Flotsam and Jetsam are the secondary antagonists of Disney's 1989 animated feature film The Little Mermaid. They are a sinister pair of moray eels that serve as minions to Ursula, the sea witch.
Ursula, the wicked sea witch, is a devious octopus with a penchant for power and dark magic in Disney's “The Little Mermaid.” Ursula's octopus nature allows her to be a master of disguise and manipulation, using her many tentacles for both dexterity and deception.
“Many people call her an octopus and I'm so knowledgeable I have to correct them,” Carroll explained in the documentary “Treasures Untold: The Making of Disney's 'The Little Mermaid. '” “She's not an octopus, she's a squid. … She has six tentacles instead of eight.”
While some of Sebastian's features resemble a lobster, Sebastian is definitely a crab, as is stated in The Little Mermaid itself a few times. This includes the scene where the obsessed Chef Louis refers to Sebastian as a crab, and since he's a professional, he really should know.
flounder, any of numerous species of flatfishes belonging to the families Achiropsettidae, Pleuronectidae, Paralichthyidae, and Bothidae (order Pleuronectiformes). The flounder is morphogenetically unusual. When born it is bilaterally symmetrical, with an eye on each side, and it swims near the surface of the sea.
A squid has six arms, which is probably why Pat Carroll, the late voice actress who portrayed Ursula in the original film, claimed she was a squid. But Carroll didn't mention that most squid also have two tentacles and two legs—used for moving and swimming—while their arms are for grabbing and feeding.
Ariel kills the Sea Witch at the end of the movie.
At the end of the 1989 animated film, Eric saves the day and kills Ursula. But in the new movie, Ariel is no longer the damsel in distress. She takes matters into her own hands and kills Ursula herself.
While the lead cast has been lauded for their performances, it's Jessica Alexander who has gone viral for her brief but impressionable femme fatale performance in the movie. In The Little Mermaid, Alexander takes on the role of antagonist Ursula's human incarnate, Vanessa.
While it is known that her mother perished, there is no story attached to the event. However, much later, in 2008, an animated The Little Mermaid prequel revealed that Ariel's mother was crushed by a pirate ship during an altercation between humans and merpeople.
In the 2023 film version of The Little Mermaid, Ursula is presented as being Triton's younger sister, who had been exiled from their underwater kingdom. This also makes Ursula Ariel's aunt, bringing to mind Disney's long line of wicked matriarchs.
But in a desire to re-market these ladies to a chic clientele, it appears that they decided to shave more than a few pounds off of Ursula the Sea Witch and Alice in Wonderland's Queen of Hearts. Because in order to be fashionable, you must be thin. The fact is, Ursula was fashionable.
King Triton. King Triton is the ruler of Atlantica who has white hair, a white beard, and a white mustache (in the prologue of prequel film he has auburn brown), husband of Queen Athena, the father of Ariel and her sisters and grandfather of Melody.
Scuttle is not only changed from male to female but is also now a diving bird instead of a seagull. "This was done specifically so that Ariel would only meet Scuttle underwater, because, at the start of our story, Ariel has never dared go above the surface," director Rob Marshall said in production notes.
Ariel makes this deal because she falls in love with Prince Eric and desires to be with him. Ursula specifically targets Ariel because she sees an opportunity to exploit her curiosity about the human world and her fascination with Prince Eric.
Ursula's plan was not only to trick Ariel, so she could own her but also to get rid of her, so she could replace King Triton and thus rule over the oceans. However, her reasons to do so, for her resentment towards King Triton and company, and for her banishment and isolation weren't revealed in the movie.
Queen Athena was the wife of King Triton, and the mother of Ariel and her six older sisters. She was the Queen of Atlantica, and beloved by her family and subjects.
The original character in the 1989 movie was inspired by the triple threat drag queen, actor, and singer Divine, a fact that was mere speculation at first, but has since been confirmed by those involved with the film. Divine catapulted to cult fame after appearing in Pink Flamingos, John Waters' filthy 1972 comedy.
Ursula is only drawn with six tentacles, due to the studio's budget and difficulty in coordinating eight tentacles (though she has eight limbs if you include her arms). Pat Carroll has stated that this makes her a squid, though biologically she still resembles an octopus far more than any other sea-creature.
Instead of the eccentric seagull The Little Mermaid fans grew to love, Scuttle was rendered as a Northern gannet, a large seabird known for its preference for oceanic habitats and the ability to forage for food sources by plunging headfirst into the water.
They wrongly name a fork a "dinglehopper" and says that it is used as a comb, and a smoking pipe a "snarfblatt" while claiming it works like a trumpet. Scuttle is the only one of Ariel's friends capable of flight and as such is very useful in getting help.
That honor goes to a song that's not in the movie - the “If Only” quartet that Ariel sings with Sebastian, King Triton and Prince Eric. Among Mermaid's many subplots is the special relationship shared by Ariel and Flounder. While Ariel regards Flounder as more of a sidekick, Flounder has an adolescent crush on Ariel.
