Curating Childhood Memories
“There’s a hundred and four days of summer vacation ’Til school comes along just to end it….”
I know that brought back a huge wave of nostalgia. Go ahead, sing along or hum along and relive your childhood summer vacation days.
I miss the simpler days back then when I would get home from school and immediately plop on the sofa and switch on the TV to find Phineas and Ferb playing on Disney Channel. Ah yes, the fleeting memories of childhood, bring waves of nostalgia. The good ol’ days when we didn’t have to live with the weight of crushing deadlines for assignments and exams and could live every moment to the fullest without worrying about the future.
On that note, let me help you put your worries aside for a while and take a short trip down memory lane. It’s flabbergasting how attached some of us still are to these pixelated characters. I still chuckle every time I see a Platypus Perry-to-Agent P meme, or you know, a Candace joke — really resisting the urge to make one right now. I still wonder, what does Phineas’ gigantic triangular head look like from the front? Did the Flynn-Fletcher family ever know that their pet platypus was an undercover secret agent?
The show is filled with various songs, from the iconic title theme to groovy melodies and tear-jerking tunes. Speaking of tears, It’s well agreed that Dr Doofenshmirtz had one of the saddest childhood ever — his own parents didn’t show up at the hospital when he was born (it’s a cartoon, go with it)! Also, the fact that his only friend was a balloon with a face drawn on it named “Balloony”?! Personally, I think the best part about his character is the fact that even after having such a traumatic childhood, he still is a great father to his daughter Vanessa!!
He is my favorite character in the entire cartoon — such a perfectly crafted “antagonist,” whose “-inators” were never as devious and evil as he made be! He’s just a scrawny lil’ guy in a white coat, whose only rival is a platypus, by the way. Thinking of him has gotten me playing the “Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated!!” tune in my head.
Each character has its own unique charm and backstory that makes them so lovable. I remember being so invested in Candace and Jeremy’s relationship and sometimes even rooting for Candace to be right and actually getting her brothers caught! I also remember enjoying Baljeet and Buford’s constant banter, Isabella’s quirkiness, and Stacy’s readiness to help her lovestruck best friend, Candace.
Our most enigmatic character, Perry the Platypus AKA Agent P, can only make one sound yet conveys so much and is probably the funniest character in the series, second only to his arch-nemesis. Oh, and of course, our protagonists, the ever-innovative Phineas and stoic-faced Ferb — who are both somehow mere children and yet better engineers than me. The show has a wide range of episodes, from hilarious to sad ones. Those paired with appropriate songs to match the mood bring out the duality of the show.
It’s admirable how every episode has the same overall plot, yet no two episodes are similar! You see, every episode has the same framework — Phineas and Ferb get bored, they create some mechanical wonder in their backyard, Candace catches them, she snitches on them to their mom, and yet when Mom actually gets home, all of it seems to have vanished into thin air. Yet, all the episodes portray this same series of incidents in a different style, carefully intertwining the adventures of Agent P and Dr Doofenshmirtz with the wonders created by Phineas and Ferb and their friends.
That’s enough reviving, reminiscing, reliving for today. As much as I miss the carefree days of my childhood, as they say, the show (adulthood) must go on (begrudgingly).
Thank you, Phineas and Ferb, for being one of the many cartoons that gave me immense joy and brought a smile whenever I switched on the TV.
