Unfair Science Fair

Baljeet is discouraged about his prospects at a science fair. So, decide to help him build a portal to Mars. Candace competes with a girl for a job to be with Jeremy. Dr. Doofenshmirtz seeks to overcome a past rival: a bicarbonate volcano.

Episode Summary
meet Isabella in their backyard, and she tells them to go see Baljeet. Phineas and Ferb stop by Baljeet's house and they see him sitting in his room in total darkness. They ask him what's wrong and he says that he qualified for the science fair. Baljeet tells them that he told his teacher, Mr. McGillicuddy that he would make a portal to Mars for his science project, but since Mr. McGillicuddy thinks that it is impossible to make such a thing, he will only give Baljeet an A-. Baljeet asks Phineas and Ferb to help build a portal to Mars for him, and they agree to help him.

Meanwhile, Candace is seen using binoculars at Mr. Slushy Dawg. She walks over to Jeremy after he spots her and sees the "Help Wanted" sign on the counter. Jeremy tells her that they are looking for another employee. However, when Candace starts to accept the offer, Wendy walks in front of Candace and says that she has come to take the job too. The manager comes over and tells them that they will have a competition to see who gets the job first.

Perry goes to a parking garage and jumps in Dr. Doofenshmirtz's car. Perry gets stuck in a car seat. While waiting in line for the science fair Doofenshmirtz (pulling Perry and the car seat in a wagon) tells Perry that when he was young, his inventions always lost to a baking soda volcano at the science fair, so he decided to create the biggest baking soda volcano ever. Meanwhile, Mr. McGillicuddy comes over and sees the portal to Mars that Phineas and Ferb built for Baljeet. He gives Baljeet an A+++ (although the paper he gave him only says "A++") and runs off to show the judges what Baljeet has made. However, when the judges come over, Doofenshmirtz finds out that his volcano is not working because it is not plugged in.

He unplugs the plug that connects to the portal to Mars right when Mr. McGillicuddy shows the judges the portal. He decides to switch the portal on to "High", but still nothing happens. The judges walk away, thinking it was just a false alarm. However, Perry escapes the car seat by jumping out of his pants (revealing Perry's Yellow and green polka-dotted Boxers). The Volcano erupts and Doofenshmirtz flys threw the air. Mr. McGillicuddy finds out that the portal is unplugged and plugs it into a nuclear plug. The portal becomes so strong that it saves Doofenshmirtz from falling to his doom, but sucks him into it and transports him to Mars. When Doofenshmirtz arrives in Mars, the aliens spot him and Doofenshmirtz thinks that they are about to crown him. However, the aliens crown the baking soda volcano that is sitting next to Doofenshmirtz.

Phineas, Ferb, Baljeet, and Isabella walk out of the science fair for corn dogs. At Mr. Slushy Dawg, Candace and Wendy both used up all the mustard, relish, and ketchup, which makes them both lose the job. Baljeet tells Phineas, Ferb, and Isabella that he didn't want to win the science fair, and that he just wanted an A+. Isabella asks Phineas and Ferb why they didn't just go in the portal, and Ferb replies by telling her, "We did, but that's another story."

Songs
Destroyed Dreams

Whatcha doin'?
None.

Ferb's Line
He also appears to sing the word "pureéd" in the "Destroyed Dreams" song, along with Phineas and Baljeet.

Perry's entrance to his lair

 * Enters through the file cabinet in the living room and falls into his chair, pieces of paper flying around him.

Background Information

 * Produced during the Season 1 time period, but broadcast as the 46th episode for both Disney XD and Disney Channel US. The Disney XD premiere was on February 17, 2009 and the Disney Channel US premiere was on March 20, 2009. It still uses the Season 1 title sequence.
 * This is a bonus episode on the Phineas and Ferb: The Daze of Summer DVD.
 * Episode description from a 2009 Disney XD Phineas and Ferb press release:


 * Brian Stepanek ("Brian O'Brian" and "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody") and Brenda Song ("The Suite Life on Deck") guest star in an episode in which Phineas and Ferb must step in to help their neighbor, Baljeet, with his science project, a portal to Mars, while Dr. Doofenshmirtz also enters the fair in an attempt to redeem himself after an embarrassing loss years ago. Meanwhile, Candace competes with another girl (guest star Brenda Song) for a job at the Mr. Slushy Burger, where Jeremy works. Stepanek plays the hiring manager.


 * Ashley Tisdale, the voice of Candace, previously co-stared with guest stars Brenda Song and Brian Stepanek in "The Suite Life Of Zack and Cody", where she played main character Maddie Fitzpatrick voice Candace and Wendy in this episode.
 * When Perry escapes some of his fur comes off revealing that he wears green boxer shorts with purple polka dots on them (This is the first time we see perry in his underwear the next is in Perry Lays an Egg).
 * Although Jewish, Isabella is eating a corndog. This means either that Isabella's family does not follow kosher dietary rules (or perhaps that she does not when she is away from home) or that the corndog is made with a beef, chicken, or turkey meat hot dog. Baljeet, likewise, is eating a hot-dog, potentially made of beef, in violation of Hindu diet, should we assume he's Hindu; situation could be projected to be alike to Isabella's above.
 * Baljeet seems to be dimwited with mechanics during the Portal To Mars construction montage.
 * Possible Goof: Candace & Wendy took the mayo and relish out of nowhere, they only had ketchup and mustard.
 * Goof: The caption beneath Baljeet's forefathers reads "FOREFTATHERS".

Continuity

 * Doofenshmirtz says "Not one word, Perry the Platypus" in a way similar to the way the wife of the van company says "Not one word." ("Leave the Busting to Us!")
 * The girl who wins is one of the dancers in Shimmy Jimmy

Judges at the Danville Science Fair

 * The white-haired judge with glasses that evaluated Baljeet's entry can be seen in one of the "smaller venues" that Love Händel played at. He was positioned behind Swampy.

Judges at a Science Fair in Druelselstein
From Dr. Doofenshmirtz's back story describing his childhood science fair experiences: Either both people originally lived in Druelselstein and later came to the United States, or it is coincidence that they look like J.B. and the station manager.
 * The white-haired judge looks like J.B. from "Toy to the World".
 * The brown-haired judge looks like the station manager from "Leave the Busting to Us!".

Allusions

 * One of the kids in Doofenshmirtz's flashback bears an uncanny resemblance to the title character of Pinocchio.
 * The Portal to Mars looks a lot like Stargate.
 * Doctor Octopus: the girl who wins the blue ribbon has four metal arms attached to her back similar to him.
 * At the beginning, the boys think of flying with bat wings like DC comic book superhero Batman.
 * Brenda Song's character is named Wendy and she stared in Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior and she played Wendy
 * In the scene where Phineas, Ferb and Baljeet are building the portal to Mars, they are carrying a large pole where Baljeet is just hanging from the pole instead of helping them carry it. This directly mirrors a scene from King of the Hill where Hank, Dale and Bill are carrying a pole and Dale is the one goofing off.

Cast

 * Vincent Martella as Phineas
 * Ashley Tisdale as Candace
 * Thomas Sangster as Ferb
 * Caroline Rhea as Mom
 * Alyson Stoner as Isabella
 * Dan Povenmire as Dr. Doofenshmirtz
 * Jeff "Swampy" Marsh as Major Monogram
 * Dee Bradley Baker as Perry
 * Mitchel Musso as Jeremy
 * Maulik Pancholy as Baljeet
 * Brian Stepanek as Mr. McGillicuddy and the Unnamed Mr. Slushy Dawg Manager
 * Brenda Song as Wendy
 * Kelly Hu as Stacy
 * Additional voices by: Dee Bradley Baker, Tom Kenny, Jeff "Swampy" Marsh, Dan Povenmire, Caroline Rhea, Kevin Michael Richardson, Brian Stepanek, Kari Wahlgren


 *  designates a character that did not appear in this episode