It's About Time!

Phineas and Ferb repair a broken time machine from the museum and travel back in time, accidentally taking Candace with them. The Fireside Girls build a replacement machine to rescue them. Meanwhile, Heinz Doofenshmirtz replaces Perry with a new nemesis named Peter the Panda, making Perry depressed.

Episode Summary
Phineas and Ferb visit the Danville museum. Dad finds a dog skeleton, that was found in their neighborhood. Phineas notices the collar saying "Bucky" and comments " Didn't we have a dog named Bucky who got sick and went to live on Kindly Old Man Simmons's farm?" Dad continues on and finds a human skeleton. "And this here is Kindly Old Man Simmons- Hey, who's up for milkshakes?"

Ferb taps Phineas on the shoulder and points to an exhibit. Phineas's eyes immediately fall on a sign that says "Gadgets Through The Ages". They enter the exhibit and find a tour guide talking to several people about a time machine that was never finished. Phineas realizes that he wants to fix the time machine, and exclaims that he knows what they're going to do today. Candace, however, tries to interfere. She sees Phineas and Ferb fixing the time machine and takes a part from the time machine that plays a major role in going back in time. She walks a few steps before seeing that Jeremy is working at Mr. Slushy Burger in the museum. She yells before seeing him and gets put outside the museum by a security guard, who says that she has broken a major rule by yelling.

Candace meets a boy outside the museum that stole a Pterodactyl. He decides to help her and creates a diversion by yelling. All the security guards are attracted to him and Candace sneaks inside and talks to Jeremy. He tells her that he is so bored that by the time his job finishes, he'll be part of the fossil exhibit. Candace laughs and spots a security guard entering the hall, She then runs off.

However, Phineas and Ferb are testing their time machine. Phineas tests number 1, and Candace goes back in time where she says, "Part of the fossil exhibit! That's a good one!" Jeremy asks Candace where she ran off to, but Phineas tests number 2. Candace says, "That's a good one!" as she rewinds back in time. Jeremy laughs in a kind of confused way as Phineas tries out number 3. Candace laughs and says, "Hi Jeremy!" Jeremy gets freaked out and the security guard spots Candace and takes the piece away from her just as Phineas tests number 4. The security guard goes over to what they're doing and asks if they need anything. Phineas says that he is missing one piece and shows him the blueprints. The security guard says that he'll keep an eye out for it, and Phineas tests number 5. The security guard comes over holding the piece in his hand, and hands them it. The boys then complete the time machine.

Candace tries to drag Linda over to the exhibit where Phineas and Ferb are fixing the time machine. When Linda steps through the hall, Candace strays over to Phineas and Ferb right when they are testing the time machine. They go back in time to 300 million B.C. where a T-rex steps directly on the time machine, smashing it.

Meanwhile, Perry meets Doofenshmirtz at his building, but sees Doofenshmirtz's silhouette in the window. His silhouette shows that he is fighting with an evil ray gun. Perry enters and sees that Doofenshmirtz has hidden a secret agent, named Peter the Panda, inside his closet. Doofenshmirtz states that they met at an evil convention and they immediately disliked each other. He says that he just wants a clean break, and Perry exits the building, feeling heartbroken because his only nemesis has left him for another one.

Phineas, Ferb, and Candace encounter the T-Rex, and Phineas and Ferb do not make any sudden movements. Candace, on the other hand, makes many arm movements and screams, causing the T-Rex to chase after her. Phineas and Ferb use a scooter and chase after Candace. They run over a muddy puddle where the T-Rex's footprint has been imprinted on, and they realize that it is the same footprint in the museum that Isabella and the Fireside Girls are currently looking at today. Phineas and Ferb chase after Candace and rescue her from the T-Rex. They go back to the footprint and write a message to Isabella, saying that they are stuck in 300 million BC and for them to build another Time Machine to save them. Isabella does what they ask but Phineas misspells Time Machine, making it say "Tie Machine". Isabella takes matters into her own hands and constructs a real Time Machine and they are saved. But when Phineas and Ferb return with Candace, they realize that they brought the T-Rex along with them. Candace gets chased by it again.

Perry and Doofenshmirtz attend Dr. Feelbetter's show for nemesis, where all the secret agents are gathered in one room. Doofenshmirtz uses a Freeze-inator ray he constructed right after asking Perry for forgiveness, but it accidentally blasts out the ceiling and hits the T-Rex in the museum right when Candace is about to show her parents the dinosaur. Phineas and Ferb were happy what they did today in the museum. As they leave, Candace was blushing when Jeremy pointed out that his favorite was the "C + J heart" sign that she drew back in time. Then Jeremy wonders why cavemen were wearing turtles as safety helmets.

Songs

 * When We Didn't Get Along
 * My Nemesis
 * Go, Go, Phineas (Instrumental)

End Credits
Linda was asleep in bed until Lawrence wakes her by replaying Fossils... da da da over and over again on the recorded tape. Linda gives him a little grin.

Perry's entrance to his lair
He enters in a photo booth at the museum.

Evil Jingle
Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated!

Background Information

 * The end credits has Lawrence in bed, listening over and over the ending of the audio tour.
 * This is the first two-part episode.
 * Major Monogram did not speak in this episode, possibly due to him being frozen by the Freeze-inator.
 * The Time machine is invented by Professor Onassis is seen in the episode "Phineas and Ferb's Quantum Boogaloo".
 * The songs When We Didn't Get Along and My Nemesis both made it to the Phineas and Ferb Soundtrack and were votable in the "Phineas and Ferb Musical Cliptastic Countdown" but neither one made it to the Top 10.
 * Disney Channel Spain made a votation in 2009 to choose the best "Phineas and Ferb" episodes of 2009, this episode and "Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together" were the winners.
 * First time Perry is seen crying.
 * On the talk-show, Doofenshmirtz breaks the fourth wall by saying, "cartoonish physical violence".

Production Information

 * Episode description from YourTV.com.au: "Phineas and Ferb discover a time machine in the museum; now they're back in the Jurassic period. Dancing between falling dinosaurs' feet, they've got to get back before their parents find out."

"It's About Time!" was conceived by the series' four major writers. At a weekly session that Monday, the concept was reviewed and deemed acceptable enough to create. Series co-founder Dan Povenmire was assigned to develop the script, and simultaneously artists Jon Barry, Mike Roth, Kent Osborne, and Aliki Theofilopoulos constructed the episode's storyboards. A walkthrough of the storyboards was presented to the production staff, whose reaction determined whether certain jokes remained in the finished product.Povenmire directed the episode, which was animated at Rough Draft Studios in South Korea.

In the conclusion of the episode, Phineas and Ferb's time machine is left in positive condition and available for further use at the museum. The writing staff purposely ended it this way so that they could reutilize it later in the series. A concept was eventually conceived as a way to do so, having "Phineas and Ferb go into the future and actually see Candace as an adult (which) drags up all kinds of memories of not being able to bust them." This idea was used for the second season episode, "Phineas and Ferb's Quantum Boogaloo."

"It's About Time!" featured two different musical numbers, entitled "My Nemesis" and "When We Didn't Get Along." During the storyboard stage, a note was simply made indicating that a song would be placed at a certain point in a sequence. As with most songs in the series, they were each written by series co-founders Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh over the course of approximately one hour.> Povenmire and Marsh proceeded by singing their draft of the song into the answering machine of the series' composer, Danny Jacob, that Friday night.Jacob performed both of the songs.

The episode was originally broadcast in the United States on Disney Channel on March 1, 2008. "It's About Time!" became available on the DVD compilation Phineas and Ferb: The Fast and the Phineas in 2008, along with fellow first season episodes, "One Good Scare Ought to Do It!", "The Fast and the Phineas," "Lawn Gnome Beach Party of Terror," "Flop Starz," "Raging Bully," "Lights, Candace, Action!" and "Are You My Mummy?". Both "My Nemesis" and "When We Didn't Get Along" became available in 2009 on the official Phineas and Ferb soundtrack.

Themes
Multiple critics have noted that the portrayal of Doofenshmirtz and Perry's relationship in the episode features a somewhat of a homosexual subtext. The concept behind it is a parody of stereotypical teen romance film, casting Perry and Doofenshmirtz—two males who are of different species—as the teenage couple who is "breaking up." Perry's initial suspicions over Doofenshmirtz having a new nemesis are portrayed as if a person discovers their significant other is cheating on them. Perry discovers a paw print on Doofenshmirtz's face, resembling a lipstick mark on the cheek as if from a lover. Doofenshmirtz initially tries to deny having a new nemesis, but eventually admits to the accusation, noting that he "didn't want [Perry] to find out this way," overtly detailing a common way couples discover their partner is cheating on them. Perry is depressed about their "break up" and reminisces about their past "relationship" together, while music resembling a love song plays in the background. After feeling depressed himself, Doofenshmirtz "dumps" Peter and reunites with Perry on a talk show prone to featuring romantic confrontations.

Reception
The episode was mostly well received by critics. Blogcritics reviewer Aaraon Peck applauded the Perry and Doofenshmirtz B-Plot, considering it as both the official Pret episode and an example of the series' ability to allow "adults [to] enjoy the humor" and not strictly focusing on the entertainment of younger viewers. Conversely, Ed Liu of Toon Zone was critical of the episode and other early episodes available on The Fast and the Phineas, calling them "way too manic for their own good, never giving a gag enough time to develop a proper laugh before ripping off to the next one, and refusing to sit still for any length of time." The production staff reacted positively to the episode, and said that they "really liked" its outcome.

Reaction to the episode's melodies were also positive. Wolfen Moondaughter wrote in her Sequential Tart article, "Five Reasons: Phineas and Ferb," that both "My Nemesis" and "When We Didn't Get Along" were among her personal favorite musical pieces from the series, despite the former resembling the styles of Elvis Costello, whom Moondaughter noted she carried a distaste for. A Wired magazine review of the series' soundtrack observed that despite being drastically different from tracks that proceed and precede it, "When We Didn't Get Along" "fit perfectly" due to "the genius of the malleable songwriting style of Phineas and Ferb’s musical brain trust.

Errors
During the song "When We Didn't Get Along", Perry puts his hat into the nook in the wall, but on Doctor Feelbetter's show when Doofenshmirtz begs to be forgiven, he pulls it out of nowhere.
 * The motor scooter's track disappears while Phineas and Candace talk about the footprint.
 * Peter the Panda threw all the chairs in the left entrance, but when Doofenshmirtz made some guys enter with the Freeze-inator, they entered from the left entrance and the chairs were gone.
 * When Dr. Doofenshmirtz is showing Agent P to the door, Agent P's height is just under the doorknob, but when Dr. Doofenshmirtz is closing the door, Agent P grows to be half the height of the door.
 * As Perry leaves Dr. Doofenshmirtz's room, he hears him say "Curse you, Peter the Panda!" which most likely means that Peter the Panda had destroyed the Freeze-inator Ray, however, later in the episode Peter the Panda is seen disassembling the Freeze-inator. Doofenshmirtz may have said this to make Perry sad.
 * The T-Rex smashes Phineas' motor scooter along with the time-machine, yet the boys ride on it in perfect condition to save Candace. Later they drop it in the water, but Ferb is seen wheeling it along soon after.
 * When Isabella and the Fireside Girls read the message in the fossilized footprint, Holly doesn't wear a beret, and then after Isabella finishes reading it, Holly is now wearing her beret. Also, Gretchen's skin color continues into the bottom half of her glasses frame in this same scene.
 * After Dr. Doofenshmirtz finishes singing he sees Peter the Panda taking apart the Freeze-inator Ray. There are some parts of the Ray sitting on the ground, but when the next scene comes the parts are gone.
 * When Peter the Panda breaks Dr. Doofenshmirtz's picture, Doofenshmirtz is holding it upside down, but in the next scene it is shown right side up.
 * While Katie was hammering the time machine, her collar is orange instead of red.
 * When the T-Rex is shown in the rain, if you look closely Candace's drawing is gone.
 * Right before she gets struck, when Candace is complaining over the fact that there is no electricity, her lips are out of sync from what she's saying.
 * When Candace gets struck by lighting there's a space between Katie and Adyson in the time machine, but when they travel back to the Danville Museum there's no space.
 * When Isabella was telling Phineas that there is an 'm' in time machine, the whites of Gretchen's eyes can be seen.
 * T-Rex's have two fingers, but the one in the episode is seen with three, which is a very common mistake in many shows.
 * When Isabella first read the message on the stone, there WAS an 'm' in the word 'time machine' when she read it. Although, she may have made a mistake or she didn't read it well.
 * When Phineas says,"It occurs", Phineas' shirt only has two stripes. Usually it has three stripes.
 * In reality there were no cavemen during the day when the dinosaurs lived. However, in the end before the ending credits, Jeremy said, "Hmmm. I never knew cavemen wear helmets before." when actually there is still no cavemen before.
 * The Closed Captions spelled Doofenshmirtz's name as "Doofashmirtz".
 * Dinosaurs did not live in 300 million BC, which was during the Carboniferous Era. In fact, the first dinosaurs appeared 50 million years later.
 * When Monogram first appears his shirt sleeve is missing it's dark green stripe and only appears after Carl knocks him over.
 * During "My Nemesis," at one point the tambourine becomes transparent.

Continuity

 * Agents D, F, R, C, O, K, H, and the unnamed kangaroo from "Traffic Cam Caper", can be seen in Dr. Feelbetter's studio.
 * Holly was seen without her beret again. ("Mom's Birthday")
 * Second time Dr. Doofenshmirtz has mentioned mice being in his building, the first time being "I, Brobot".
 * This is the second time Isabella asks Phineas if his Big Idea is impossible, the first one being in "Rollercoaster".
 * In When We Didn't Get Along, many pictures from previous episodes were shown. They were from "Lawn Gnome Beach Party of Terror", "Flop Starz", "Candace Loses Her Head", "Journey to the Center of Candace", "Rollercoaster", and "The Fast and the Phineas ".
 * When Isabella and the Fireside Girls remake the Time Machine, the music in the background is the instrumental version of Go, Go, Phineas.
 * In De Plane! De Plane!, Jeremy signs Candace's cast the same way she wrote "C+J" when she was brooding about not being able to go back to the present. And also, Stacy mentions the events of this episode meaning Candace told her about it.
 * One of the singers from "My Nemesis" is seen again in "Thaddeus and Thor" tackling Dr. Doofenshmirtz when he "tried to kick the can" in the song "Couldn't Kick My Way Into Her Heart".
 * In My Nemesis, Agent Double 0-0 appears being interrogated by Doofenshmirtz. ("Elementary My Dear Stacy")
 * This is the first time someone other than Perry goes to fight Doofenshmirtz. The second time will be Planty the Potted Plant from "No More Bunny Business", the third time will be the Dodo Bird from "Last Train to Bustville"and the fourth time will be the platypus that was from the Danville Zoo from "Misperceived Monotreme".
 * Fourth time any of the settings is not at the Flynn-Fletcher House. ("The Magnificent Few", "Are You My Mummy?", "Get That Bigfoot Outa My Face!")

Allusions

 * The Flintstones - Phineas and Ferb use turtles as helmets.
 * Jurassic Park - The Tyrannosaurus Rex destroying the time machine is similar to the scene when the T-Rex destroys the jeep, and the little dinosaurs and Candace that were chased by the T-Rex is similar when the T-Rex chased Dr. Grant, Hammond's kids, and the Gallimimus. Also, when Phineas tells everyone not to move, Candace flips out, like a scene from Jurassic Park III. Finally, when Candace is trying to stop her parents from going into the exhibit, we see the T-Rex blinking its eye as from the movie.
 * Back to the Future - When Candace yells, "You built a time machine that has to be plugged in?!", it is close to the line from Back to the Future when Marty yells, "You built a time machine out of a DeLorean?!" Both machines also have to be struck by lightning to return to the present. Also, when the Message appears on the Dinosaur Footprint, it fades into existence just like when the future changes in each of the Back to the Future movies. Usually seen on newspapers.
 * Bride of Frankenstein - After Candace gets zapped by lightning, her hair resembles that of the bride of Frankenstein.
 * Dr. Phil - Dr. Feelbetter bears a strong resemblance to Dr. Phil.
 * Super Mario Bros. 3 - Candace says, "Where are we going to find electricity in Dinosaur Land?" Dinosaur Land is a land in the Mushroom World from Super Mario Bros. 3.
 * Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me - The appearance of Doofenshmirtz, Perry, and Peter on Dr. Feelbetter's show is similar to that of Dr. Evil and his son, Scott Evil, on The Jerry Springer Show in the Austin Powers movie. The chair-throwing antics on the Dr. Feelbetter Show are reminiscent of the hijinks on Springer's real television show.
 * The Time Machine - The design of the time machine in the museum resembles that made in the 1960 film version of the Time Machine, by H. G. Wells. Wells may have popularized the idea of the time machine staying in exactly the same place during teleportation.
 * Wan Hu - One of the exhibits in the museum is a chair with rockets attached to it, probably a reference to this Chinese legend.
 * Land of the Lost TV series - The tyrannosaur Grumpy's leitmotif, or recognizable musical theme, from this 1970s television show can be heard when the T-Rex is chasing Candace.
 * Calvin and Hobbes - The dinosaur that sticks it's tongue out at Candace resembles the Calvinosaur.
 * Friends - Doofenshmirtz mentions that he and Perry should take a break in an allusion to Ross Geller's catchphrase: "WE WERE ON A BREAK!"

Cultural references
"It's About Time!" features multiple cultural references. Aspects of the time machine are based on H.G. Wells' famous novel The Time Machine. During the "My Nemesis" musical number, charactures of The Archies, a fictional garage band in the animated television series The Archie Show, are shown and begin to sing and play instruments during the course of the sequence. The song itself parodies the style of musician Elvis Costello. The Dr. Feelbetter show incorporates elements of confrontational talk shows Dr. Phil and The Jerry Springer Show.