Recap / The Little Mermaid S 1 E 2 The Great Sebastian

When Sebastian hears that Triton needs an ambassador to make peace with the Sharkanians, he volunteers for the job, thinking about the prestige he will get from this position before he can fully consider whether he is qualified or not.

As Sebastian heads out to Sharkania, Ariel and Flounder follow him.When they reach Sharkania, Sebastian is almost too afraid to talk, but Ariel and Flounder speak up and convince the Sharkanian guards to let them in. The guards bring them to Emperor Sharga, the ruler of the Sharkanians. Poor Sebastian nearly faints from fright, but Ariel and Flounder demand the Sharkanians listen to him, and Sebastian finds the confidence to speak.

Sebastian: Sharga! If you don’t agree to peace, you shall never live in harmony with the rest of the sea.

Sharga: We’ll do it.

Sebastian: No, no, no, now, we must make peace for the sake of the children who live all over under the sea.

Sharga: We’ll do it.

Sebastian: Peace don’t wait for nobody!

Sharga: I SAID...we’ll do it.

Sebastian: You will? Well, I’ll be a sea monkey’s uncle!

The Sharkanians offer to send a treasure chest back to Atlantica to thank King Triton for introducing them to “The Great Sebastian.” Pleased with his success, Sebastian enjoys the party the Sharkanians throw in his honor.

Ariel and Flounder decide to do a bit of exploring, but as they explore a sunken ship they come across some Sharkanian soldiers planning to hide inside the peace chest to infiltrate the Atlantican palace and steal Triton’s trident. Before Ariel and Flounder can tell Sebastian about the trap, they are captured by the Sharkanians. The Sharkanians chain Ariel up and force her to write a note telling Sebastian to leave without them.

Sebastian is getting ready to leave when he receives Ariel’s letter, which says that she and Flounder have decided to stay in Sharkania for a couple more days.

Sebastian: That girl, head always in the clouds. And for a mermaid, that’s way out there, man!

Sebastian wonders if he should wait for them before going back to Atlantica, but one of the guards warns him that Sharga is not a patient Sharkanian, and might change his mind about peace if this process is delayed. The false treasure chest is loaded into Sebastian’s chariot and the crab sets out for Atlantica.

The Sharkanian general gloats to his prisoners that Sebastian fell for their plan “hook, line, and sinker.”

Flounder: Oh, my three least favorite words.

Ariel comes up with an idea to escape. Flounder starts boasting about his prowess at fin-fighting. The dim-witted guard is easily provoked into a match and releases Flounder. Ariel explains that since fin-fighting is done with fins only, they’ll have to tie the Sharkanian’s hands to keep the fight fair. After the guard is restrained, Flounder snatches the keys and frees Ariel from her shackles. The two escape and flee Sharkania.

Sebastian arrives in Atlantica with the false treasure chest, and the Sharkanian army camps on the outskirts of the city to wait for their signal to attack. Ariel and Flounder sneak past the army by hiding Ariel in a clamshell and pretending that she is going to be the emperor’s dinner.

When night falls, the Sharkanians hidden in the chest climb out and try to put their plan in motion, one going to steal the trident while the other goes to signal the army. They soon find out that Atlantica has already been warned by Ariel and Flounder. Triton was only pretending to be asleep, and instead of a signal from an electric eel, the Sharkanian army sees a magnificent flash from Triton’s trident. The army is sent fleeing back to Sharkania.

When Sebastian realizes that he almost brought ruin to Atlantica, he is deeply ashamed, but Ariel and Flounder speak in support of him, and remind him of the passionate speech he gave about peace. Impressed, Triton keeps Sebastian as his right-hand crab and gives him a medal.

Tropes

• Brick Joke: When Sebastian thinks he has succeeded at brokering peace with Sharkania, he imagines he will be given a medal, but since a medal can’t be pinned to his body, he wonders if Triton will glue it on to him. At the end, Sebastian is given a medal on a necklace, but the medal is so big that Sebastian can barely move while wearing it.
• Chekhov's Skill: Flounder and Ariel practice throwing the fruit of underwater plants at the beginning of the episode. This skill later comes in handy for fighting off the Sharkanians.
• Exact Words: Flounder boasts that he never lost a fin-fight to a Sharkanian…because he never fought one!
• Hypocritical Humor: As one of the Sharkanians laughs at Sebastian for falling for a Trojan Horse trick, Flounder and Ariel use a similar trick to sneak past the Sharkanian army.
• Our Mermaids Are Different: Sharkanians have humanoid torsos and arms, but they have the tails, dorsal fins, and teeth of sharks.
• The Guards Must Be Crazy: Fortunately for Ariel and Flounder, when they are captured by the Sharkanians, they are watched by the most incompetent guard in under-the-sea history. Their guard not only releases Flounder so the two of them can have a fin-fight, he even lets Flounder tie his hands to keep the fight fair.
• Trojan Horse: The Sharkanians send a treasure chest as a peace offering to Atlantica, but inside the chest are two Sharkanians to steal Triton’s trident and then give a signal for the Sharkanian army to attack.
• Won't Take "Yes" for an Answer: Sebastian is so wrapped up in his speech about the Sharkanians making peace with the rest of the sea that he fails to notice that Emperor Sharga is agreeing to everything he's saying (although there's an ulterior motive to it).