Phineas and Ferb - Happy Birthday, Isabella

Well, as you can tell from the title card and the house of Phineas and Ferb's, that's right, today's my Birthday! I am 22 years old as of right now, and I'm going to review Happy Birthday, Isabella, an episode from the fourth season. I will review Hail to the Chief, and a few other projects later. But right now, let's get to the birthday review immediately.

It's Isabella's birthday, and Phineas and the gang celebrate it in a big way, complete with a giant cake and piñatas. To Isabella however, all she really wants is to be alone with Phineas, but she keeps missing by a second. Meanwhile, Doofenshmirtz installs his Bugs Me-Inator onto an evil bug bus and drives around Danville turning all the things that bug him literally into bugs, and Stacy unwittingly sees this and even finds out Perry's agent secret. And once again, Candace tries to bust the boys, but it never works. Two words for Candace, "Give up!" P.S., I still am not fond of Doofenschmirtz, I mean, I have nothing against a platypus being a spy agent, but that Heinz is so stupid!

After watching a few episodes that feature Isabella, I have made an interesting discovery, she has feelings for Phineas. If I didn't know better, I'd say she has a crush on him! I never knew that until now. I can relate to her in this episode because all she wants to do is spend time with Phineas. Also, here comes another question, if Stacy noticed that Perry was a spy agent, how come Phineas and Ferb never seem him as a secret agent? Was it because they're too occupied with their time and summer plans to even notice? Oh, well, I guess we'll never know. All I know is Phineas and Ferb have never met Doofenschmirtz, which I wish the series made them do that.

So, my opinions are this episode are pretty okay. I kind of like the episode being a birthday episode for once, and I kind of like how her wish was to spend time with Phineas, and spoiler alert, m the end, Isabella does get her wish. It's funny, interesting, has birthday related stuff in it, and has a nice song, simply known as "Isabella's Birthday Song," or as I like to call it, "Isabella's Wish."

All in all, you have to watch the episode for yourself and try, and I dare you to TRY to prove to me that Isabella doesn't have a crush on Phineas.

The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh - "Find Her, Keep Her"

Our review today has something to do with the ever popular Disney animated television series from the 80's, "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh." And today, we're reviewing the ever popular "Find Her, Keep Her" episode, from the first season. Let's see how it plays out, huh?

In the middle of a blustery snowstorm, Rabbit, while talking care of a carrot that needs to be saved, finds a baby bird in danger, and Rabbit while trying to go get a ladder, flies around on the door, carrying Pooh, Piglet, and Tigger all around the storm and catching the bird into Pooh's honey pot. After that little stunt, Rabbit decides to take care of the little bird, who's name is Kessie by the way, voiced by Laura Mooney, who later voiced Katie Ka-Boom on Animaniacs. One day, while playing with Tigger, the tree that Tigger bounces on tips over and carries them near an edge of a cliff. Kessie falls and Owl comes to the rescue and thinks she is meant for flying, but Rabbit on the other hand refuses, mainly because of the fact that most birds fly south for the winter. Will Rabbit keep Kessie, or will he learn that sometimes you have to let things go, even if you love them very much? Well, I think you already know the answer by now, so, go watch it to find out, okay?

A lot of people, including  my mom, have considered this to be one of the most heart-wrenching episodes the show has ever put out. And I can see why. We see Rabbit acting as a father figure to Kessie, worried about what would happen to her if she did went away. This episode has a lot of drama, good laughs, and a nice story. I even like how Pooh pointed out that Rabbit already knows he cared so much for Kessie because it's called, the reason Rabbit already knows is because earlier in the second act, he told Tigger, "I never even told her, I loved her." Probably the saddest scene in the episode has to be when Kessie asks for one more bedtime story and Rabbit says "You don't need me for anything." Now that's what I call a real tearjerker. This probably the most dramatic episode that Disney has ever put out. It feels like as if Lion King producer Don Hahn produced this.

Here's a fun fact for you: This episode won the 1989 Humanitas Prize for Outstanding Children’s Programming. Gee, I can see why they gave that episode the award. But either way, with the comedy in between and Rabbit's feeling for Kessie, this is a really amazing episode, not just for its comedy, but also for its storytelling and its subverting of expectations.

You can find this episode on Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving, or on the video, "Newfound Friends."

I could dedicate this review to the memory of Ken Sansom who voiced Rabbit, but I can't. Instead, I'll just dedicate this to the late Paul Winchell who voiced Tigger.

Rest in peace, Paul. Along with Ken Sansom and John Fiedler.

Phineas and Ferb - "Candace Gets Busted"

Yep, it's time for me to review another "Phineas and Ferb" episode. This time, I'm reviewing the season two episode, "Candace Gets Busted."

When Linda and Lawrence take a trip, they entrust Candace to be in charge of the house. Candace calls some of her friends over for a small get-together, but when throngs of uninvited guests start to participate and it isn't long before it swells into a wild party. All I know is this isn't Phineas and Ferb's doing. Meanwhile, Dr. Doofenshmirtz is intending to get rid of the condominiums blocking his view from the local drive-in. Ugh, another typical bland scheme. Why am I not surprised?

What I like about this episode is that this is one of the few, if not the only time that Phineas and Ferb don't bother do anything crazy to make Candace want to try to bust on them, that, and Ferb had a lot more lines in this episode than usual. I understand now why he has little do no dialogue in this episode, he's British, like their father, Lawrence. I especially like the rap song in this one, where Candace raps about the event being a get together and not a party. That rap is so catchy with good rhythm, they even nail the dance moves, and the music. In the end, Candace deserved to be busted for this. I'm still not fond of Dr. Doofenshmirtz, though.

So, bottom line, this was an episode that really got the "Jellyfish Jam" feel to it;/ It also kind of reminds me of the Jimmy Neutron episode called "Party at Neutrons" and The Fairly OddParents episode, "Fairy Friends and Neighbors," and not to mention the Aaron Carter music video, "Aaron's Party (Come Get It)" where the plot is that these characters didn't get the permission to throw a party. If I didn't know better, I'd think these three episodes were based off of that certain song.

Did I mention Dee Bradley Baker who performed Perry also voiced a few of the party guests? I guess Dee did more than just vocal effects.

Phineas and Ferb - "Happy New Year"

Even though it's already the second week of January 2018, I'd figured I should still review the New Year's Eve episode of the ever popular Disney cartoon, Phineas and Ferb. So, without acquaintances be forgotten, let's begin.

It's New Year's Eve, and everyone's getting ready for the Big Bash. Phineas and Ferb put up their annual New Year's Eve Ball into Outer Space outside Isabella's backyard, and Candace is going to a New Year's Party with Jeremy and Stacy. However, there's a problem. Candace can't stop thinking about Phineas and Ferb doing those sneaky things which Candace fails to show her parents, when she goes to the bathroom to pull herself together, she sees someone eating a sandwich despite announcing their New Year's Resolution, and Candace decides maybe it's not too late to bust Phineas and Ferb. So, she leaves the party to investigate. Will she finally bust the duo? Fat chance!

Over on the Perry and Doofenshmirtz side of things, Doofenshmirtz decides to brain wash everybody at midnight into making him to his orders, comes as no biggie that his plan does indeed backfire. And he does have a heart, an evil one that is, and he does wish Perry a Happy New Year near the ending. You know, if these Perry and Doofenshmirtz plots were never on the show, I would've been fine with that, but that's just me. I kind of like Doofenshmirtz's robot though.

This episode is visually interesting, it's not laugh out loud funny, but it's got great visuals. It kind of reminds me of the Sesame Street New Year's Eve Special if you ask me. Except, in that special we only see the kids side of the party, but here, we see both sides, both adult and kid alike. I kind of like the looks of that giant ball, it looks an awful lot like that giant Disco ball from the Powerpuff Girls episode, "Boogie Frights." You did see my review of that one, didn't you? I especially love the ending song, simply knwn as "Happy New Year" as sung by Olivia Olson, yes, the actress who voiced Bliss in The Power of Four, but I'll review that one of that rehash some other time. And Ferb's line in this was and I quote "Auld Lang Syne" literally means "old long ago," but I'd rather think of New Year's as an unspoiled universe.: I also like the fireworks at the end and even the romance that Jeremy and Candace have, even Jeremy likes Candace the way she is, being her girl who tries to tell on her brothers self. The fireworks are something that was really missing from the Sesame Street New Year's special. So, If I had to choose between those two specials, I'd pick this one. Did I forget to mention that John Viener, who worked on Family Guy, voiced Norm the Robot?

So, in the words of Cookie Monster, "THE END! Me love credits!"

My Little Pony: The Movie Review

Since it's New Year's Eve, I thought why not ring in the new year with a theatrical review. You see, while the Beauty and the Beast live action remake was a hit, it didn't quite bring in the numbers that the original Beauty and the Beast did. And even the critical reaction to it seemed to be kind of mixed, not even Jeremy of Cinema Sins liked it, nor the Electric Dragon. So, the movie industry went back to the drawing board with My Little Pony: The Movie. I don't think people really knew what to expect with this. I mean, it's a movie based off of the popular animated television series, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, And seeing this was from Canada with the American company of Hasbro Could these people do films based of TV shows like Rugrats and SpongeBob did. Because sometimes, films that are based off of TV shows are usually not that good. so people were kind of nervous, but at the same time, they were excited to see their favorite characters on the silver screen. And from my standpoint, My Little Pony: The Movie was as good as The Lion King, Okay, what's the story?

As Canterlot, Equestria is preparing for the annual Friendship Festival featuring a guest appearance by Songbird Serenade, voiced by Sia, an evil force enters the scene with Tempest Shadow and Grubber, voiced by Emily Blunt and Michael Pena respectively, who work for the Storm King as they take over Equestra and freeze up three of the four princesses. And luckily, Twilight Sparkle exits the scene with her friends and Spike, and they go on a mission to save Equestria and find the hippogriffs. Along with meeting some new people along the way, like Capper, voiced by Taye Diggs, Captain Celano, voiced by Zoe Saldana, and Princess Skystar, voiced by role model, Kristin Chenoweth. All this happens while overcoming dangerous parallels along the way. About two-thirds into the movie, Twilight gets captured by Tempest Shadow, and taken to the Storm King. Will the other main five and Spike save her? Well, watch to find out.

And it's great writing by Mulan and Toy Story 2 screenwriter, Rita Hsiao like this that makes this very epic. Yes, Tempest Shadow is kind of a villain, but she does have a backstory, that made Twilight feel bad for her. And yes, The Storm King is technically the villain, but not as much as Tempest Shadow was. But the dilemma that Twilight has to go through is actually a good dilemma. In fact, you're kind of siding with her when she ruined her chances to save Equestria. I even like the character of Princess Skystar, She's a very fun, active character kind of like Pinkie Pie. In fact, all of the characters are. Including Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Spike, and Fluttershy. As I said, I've never heard of Emily Blunt before this movie, but her song "Open Up Your Eyes" is a good song, perhaps one of MLP's best. The animation on the characters also looks pretty good. It's almost like the animation used in Friendship, but at the same time, it looks like animation from The Lion King. The dramatic moments are very strong. They're never out of place, they're very emotionally satisfying, and you relate with every single aspect of it. You relate with dealing with the inevitable, what will ultimately happen in the end. What should you do? What's the better thing for yourself and for others? What's the selfish thing? What's the unselfish thing? All this stuff plays in, and it's very, very smart and very, very well done. Also, I like how they also mention "everyone," and "everybody," those phrases are rarely used in the show, mostly because they think "everypony" is a substitute for "everybody" or "everyone." I also like the Jack Nicholson "Here's Johnny!" reference as well.

Just when you thought Friendship is Magic couldn't get any better they surprise us with this very well-told, well-written, well-developed, interesting story by Meghan McCarthy, Michael Vogel, and Rita Hsiao, not a rehash, not a ripoff, It's clever, it's funny, it's dramatic, it's visually interesting, it's musically interesting, the characters are wonderful. I've gone on about it long enough. See it if you haven't already.

By the way, I hope you enjoyed all my reviews I've done this December. Have a Happy New Year and I'll see you in January.


This review is dedicated in loving memory to my idol,

Mary Tyler Moore 1936-2017. The star of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Change of Habit, The Dick Van Dyke Show, a guest star on That '70s Show, as well as the founder of MTM Enterprises.

Sing a Song With Pooh Bear

I think it's time for a more simple review. Today, I'm reviewing the direct-to-video Winnie the Pooh sing-along video.........

Sing a Song With Pooh Bear, released on February 1999. It was the very last Winnie the Pooh tape to feature the previews of other Pooh, Spot, and Disney Sing-Along Songs videos. The plot centers around Winnie the Pooh, who searches around the Hundred Acre Wood, for what, you may ask? Not for honey, but for his own song. And his friends, including Tigger, Piglet, Owl, Christopher Robin, Eeyore, Rabbit, Kanga and Roo, and Gopher help him out, or at least offer him advice on this musical adventure.

Let's start with the pros. This video has a solid plot, similar to Sesame Street's A Musical Celebration where a character is off to find something very important and special. The selection of songs was pretty good, with great hits like "The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers," "Nothing's Too Good for a Friend," "Pooh's Balloon Song," and "Rumbly in my Tumbly." These songs were all from The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and Welcome to Pooh Corner. This video also includes brand new songs, like "The Kangaroo Hop," ""Try a Little Something New," "Pooh's Song (My Song)," and "Harvest What You Grow." All terrific tunes for all children of all ages.

Now for the cons. Some things that bothered me were the fact that Peter Cullen and John Fiedler didn't return to voice Eeyore and Piglet, respectively. Instead, they were voiced by Gregg Berger and Steve Schatzberg. And while I have nothing against Gregg Berger, I mean, hes' done a lot of voice work for Garfield and Friends, like Odie and Orson. And Steve Schatzberg previously did Piglet's singing voice for the direct-to-video movie, Pooh's Grand Adventure, and for Gregg Berger, he's no Eeyore. Obviously, Peter and John must've been too busy to be involved with the project. Another small nitpick is the fact that this video doesn't have the New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh Theme Song! Come on, I like that theme song! Why wouldn't you put that in?! But, the BIGGEST problem was that, the people behind this didn't have the money to animated a lot of new material for this, in fact, the only portions of this video that were new animation were the songs "The Kangaroo Hop," and "My Song." Everything else is just the voice actors just lip-synching new lines on clips from The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. That is pretty lazy! And I know what you're thinking, didn't the Disney Sing-Along Songs series do this too, well, yeah, but that was for a reason! The lip-synching for the characters match perfectly, even on Jiminy Cricket and Ludwig Von Drake. This clearly should've been animated with new material with the animators from The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Again, this is just my opinion, if you disagree, that's totally fine.

So, bottom line, Sing a Song with Pooh Bear is a good sing-along video, it's not great, but it IS good, it helps the children sing-along to their favorite Pooh songs. The only thing that bugs me was that aside from those two songs I've mentioned is that, this video didn't bother to put in new animation. That is just lazy. But oh well, you can't have everything. Watch it if you run across it.