Phineas Flynn

Phineas Flynn is the main protagonist from the Phineas and Ferb series.

Phineas is a young boy in the Flynn-Fletcher family. He is the son of Linda Flynn and step-son of Lawrence Fletcher. He is one of the three children of the Flynn-Fletcher household, with a disapproving older sister Candace and a step-brother, from Lawrence's side of the family, under the alias of Ferb. He shares a strong bond with the family pet, a platypus they named Perry, but remains unaware of his vague double life as a covert secret agent.

As an incurable optimist, Phineas constantly looks on the brighter side of things. He is also extremely smart, creative, persistent, and able to endeavor in immensely large projects and activities with the help of his step-brother. His hospitality is a driving force behind many of his plans.

Appearance
Phineas has short, spiky deep red hair, a triangle shaped head with a large pointy nose, and large, dark blue eyes. He has three freckles near his temple. His height is not revealed yet, but he seems to be slightly shorter than Isabella and taller than Baljeet. Phineas also has a slight but noticeable slouch. It is uncertain whether this is a medical condition (possibly pertaining to the size of his head), or formed of simple habit.

As a toddler, Phineas wore a white t-shirt, blue overalls and black shoes.

Currently, Phineas wears an orange and off-white striped t-shirt, blue cargo shorts with large pockets, and blue high-top sneakers with no noticeable socks. He also wore this outfit as a toddler and preschooler.

Phineas's swimsuit consists of an orange pair of swimming trunks with a white cloud pattern, with dark blue sandals to match.

For winter, he wears a dark blue jacket over a white turtleneck sweater, dark grey snow pants, grey gloves, and a red snow hat in the snow. He has grey boots with this outfit ("Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation!"); he wears a light blue turtleneck sweater with a snowman on the front in place of his regular ("A Phineas and Ferb Family Christmas"). His indoor winter clothes are a variant of his summer clothes; a long-sleeved orange and off-white striped shirt, and blue cargo pants.

For bedtime, his PJ's are striped orange with a white neckline and cuffs ("Brain Drain") and later on is orange with white stripes with an off-white turnover collar with buttons.

In "Act Your Age", as a tween, Phineas' hair was slicked back instead of spiky, and wears a gold buttoned shirt, slate blue cargo shorts, and bluish-grey sneakers with white laces.

Also in "Act Your Age", as a young adult, Phineas' head is nearly the same as when he was younger, but with his hair slightly longer and returned to its usual spiky hairstyle. His height still remains unclear, but he seems to be a whole head shorter than Ferb and a bit taller than Isabella.He now wears a gold T-shirt with an orange stripe layered over an off-white long sleeved shirt, jeans, and dark blue sneakers similar to the ones wore as a kid.

Personality
The most notable trait of Phineas is his enduring optimism, along with his ever-cheerful demeanor he always strives to uphold. Even in the face of the most difficult challenges that confront him, he manages to maintain his composure and keep his outlook on the situation positive. Phineas often uses his ability to boost the morale of those around him during phases of depression. He is almost always in a good cheerful mood.

As intelligent and industrious as he is, however, Phineas has shown to be oblivious to the emotions and intentions of those around him. It's for this shortcoming of his that he fails to notice Isabella's love interest for him as obvious as she tries to make it, along with Candace's intention to get him grounded. It is possible that Phineas inherited this shortcoming from his mother considering how she always ignores Candace's often completely justifiable rants of the impossible endeavors he and Ferb would engage in and how she has always neglected to acknowledge the frustration Candace would feel when she on one occasion found herself in her daughter's position.

Being a rational and calm person, Phineas isn't easily angered or irked. However, he has been shown to be innovative to a fault; when Phineas is unable to express his creativity he may build up high amounts of stress. ("Bully Bromance Breakup"). On very rare occasions, Phineas's temper has been flared. The first traces of Phineas's aggravated side were seen when Candace ignored his warnings and put herself in danger ("Out to Launch") and when Baljeet's distraught wailing interrupted his morning ("The Baljeatles"). Phineas also openly showed his intolerance when Santa dismissed the entire population of his hometown as "naughty" ("Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation!"). He was agitated to a particularly high extent when on what came close to turning out as a pivotal event in his family's history when he finally learned of his pet platypus Perry's secret double-life as a secret agent.

Though a handful of instances Phineas has openly shown exasperation can be listed, there has only been one time Phineas was well and truly enraged. That time was on the day of the Summer Solstice, when Candace refused to cooperate with him during a critical moment when he needed for her to swallow her pride and settle for the tricycle that was the only means of transportation available for her to make it back to their house. Under the circumstances of a dwindling time frame, Phineas eventually resorted to yelling at her in a startling outburst of rage to force her to comply.

Abilities
Phineas has proven himself to possess numerous talents and skills. Like his brother, he possesses an overactive imagination that is the driving force behind his endeavors. He can work very well with tools and has exceptional knowledge and prowess with construction. What distinguishes him from others of his age group is his ability to engage in feats largely amplifying that of others his age.

He also has been shown to be a good singer. When given the opportunity to sing, he seizes it and delivers with remarkable vocal proficiency and smoothness. Along with this, he can play a number of musical instruments, including and possibly not limited to the stand-up bass, the guitar, the bass guitar, the organ, the piano, the tambourine, and the drums.

Phineas appears to be able to work very well as an investigator, having been able to track down and locate Candace's Mary McGuffin doll based on eyewitness testimony after it was mistakenly sold in their garage sale.

Trivia

 * In the Original Story Pitch, which became the episode "Rollercoaster", there was a line where Candace refers to Phineas as a 9 year old. However, this is most likely their mental age rather than than their physical age, because after testing with audiences revealed a wide age range identified with the character, producers decided to keep their ages vague (so they could be precocious). To most of the audience, the first lyrics in the theme song imply that they are at least eight. However, in one episode, after Phineas says "I've been coming here since I was little." he adds "Well, little-er", which would qualify him as six years old. ("Put That Putter Away"). Phineas's age is now officially "less than 15" (Dan Povenmire Correspondence). However, as of "Phineas and Ferb's Quantum Boogaloo", both boys are stated to be approximately 10 years old. They time-travel twenty years into the future, and Future Linda states that Phineas and Ferb are 30 then. Therefore, they are around 10 at present. However, the line 'The 12th annual Phineas and Ferb Family Christmas special' in "A Phineas and Ferb Family Christmas" may reveal that they are 12 years old. "Act Your Age" has Phineas about to attend college and is set ten years after the events of the series, placing Phineas at around 7-8 during the events of the series, as he would be 18 at the time of "Act Your Age."
 * Phineas is the same age as Ferb. The reason the boys are stepbrothers is because producers wanted them to be the same age, but not twins, and be more than just friends.
 * In earlier episodes, Buford often called Phineas "Dinner Bell", usually in an intimidating way. Though as the series has progressed and the two have gradually become friends, Buford has referred to Phineas by this nickname much less often.
 * He was the first character of the show created.
 * Phineas's motto is "Keep Moving Forward", just like Walt Disney.
 * Phineas seems to have problems with his spelling sometimes.
 * Phineas's other motto is "Seize the day", which is a line in Today is Gonna Be a Great Day.
 * Phineas is named after Phileas Fogg, the main character of the Jules Verne story Around the World in Eighty Days, whose name is sometimes erroneously given in adaptations as Phineas Fogg.
 * In "Vanessassary Roughness", he was shown sitting in the front seat of Mom's car; in America, children must be of age 12 or older to sit in the front seat of a car and must be at least 4'10 and in some states must weigh at least 100 lbs. It is most likely that Phineas is 8-10 and is showing unusual intelligence for his age.
 * Phineas seems to be naturally left-handed, as he has been seen to prefer using his left hand on many occasions. According to the Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension video game, he is left-handed. In the TV movie, he is seen playing on the left-handed drum-set, and he bats left-handed. He also received a "left-handed flange tuner" tool from Candace for his birthday ("Phineas' Birthday Clip-O-Rama!"). But as he can also use his right hand to write and play instruments, he appears to be ambidextrous, and can play both the right-handed and left-handed guitar. Phineas being left-handed is likely a reference to Dan Povenmire, who is also left-handed.
 * In "Traffic Cam Caper", you can see Phineas, along with Ferb yawn for the first time after finishing their dinner when they became tired.
 * In a couple of the early episodes, Phineas's eyebrows are black. In the later episodes, though, they are red.
 * Phineas has a certain taste in a variety of food, particular favorites including the following:
 * He naturally likes his mom's cooking. He remarked on the deliciousness of her tacos in "Journey to the Center of Candace" and enjoys taco night in "The Chronicles of Meap". He looked forward to a supper of fried chicken in "Toy to the World".
 * Chocolate cake ("Finding Mary McGuffin")
 * Corn dogs ("Phineas and Ferb Get Busted!") ("Unfair Science Fair")
 * Meatloaf ("Meatloaf Surprise").
 * Cherry soda ("Phineas and Ferb: Across the Second Dimension")
 * Root beer ("Phineas and Ferb's Guide to Life")
 * Lemonade ("The Lemonade Stand") ("Phineas and Ferb: Across the Second Dimension")
 * Snow cones, cheese sandwiches ("Perry The Actorpus")
 * Phineas does not like zucchini ("Doofapus").
 * Phineas can play an array of different instruments, including the guitar and violin ("Flop Starz", "The Fast and the Phineas", "The Magnificent Few", "It's a Mud, Mud, Mud, Mud World", "Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together", "Crack That Whip", "Tip of the Day", "Don't Even Blink", "Oh, There You Are, Perry", "The Baljeatles", "Phineas and Ferb's Quantum Boogaloo", "Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown", "No More Bunny Business", "Robot Rodeo").
 * Phineas owns an MP3 ("The Magnificent Few").
 * Phineas (as well as his friends) owns a smartphone.
 * Phineas made a cameo in the June 17, 2010 installment of the Lola comic strip by Todd Clark. In this strip, his head's shape is lampshaded by Lola, who decides to "help him" by getting a telethon and tells him that he "can't be the only one with triangle-head syndrome." Interestingly, though Phineas retains his distinctive appearance, his outfit and hair have a different color to avoid copyright.
 * Phineas does not seem to mind when Isabella says his catchphrases in episodes such as "The Lizard Whisperer", "Cheer Up Candace", and others. He is also the only person who can say her catchphrase, "Whatcha doin'?". without her getting annoyed.


 * According to Candace, Phineas, along with his brother Ferb, smell like motor oil and confidence ("Robot Rodeo").
 * Phineas seems to be getting taller as the series goes on, which is not at all unusual considering his age. Generally, he is shorter than Isabella and taller than Baljeet. In most of Season 1, he is much shorter than Isabella. In Season 2, he is generally as tall as Isabella. In parts of Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation!, Phineas and Ferb Summer Belongs to You!, The Beak, and Bubble Boys, he is taller than Isabella (though it should be noted that this is inconsistent throughout these episodes: sometimes Phineas is taller, sometimes Isabella is taller). In the Christmas special, this could possibly be explained as Phineas having a quick growth spurt, as that episode takes place during the winter after the summer the rest of the series takes place. It should also be noted that as of Season 3, Phineas is consistently as tall as Isabella. This could be related to the fact that girls grow earlier than boys.
 * He is a fan to the movie series Space Adventure.
 * Phineas can solve complicated math problems.
 * Phineas's birthday seems to take place near the end of summer since most of their inventions and adventures appeared to have happened before his birthday.
 * Phineas appears to like and excel at baseball.
 * Phineas's 3rd favorite number is 5.
 * He has a prehistoric ancestor named Phinabunk in "Tri-Stone Area" and another ancestor named Dr. Phineastein in "The Monster of Phineas-n-Ferbenstein".
 * Phineas may undergo stress after a long period of time without building something ("Bully Bromance Breakup") unless he decides to forgo building by choice ("Best Lazy Day Ever" and "Brain Drain").
 * He is the first character to have his name in an episode title ("The Fast and the Phineas").
 * Phineas's name can be a reference to the novel Phineas Finn.
 * Phineas's first name plus Ferb's surname, Fletcher, could be a possible reference to the deceased British poet, Phineas Fletcher (1582–1650).
 * Sometimes Phineas has eyebrows visible, but for most of the time he does not. This goes the same with Ferb.
 * The only episode to date where Phineas does not physically appear was "Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown Hosted by Kelly Osbourne". Although he still appears in archive footage from the songs.
 * "Live and Let Drive" is the only episode where Phineas didn't have any lines. However, he, Ferb and Perry still appear in every episode of the series.
 * Nearly every time Phineas says "I know what we're gonna do today", an angelic chorus plays in the background.
 * The school he and Ferb attend is John P. Tristate Elementary ("Doof 101").
 * He, along Isabella, has been shown as a baby ("At Last!"), preschooler, his current age, a tween, a teen, as an adult and as an old man ("At Last", "Act Your Age", "Doof Dynasty")
 * It is very rare for a newborn to smile, like Phineas did in Little Brothers.
 * Phineas speaks the very first and last speaking lines of the series (not counting the special "The O.W.C.A. Files" where Ferb speaks the last lines).
 * The only time Phineas was shown crying was in "Agent Doof"; though he is technically a baby when that occurred.
 * Alongside Ferb, Phineas was named #26 on TV's Funniest Animated Stars: A Paley Center for Media Special.