The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea (2000 Video) User Reviews

Not bad, but not great

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 5/10 · 31 December 2006]

I loved The Little Mermaid, it's one of my all time favorite Disney movies, I grew up with it and I still watch it every once in a while. I just showed it to my 5 year old cousin for the first time since it was recently released on DVD, so she wanted to see the second one when we were at the video store and we just watched it and we over all had a good time. While I wasn't that impressed, it was better than most Disney sequels that are normally lame and predictable.

Ariel and Eric have had a daughter, Melody. Mel is now becoming a teenager and cannot understand why she has such a great love for the sea, but Ariel forbids Mel from going to the sea not knowing when the right time would be to tell Mel about all her family history. But Mel has had it and wants to be a mermaid when Morgana, the evil sister of Ursela, grants Mel's wish, she can stay a mermaid if she steals her grandfather's trident so Morgana can become leader of the sea.

Over all, I would recommend this for a family afternoon, it was a charming cartoon to watch. The Little Mermaid will always be the best, but The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea was a nice follow up that you very rarely see in today's Disney sequels. Again, what freaks me out though is typically they change the voices again and again for the characters, but I think I had a better time excepting it for this film.

5/10

New review

[The_Light_Triton · 6/10 · 16 February 2014]

Back in June 2005, I reviewed this movie and basically just slammed it repeatedly without really giving it a chance. Of course, when you're 14 and a troll, slamming movies that don't appeal to your age group or tastes is easy. So after a 9 year old review, it's time to give this movie a much better review.

First of all, This is a direct sequel to the 1989 classic that revitalized Disney as a serious movie making company. The original 1989 classic is loved for it's portrayal of a curious young mermaid who longs to discover what life is like on land. Now skip ahead 12 years. The sequel is a mirror image, with a young girl who dreams of life in the sea.

So the story begins a year or so after the events of the first movie. by this time, Ariel and Eric are now parents of their infant Melody. During the celebration of the newborn child, The sister of Ursula appears and threatens Melody's safety, but is driven back into the sea and into hiding. But as long as she's still at large, Ariel refuses to let young melody know about her true history, which eventually comes to bite Ariel on the tail 12 years later, as the rebellious Melody sneaks underneath a wall constructed to keep her out of the sea. She soon discovers a seashell pendant with her name on it, and longs to discover why, leading her on a fun adventure with some interesting characters.

For what it's worth, this movie isn't what one would call "mass appeal" like the movie that came before it. However, the character of Melody, whose voice belongs to the legendary voice actress Tara Strong, seems to have a cult following among girls, whereas other extra characters (Tip & Dash, Undertow, Cloak & Dagger) didn't seem to be accepted as well, even if they had some fun moments at points. Personally, I thought Tip & Dash were fun and Undertow was funny, but Cloak and Dagger were just hacks. they didn't say anything and didn't really have the same demonic effect as their predecessors, Flotsam & Jetsam did.

As for the returning characters, Ariel is a bit more mature and mother-like, but lacks the strength she had in the original movie. Luckily, Jodi Benson came back to do the voice again. Flounder is more or less the same. Triton is more or less the same guy but more trusting of his daughter. Sebastian is still the fun crab but with less musical routines. Scuttle is more one-dimensional and lacks the humor he had from the first movie. The only person I felt was an improvement was Prince Eric, because his original voice actor didn't return. I'm not saying the original prince Eric was bad, i'm saying the greatest voice actor of all time, Rob Paulsen, took over the role. And Paulsen makes any movie, TV show, or video game better with his voice.

Overall, This one's a fair sequel. It's aimed at girls in the tween range, but the supporting characters just might keep their older brothers entertained for the hour and a half.

6/10

While not as bad as some DTV sequels, this was still a huge disappointment!

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 4 March 2009]

I highly recommend the stunning original, and the inspirational TV series, but I don't recommend this, I'm sorry.

The animation was a lot of the time very flat and too garish, especially in the scenes with Morgana. Speaking of Morgana, never have I seen such a bland villainess. Ursula scared me so much, as I repeatedly watched the Little Mermaid. Morgana was just a wannabe, which is always ill-advised Disney. Why didn't they recreate the Evil Manta, who after Ursula, was the most convincing of the villains in the TV series? The characters were a mixed bag. Ariel was alright, though rather childish,but Melody was annoying at times. (I did think the story, on a parallel with the original, was rather unoriginal and rushed despite some effective scenes) Sebastian was the best character here, but he was also ruined to some extent. So was Scuttle and Flounder. Scuttle wasn't funny, whereas Flounder put me off with his nasal tone, since when did Flounder have a nasal tone of voice? Tip and Dash were also uninspired, and Undertow wasn't mean enough. And the flying bat creatures? They weren't even scary, they were nothing like flotsam and Jetsam, who were scary! Even the chef wasn't funny. Him chasing Sebastian was badly underplayed, really unfunny.

However, there were some positives. Kenneth Mars does a great job as King Triton, the only character I cared for completely, but you don't see him that much. The songs weren't bad but nowhere near as good as the original, and I love Jodi Benson's voice, though "For a moment" sounded a little like the song featured in the episode "wish upon a starfish" or the beginning of it did anyway. The beginning wasn't bad either, in fact the beginning was one of the better scenes of the movie. Some aspects of the story worked nicely, but I wish they showed less of Tip and Dash. The climax with Morgana was the highlight of the film, with some really colourful segments.

In conclusion, a sometimes colourful, but hugely disappointing sequel to one of Disney's finest. Mind you, the Cinderella and Jungle Book sequels were worse. My sister will probably hate me when she reads this. 5/10, maybe too harsh? Bethany Cox

I cried until I...cried some more

[sngbrd39 · 27 July 2001]

While watching this entry in Disney's endless parade of DTV (direct to video) sequels, I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or vomit when I saw what they had done to the movie that first got me interested in Disney movies. I just don't know where to start badmouthing this one.

While watching the movie, I saw that Ariel had developed a non-existent personality. What have they done to her?? I know she's grown up, and I know she's no longer the focus of the story, but that's no excuse to make her dull as dishwater. However, maybe good old Ariel might have been a better protagonist than the one we were given. There was something about her daughter, Melody, that didn't sit right with me at all. Maybe it was her many attempts to try to sound "cool" without ever once failing to sound annoying. "What's shakin'??" Ariel would never, NEVER have said that! Nor would Sebastian, Flounder, or Scuttle acted the way they did in this movie. It's as if they took their humorous parts from the original movie and overemphasized it. I was especially mad that Scuttle wasn't only dumb; it was as if he had received a lobotamy! What was up with him? This isn't the Scuttle that introduced us to the dinglehopper and the snarfblat!! I'd be surprised if this Scuttle knew his beak from his...well, let's move on. The villains were lame! Using Ursula's sister as the villain was an uninspired choice, but she was my favorite of the baddies. Undertow was completely uneccessary. Or maybe he was, seeing as how Cloak and Dagger NEVER SPOKE! Cloak and Dagger were a sorry attempt at redoing Flotsam and Jetsam. F&J were eerie; they sent chills up your spine everytime they spoke or slithered around. C&D were...well, they were there. And speaking of ineffectual duos, let's discuss Tip and Dash. What exactly was their purpose in the movie, other than comic relief that was sorely missing comedy? There are so many other flaws in characters, but I don't want to go into that right now.

Art direction, design, etc. was sorely lacking as it is in all DTV Disney films. The characters looked kinda like their original counterparts, but the coloring was way too bright and garrish. It's as if they threw away the subtle coloring scheme used for "Little Mermaid" (including ariel, the color they invented for Ariel's fins) and traded them for happy little pastels, taking away any depth or realism the look might have had.

Voices, voices, voices. Most of the original cast came back for this one (thank goodness), but the performances didn't seem to have that energy from the first movie. As for the new voices, Tara Charendoff's Melody was rather annoying. She's just great as Bubbles on "Powerpuff Girls", but that doesn't seem to translate well here. Maybe it was just the stupid lines fed to her. Prince Eric's new voice would be okay if it wasn't friggin' Yakko Warner from "Animaniacs"! Don't get me wrong; Rob Paulsen was wonderful on "Animaniacs", but he sounds nothing like the original Prince Eric. (Compliment or criticism? You decide.)

Well, I suppose I should wrap this up now; I'm sure I'm over the word limit and that this is the longest review I've ever written. I'm not really sure why I'm wasting this much space on a movie that's such a waste of space. I suppose I had to defend the honor of the original "Little Mermaid", but the movie can prove itself. I say that we burn all copies of DTV sequels, especially this one and the upcoming "Hunchback II", which looks like it will be another tragically horrible treatment of a Disney classic.

Bad.

[silverangel1983 · 1/10 · 10 March 2009]

It wasn't good. The characters were underdeveloped and the only personality were from the memories I had of the previous movie which contrasted with the 'new' personalities (or lack thereof). I seriously thought the opening scene was a nightmare by Ariel because of how absurd it was. It was serious. It just reminded me of all the annoying characters on the Disney channel-everyone is hyperactive and the story jumps from action to embarrassing scenes without any really connection.

The most disappointing part was the horrible songs-not catchy, not amazing. In the original Ariel had an amazing and powerful voice and all the song are catchy and fun. You remember them and want to sing them. But the songs in this movie weren't creative in the least; it's as if they're talking in a annoying sing-song voice-quite weakly, disappointing. I don't have that want-to-sing-them feeling you normally get from a Disney movie.

It's as if not one wanted to do this movie, so they barely made an effort . . . this movie would needs a new story line, new catchy songs and more warmth and enthusiasm without the annoying "look at me! look at me! I'm so annoying!" mentality of this generation of Disney. :'(

Return to the Sea

[studioAT · 6/10 · 30 August 2020]

This direct to video (those were the days) sequel to the mega hit that was 'The Little Mermaid' is not that bad really, though it does rehash a lot of the themes/plot from the original, only now with Ariel's daughter.

With a lot of the original voice cast returning, and some nice songs/moments, this certainly is worth a watch, and not worthy of the bashing it is getting by other reviewers.

The worst Disney sequel I have ever seen in my life.

[classicx_attraction · 1/10 · 2 April 2008]

This movie makes me want to throw up every time I see it. If you take the first movie, and reverse the plot (ariel wants to leave the sea, her daughter wants to go to the sea), take the same characters and give them new animals and new names, and then throw in crappy animation and the biggest suck factor, possible, you get the little mermaid 2. Its basically a copy of the first movie with a reversed plot. I'll take you through the horror of it step by step. These are the people from the 1st movie: First of all, Prince Eric is still prince eric, with about 3 lines in the whole movie. Ariel is uptight, annoying, and is not the carefree, headstrong spirit we saw in the 1st. In fact, she is the exact opposite. Sebastian is still sebastian only less cute, less convincing as being stressed out, and the jokes just aren't funny anymore. Flounder has about 2 lines. He now has kids and he talks with a dumb nasal voice. Scuttle is still dumb scuttle only not funny. King Triton's character is probably the best, he still retains the intimidation and love for his daughter, Melody. Ariel and Prince Eric appear not to give a hoot about their daughter.

Like i said, all they did was use the characters from the first movie and copy them. This is what they did: Ursula- The new evil villain is Morgana, Ursula's sister who feels like she always lived in Ursula's shadow. I wouldn't be scared of her if she showed up at my doorway with a knife. She can't do anything right and she's a failure as a villain. She has the same voice ursula did. Sebastian & Flounder - Have been replaced by probably the most stupid sidekicks, Tip & Dash, a walrus and a penguin. They try to be hero's but always fail when trying. the plot is so predictable. They become heroes at the end. Yawn. Flatson& Jetsom- Now replaced by a shark who was turned about 10x smaller by triton. Hes really bad too. Morgana and the shark (sharkbait, I think was his name) have no chemistry, good or bad. Ariel-Ah, Ariel. Our lovely mermaid was replaced by her un-lovely daughter, melody. Melody cannot sing, her voice is about 2 octaves higher than it should be, and you want to punch her in the face because shes so fake sugary sweet. She wants to go to the sea, she is clumsy and the kids make fun of her, she has to go find herself. yawn.

Not only is the movie boring and unoriginal its so simplistic when you watch this movie you will gasp at how bad it is. Certain parts of the movie make you want to call Disney up and demand why such a horrible movie was made as a sequel to such a wonderful original.

Basically, comparing the little mermaid 2 to the little mermaid is like comparing and Ed Wood movie to Casablanca. Don't ever watch this, not even when your bored.

Your common "Made for home video Disney sequel" movie.

[jccwu · 6/10 · 29 September 2000]

If you seen Disney's other "Made for home video sequel" movies, then you know what I am talking about. Movies such as "Pocahontas II: Journey to the New World," "The Lion King II: Simba's Pride," "The Return of Jafar," etc. The problem with "Made for home video sequel" movies is that it doesn't put too much effort into creating a new and original story. Instead, it relies only on the old characters and a typical & overdone storyline to carry the movie.

There are also a new bunch of generic characters. You have the new henchmen (a shark voiced by Clancy Brown and a couple of devil rays that I guess are suppose to imitate the Flotsam & Jetsam characters) for the villain (Morgana), and your new comedic sidekicks (Tip & Dash) for Ariel's daughter (Melody). I liked Morgana's character and how she relates herself to Ursula, but I didn't care for the Tip & Dash characters. They tired to make them similar to the Timon & Pumbaa characters, but it just doesn't work! They aren't that funny and you feel as though that these two characters were just thrown into the movie because the writers felt that they needed to fill in the gap for your generic storyline where there must always be new comedic characters. With a generic storyline, there must always be the need for romance with the main character. When you watch this movie, you get a sense that they wanted to add a romantic character for Melody, but instead they hinted at it, which really stands out as a sore thumb!

The conclusion of the movie is not thrilling at all. It tries to imitate the final battle of the original, but it's just not exciting. I felt as though the writers spent an all-nighter, rushing themselves in trying to figure out how to conclude this movie with a final battle sequence all in one night!

It may seem as though that I hated this movie, but I didn't! I was just disappointed with this movie. One thing that is for sure, this sequel isn't nearly as good as the original. Still I give this movie a (B-) because if you loved the original "The Little Mermaid," you still enjoy watching the old characters in this sequel.

6 out of 10

Suddenly, I have a craving for sea-food...

[Rebochan · 1/10 · 23 September 2000]

Well then, thank you SO MUCH Disney for DESTROYING the fond memories I USED to have of my FORMER favorite movie. I was about 5 when the original movie came out, and it was one of the first movies I remember seeing. So, now that I'm 16, and feeling masochistic enough, I decided to rent this movie. Thus, I managed to poison all my memories of the original movie with this sorry excuse for a movie. This movie takes everything that made the original endearing and wrecks it, right down to the last detail.

In this movie, Ariel and Eric celebrate the birth of their daughter, Melody, and go to show her to everyone in the ocean...BROADWAY STYLE! After the musical number ends, within minutes, the sea witch Morgana shows up and threatens to kill Melody if Triton doesn't give up the trident. Thus, he gives it up without even a fight. Eric stands there gaping, though Ariel figures out how to use a sword and save Melody. Morgana escapes, so Ariel and Eric decide that Melody should never go near the sea until Morgana is caught.

Well...uh, nothing of note really happens. Eric is a total wuss. He never really manages to do anything. Ariel sort of does something. Melody manages to screw things up. Plus, the animation is a new low-point for Disney. The computer graphics wind up clashing with the backgrounds. Ever single opportunity for character development is wasted. The songs bite.

Look, don't waste your time. I'm pretty sure even the little kids are going to be bored out of their skulls with this, since nothing even remotely exciting ever happens. They won't want to sing the songs. If you manage to grab a copy of this, throw it out into the ocean and hope that nobody ever finds it. Ever.

Okay, I kind of changed my mind

[SofiaHedge · 6/10 · 24 May 2020]

About a month ago, I wrote a mixed review for The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea. Well, after just watching some of the movie on Disney Plus, I guess I changed my mind a bit. The dialogue is actually fairly decent, the characters have at least a bit of depth, the voice acting is okay, and I guess the animation is good, I guess. I understand the motivations of Morgana, the film's antagonist and Ursula's younger sister. Ursula and Morgana's mother favored Ursula more, and that upset Morgana. I guess some people can relate to that. I guess this movie is okay and worth a watch, even if it is the first film backwards.

The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea

[jboothmillard · 3/10 · 23 June 2005]

When I was younger, I thought the first film was really good in childhood, so I decided to see the sequel. This is an example of why some films shouldn't have sequels, because the first film is usually best, and it is. Basically now that Ariel and Eric are married they have a daughter who isn't allowed outside the house because they are worried about the sister of Ursula (the octopus legged villain from film one), Morgana getting to her. When the kid gets out she asks Ursula's sister to turn her into a mermaid, like her Mum was. This makes Ariel go back to the sea to find her. The same good voice artists, it's just the story that could have had a bit more thought. Adequate!

Way better than it has been given credit for!

[lumos_nox_accio · 10/10 · 31 May 2005]

The Little Mermaid II -Return To The Sea- is a great film. it shows how Ariel has developed as a person, from mermaid, to human, to bride to mother. She has all of the same traits as she did from the original movie, and she acts just as you would think she would as a mum. Her daughter Melody (cute name or what?) is exactly the same as her, but opposite; Melody loves the sea, has a collection of under-water things, and just doesn't feel right living on land. Sound familiar? All of the cast returned, save for Prince Eric and Flounder. Jodi Benson displays her beautiful voice again, and sings several new, and fun songs, which are great! (Though not up to the standard of Alan Menken). Morgana is a lighter version of Ursula, and you love to hate her! The movie is better then what people have said about it, and as an Ariel lover, it's great to see our favourite mermaid back and loving life!

Much better than I thought!

[Seb74 · 7/10 · 3 December 2006]

Don't just trust the bad ratings. If you like the original movie you will like this one too. Its not as good, but really not that far behind. I'm glad I decided to give it a chance....seeing these ratings really had me expect nothing. It really is a nice little story, not full of violence or stupid characters and stunts as in most of the recent animated releases. It feels very true to the original, nice quality stuff indeed. I really didn't expect it, after seeing really cheap follow ups to movies like Lilo & Stitch and Ice Age, but this movie is nothing like them. Hasn't got any romance in it though, if thats a must for someone. So, if you liked the first one, do yourself a favor and rent/buy this movie. I'm pretty sure you wont be disappointed. Guess we'll never see a third one though, sadly. Would have been fun.

Was A Sequel Really Necessary?!

[filmismagic · 1/10 · 2 August 2008]

Probably for Temple Matthews who written basically a remake with few changes that just make it worse. SPOILERS: It's much similar to the original. Melody, Ariel's new baby daughter is threatened by Ursula's sister, Morgana. Morgana escapes, but keeps her promise to take Melody away from them. (Ursula had a sister?!) And she's not flashy a villain as Ursula was either. This is where similarity is. Melody is kept from the sea until Morgana is captured, but she doesn't know a thing about it, because everyone kept it secret. A wall surrounds the palace to keep her in and Morgana out. She goes under the wall day to day to have a swim and talk with Sebastian, who is not as funny or fun anymore. She finds a seashell with her name on it and runs away from home and to look for answers and finds Morgana. Here is a similarity; Morgana tricks Melody, making her happy by turning her into a mermaid. Meanwhile, Eric, Melody and King Triton look for her. To stay a mermaid she needs to steal the trident from Triton. So Melody does, because she does not know King Triton is her grandfather. She makes friends with a penguin and a walrus and here is where it is awful. The penguins who live with them in an icy ocean, hate them because they are cowards. So they try to prove they are heroes and fail. That does not suit the little mermaid. And the dialogue during those conversations between the penguins and those two characters is ear-bleeding. you know why? Because the first had a great story. This one is not and is not magical. It is just an example of how bad many sequels are.

Melody finds them and they help to take her to Atlantica to prove themselves. After taking the trident, Ariel finds Melody with Morgana. Melody is angry at her mother for keeping her from the sea so she gives the trident to Morgana, then she shows her true colours once she grabs it. Poor Ariel and Melody are in her custody. The penguin and the walrus begin to prove themselves when they fight Morgana's shark friend. Sorry I did not mention him earlier. Both have fulfilled their courage in the end (predictably). Eric, King Triton and his soldiers arrive but are forced to bow down before Morgana by the power of the trident. Melody takes it, throws it to Triton and he ices Morgana (literally). Then Ariel apologises to Melody and thinks it is all her fault. It was not! Ariel did the right thing to protect Melody, but they never say so. Triton offers Melody to live in sea or land. She in fact has a "better idea". She uses the trident to vaporize the wall so humans and mer-folk can be together. Then everyone sings an awful song. THE END.

Whoevers seen it and likes this obviously hasn't seen the original. I don't dislike this because I am a teenager. I liked it when I was very little. Then as I grew older I began to see what is bad about this film. Young, young kids will enjoy it, but it is likely that when they are in primary school, they will forget about it. Normally I would think I over-judged a film and it was better than I remember when I watched it again, but not this one. Only much worse. Story is no exception. If you thought, by reading this that the story is good, read more of this comment and you will know the other bad points: Well, you know the story now. I'm sorry for spoiling it for you, assuming you read it but I had to point out some bad parts of it. One of the worst things that taken a step backwards is the animation. Colour is awful. The original had beautiful colour. Watching this almost made me want to go blind. Even the illustrations and landscape design were not good. The original had beautiful, magical colouring and beautiful underwater landscape design and for land as well, making it a joy to watch.

The music is good at times, but for this kind of movie it is unbearable. Compared to the first movie, its crap. Songs are not well composed and you wouldn't hear many good voices. Tara Strong is a great voice-actor, who even displayed Mel Blanc-style talents, but she cannot sing a tune. She at times either sang too high or did not keep track for the melody in the song. So much for having "Melody" as a name.And the music is not at all beautiful or moving. Little Mermaid 1 won an Oscar for it and it truly deserved it. This one deserved a razzie award for worst musical score in a sequel if it would exist.

I did not like the voices. Several people who played characters from the first, are here too. Jodi Benson is a great singer, but now that she is older, no offence to her, her voice is too deep and not so beautiful anymore. Most disappointing is that she and others from the first cast were part of this. If I was chosen for this film, just by reading the script, I can tell it would be a bad sequel. The characters are different now. Ariel is more wiser now, yet annoying. They overdid her character, making her too mature. In sequels you are not meant to change the characters unless it is for a special reasons. She was sixteen in the first. There is little chance she changes. That is the stage when you become the person you are going to be for the rest of your life. Screenwriters should think of that. They should think of the character.

Well, I suppose that is it for me. I hope you find my comment useful, because I am sure a lot of you will agree with my point of view.

Terrible

[licedwar · 1/10 · 29 June 2010]

When I was 10, I watched this movie for the first time and loved it. This is because I was 10 and was entertained by any animated movie. You could have shown me a 90 minute cartoon solely about talking garbage cans and I would've thought it was great.

The other day I was babysitting some girls, and they wanted to watch a Disney movie, so I pulled out an old box consisting of several Disney classics and this one. They picked Little Mermaid 2, so I thought that this would be a good excuse to relive some childhood memories. At the end of the movie, I realized that the sequel that I used to think was awesome was actually a nauseatingly bad piece of...ship. The old characters have no personality, and Ariel and Eric have been reduced to cardboard cutouts. Melody, their daughter, is supposed to be the lovable misfit, but she is far too sickening and and perfect to be lovable. The plot is extremely similar to the original, except that Melody wants to be a mermaid whereas Ariel wanted to be a human. The songs lack any of the first movie's charm, and it feels like the creators just stuck them in there for the sake of putting songs in. The animation is flat and boring, lacking the subtleties in the first movie (noticing a pattern here?). Flounder is not nearly as adorable, Scuttle has become so dumb that it hurts to hear him speak, and Morgana, the new villain, is like a much less intimidating version of Ursula. Morgana's sidekicks are not especially menacing either- her pet shark is more oafish than frightening. Two new characters, a penguin and walrus duo, are forced comedy relief. Their shtick is that they are cowards who aspire to be heroes, and at the end of the film they finally get to become heroes. Very original. The day after I watched this, I watched the original to remind myself that The Little Mermaid is, in fact, a great Disney movie with great characters, memorable music, and beautiful animation, unlike the travesty I've just lambasted.

Naturally, the girls I babysat for loved it.

Someone should be stepped on for this.

[ak-11 · 1 November 2001]

Remember the Little Mermaid? The movie that made you believe in Disney again every time you saw it (no matter how awful their current movies were?) If you liked the Little Mermaid in the least bit, do not walk within viewing distance of this movie. I loved the Little Mermaid when it was the first movie I ever saw, I love it now; this movie, which had me excited in the beginning, left me feeling that it was better off never made. Everything in it, from character development, to voices, plot, lame side-kicks, lame villains, general stupidity, everything down to the more cutesy way things were colored and drawn, and the score. The original had a sort of mature feel that also appealed to kids that not a lot of Disney movies generally have, and this movie ended up as a drop in a sea of terrible Disney sequels.

Serviceable Sequel With Lessons More For Parents Than Children

[moonmonday · 6/10 · 17 April 2014]

This sequel started quickly with both song and things happening, and it set the rest of the story up with some regrettable decisions made rashly by Ariel and Eric. The thing is, it's at its surface a story about a girl trying to figure out where she belongs (similar to the original film), but really it turns out to be more of a story about adults making ill-considered decisions that have serious consequences. Ariel and Eric have gone from being lovestruck young adults to exactly the kind of insufferable parents that most of us will know: once they marry and pop out a kid, it's used as an excuse to neglect their family and lifelong friends, despite what anyone wants or would think.

The fact that no-one seemed to mention how ludicrous they thought Ariel and Eric's decision was does seem regrettable, but at the same time it's also understandable since it ultimately wouldn't have done any good. Instead of sealing Melody off from the ocean, a wiser choice would have been simply informing her of the dangers, accompanying her, teaching her safety in the water and, well, being honest instead of being deceptive. That deception and lack of trust are more or less entirely what put her and indeed everyone into serious danger.

Melody is a fine lead, starting to understand that decisions have consequences and that the world is not always as promising as it seems. Tip and Dash are cute and likable, and similarly likable and compelling are Morgana and her minions. In fact, to be honest, I liked Morgana more than anyone else. She may have been the villain, but she had a compelling and understandable reason to do what she did. She was, in many ways, more admirable than most of the other characters for at least her honesty with herself.

The songs are fine, and they are not excessive in number. The animation is fine as well. It's a fun enough little adventure. Although I will say that it's completely understandable why Melody isn't too happy on land -- what a bunch of little trolls at her party! And her parents don't act to do anything at all until it's too late. Sheesh. No wonder she ran away. The same can be said of the penguins -- no wonder Tip and Dash didn't want to stick around.

The ending was a little too pat, but it was okay and probably the best they could manage with the story. To be quite honest though, I don't see how it was really much of a decision to be made; Melody was deeply unhappy on land. But it left enough open that we can imagine what happened later.

Ariel and Eric did realise that what they were doing was wrong and that honestly they were at fault for what happened. That's a pretty amazing thing for films like this. More often, you see condescending parents smugly never admitting their mistakes, or the script making it seem like they were somehow right for what they did. Melody made some bad decisions, but seriously, she is twelve years old and anyone who receives their fondest desire is surely to be more than slightly influenced by that. Realistic character writing made this noteworthy.

In summary, this was a perfectly fine film. I think most of the people who lashed out at it were people who saw themselves making those same bad decisions Ariel and Eric did and resented being called out on them. It doesn't make the film bad; maybe you should assess your life choices a bit.

this movie was totally lame.

[Erik G. · 1/10 · 18 December 2000]

I'll say it again: this movie was totally lame. Kids will like it, sure, but adults...doubtful. The whole thing was basically a rehash of the original, which is to be expected, since they pretty much explored the whole concept in the first movie, but still, did they have to completely rehash the entire movie? I mean, everything is re-done from the Little Mermaid. The worst part of it is Morgana "Ursula's crazy sister" who appears out of nowhere and threatens Melody, which is ridiculous since Triton is there with his magic trident. Why didn't Triton do anything about it? Because the plot required him to do nothing. I could go on, but I won't. The whole thing is a shameless attempt to rake in more money from the Little Mermaid, and was obviously thrown together without any thought, because they knew it would sell. Overall it is a terrible waste of time.

A good sequel

[r96sk · 7/10 · 11 June 2020]

A good sequel.

'The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea' makes for a pleasing follow-up to the original 1989 film, it's arguably Disney's best sequel up until this point; surpassing 'Cinderella III: A Twist in Time' for that honour, in my humble opinion. 'The Little Mermaid' is still superior, but everything here bar the songs are on the same wavelength in terms of enjoyment.

Jodi Benson and Samuel E. Wright both return in the roles of Ariel and Sebastian, while Pat Carroll also comes back but in a different capacity as Morgana - she voiced Ursula in the preceding production. I like Morgana's water minions, especially Clancy Brown's Undertow. Tara Strong is involved as Melody, who gets two decent sidekicks in Tip (Max Casella) and Dash (Stephen Furst).

The premise is slightly similar to the first, though they mix things up sufficiently to keep it feeling fresh; the only time it feels repetitive to me is with Morgana herself, I enjoy the rest to be honest. I'm obviously not saying it's a perfect film, but it entertained me and that's all you want from a sequel honestly.

Another stupid sequel

[pmcollectorboy · 2/10 · 26 September 2000]

If there's one thing you can count on Disney to do, it's their uncanny ability to take a story and tell it again and again and again. Even watching the commercial for Lady and the Tramp II was a horrible experience. Disney's going to ruin one of their most awesome classics ever. It even had that spaghetti meatball scene. It's been done before! And that's what I say to this sorry direct to video(the entire concept should be banned). Everything is just a rehash of the original movie and even several of Bluth's really bad movies. The penguin and walrus duo(I've even forgotten their names) are just a really poor carbon copy of Timon and Pumbaa. Morgana is another Ursula. She even repeats practically all her old lines. The songs are pathetic, really abysmal. I've never heard songs so bad from them before until now. And the dialogue is atrocious. It's pathetic and simplistic. On the plus side, at least they took the time to make the animation somewhat decent. All of the usual characters aren't as annoying as they used to be(or maybe that's a minus for Little Mermaid fans). Back on the negative, Melody is just so sickeningly cute you just might vomit. I almost did. Do yourself and your Little Mermaid fan a favor. Don't waste your money on this. True, it's not as horrific as Return of Jafar or Pocahontas II, but that's little consolation.

Even the animation can't save it

[mitsubishizero · 6/10 · 26 July 2019]

I've seen this a few times as a kid and like almost everything I saw I thought it was good. Watching it now it hasn't really aged well. The animation's nice but everything else is bland. The story's about Ariel's daughter Melody (Tara Strong) trying to discover the sea when no one wants to tell her due to an incident where she was almost kidnapped by Ursula's sister Morgana while Ariel (Jodi Benson) and Eric (Rob Paulson) were celebrating her birth with King Triton.

This leads to Melody finding Morgana who tricks her into stealing Triton's trident in exchange for turning her into a mermaid. Along the way she befriends a duo made by a penguin named Tip (Max Casella) and a walrus named Dash (Stephen Furst) who want to prove themselves. There's really not much to say other than it's not all that. The songs are pretty forgettable and the characters don't have much personality. If anything they're kind've shells of their former self from the first movie. The only thing it has going for it is the animation. If you have little kids they'll enjoy it but for everyone else swim away from this dud.

Saw it as a kid in my friends house it was OK I guess

[lisafordeay · 5/10 · 10 June 2013]

The Little Mermaid II:Return To The Sea is a 2000 sequel to the 1989 classic The Little Mermaid only this time she is a mother to a beautiful girl named Melody who doesn't know that Ariel was a mermaid herself but got transformed into a human thanks to her father in the end of the first film to be with Eric.

Melody of course cannot leave the castle at all because its too dangerous for her to go outside and swim around in the water,as Ariel vowed to protect her from harm by making her father King Triton build a wall so that she may never leave the castle ever.But when Melody disobeys Ariel one day while she was swimming she stumbles across a mysterious locket that her grandfather(King Triton) gave Ariel as a welcoming present for her when she was born. Later there is some party for her and all the younger people make fun of her because she can talk to animals and they make her upset.

Later on in the film Melody escapes the castle and decides to go to Ursula's sister Morgana(who happens to be voiced by the same woman who voiced Ursula in the first movie) to change her into a mermaid. She agrees and Melody is transformed into a mermaid. Ariel finds out that she is missing and its up to Ariel to transform back into a mermaid again and save her daughter from Morgana. But will Melody choose to be a mermaid or a human?

The animation was nice and the songs were great I liked the For A Moment song sung by Jodi Benson and Tara Strong.

But I have a few issues with this movie one is that I wish Christopher Daniel Barnes was back in this one as ,I hate the new guy that voices him now Rob Paulsen,he doesn't have the charms like Chris had for Eric in the first movie. Also there is No Alan Menken either and there is parts to this film that is a replica of the first movie. Like the seagull in the beginning of the film,the rainbow,Melody copying Ariel's Part Of Your World routine with the spinning around in the water etc.

Having said that its not as good as the first movie as the 1st one is my 3rd favourite movie of all time,but still check it out if you loved the first movie. But stay clear of the 3rd outing as its GOD AWFUL.

Also its great to see the original cast again,Jodi Benson,Samuel E Wright,Kenneth Mars,Pat Carroll.

5.5/10

Not a bad film.

[Ariel-28 · 8/10 · 19 December 2000]

Hardly ever have I seen a really disappointing Disney film, and The Little Mermaid II isn't an exception. The story is beautiful, although I thought all the time that Ariel and Eric had made a mistake in not telling little Melody that her mother had originally been a mermaid. The animation was also very good.

I liked Ariel and little Melody, but Morgana and Triton were the best of the characters. I was delighted that Triton was not as strict as in the first movie, and I have always liked wicked woman characters like Morgana. But, of course, I was glad that she was finally destroyed.

In any case, I'm quite sure that H.C. Andersen would not have been very content with this sequel, because his original fairytale was meant to be very sad. I even paid attention to that neither in the first film nor in the sequel have Ariel or Melody any pains while walking on their feet - namely, Andersen tells that every step the little mermaid takes is hurting her as if she was stepping on an edge of a knife.

Not a bad Little Mermaid sequel, but lacking and annoying at times

[quiqueperezsoler · 6/10 · 15 February 2020]

Now hear me out, I know it might seem impossible, but the story actually has something in it. It has a good sequel story based heavily in "irony" hidden underneath layers of at times bad animation, really bad music, useless side characters that bring nothing to the story and "dullification", that is, making the original characters dull to give more personality to the new ones.

Maybe it's because I have some sort of personal attachment to Disney's DTV sequel movies as when I was a child I had them in VHS and saw them just as much as the originals. But some Disney sequels are actually quite good in some aspects. Of course not in all as they don't have the same budget nor the same creative team the original ones had so they have to make do with what they have. I personally think most of them add extra adventures of the main characters (Like Tarzan and Jane), very few progress their character's development or backstory (like Aladdin and the King of Thieves) or go totally different routes or go crazy (like Cinderella 3).

This sequel belongs to the "offspring's ironic story" in which the daughter or son or both of the main couple have an emotional, physical or metaphoric journey filled with themes and tropes that the original showed us. In this one we see straight in the trailer (so it isn't really a spoiler) that Ariel's daughter loves the sea and wants to get back to it. And how ever will she do that knowing Ursulla coincidentally had also a cruel, ocean-domination-seeking crazy sister who would take advantage of this desire? Other movies that fall under this "category" of sequel is Lady and the Tramp 2 and Lion King 2 (and probably some other). I do believe there was an interesting mirror story hiding underneath the bad musical score and so-so animation, but I just can't stand the side characters here and the main characters are absolutely useless for the plot or worse they are plot devices to move the story forward.

In conclusion, it is an average movie, it's family friendly and has good messages and good entertainment. In my opinion it is not amongst the worst Disney sequels as I have seen others that don't respect the status quo with which the previous one ended. This one at least tries to have the same themes even though at times you can see some sequences and shots are copied straight out of the original movie. Still, for me it's always better to pay homage to the original one while building upon it. But that's just my opinion, objectively this movie is entertaining for kids and I loved it and understood it all and felt for it as a kid, like I felt what Melody felt with the whole "my parents don't understand me" ever-so-repeated trope. So yeap, totally kid friendly and I'm a sucker for easy to watch movies like these. (Aladdin King of thieves is superior in music, plot and characters so check that one instead!)

Jodi Benson just had to reprieve her role

[freakfire-1 · 2/10 · 11 June 2008]

Disney has yet to meet a movie it couldn't make at least two sequels about. And this one was no exception to the people at Disney to give a weak story to receive a quick reward. Somehow, although I did not pay to view it, I feel cheapened by watching it.

Ariel is grown up now and had a daughter. Yet doesn't allow the daughter to go into the sea because of some idle threat made by the sister of the deceased sea-witch. So here we go again.

The daughter is tricked (of course) and helps the sea-witch. After a not-so-glorious battle, she is defeated and the mermaids and humans live in harmony. Yawn.

There is nothing to view here. Go back to your lives. "D-"