Disney: The Curse of the Sea Witches

by Walt Disney Company

Ariel has joined Eric on a voyage to the Arctic to oversee the construction of a new port along the unspoilt coastline. But trouble arises when the construction encroaches on the local merfolk's habitat, forcing them to strike back.

Will Ariel, who belongs to both worlds, be able to make the two opposing sides see sense before it's too late?

Engross yourself further into the story of the Little Mermaid in this beautifully illustrated graphic novel that takes you beyond the films.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Comics, Middle Grade, Mermaids, Childrens, Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published November 29, 2022

About the author

Note: The decision was made to consolidate all Disney publications under the name Walt Disney Company. This profile is for Walt Disney, the characters he created, and the company he founded. Any questions, please ask in the Librarian's Group.

Walter Elias “Walt” Disney (December 5, 1901 – December 15, 1966) was an American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor, animator, entrepreneur, entertainer, international icon, and philanthropist. Disney is famous for his influence in the field of entertainment during the 20th century. As the co-founder (with his brother Roy O. Disney) of Walt Disney Productions, Disney became one of the best-known motion picture producers in the world. The corporation he co-founded, now known as The Walt Disney Company, today has annual revenues of approximately U.S. $35 billion.

Disney is particularly noted for being a film producer and a popular showman, as well as an innovator in animation and theme park design. He and his staff created some of the world's most famous fictional characters including Mickey Mouse, a character for which Disney himself was the original voice. He has been awarded four honorary Academy Awards and has won twenty-two competitive Academy Awards out of fifty-nine nominations, including a record four in one year, giving him more awards and nominations than any other individual. He also won seven Emmy Awards. He is the namesake for Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort theme parks in the United States, as well as the international resorts Tokyo Disney, Disneyland Paris, and Disneyland Hong Kong.

Disney died of lung cancer in Burbank, California, on December 15, 1966. The following year, construction began on Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. His brother Roy Disney inaugurated the Magic Kingdom on October 1, 1971.

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) (commonly referred to as Disney) is the largest media and entertainment conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by brothers Walt Disney and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, the company was reincorporated as Walt Disney Productions in 1929. Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into live-action film production, television, and travel. Taking on its current name in 1986, The Walt Disney Company expanded its existing operations and also started divisions focused upon theatre, radio, publishing, and online media. In addition, it has created new divisions of the company in order to market more mature content than it typically associates with its flagship family-oriented brands.

The company is best known for the products of its film studio, the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, today one of the largest and best-known studios in Hollywood. Disney also owns and operates the ABC broadcast television network; cable television networks such as Disney Channel, ESPN, and ABC Family; publishing, merchandising, and theatre divisions; and owns and licenses 11 theme parks around the world. On January 23, 2006, it was announced that Disney would purchase Pixar in an all-stock transaction worth $7.4 billion. The deal was finalized on May 5. On December 31, 2009, Disney Company acquired the Marvel Entertainment, Inc. for $4.24 billion. The company has been a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average since May 6, 1991. An early and well-known cartoon creation of the company, Mickey Mouse, is the official mascot of The Walt Disney Company.

--from Wikipedia

Reviews

[jagodasbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

2,5⭐️

Cute and quick, Ariel was never my favorite, but I couldn't pass up this comic book when I saw it, read in literally 20 min.

Thank you Netgalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.

[Cherlynn | cherreading · Rating 3 out of 5]

What happens after Happy Ever After?

This lovely graphic novel provides a fun snippet into the lives of Princess Ariel and Prince Eric after they get married. I like how Ariel's journal entries and sketches are interspersed through the story. The artwork and colours are seriously stunning – think deep blue seas, captivating purple skies and the beautiful aurora borealis.

The characters are delightful but could have been more complex and fleshed out. I wish we had gotten more insight into the sea witch queen and am not fond of how Ariel is all ~choose love over bitterness~ as it just feels so superficial. Easy for her to say!

The story and conflict are both very straightforward. It felt like everyone changed their minds and things got resolved too easily. I wouldn't have minded if the plot was more drawn out. But for a kids' book, this is a pleasant and visually appealing read.

Would love to see stories like this one for the other Disney princesses!

[Sarah Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm gonna have to find some Litter Mermaid fanfiction.

[Cindi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun book to add to my Ariel collection. ^_^ The timing felt like it landed between the first and second movie (after she marries Eric, before they have Melody). It was nice to get more story about her life and to explore how being a human with mermaid ties and loyalty could play out in a life as a princess to a land kingdom trying to build a huge new shipping port.

This book is kid friendly, imaginative, and gently thought provoking. It's also educational as you get to see glimpses into Ariel's sketches and diary as she tells about all the new animals and nature she is learning about in the arctic.

I am not sure how much more I can say without spoiling something, so if you enjoy Ariel and want more about her life with Eric, grab yourself a copy and enjoy. :)

[Spookybats · Rating 3 out of 5]

the more I read about the og Eric the more I like the live action prince Eric
like he wouldn't care about going to Greenland just for business meetings
him and Ariel want UNcharted waters
anyways, Eric should've listened to Ariel sooner and maybe he wouldn't had been kidnapped and almost drowned again

[˙⋆✮ Anny ✮⋆˙ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ariel is my favorite Disney princess, I watched the movie countless times as a kid, I've even cosplayed as her. I've been sneaking around this graphic novel for a while and I finally caved and bought it.

It's a quick read that tells a new adventure of Ariel after the events of the movie, she's the princess of Denmark and going to oversee the construction of a new port in the Arctic with Prince Eric. There, she makes friends with the local mermaids and eventually finds herself in a place between the two worlds, having to settle a century old fight and misunderstanding between humans and merfolk.

I liked the story a lot, Ariel's personality was refreshing and there are important underlying topics of environment and protection of local flora and fauna aswell!
A very quick and nice read with beautiful art!

[Гери]

Сега я видях във фийда си и си спомних, че я четох преди година, но не носеше магията на оригинала...

[Sofía Gracia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lo que me gusta a mí La Sirenita 🥹 ojalá hubiera durado 100 páginas más, ha sido cuquísimo

[ariana. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Huh. I wasn’t expecting such a cute story. It was refreshing to see Ariel in a different light. I also appreciate diving into their world and incorporating the Inuit people and their culture. The face tattoos were dope af. The scenes with Eric and Ariel were definitely my favorite. I love how Eric in this story and in the little mermaid gets in dangerous situations and it’s up to Ariel to save him. (Again!) What a clumsy ol’ prince. The little bit where Ariel makes a bear tooth bracelet for Eric was so god dang sweet. #Relationshipgoals

[Rachel Dominic · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun little adventure that takes place happily ever after. I loved seeing Ariel and Eric outside of the traditional fairytale palace setting and with more grounded, historical roots such as Copenhagen(where the original author Hans Christian Anderson was from) and the frigid Greenland. A beautiful setting for a short graphic novel with a great use of Ariel's journaling in between the story with gorgeous artwork. Ariel(The Little Mermaid 1989) and the original The Little Mermaid story have always been a favorite of mine and I loved seeing a continuation of sorts for her and Eric. I would love to see a serialized graphic novel series of adventures for the two of them. Also, maybe just me (and my obsession with the Little Mermaid), but I kept getting reminded of The Little Mermaid II(2000) with the Artic setting as it is similar to that film.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute! Had a great tie-in with the original movie. Eric, as always, was a sweetie.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved Ariel (and Eric!), loved the art, story was cute.

[☮ morgan ☮ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved seeing all of the interactions between Ariel and Eric.

[Ashley Bostrom · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Ariel but this book was just a justification of colonialism. Sometimes, both sides don’t need to win. And let’s be honest, Ariel would always be team mermaid. Also, the writing is terrible.

[María Maldonado · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una pequeña novela gráfica que nos habla de la vida de Ariel. De su papel como princesa de Dinamarca al lado de Eric y cómo a pesar de tener piernas, sabe bien cuáles son sus raíces. Es súper bonito, la narrativa es súper cálida y sin duda es un buen complemento para lo que sabemos de esta princesa.

[Luz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Próximamente reseña en el blog Historias Contadas 👑

[Megan Royce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish Ioved this book more than I do. It has great moments, but there are some aspects that just didn't feel right.

In this story, Ariel is faced with the decision of standing up for the Arctic Merfolk or standing aside for human ambition.

What I loved:
• Ariel's strength in fighting for what's right
• the depiction of Ariel struggling to make the right choice
• the depiction of Ariel struggling with her identity as a former mermaid and current human, and what that means for her moving forward

What I didn't like:
• the preachy tone, especially in the beginning. I feel that the tone and the way the content was handled could have been better. It felt too forced.
• the disconnect between Ariel and Eric. Their relationship felt off and not cannon with their portrayals in the Disney films.

Overall I think this graphic novel is a good one. It wouldn't necessarily be my first choice recommendation, but it does cover some important topics in a digestible way for younger audiences.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ariel and the Curse of the Sea Witches is a graphic novel, the story written by Rhona Cleary with art by Valentina Brancati. It obviously takes place in the same universe as the animated The Little Mermaid movies and is set in between The Little Mermaid and The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea. I had such a wonderful time reading this book and was honestly surprised by how much I loved it. Both the story and the art are so engaging and cinematic, and I couldn't help but think as I was reading this that it would make such a wonderful movie (even though I feel quite confident that that is never going to happen). The story offers up a wonderful message with environmentalist themes and the importance of people setting aside differences to achieve a common goal. Ariel is written so well; she is so well developed, and she has matured so much in this story since the story of the first animated movie (even though she is still very much Ariel in that she is stubborn, headstrong and does not listen to people when they advise her against taking part in dangerous journeys - I guess that some things never change). Ariel's journal entries and sketches are also interspersed throughout the story, and if I had to complain about anything regarding this book, it's just that her journal entries are sometimes unnecessary. While they do afford a great opportunity to go deeper into Ariel's psyche and see what she is thinking, she also sometimes writes about events that we have already seen, and that can get redundant. Other than that, however, I strongly recommend this book to any fans of The Little Mermaid.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was alright. Dialogue was a bit meh. Like on page 41 it could've been no speech bubble and nothing would be lost. Or have the next page be Eric or Ariel says "Most beautiful??"

This book makes me FURTHER question why Ariel and Eric love each other. Does Ariel only love Eric because he represents humanity and Ariel loves human stuff? Eric loved ariel because of her friendly nature and adventurous spirit. But Eric can’t even adventure because he is the Prince, and has royal duties. But maybe that’s what makes them work better, who knows.


Historical stuff is cool. Artstyle is not something I'd gravitate towards. Why is it called the "Sea Witches"? there's only one sea witch. I thought maybe there'd be three witches. Although... I wonder if Morgana lived in Greenland... I forgor where she lives.

[Marissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into this book not expecting much but I was pleasantly surprised! The book (briefly) touches on the themes of Colonization, Environmental Conservation, and Government Politics. This book is geared for a younger audience so many of the mature themes have been simplified to make them easier to understand, and in traditional Disney fashion the book does have a Disney ending.

What I thought the book did well was it’s engaging art style that is interspersed with “handwritten” diary entries and novice realistic illustrations made by Ariel.

I recommend reading this book if you are interested in following Ariel as she asks herself the question “Who am I to think that I could break the cycle of a long-standing conflict?”

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short graphic novel with an original Little Mermaid adventure. Set after the original movie, this story sends Ariel and Eric on what is functionally a long business trip to Greenland. Although I liked the Greenland setting, and thought it was handled with great affection, it feels like an odd choice for a Little Mermaid sequel, as does the decision to make Eric and Ariel explicitly Danish. The story is intended to be an allegory about finding a balance between nature and progress, and it has the expectedly neat and tidy ending. While the art is really good, the dialog doesn't feel quite right for Ariel, and I'm having a really hard time picturing her writing in a journal. But I think young fans will like the story, and the new mermaid designs are really cool, too.

[Ember Moto · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story takes place after the Disney Animated movie. It continues the story having Ariel and Eric visit an arctic village that is the cite for a new port. The project has been having problems believed to be caused by a sea witch. Ariels investigation into the issue however reveals a much more complex cause for the problems the project is having.

The story has a environmental message without being preachy or over barring. The art work has a nice watercolor quality to it. The story also does this really neat thing where it is partially told through journal entries that Ariel is writing, showing her thoughts and observations about the events that are happening in the story as well as the new arctic environment she finds herself in. i.e. sketches and notes on Polar Bears.

[Christy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing (and problematic).

Ariel was a favorite as a child, so I have lots of nostalgia around her.

The two positive aspects of this book were the consideration of human impacts on ecology and Arnaaluk. I wish the story explored Arnaaluk more and wrote Ariel’s dialogue in a more empowering way.

Ariel felt less like a main character in her own story the way this was written; which is not only inconsistent with her personality, but defeating for women.

Also, the ending was deeply problematic.

The title is also a misrepresentation.

While the final page contained a basic glossary, it would have been much richer if it explored arctic biodiversity and the origins of Arnaaluk stories.

[Bee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this graphic novel free in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the read, it was cute and I loved the graphics and Ariel's facial expressions. I loved the plot surrounding the Sea Witch, but it felt a little rushed, there could have been more of a build up, and more action than what we got.

Additionally, despite it being a story about Ariel and Eric, I didn't really get those vibes from them. The only thing that connected them to the Little Mermaid I know, were their names and the fact there were mermaids present. Without that it could have been any generic fantasy and if the names had been changed I may not have connected them at all, besides the way they look.

Enjoyable, but forgetable.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ariel and Eric head from Denmark to Greenland to oversee a project at the port where a new ship is being built. But beneath the surface, merfolk reside with their head mermaid ready to wage war against the humans that are about to destroy their home in the name of this new sea port vision. Ariel makes friends with one of the mermaids, and attempts to bridge the interests between the humans and the merfolk. It's a quick read, the graphics are captivating, and overall could appeal to a wide range of age groups. For the genre and intended audience, it works well. 4.5 stars

[Brogan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve always loved Ariel so I took the chance on this graphic novel, I enjoyed reading about life after they got married but think it’s not very well fleshed out. It felt very rushed but for young readers I think this will interest them enough.

I also liked at the beginning it explained the history of why they chose the places they did and the inspiration for the graphics.

All in all, was a very quick read and it was interesting enough that I read it in about 15 minutes.

2.75⭐️

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!

[Emmie Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute read! Ariel is one of my all time favourite Disney Princesses so I couldn't resist requesting this one when I saw it!

I loved seeing Ariel take on her role as the Princess at Eric's side and I loved how this story brought her back to her mermaid roots. I also really liked that some of it was also told in Ariel's own notes and drawings!

A quick and fun read, perfect for a Disney Fan!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a life-long fan of The Little Mermaid, I was very interested in reading this graphic novel. It is geared towards children, but I still thought it a nice read nonetheless. It's always exciting to read a glimpse into the future of some favorite characters. The illustrations are very true to the original Disney film characters which I greatly appreciated. This is definitely worth a look if you're a Little Mermaid fan.

[Hailey Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Now the story is good, and I love seeing more then what we did on screen. It also seems like they were either rushed to finish, or lazy. Every 3rd page is just text and not drawn out like a comic book. I get that some are meant to be like diary pages but it happens way to often and at weird times to be that. That many non drawn pages (when I wasn’t expecting that) is what put a bad taste in my mouth. The full color is great, I would of rather had b&w without the “diary” pages.

[Briana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting. I thought it captured Ariel's loving and adventurous spirit really well. I really liked the way the way the author maintained her friendly, curious nature and big heart. Eric on the other hand I didn't love. He just didn't seem to act in the way I imagine Prince Eric would have. So, I mean, there was that. The story was good though and the art is beautiful. It's a pleasing read for sure.