Even though I don’t graduate for another five months, and I don’t officially enter adulthood for another ten, I’ve already begun feeling nostalgic for my childhood. Some of my fondest memories are watching the animated children’s T.V. show Phineas and Ferb with my brother for half an hour every night. Phineas and Ferb originally ran from 2008 to 2012 on cable television before moving to Netflix and then Disney + years later.
The show follows a pair of eccentric step-brothers, Phineas and Ferb Flynn, as they make the most out of their 104-day summer vacation. They embark on creative, life-sized construction projects with their dynamic cast of family and friends. Phineas, Ferb, and their friends, Isabella, Buford, and Baljeet work together to create a crazy invention in their backyard, such as a time machine or a spaceship. Their older sister, Candace, chases down their mother, Linda, to try and “bust” her siblings for their unusual craftiness. Unfortunately for Candace, the boys’ projects magically disappear before their mother can see them, framing Candace as irrational for her baseless claims.
Simultaneously, the Flynn family’s pet platypus, Perry, lives a second life as ‘Agent P,’ an undercover-agent associated with an animal spy organization. Each episode, Perry sneaks away to thwart his archnemesis, Dr. Doofenshmirtz. Perry always manages to prevent Dr. Doof from “conquering the Tri-State Area” with his malevolent inventions, each quirkily suffixed by “-Inator.” For instance, one of Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s more elaborate inventions, the ‘Bread-Inator’ turns everyday objects into whole grain bread, posing a threat to our duck-billed hero. No matter the “-Inator,” Perry remains stoic and undefeated, even escaping Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s creative cages and traps.
Phineas and Ferb is not simply a T.V. series, however, as the cinematic universe has also expanded to now include two movies and eight video games. Additionally, there was a Disney shorts series and a Phineas and Ferb Talk Show. The franchise also hosted a half-live action half-animated talk-show series entitled ‘Take Two with Phineas and Ferb.’ The talk show featured an assortment of celebrity guests such as Taylor Swift, Jack Black, David Beckham, and Andy Samberg. There was even a hilarious Youtube series in 2013 called “Doof’s Daily Dirt” where the voice actor of Dr. Doofenshmirtz would comment on 2010s pop-culture like autocorrect, cronuts, and Bieber Fever. It is definitely still worth watching for those looking to feel nostalgic.
Phineas and Ferb also included a catchy soundtrack accompanying its iconic theme song. One standout from the soundtrack is “S.I.M.P.” (Squirrels in My Pants) where Candace raps about having squirrels in her pants. The song has a comedic rhyme scheme, pairing “squirrels in my pants” with “government grants.” The extended version mentions the “proletariat and bourgeois” and rhymes that with “potpourri.” Another favorite song is the ballad “Come Home Perry” that is still funny even through the emotional upheaval of Phineas and Ferb losing their beloved pet.
Phineas and Ferb is all about creation and curiosity. No project was too outlandish for the duo and their group of friends to take on. In the show, characters would often ask Phineas, “Aren’t you a little bit young to be building a roller coaster?” while he was building whatever ridiculous project of that episode. Phineas would always respond with a curt, “yes, yes I am.” The show is about freeing oneself from traditional ideas held about age and using that freedom to have fun and be creative. Phineas and Ferb followed their imaginations and inspired a generation of kids to create. Ken Tucker ’24 said, “The show was a staple of my childhood, the genesis of my curiosity. Phineas and Ferb were the ones who inspired me to pursue an engineering degree.”
Moreover, the show includes a cast of characters that the audience can identify with and learn from. For example, one of the characters is Isabella Garcia-Shapiro, a half Jewish, half Mexican girl who lived across the street from the Flynn. While Isabella would typically stop by to visit Phineas, her crush, she was also a complex character who was exceptionally capable of leading her friends and completing large projects. Stella Moelis ’24 said, “Isabella made me excited about being a leader. She was able to juggle working at her mom’s restaurant, having fun with her friends, and guiding her fireside girls’ troop.” Isabella also represented multiple cultures, as the show featured her family’s holiday celebrations, which were a joyful hodge-podge including a Mexican-Jewish Cultural Festival. A holiday themed episode includes multiple songs, one with the fun lyrics, “There is kreplach on tostadas, / A pupil in our piñata,” as well as “We put bottles on cabezas, / We do mitzvahs up on mesas.”
Although the show has inspired a positive self-image for many in its audience, some of the characters are based on simple, offensive stereotypes. Candace, a teenage girl, is called uptight and dismissed as irrational because nobody believes her about her lived experiences. Her classic outfit is a red dress and white skirt. She’s treated as “uncool” compared to Doofenshmirtz’s daughter Vanessa, who wears all black and is “tough” and “uncaring.” Candace represents more traditional femininity and is criticized for those aspects of her character.
Moreover, Baljeet is a young Indian boy, whose nerdy tendencies provide comic relief. Throughout the show, Baljeet is defined by his extreme interest in academics and math, reducing him to a stereotype. There are many instances of stereotypes throughout the show that viewers may not have noticed as kids, but become more clear when rewatching the show as young adults.
Now, a revival of Phineas and Ferb is being created. There will be a total of forty new episodes, made by the original creators, Dan Povernmire and Swampy Marsh. Soon, Phineas and Ferb will reach a whole new audience of kids and receive further appreciation from viewers of the original show.
Even though the original show finished airing in 2012, Phineas and Ferb still lingers in the form of Halloween costumes and internet memes, prompting strong feelings of nostalgia from its fans. While nostalgia is definitely bittersweet and was even considered a mental disorder when the term was coined in 1688, the feeling is certainly not a bad one. Nostalgia connects people with their family, friends, and even strangers. It can motivate groups of people to build new communities bound by a common memory.
Nostalgic sentiments have been on the rise in the last few years due to increases in other major causes of the feeling: loneliness and stress. According to Harvard University’s “Making Caring Common” initiative, 43% of young adults reported feeling more lonely since the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic. The American Psychological Association similarly reports that teenagers have been experiencing elevated levels of stress and depression over the past few years. The last few years have been tough for teens coming out of the isolation of quarantine and political troubles relating to the March for Our Lives, Black Lives Matter, and climate movements. Nostalgia, with its sentimental hope of a remembered past, has been found to be an important coping mechanism for stress, and it helps connect people to lead happier and healthier lives.
Hopefully, the revival of Phineas and Ferb will be like a hypothetical Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s Nostalgia-Inator: it will inspire children of the past, present and future to have innocent fun being creative.
Ken Tucker ’24 said, “The show was a staple of my childhood, the genesis of my curiosity. Phineas and Ferb were the ones who inspired me to pursue an engineering degree.”