Review - Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars (2014)

         Hey guys, Chuck here. Well, last time I talked about the trilogy of Family Guy episodes that re-created and satirized Star Wars. Well, Disney would do something similar in 2014 with an hour-long special episode of their hit cartoon called Phineas and Ferb, which went under the title Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars. 

       Unlike the Family Guy trilogy, which merely recreated the stories of the three Star Wars movies with Family Guy characters, Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars does re-tell the story of A New Hope in a manner more akin to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, where the Phineas and Ferb characters interact with the Star Wars characters and are part of a story that kinda runs parallel to the story of the movie A New Hope.  

       In this take on A New Hope, which the opening crawl (which includes narration by Jim Cummings) clarifies isn't canon, the Rebels send Perry the Platypus to steal the Death Star plans from an Imperial Corporate Office, which is basically a skyscraper atop an Imperial Star Destroyer, and deliver them to Princess Leia. Meanwhile, we see that Phineas and Ferb, along with their parents, live on a moisture farm on Tattooine, where they're friends with Luke Skywalker, receive Jedi training with Obi-Wan, and do all sorts of activities they can find to do on a planet that's essentially a "24/7 Summer." 

        We also see that Candace, Buford, and Baljeet are all Stormtroopers tasked with acquiring new socks for Darth Vader. However, Candace sees an opportunity for advancement when she witnesses Leia placing the Death Star plans into R2-D2. So, the Stormtrooper trio follows the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 to Tattooine, where R2-D2 accidentally loses the plans before taking off on the Millennium Falcon. Phineas and Ferb pick up the plans, and seek transport to return the plans, and they get a ride from Isabella, who pilots a ship called the Centennial Chihuahua, which she claims "would have made the Kessel Run in less than eleven parsecs," but Han Solo cut her off." Also, we see that Vanessa is a lounge singing Twi'lek. 

       On the Death Star, we learn that a pitiful Sith named Darthenschmirtz, which is pretty much just Dr. Heinz Doofenschmirtz dressed up like Darth Vader, design the Death Star to be a high-tech nutcracker, but the massively oversized station is too impractical. But, Darthenschmirtz reveals to his droid companion Norm-3PO his latest invention: the Sith-inator, which can turn anyone blasted by it into a Sith warrior. The drawback? It's powered by Dark Side energy, and has a self-destructive mechanism that is a thermal exhaust port. Hmm...

      Anyway, Phineas, Ferb, and Isabella reach the Death Star, with Candace, Buford, and Baljeet in pursuit, and Phineas and Ferb become separated. Phineas saves Candace, causing her to rethink her stance on the Rebels. Phineas trusts Isabella to deliver the plans back to R2, and he goes after Ferb, who has become a Sith (with a look akin to Darth Maul), and the two have a fight, with Candace lending a hand. The Sith-inator is destroyed, Ferb goes back to normal, and they go with Candace, Buford, and Baljeet to find an escape from the Death Star. Oh, and Perry captures Darthenschmirtz, who is frozen in carbonite, but escapes in Perry's escape pod. 

       On Yavin IV, Isabella initially turns down an offer from her old friends, the Fireside girls, to join the Rebellion, but has something of a heart-to-heart with Han Solo that convinces him to help the Rebels and also has Isabella go back and rescue Phineas and Ferb from the Death Star. By the way, it's here where Candace and Phineas recognize each other, as she left Tattooine when he was very little, and when she asks when their mother remarried and what happened to their father, the Death Star blows up. This is actually a nod to the fact that the Phineas and Ferb cartoon NEVER acknowledged what happened to Phineas and Candace's father. But, Isabella arrives before the Death Star is gone, and Phineas, Ferb, Candace, Buford, and Baljeet are saved. The special ends with a massive party on the Rebel Base on Yavin IV, with Vanessa singing a rockin' jam, and Isabella kisses Phineas. 

      Honestly, it was a lot of fun seeing this special. I really admire how Dan Povenmire, Swampy Marsh, and their creative team were able to seamlessly blend the plot of Star Wars: A New Hope together with a typical Phineas and Ferb story. And, since Phineas and Ferb is known for having musical numbers, the special also includes fun songs throughout, with some of my favorites including "Tattooine," "In the Empire," and "Rebel, Let's Go!," just to name a few. 

       The voice talent in the episode is a ton of fun. Aside from the typical Phineas and Ferb cast of Vincent Martella as Phineas, Thomas-Brodie Sangster as Ferb, Ashley Tisdale as Candace, Dan Povenmire as Doofenschmirtz, Alyson Stoner as Isabella, and so forth, the special also has Simon Pegg voicing both an Imperial officer and C-3PO, as well as Mythbusters stars Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman as two office Stormtroopers. Also, we get the likes of Christopher Corey Smith as Luke, Ross Marquand as Han Solo, April Winchell as Princess Leia, and Eddie Pittman as Darth Vader. And, of course, the special includes many elements from Star Wars: A New Hope, such as sound effects for landspeeders, spaceships, blasters, lightsabers, and the iconic Star Wars music by John Williams. 

       To me, it's seeing so many familiar elements from Star Wars drawn in the Phineas and Ferb style that is a ton of fun. Stormtroopers, X-Wings, TIE Fighters, Dewbacks, Banthas, droids, and the cast of Star Wars drawn in the Phineas and Ferb style was really fascinating. Also, just the novelty of seeing the characters of Phineas and Ferb interact with the characters of Star Wars was tons of fun. Seeing Phineas and Ferb interacting with Luke Skywalker, or Isabella interacting with Han Solo and Chewbacca, or Perry the Platypus interacting with Princess Leia, or seeing Doofenschmirtz interacting with the Dianoga. Also, seeing the comms chat between Han Solo and an Imperial officer from the other perspective. It's just stuff like this that makes this special a ton of fun. 

        But, at its core, this is still a Phineas and Ferb story. It plays like your typical episode of Phineas and Ferb, but within the world of Star Wars. One thing that Dan Povenmire, Swampy Marsh, and their crew wanted to avoid was something akin to what Family Guy did, which was recreate the plot almost verbatim but with the Family Guy characters in the Star Wars roles. Instead, Povenmire, Marsh,  and co. created a unique Phineas and Ferb story that compliments and adds bits of context to the events of Star Wars: A New Hope without taking anything away from the main plot events of the actual movie. There's a really thin line that could have been easily crossed, but Povenmire, Marsh, and co. are able to navigate said line without crossing it, and are able to create something unique in the plethora of Star Wars parodies and tributes. 

       Now, I know that Star Wars fans have been giving Disney a ton of flak for some of the writing and creative choices that Lucasfilm have been making with Star Wars over the last handful of years. But, I'd say that Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars is just good harmless fun that any fan of Star Wars, young or old, can watch and have fun with. Now, there are two ways to enjoy this special: either in its entirety independently of the rest of the Phineas and Ferb episodes, or as part of the Phineas and Ferb series, but cut into a two-part episode for syndication. Either way, log on to Disney+ some time and give it a watch. 

      Alright guys, this is Chuck signing off, and I'll see you in the next review.