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Ariel (2024)

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  • Accidental Aesop: "Lucia Lucia Lucia" goes for the more obvious message on not overextending yourself in order to please everyone, which is well executed. However, there's also strong emphasis on "Lucia" continually making her friends frustrated until they learn the truth. As such, there's another good message about how your friends can only take your behavior so far.
  • Adorkable:
    • Ariel is definitely this given her obsession with land treasures combined with her energy and the compassion she has for others.
    • Flounder falls into this given how he's rather silly and has a strong loyalty to others.
    • Lucia shows this whenever she gets excited to take on any big adventures.
    • Fernie is definitely this with how he confidently drops fish facts, along with his general enthusiasm for sea creatures.
  • Anvilicious : The show's morals are not exactly done subtly, especially with episodes like "Ariel's Tall Mer-Tale" really hammering in the lesson on not lying or "Are We There Yet" really hammering in the lesson about not rushing to get to exciting things. The execution is still good though.
  • Awesome Art: Given how this series is animated by Icon Creative Studios, it manages to be just as good looking as their other Disney Junior shows with plenty of bright colors, smooth animation, and well designed characters and backgrounds.
  • Awesome Music: Given how Christopher Willis is involved with the series, it's no surprise that the songs and score are quite catchy. Special mention goes to the theme song and the upbeat, Caribbean vibes from songs like "Let Your Song Play".
  • Common Knowledge: A rather long running rumor is that this series would be a prequel to the 2023 live action movie due to Ariel looking like a younger version of her live action movie counterpart. It's very much not the case here due to various factors (like Ursula being a hero) that place this in its own continuity.
  • Diagnosed by the Audience: One can definitely see this version of Ariel as being autistic and ADHD coded. She's shown to be quite fond of land treasures (which can be seen as a special interest) and sometimes has problems dealing with impulse and controlling her feelings. It's rather pronounced in "Daddy Daughter Dinner", where she has trouble controlling her impulses with the possibility of seeing more land treasures. There's also a strong emphasis on pushing past her limits and almost becoming angry, like in "The Happy Patty Clap", where she tries really hard to do Alanna and Ayanna's clap well even though no one minds changing it up.
  • Ensemble Dark Horse:
    • Jewels' energy and general sweetness towards Ariel makes her really well liked by the fan base.
    • Clamilla's more introverted personality combined with her simple but cute design makes her a fan favorite.
    • Ravi has fans who like the character quite a bit given his laid-back energy, and how he acts as an older brother like character to Ariel and her friends.
  • Friendly Fandoms: Fans of Alice's Wonderland Bakery get along well with fans of this show.
  • He Really Can Act:
    • Episodes like "Clamming Up" and "Holiday Toy Box Trouble" show the range Mykal Michelle Harris has Ariel. She's great at tapping into her fun and sweet sides, and is great when singing as her.
    • Elizabeth Phoenix Caro does a good job playing Lucia in episodes like "Lucia Lucia Lucia", where she's able impulsive behavior and silly moments with a genuine desire to make others happy that comes through in the performance.
  • Hilarious in Hindsight: The Fancy Nancy episode "Nancy's Mermaid Ballet" has Bree, a character voiced by Dana Heath, get the lead role in a mermaid ballet. In this series, she voices Ayanna, who actually is a mermaid.
  • Les Yay: See here.
  • Moe:
    • Ariel and her friends are definitely quite adorable to watch thanks to their strong friendship with each other.
    • A rare adult example happens with Ursula in "The Magic Wand", where she's oddly endearing when she squees in delight over seeing her childhood toy.
  • Narm Charm: The show's humor tends to learn more towards corny and silly, yet it comes across in a natural way that it works pretty well. It probably helps that the characters and their voice actors aren't afraid to lean into more ridiculous sounding dialogue.
  • Older Than They Think:
  • Periphery Demographic: Though obviously made for younger audiences, there's still a good deal of fans outside of the show's target demographic.
  • Platonic Writing, Romantic Reading: It's easy to see Ariel and Lucia's friendship as something more intimate. There's a lot of moments where they go out of their way to support each other, with a heavy emphasis on care and affection. It's best shown in Lucia centric episodes like "Lucia Lucia Lucia" and "Razzle Dazzle".
  • Sweet Dreams Fuel: The show has a fun, laid-back tone to it that makes it quite enjoyable.
  • Watched It for the Representation: Much like the live action movie, there are people who were willing to check out and stick with the show because of Ariel being black. The inclusion of Lucia and Fernie, who are Hispanic and also black respectively, adds to this.
  • The Woobie: Ariel has moments of this. It's particularly pronounced in episodes like "The Cuttlebaby Sitter" and "Rainbow Sea Caves", where she often messes up, but also tries her hardest to be there for others however she can. "Tanti's Day" definitely emphasizes this, where she actually cries some tears when she accidentally and literally turns Ursula's house upside down after another failed attempt at doing something nice for her.

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