User blog:Mobo85/Rappin' with Phineas and Ferb...and Dan and Swampy and Miss Piggy

How's this for corporate synergy: the stars of one of Disney's most successful shows interview the star of a Disney movie based around a Disney acquisition on a Disney interstitial series based on a hit Disney series during the network television premiere of an already-successful Disney TV-movie based on a franchise Disney has high hopes for on a Disney-owned network. Only Disney could pull something like that off. And pull it off they will this Saturday, when Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension makes its network television debut on ABC-TV. During the premiere, a new "Take Two with Phineas and Ferb" segment will premiere featuring the boys interviewing Miss Piggy. The divine swine diva shows off her karate skills (thankfully not on Kermit this time) while rapping with the boys...in this case quite literally, as she performs "Spa Day." It's no Regis Philbin doing "Squirrels in My Pants", but it's amusing. You can see it on Entertainment Weekly.

Seeing Phineas and Ferb and Miss Piggy together seems to show how much Disney has invested in both of them- we all know how much Disney has bet on Phineas and Ferb (and it seems to be paying off), of which "Take Two" and the huge promotion 2nd Dimension got are part of, and it seems they're also hoping this fall's The Muppets, their big fall release featuring a group of beloved characters they acquired from The Jim Henson Company in 2005 but until recently didn't really know what to do with, will do just as well- hence this cross-promotion. In a recent Disney conference call, CEO Robert Iger said new characters such as Phineas and Ferb as well as acquired ones such as the Muppets and Marvel Comics heroes seem to add to Disney's portfolio of what he called "the most valuable array of characters in the world." And given how they're using them to cross-promote each other (Disney also recently used an image of Sam the Eagle as Captain America to promote both The Muppets and Marvel's latest, for example), it seems we'll be seeing more unique promotional combinations of Disney stars and assets old and new in the future.

But as long as we're rapping (in more ways than one), why don't we rap a bit about Phineas and Ferb itself- quite literally once again? Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment's official YouTube channel recently uploaded an amusing video in the style of The Lonely Island in which Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh lay down some funky beats (whatever that means) as they humorously and informatively show the process behind making a Phineas and Ferb episode, from concept to final product. This will appear a special feature on the Across the 2nd Dimension DVD, coming Tuesday.

Interestingly, the video is already an instant time capsule, as the Animation Guild reports that Disney Television Animation is set to leave the Frank Wells Building on the Disney lot in Burbank (the one with the Seven Dwarfs outside) for another Disney building in Glendale next month, according to some of the folks who work there that Guild biz rep Steve Hulett talked to during a recent visit. The Mouseketeers also told Hulett that the P&F team will actually be temporarily out of work soon. You see, the third season has almost wrapped up production and Disney hasn't asked for a fourth yet. Therefore, there's nothing more to do since all the episodes asked for have already been made. Hopefully this work stoppage is only a temporary one- after all, given Disney's hopes (see all this cross-promotion, for example) and how they're paying off, they'd be crazy not to pick up another season. Either way, we'll probably be seeing a lot more of both Phineas and Ferb and the Muppets- and whatever else Disney may have up their sleeve- in the months to come. Kissy kissy!