Review: Candace against the Universe is unnecessary

 We all know Phineas and Ferb, and let’s part from the truth that we’ve all watched the show. Last year, a spin-off about the boys’ older sister, Candace, came out on Disney+, many years after the series ended. It has the same humour, the same pacing, the same characters plus some others..., but I have been reflecting on the story - the story in general, both the series and movies included - and came to the conclusion that it was unnecessary. Let me explain.

Candace may be the most gaslighted character in cartoons. She never gets to bust her brother and stepbrother because Dr Heinz Doofenshmirtz’s inventions make their weird things disappear, so her mother never sees them, and each episode is basically the same. With such a tragic backstory, we can be in agreement that she does deserve to be under the spotlight too, and not just under the shadow of her inventive brothers. This movie pretends to do exactly that for her and wants to show us a much deeper character, not only as a sister but as a person who’s attempting to find their own place. 

This seems like a good premise, doesn’t it? It is - the movie had potential. Nevertheless, while watching the movie I felt like, although the essence of the character and the cartoon was present, and her relationship with her brother was deepened, the other aspects of her life were completely forgotten. And by this, I mean two very important relationships in her life: Stacy and Jeremy.

I know, her relationship with Vanessa, which was very shallow during the show, is now taking over, but that is exactly the problem: Stacy was always there for her, and Candance was growing in confidence with Jeremy, yet, now, they only have a few minutes on screen, and almost none of them are with Candace or in any relation with the protagonist - their friend. Except, of course, for the cheerful last dance, which does not actually count because they are just dancing in the background, not interacting in a meaningful way with her.

On the other hand, shall I remind you of the plot, which seems to be an elaborate copy of an already seen episode and this already explored side of Candace as a girl who just wants to find her place in the world - or in any other. Yes, I am talking about ‘Unfair Science Fair’, and I’ll assume you already watched it. Furthermore, I think the last episode served as a really nice and cute ending to Candace’s arc as she learned to somehow enjoy the last day of summer with her brothers; and the first movie did a very good job in making Candace grow up. 

Well, I don’t want to overcomplicate things. On the whole, after observing how shallow Stacy and Jeremy are in this movie, and how familiar (repetitive, in fact) this plot feels, I conclude that the movie was unnecessary. But that’s just my opinion.

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