Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together (Phineas and Ferb)


 *  It’s our [the co-creators] favorite episode. We just love it. We like all the songs. The story has a really good feel to it and it’s sort of touching in the end.
 * - Dan Povenmire

Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together is the 12th episode from the first season of Phineas and Ferb.

Plot
The boys locate their parents' favorite band, Love Händel, to perform a reunion concert in the backyard to make up for their Dad wedding anniversary. Meanwhile, Doofenshmirtz plans a surprise birthday party for Vanessa, also planning to launch Perry the Platypus on a giant firecracker as the grand finale.

Why This Episode's Got Rhythm

 * 1) This episode Introduces Love Händel, a band which would start to make cameos in future episodes of the show.
 * 2) It featured great guest appearances of Jaret Reddick, Carlos Alazraqui, and Steve Zahn as the members of Love Händel.
 * 3) The characters are still likeable, as they are from the show.
 * 4) The animation and voice acting are great, as usual.
 * 5) The premise of Phineas, Ferb and Candace reuniting Love Händel for their parents' wedding anniversary is nice, despite using the "forgotten birthday" cliché.
 * 6) *The subplot where Doof plans a birthday party for Vanessa is also great.
 * 7) It has some funny moments, such as where Candace tries to distract her mother in the "Fabulous" segment.
 * 8) It features some catchy and iconic songs, like "History of Rock", "Fabulous", and "Music Makes Us Better", but they all pale in comparison to "Ain't Got Rhythm", which is one of the best songs in not just the episode, but possibly the entire show.
 * 9) The scene where Linda reunites with her husband is sweet and beautiful.
 * 10) Wonderful ending with Love Händel singing "Music Makes Us Better" and with everyone dancing.
 * 11) Doof's subplot also ends very well, which despite having the rocket destroy the party, it turns out that Vanessa and friends liked the birthday party.

The Only Bad Quality

 * 1) As stated before, it uses the "forgotten birthday" cliché.

Reception
The episode received critical acclaim from critics and fans alike. Newsarama reporter Steve Fritz called the episode a fan favorite. Fritz praised it for demonstrating "incredible ways to play within the walls of [the show's] formula, constantly coming up with refreshingly different plot lines."

The episode was also popular among the production staff: Povenmire named it as his and Marsh's favorite, citing the quality of the songs, the "sort of touching" ending, and the "really good feel" of the story. In April 2009, Marsh cited "Rollercoaster" as his favorite, tying "Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together" with "The Chronicles of Meap" not far behind.

Trivia

 * This is the first episode produced in 2008, as shown in the credits.
 * Each member of Love Händel was inspired by a member of the production team, who had previously been musicians themselves:
 * Danny was named after and based on Povenmire, Bobbi Fabulous on Gaylor, and Swampy on co-creator Jeff "Swampy" Marsh
 * When Disney XD was launched at 12 a.m. on February 13, 2009, this episode was the first episode the channel broadcast, replacing Toon Disney.
 * "Ain't Got Rhythm" was voted #8 on the Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown.
 * The song "Ain't Got Rhythm" and Phineas' line "Not yet, Ferb" became memes.