Phil Of The Future

The combination of science fiction and a teen show is an unusual one. This was the premise for Phil of the Future, which originally aired on the Disney Channel for two seasons (2004-2006). The show has been repeated at various times, including a run on the Disney UK channel. Fans can also relive the series on DVD. Gadgets & Gizmos includes four episodes, one of which had not been seen on TV. The Disney Channel Holiday DVD also contains a previously unseen episode. The Phil of the Future video game features Blahs, which are mischievous pets from the future.

The show is about the Diffy family and their time travel adventure. They are from the year, 2121 but got stuck in 2004. Much of the plot concerns their attempt to fit in with their new time zone. In the meantime, they are trying to repair their time machine, so they can return to 2121. The title song for the show was performed by Loren Ellis and the Drew Davis Band.

The main character of the series is teenager, Phil Diffy, played by Ricky Ullman. His younger sister, Pim (Amy Bruckner) is a bit of a troublemaker and plays practical jokes on people. Lloyd Diffy (Craig Anton) is the eccentric Dad and he worked as an engineer, back in his own time. Barb Diffy (Lise Simms) is Mom. Phil has a best friend, who later becomes his girlfriend, called Keely Teslow (Alyson Michalka). She is the only friend of the family, who knows their time travel secret. Phil of the Future has fun with the various gadgets that the Diffy's have brought with them from 2121, some of which, Keely uses to help her with her homework.

The gadgets seen on the show are a mixture of important scientific developments and more frivolous ones. They include the Holographic Tracking Sensor, which can be used to track a subject. Invisi-Spray is for making people invisible and I Want Straight Hair converts frizzy, untidy hair to tidy and straight hair. Spray Food Cans can produce any kind of food as a foamy spray. Mom struggles to get to grips with cooking for real!

Comic effect is gained from another character, known as Curtis the Caveman, played by J. P. Manoux. He stowed away on the time machine during the Diffy's trip back to the Stone Age. Curtis causes a lot of problems for the family and they resort to pretending he's Phil and Pim's uncle. The other regular character in Phil of the Future is Vice Principal Neil Hackett (Also played by J. P. Manoux). Hackett takes Phil's science class and Pim's history class. He is very suspicious of the Diffy's and spends time snooping to find out their secret. His theory is that they are aliens.