Candace vs. Vanessa

Candace Flynn

Vanessa Doofenschmirtz

An interesting conversation happened at my house while watching one of our family's favorite fun shows. Phineas and Ferb have become a downtime staple. It's a witty and creative cartoon that we all enjoy together.  These two characters play different roles in the story line.

Candace is the older, overbearing, and obsessive sister of the title characters'. In every episode, she attempts to "bust" her brothers  for their elaborate inventions and activities. With constant threats and order barking, she always fails to get them caught in the act. But not without almost ruining some aspect of her personal life in the process. (Irony is funny!)

Vanessa is the daughter of the "Evil" but truly incompetent Dr. Doofensmirtz. Vanessa is a lay low kind of girl who makes it clear that just because her dad is evil, doesn't mean she is too. She likes to think she's goth, but is kind to everyone in spite of her attempt to have an attitude.

On this particular episode we were watching, the two characters sing a duet, one of many songs I love from this show, called "Busted". (Later, I may do a post on how "Phineas and Ferb" is keeping the love of musical theatre alive in the hearts of the children of this generation. But that's another topic entirely!) As I watched my Anna watching intently and moving along to the music, I wondered if she preferred one of these characters over the other.

• Candace having a larger role, living in a "good" home, wearing light colors for her preppy style clothes, and a cute flip at the end of her hair...to one this might say wholesome / good.

• Vanessa has a lesser role, lives in a broken home, is always wearing black and a bit of a sneer on her face, and the animators have given her more curve and feminine features than Candace... to one this might say worldly / bad. 

So, I asked my girls..."who do you like best"? The answer surprised me.  They both said that Vanessa was the character they enjoyed most.  Then I asked, "why Vanessa"? This is where I get VERY proud of my daughters.  Anna said that Vanessa is nicer to people than Candace. Genny said that she liked how Vanessa was more modest and covered up, but still pretty.  *sigh, heart touched*
I was impressed with my girls and happy to hear that, so far in their life, they choose to gravitate towards people based on the kindness of one's heart and the values they may have in common.