Ever wondered what happened to the Disney heroines after 'happily ever after'? In some cases, they are not so happy.
Old and Graceful
continues the stories of the Disney Princesses after their movies ended. As the title suggests, the entries start when they are very old, near death or both, before going into how good or bad each character believes her life has been.
Also has a sequel, Still Old and Graceful, on the heroines who are not considered official princesses. As well as a third story, Forever Old and Graceful, which is about some of Disney's boys when they grow up.
"Old and Graceful" contains examples of:"
- Been There, Shaped History: Elsa may have created the iceberg that sank the Titanic.
- Tiana's son took part in the Civil Rights Movement.
- Kida and Milo were possibly at the excavation of Tutankhamen's tomb.
- Bittersweet Ending: Several times.
- Jasmine is wealthy enough to survive without a husband once she becomes old, but she is the only one left. (It's not known whether the Genie is still alive at this point, as he never appears.)
- Snow White miscarries her first few babies due to becoming pregnant at a very young age. By the time Prince Charming dies, albeit many years into the marriage, her children are as brittle as sticks and the new ruler, her eldest son, is only a child. She also has a hostile relationship with her daughter, due to her daughter being married off almost as soon as her brother is crowned, so as to carry on the family line. But Snow White's daughter doesn't want to marry and when she does, she cuts all contact with her mother for a decade. However, it is implied that they make up.
- Belle has to flee during the French Revolution, while the Beast is put on trial and executed. Belle is hinted to spend the rest of her life in mourning.
- Although Anna and Elsa are reasonably happy, due to Elsa's temper flaring with foreign kingdoms, isolating Arendelle with a wall of ice for several years and a shortage of food, the people revolt, imprison Anna and Kristoff, dunk Anna into freezing cold waters to make Elsa comply with their demands. When Elsa finally sees Anna again after another imprisonment, her younger sister is bruised and her clothes in tatters due to a fight over hot food, which causes Elsa to attack the guards again, even killing two. Everything seems all right after that, but everyone in Arendelle starts walking on eggshells so as not to infuriate Elsa.
- Tiana has to live through the worst moments of the twentieth century and while the restaurant stays afloat, her son is arrested after a Civil Rights march to Washington D.C. He is sent to Maledovia to be their ruler in 1957. Tiana faces aggression on both sides during the Civil Rights movements, with some local black people calling her 'princess traitor' and throw bricks through her windows because she won't take part. As with the Snow White example above, it is implied that she reconciles with her son.
- In the sequel, Cinderella tries to make the country's rules better for children in the same situation as her, but due to being ahead of her time, she is not very successful.
- Also in the sequel, Wendy and Jane lose their house in the Blitz. But Wendy's book about Peter becomes a roaring success. In addition, when Peter meets up with her again in 1969, she promises that when he becomes a man, her granddaughter can look after him.
Without asking her daughter first, though. - Again in the sequel, Lilo lets Stitch travel outer space, but he is declared MIA. She spends the next several years trying to find out what happened to him. It turns out that his ship was destroyed by a black hole.
- While Pinocchio cannot stop the Coachman or turn the donkeys back into boys, he does free six donkeys and lets them work for him instead of wherever the Coachman planned to take them.
- Mary (Boo) spent her entire life looking for Sully. She hasn't found him yet and wonders if finding him will be worth it.
- The Cameo:
- When Alice travels the world in the sequel, she hears tales of an Indian man who spent his childhood in the jungle and is now a guide and an Alaskan Inuit myth about a man who became a bear. Both of them appear in the third story in the series.
- Stitch was killed on a mission to Contraxia. Xandar and Sakaar are also mentioned.
- Once Stitch is killed by a black hole he ends up in what is presumably purgatory. In time countless unconscious, shimmering people (implied to be souls) appear throughout where he is. Although no names are given, Stitch bumps into Vision who says that 'something terrible' has happened.
- Lilo ended up marrying Jake Long. Make of THAT what you will. Stitch found it hilarious.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance:
- Snow White lives in Renaissance Germany, so Prince Charming is the king while she is needed to create an heir. Unfortunately, her only living male children are unhealthy, likely due to her own tiny body.
- Jasmine and Cinderella are ahead of their time, but despite their best efforts at helping women and abused children, not much changes. However, despite also being ahead of her time, Rapunzel manages to pull Corona into a Golden Age, becoming known as the 'Sun Queen' and allowing her son to rule when she became too old, which was rather progressive for the early nineteenth century.
- Everyone Is Related:
- Eric is said to have twelve brothers.
- Jane's ancestors fled the French Revolution. This one was already a theory, though.
- Genius Bonus: Pinocchio's children's names are named after trees.
- Happily Married: Everybody. With a few exceptions...
- As stated above, Beast is killed in the French Revolution.
- In the sequel, Alice ends up marrying a very boring older man. When he dies, she finds this to be a relief, using his money to travel the world.
- Heir Club for Men: Played straight and subverted.
- Eric's kingdom (a province in Malta, as he is not the first in line for his own throne) does not seem to use this policy, but since Melody went to live under the sea, her brother is the only available heir.
- Played straight for Snow White's country, a small, Germanic one where even though her daughter is the eldest, when Prince Charming dies, the middle child (a boy) takes control, even though he is thirteen years old and extremely frail.
- Inferred Holocaust: Neverland doesn't stop ageing, only slow it down. When the Lost Boys get old, Peter thinks it will be kinder if he leaves them back in the real world. Except that they can't recall life before Neverland, soon lose their memories of their time in Neverland and have aged one year in Neverland for every fifteen in our world. Note that this is a MUCH better fate than in J. M. Barrie's book...
- Time Skip: Takes place decades after each princess' movie has finished. Or in Meg's case, three thousand years.
- Worst Aid: Snow White's prince goes off to battle a foreign kingdom and survives, but is mortally wounded on the way back due to an infected cut on his knee.
- Aurora's parents died of plague.
- In the sequel, Kida learns what World War One will mean for her and Milo, so once she hears about men shooting themselves in the foot, she proceeds to try and amputate Milo's leg with a hacksaw. As Milo says, this seems a bit excessive. Possibly justified since Kida might not know how to use a shotgun.
- Who Wants to Live Forever?: In the sequel, Hercules died before Meg, so when a magical flower is sent down to Earth, she uses it to become young again. Unfortunately, she lives for so long that she barely remembers Hercules, or even her own name, after hundreds of years. By the time Meg changes her name to Mother Gothel and kidnaps Rapunzel, it's debatable as to whether she even wanted to live anymore.
