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Sunday 5 February 2017

Movie Goofs - The Little Mermaid 2: Return to the Sea (2000)


Disney direct-to-video sequels...quality is clearly not one of their main targets. Some have been decent to be fair, but as I say many times, most of them are naught but poor quality clones of their far superior theatrical predecessors.

The Little Mermaid 2: Return to the Sea is no different. Essentially a reversal of the original film's story, this tacky sequel sees Ariel's new daughter Melody detesting her life on land and wishing to explore the sea, eventually striking a deal with Morgana, the evil retconned sister of Ursula, to become a mermaid in exchange for betrayal against her family. You can tell from the get go what I mean, and it's safe to say the script is just as cheap as the animation, and so is inevitably riddled with some daft plot holes that show a lot of laziness within the film's structure.

  • It's vaguely implied that Melody has the ability to communicate with sea creatures such as Sebastian, as well as Tip and Dash, because of her mermaid heritage. So, with that in mind, did she never question why she was able to do such a thing whilst growing up? You'd think as soon as a crab began speaking to her in a Jamaican accent she'd run to her mother in terror and demand some kind of explanation, thus exposing her habits of sneaking into the sea and surely unveiling the truth of Morgana's attack when she was a baby. She may not have wanted to in order to avoid revealing her unauthorised visits to the ocean, but I'm sure sea creatures talking to you might be enough to convince you otherwise.
  • King Triton tosses Melody's locket away when Ariel suggests she can't know anything about Atlantica or its inhabitants. It sinks down to the ocean floor, but Melody eventually finds it and witnesses its magic for herself...twelve years later. The locket dwelled on the ocean floor for over a decade and didn't get whisked away by any currents, picked up by any sea creatures, or, hell, didn't even ever so slightly rot away. Melody finds it in pristine condition, with her name on it still perfectly visible. It's also bizarre how, after such a long time, it's only buried underneath a handful of sand, making it easily visible.
  • Said scene and those surrounding it also bring to fruition a plot hole that's common in films like this: Melody can see extremely well underwater, hold her breath for significant amounts of time, and is never subjected to the harsher pressure when swimming at great depth despite wearing no protective gear; she also doesn't ever seem to be soaking wet when exiting the sea. On top of that, has her family never noticed her clothes often being rather damp and stinking of seawater?


  • King Triton goes off in a hissyfit when his servants are merely preparing a few dinner tables and demands that the search parties for Melody be increased instead. He then wanders off, leaving his trident completely unattended. Yes, it can only be moved by him or one of his descendants, but that doesn't mean having at least one guard next to it is a bad idea, as is eventually proven when Melody sneaks in and pinches it in a matter of seconds.
  • Why is it the trident cannot be moved from its pedestal by anyone except Triton or his descendants, but it can be used by anyone? Surely in its list of contrived powers, it would've been, if anything, more useful to have it only work when used by Triton or his family members. A lot of hassle would've been prevented if so.
  • When Morgana locks Melody away in an underwater chamber, she says that her time as a mermaid is now over. It then takes absolutely ages for Melody to lose her mermaid powers, but the reason why it took so long is never made clear; and this unnecessary delay gives Tip and Dash time to come in and rescue her. Had Morgana simply removed Melody's mermaid powers instantly, she would've died in minutes and her villainous scheme would've succeeded.
  • How on Earth does Melody so easily climb the ice tower made by Morgana during the film's climax? Surely she'd constantly be slipping about and have her bare feet frozen in a matter of minutes.

This film sucks.

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