Cast and Characters

### Main

* Vincent Martella as Phineas Flynn
* Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Ferb Fletcher
* Ashley Tisdale as Candace Gertrude Flynn
* Dee Bradley Baker as Perry the Platypus
* Dan Povenmire as Dr. Heinz "Doof" Doofenschmirtz

### Recurring

* Alyson Stoner as Isabella Garcia-Shapiro / Jenny Brown
* Maulik Pancholy as Baljeet Tjinder
* Bobby Gaylor as Buford van Stomm
* Caroline Rhea as Linda Flynn-Fletcher
* Richard O'Brien as Lawrence Fletcher
* Jeff "Swampy" Marsh as Major Francis Monogram
* Tyler Alexander Mann as Carl the Intern
* Kelly Hu as Stacy Hirano
* Mitchel Musso as Jeremy Johnson
* Olivia Olson as Vanessa Doofenschmirtz
* Ariel Winter as Gretchen
* Cymphonique Miller, Diamond White and Dana Davis as Holly
* Isabella Acres as Katie
* Isabella Murad as Milly
* Madison Pettis as Adyson Sweetwater
* Tiffany Espensoen and Ming-Na as Ginger Hirano
* John Viener as Norm
* Eileen Galindo as Vivian Garcia-Shapiro
* Dee Bradley Baker as Pinky
* Allison Janney as Charlene Doofenshmirtz
* Kari Wahlgren as Suzy Johnson
* Barry Bostwick and Caroline Rhea as Grandpa Clyde and Grandma Betty Jo
* Malcolm McDowell and Jane Carr as Grandpa Reginald and Grandma Winifred
* John O'Hurley as Roger Doofenschmirtz
* Jack McBrayer as Irving Du Bois
* Alec Holden as Django Brown
* Jane Leeves as Admiral Acronym
* Amanda Plummer as Professor Poofenplotz
* Seth Green as Monty Monogram
* Ming-Na Wen as Dr. Hirano
* Joe Orrantia as Rodney

## Episodes

See Also: List of Phineas and Ferb Episodes

 2 | 38
 3 | 35
 4 | 30

## Films

* Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension (2011)
* Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (2020)

## Video Games

* Phineas and Ferb (Video Game)
* Where's My Perry?
* Phineas and Ferb: Quest for Cool Stuff

## Production

### Development

#### Early Inspirations

Dan Povenmire attributes the show's genesis to his childhood in Mobile, Alabama, where his mother told him to never waste a day of summer. To occupy himself, Povenmire undertook projects such as hole-digging and home movie-making. Povenmire recalled, "My mom let me drape black material all the way across one end of our living room to use as a space field. I would hang little models of spaceships for these little movies I made with a Super 8 camera." He was an artistic prodigy and displayed his very detailed drawings at art shows. Marsh was raised in a large, blended family. As with Povenmire, Marsh spent his summers exploring and taking part in various activities to have fun.

#### Conception

While attending the University of Southern California, Povenmire started a daily comic strip called Life Is a Fish, and received money from the sale of its related merchandise. He eventually dropped out and started drawing people on street corners to make a living, until he was finally called by Tommy Chong to work on a short bit of animation in the film Far Out Man. Povenmire began to take up animation professionally, working on shows such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Marsh had become a vice president of sales and marketing for a computer company until he "freaked out" and decided to quit. His friend helped him put together a portfolio and enter the animation business.

Povenmire and Marsh started working across from each other as layout artists on The Simpsons. The two bonded over mutual tastes in humor and music, becoming fast friends. They continued their working relationship as a writing team on the Nickelodeon series Rocko's Modern Life, where they conceived the idea for their own series. While eating dinner at a Wild Thyme restaurant in South Pasadena, Povenmire drew a quick sketch of a "triangle kid" on butcher paper. He tore it out and called Marsh that night to report, "Hey, I think we have our show." The triangle doodle sparked rapid development of characters and designs. Povenmire decided that his sketch "looked like a Phineas," and named Ferb after a friend who "owns more tools than anyone in the world." The creators based their character designs on angular shapes in homage to Tex Avery, an animator and director for MGM and Warner Bros., adding geometric shapes to the backgrounds for continuity.

#### Pitching and Pickup

The writing duo's early attempts to pitch the show failed and, though they remained committed to the concept, Povenmire and Marsh began to drift apart after their work on Rocko's. Marsh moved to London and worked on shows including Postman Pat and Bounty Hamster. Povenmire began working on the primetime Fox series Family Guy and the Nickelodeon series SpongeBob SquarePants, always carrying a Phineas and Ferb portfolio for convenient pitching to networks such as Cartoon Network and Fox Kids. The networks passed on the show, believing the series' premise was too complex to succeed.

Povenmire persisted and again pitched the series to Nickelodeon, where it was considered by high-level executives but rejected once more as overly complicated. Then, after 16 years of trying, Povenmire landed a pitch with Disney. The network did not immediately accept the show, but told Povenmire that it would keep the packet. Povenmire assumed that this had meant an end to negotiations, aware that the phrase usually "means they throw it in the trash later." Disney then surprised him by accepting. Said Povenmire, "Disney was the first to say, 'Let's see if you can do it in 11 minutes.' We did it in the pilot and they said, 'Let's see if you can do it for 26 episodes.'"

Povenmire was initially worried that his work on Family Guy (an adult show known for its lowbrow humor) would concern Disney, which markets its fare primarily to families. However, Disney Channel senior vice president of original series Adam Bonnett was a Family Guy fan who appreciated Povenmire's connection to the show and received his pitch well.

In 2006, after the Disney Channel had accepted the show, Povenmire and Marsh turned their attention to the company's overseas executives. Instead of penning a normal script, the two drew out storyboards and played them in a reel. Povenmire voiced over the reel with his dialogue and added sound effects. This novel approach secured the executives' support.

### Writing Style

The show uses four main writers to devise story ideas according to "strict guidelines", such as that the boys' schemes never appear to be "magical." Stories are reviewed at weekly sessions on a Monday, then simultaneously scripted and storyboarded. A very rough design is built before the storyboard, featuring little more than suggested scenes and dialogue, is drafted; the writers then gather for a "play-by-play" walkthrough of the storyboard in front of the whole crew, whose reactions to the jokes are assessed before rewrites are made. The writers also include running gags in every episode, which are generally lines spoken by characters. Almost every episode is split into two 11-minute segments. Dan Povenmire admitted that the "a-plot" of each episode, the one following Phineas and Ferb's inventions, is not actually a plot, but instead the setting, with the actual plot being Candace, Perry and Dr. Doofenshmirtz's story, "The essence of story is that the characters are changed by what happens to them. Nothing ever changes the boys, they never learn anything, there's never any obstacles they have to overcome, everything just works out for them."

Much of the series' humor relies on running gags used in almost every episode, with slight variation. Certain aspects of the show's humor are aimed at adults, including its frequent pop-culture references. Co-creator Dan Povenmire, who had previously worked on Family Guy, sought to create a less raunchy show that would make similar use of comic timing, metahumor, humorous blank stares, wordplay and breaking the fourth wall. Povenmire describes the show as a combination of Family Guy and SpongeBob SquarePants. Co-creator Jeff "Swampy" Marsh has said that the show was not created exclusively for children; he simply did not exclude them as an audience.

### Visual Aspects and Animation

Rough Draft Studios in South Korea, Wang Film Productions in Taiwan, Morning Sun Animation and Synergy Animation in Shanghai and Hong Ying Animation and Hong Guang Animation in Suzhou animate the series in 2D Animation using the software package Toon Boom. Povenmire undertakes the bulk of production direction, along with Zac Moncrief and Robert Hughes. The series adopts artistic features from animator Tex Avery, such as geometric shapes integrated into characters, objects, and backgrounds. Povenmire says of this inclusion, "There's a little bit of Tex Avery in there-he had that very graphic style [in his later cartoons]." Triangles are featured as an Easter egg in the background of every episode, sometimes in trees or buildings.

Bright colours are also a prominent element of the animation. Marsh elaborates, "The idea at the end of the day was candy. One of the things that I think works so well is that the characters are so bright and candy-colored and our backgrounds are a much more realistic depiction of the world: the soft green of the grass, the natural woods for the fence. In order for all the stuff that they do to work, their world needs to be grounded in reality." The designers sought to keep their characters visually simple, so that kids "would easily be able to draw [them] themselves." Characters were also crafted to be recognizable from a distance, a technique that the creators say is based on Matt Groening's goal of making characters recognizable by silhouette.

### Casting

Phineas and Ferb are voiced by Vincent Martella and Thomas Sangster, respectively. Sangster was one of many British actors cast, as Marsh lived in the United Kingdom for seven years and developed a fondness for the British. The rest of the cast includes Ashley Tisdale as their sister Candace; Bobby Gaylor as Buford van Stomm, who has a tendency to bully but is kept distracted by being included in the adventures; Maulik Pancholy as Baljeet Tjinder, a very intelligent boy who avoids being Buford's main victim by their participation in the adventures; Dee Bradley Baker as Perry the Platypus; Caroline Rhea as Linda Flynn-Fletcher, Phineas and Candace's mother and stepmother to Ferb; Richard O'Brien as Lawrence Fletcher, Ferb's father and Phineas and Candace's stepfather; Jack McBrayer as Irving, who admires Phineas and Ferb, and is the creator of the Phineas and Ferb fansite; Kelly Hu as Candace's best friend Stacy; Povenmire as Dr. Doofenshmirtz; Marsh as Major Monogram; Olivia Olson as Dr. Doofenshmirtz's daughter Vanessa; Tyler Mann as Carl, Major Monogram's goofy super genius intern; Alyson Stoner as neighbor Isabella Garcia-Shapiro, a sweet Mexican/Jewish girl with a crush on Phineas; Mitchel Musso as Jeremy, Candace's crush and later her boyfriend; and Madison Pettis as Adyson Sweetwater, a member of Isabella's Fireside Girls troop.

The show's casting organization is responsible for selecting most of the voice actors and actresses, choosing actors such as Martella and Musso for major roles based on perceived popularity with target demographics. Povenmire and Marsh select guest stars, casting people that they "really want to work with." They also solicit guest roles from actors whom they feel would lend an interesting presence to the show.

Guest stars have included pop-culture figures such as Damian Lewis, boxer Evander Holyfield, film stars Cloris Leachman and Ben Stiller and pop singer Kelly Clarkson. Povenmire and Marsh have also solicited Tim Curry and Barry Bostwick, stars of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, to make guest appearances, while Rocky Horror creator Richard O'Brien voices Lawrence Fletcher. Top Gear stars Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May guest-starred in a race-car themed episode as commentators. Other guest stars include Tina Fey, Seth MacFarlane, David Mitchell, Jaret Reddick, Clay Aiken, Chaka Khan and Kevin Smith.

### Music

The series is known for its original songs that appear in almost every episode since the first-season "Flop Starz". Disney's executives particularly enjoyed the episode's song "Gitchee, Gitchee Goo" and requested that a song appear in each subsequent episode. The music earned the series a total of four Emmy nominations: in 2008 for the main title theme and for the song "I Ain't Got Rhythm" from the episode "Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together", and in 2010 for the song "Come Home Perry" from the episode "Oh, There You Are, Perry" as well as one for its score.

Phineas and Ferb follows structural conventions that Povenmire and Marsh developed while writing Rocko's Modern Life, whereby each episode features "a song or a musical number, plus a big action/chase scene." Both creators had musical backgrounds, as Povenmire performed rock and roll in his college years and Marsh's grandfather was the bandleader Les Brown.

The series' songs span many genres, from 16th-century madrigals to Broadway show tunes. Each is written in an intensive session during episode production; a concept, score and lyrics are developed quickly. Together, Marsh and Povenmire can "write a song about almost anything" within one hour. After they finish writing their songs, Povenmire and Marsh sing them over the answering machine of series composer Danny Jacob on Friday nights. By the following Monday, the song is fully produced.

The title sequence song "Today is Gonna Be a Great Day", performed by the American group Bowling for Soup, was nominated for an Emmy award in 2008. The creators originally wrote a slower number more in keeping with a "classic Disney song", but the network felt that changes were needed to especially appeal to children and commissioned the rock version that made the final cut.

A season two clip show, entitled "Phineas and Ferb's Musical Cliptastic Countdown", was broadcast in October 2009. The show focuses on the series' music, featuring a viewer-voted list of the top ten songs from the series. This clip show spawned a sequel, "Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown Hosted by Kelly Osbourne", which aired on June 28, 2013. Osbourne hosted the special in live form, while Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Major Monogram appeared as animated.

### Conclusion and Revival

Phineas and Ferb was renewed for a fourth season in August 2011. The series finale was announced in May 2015; the hour-long episode titled "Last Day of Summer" aired on June 12, 2015. Povenmire and Marsh remained with the network and together created a new series, Milo Murphy's Law, which aired from 2016 to 2019.

In January 2023, 40 new episodes of Phineas and Ferb were ordered, to be split across two seasons, with Povenmire returning as executive producer. The deal also included a second season renewal for Povenmire's series Hamster & Gretel. Disney Branded Television made the announcement at the Television Critics Association. On March 16, 2023, it was announced that Marsh would also be returning as executive producer and voice director.

## Reception

### Critical Response

The show has received generally positive reviews. The New York Times commented favourably, describing the show as "Family Guy with an espionage subplot and a big dose of magical realism." It considered the pop-culture references ubiquitous "but placed with such skill that it seems smart, not cheap." Whitney Matheson wrote in her USA Today blog Pop Candy that the series was an achievement in children's programming, applauding the writing and calling the show "an animated version of Parker Lewis Can't Lose." Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media praised the show's humor and plot, giving it four out of five stars. The Seattle Times wrote that the story of the show was "valiant" and that the main characters are "young heroes."

Variety noted the show's appeal to all ages with its "sense of wit and irreverence." Similar reviews have emphasized the series' popularity with adults; Rebecca Wright of Elastic Pops wrote, "As an adult, I really enjoyed watching this Phineas and Ferb DVD, and I think it is one that the whole family can enjoy." Wright also called the series' "irreverent style" reminiscent of The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle. Wired's Matt Blum has stated in reviews of the series that he "can stand to watch just about anything with his kids, but he actually looks forward to watching Phineas and Ferb with them." Notable celebrities identified as fans of the series include Bob Eubanks, Anthony LaPaglia, Ben Stiller, Chaka Khan, Jeff Sullivan and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Among the negative reviews is one that charges the series with a lack of originality. Maxie Zeus of Toon Zone argues that the show is "derivative, but obviously so, and shorn of even the best features of what has been stolen." Zeus takes issue with the writing, feeling that certain jokes and conventions were "ripped-off" from other shows. Kevin McDonough of Sun Coast Today criticized the show for its plot complexity, constant action and "characters that can do just about anything." McDonough stated that "it's never clear whether P&F are intended to entertain children or are merely a reflection of grown-up animators engaged in a juvenile lark." Marylin Moss of The Hollywood Reporter described Phineas and Ferb as "Pretty mindless but kids of all ages might find a humorous moment in it." Moss called the plot lines redundant but praised the music styles and guest stars.

Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz gave a positive assessment in their 2016 book TV (The Book), stating that "In television, formula often seems to come from a lack of imagination. Phineas and Ferb though, managed at the same time to be wildly imaginative and slavishly formulaic, using its repetitive structure not as a crutch, but as a sturdy framework on which it could hang all kinds of fantastic new ideas." They further added that "the characters' awareness of that formula, and any deviations from it, quickly became one of the show's most fertile sources of humour."