(french: Le Prince et la Sirène, lit. "The Prince and the Mermaid") is an animated series produced by

Fuji Television JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba today is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo. Odaiba was initially b ...

and

Saban International Paris SIP Animation (known as Saban International Paris until 2002) was a French animation studio, and a former subsidiary of Saban Entertainment. By 2009, the company had produced over 390 hours of animated content. Despite the name, the company was n ...

in the early 1990s, based on the 1837

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...

fairy tale "

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a h ...

". This 26-episode TV series was originally created by

Jean Chalopin Jean Chalopin (born 31 May 1950) is a French bank executive. During the 1980s and early 1990s, he produced a range of successful animated series, first as the founder and president of the production company DIC, then at his newly created compa ...

and directed by Takehiro Miyano. The series was broadcast on Japan's

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network Sys ...

network from February to July 1991. As in the 1975 feature-length film version produced by Toei, ''

Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid is a Japanese anime film based on Hans Christian Andersen's 1837 fairy tale, released in 1975 by Toei Animation. Unlike the Disney adaptation released 14 years later, this film is closer to Andersen's story, notably in its preservation of the ...

'' (with which this series may be confused), the

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are sometimes asso ...

protagonist was drawn as a blonde in this version and given the name Marina. It also added a new ingredient to the story: a magic potion given to the prince which he could use to breathe underwater and be with Marina. 26 episodes were produced. Released in America for Saturday morning and weekday afternoon syndication by

Saban Entertainment Saban Entertainment, Inc. (along with Saban International; currently operating under the legal name is BVS Entertainment, Inc.) was a worldwide-served independent American-Israeli television production company formed in 1980 by Haim Saban and S ...

in association with USA syndicator

Bohbot Entertainment Bohbot Entertainment was an American advertising and marketing company specializing in the children's market founded in 1985, and had traded under various different names over the years. The company produced and distributed programming under thei ...

in the summer of 1991, intended to capitalize on the success of the Disney film adaptation of the same story. Disney coincidentally released their own TV series adaptation, which did far better than Saban's in the ratings. Ownership of the series passed to

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

in 2001 when Disney acquired

Fox Kids Worldwide ABC Family Worldwide is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Television that is responsible for the operations of the U.S. cable network Freeform. The company was originally formed as International Family Entertainment, a spin-off of the Christian Broad ...

, which also includes

. The series is not available on

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

Plot

Marina is a mermaid who is in love with Prince Justin, a human prince from a kingdom on the shore. Marina saves Justin when he almost drowns after a chase from a giant Cyclops and a shipwreck attack from a three-headed sea serpent. She then makes a deal with Hedwig the sea witch to become human temporarily to try to win Justin's love. Justin and Marina become close but Justin thinks that Princess Cecily, a human princess, was the one who saved him from drowning and therefore he gets engaged to her. Justin eventually remembers that Marina was the one who saved his life but by then Marina becomes a mermaid again. The two continue to secretly meet and try to find a way to be together while dealing with Hedwig's plans to take over the kingdom and Cecily's attempts to get Justin to marry her. Marina and Justin are aided by their underwater friends Winnie the seahorse, Bobo the tropical fish, and Ridley the sea otter. They are also aided by the wizard Anselm and by Chauncey, Justin's page.

Characters

Main

* Marina (voiced by Sonja Ball): A

with waist-length golden blonde hair and green tail who is the protagonist of the show. After she saves Prince Justin of Gandor she falls in love with him and wishes to become human. * Prince Justin (voiced by

Thor Bishopric Thor Bishopric (born September 6, 1963) is a Canadian actor and writer. He is a prominent member of ACTRA. Bishopric has performed roles in television and film, and provided his voice for animated and puppet productions and several films for The ...

): Prince of Gandor and Marina's boyfriend. * Winnie (voiced by

Anik Matern Anik Matern is founder and president of the Dynamic Theater Factory. References External links * Living people Year of birth missing (living people) {{theat-bio-stub ...

): Marina's

seahorse A seahorse (also written ''sea-horse'' and ''sea horse'') is any of 46 species of small marine fish in the genus ''Hippocampus''. "Hippocampus" comes from the Ancient Greek (), itself from () meaning "horse" and () meaning "sea monster" or " ...

friend and constant companion. Unlike real world seahorses, she has the ability to scream at very high pitches which causes people to pass out. She also has the ability to fly when she is out of water. * Bobo (voiced by Carlyle Miller): Marina's tropical fish friend. He often spies on Hedwig and reports back to Marina and the rest of the gang. * Ridley (voiced by

Arthur Holden Arthur Holden (born August 28, 1959) is a Canadian actor and writer. Known for his roles such as Mr. Ratburn in ''Arthur'', Baba-Miao in ''Sagwa, the Chinese Siamese Cat'', Mayor Mallard in ''The Little Twins'', and Mr. Larkin in later episode ...

): Marina's

sea otter The sea otter (''Enhydra lutris'') is a marine mammal native to the coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters typically weigh between , making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the small ...

friend and Anselm's companion. Unlike real world sea otters, he seems to be able to breathe under water indefinitely. * Anselm (voiced by

Aron Tager Aron Tager (June 30, 1934 – February 28, 2019) was an American actor, poet, artist and sculptor. Career As an artist, Tager had numerous exhibitions of his work and has sculptures installed at the following locations: Mount Anthony Union Hi ...

): Prince Justin's tutor and secretly a sorcerer who was once in love with Hedwig in their youth. * Chauncey (voiced by Gordon Masten): Prince Justin's short, goofy and loyal page.

Antagonists

* Hedwig the Sea Witch (voiced by Sonja Ball): The

sea witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

who acts as the main antagonist of the show. She was once a sorceress who was in love with Anselm until her hunger for power forced him to banish her to the sea. She comes up with plot after plot to capture Marina and Justin so she can exchange them for the Amulet of Power which would make her the most powerful person on both land and water and therefore rule the world. Just like a mermaid, she doesn't have legs and her tail resembles that of a

moray eel Moray eels, or Muraenidae (), are a family of eels whose members are found worldwide. There are approximately 200 species in 15 genera which are almost exclusively marine, but several species are regularly seen in brackish water, and a few are f ...

. The power that she uses most often is to release

prehensile Prehensility is the quality of an appendage or organ (anatomy), organ that has Adaptation (biology), adapted for grasping or holding. The word is derived from the Latin term ''prehendere'', meaning "to grasp". The ability to grasp is likely der ...

vines from her long fingernails. ** Dudley (voiced by Ian Finlay): Hedwig's halfwitted

hammerhead shark The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks that form the family Sphyrnidae, so named for the unusual and distinctive structure of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a "hammer" shape called a cephalofoil. Most hammerhe ...

second-in-command. His role is a lot more prominent than the other henchmen of Hedwig and he serves as the comic relief among the antagonists. ** Ray: Hedwig's

manta ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus ''Mobula'' (formerly its own genus ''Manta''). The larger species, '' M. birostris'', reaches in width, while the smaller, '' M. alfredi'', reaches . Both have triangular Pectoral fin#AnchPect ...

. He acts as her means of transport and spy. He is heard speaking sometimes but other times he is shown to only be able to mumble (though Hedwig can understand him even then). It's not clear what his name is as Hedwig once calls him Ray and another time she calls him Manta. ** Hugo: Hedwig's

octopus An octopus ( : octopuses or octopodes, see below for variants) is a soft-bodied, eight- limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttle ...

who acts as her strongman. ** Barracudas & Bull Sharks: Hedwig's army * Cecily: A mean aristocratic girl who likes Prince Justin even though he doesn't reciprocate her feelings. She was his promised bride before he met Marina. Her father is Lord Ainsworth. * Prince Lothar (voiced by

Richard Dumont Richard M. Dumont (born 1959 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian voice actor, writer and director who has worked in both Canada and the United States. Dumont is known for playing Sardo, who owned a magic shop called Sardo's Magic Mansion, in ma ...

): Prince of Brakston (Gandor's enemy country) and Justin's sworn enemy. He often cooperates with Hedwig.

Supporting

* Barnabas: Marina's cousin. He is a very good inventor and his tail is blue. * Coral: Marina's bossy older sister. Her tail is pink. * King Nestor: King of the world's oceans. King Nestor is extremely strong as can be seen when he easily beats Hugo with his bare hands. His tail is dark blue. * Marina's grandmother: She lives in the same castle as Marina. She is seen briefly in two episodes and her voice can be heard in another one. * King Charles (voiced by A. J. Henderson): Prince Justin's father. * Queen Catherine (voiced by

Kathleen Fee Kathleen Fee (born in Montreal, Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name ...

): Prince Justin's mother. She is very interested in her son's love life and tries to act as his matchmaker. * Orcus: A

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...

who helps Marina and her friends a few times.

Episodes

# Return to the Sea # In the Wrong Hands # Water Water Everywhere # A Leopard and Her Spots # Lothar's Revenge # What's Cookin'? # Be Careful What You Wish # A Day In the Country # Safe Deposit # Sugar and Spice # A Friend Indeed # Song of the Sea Witch # The Valley of the Volcanoes # Quest for the Golden Tablet # A Case of Mistaken Identity # Beauty and the Beastly Prince # A Man's Beast Friend Is His Dogfish # A Mortal In Mermaid's Clothing # Nature Hike # My Bonnie Lies Under the Sea # The Trojan Seahorse # A Rose By Any Other Name # X Marks the Spot # One Man's Bread Is Another Man's Poison # Hold That Thought # Waste Not, Want Not

Music

The series uses two pieces of theme music for the original Japanese version. The opening theme is called "Yumemiru Mermaid (夢みるMERMAID lit. ''Dreaming Mermaid'')" and the ending theme is called "Pearl-no Kimochi (パールな気持ち lit. ''Pearl Feelings'')", both by vocalist

Yumi Hiroki is the Japanese term for a bow. As used in English, refers more specifically to traditional Japanese asymmetrical bows, and includes the longer and the shorter used in the practice of and , or Japanese archery. The was an important we ...

, who also portrayed the voice of Winnie in the Japanese version of the show. Rachelle Cano performs the theme music for the English dub version. Music from the English version was used for the English dub of ''

Digimon Adventure , known as ''Digimon: Digital Monsters'' in English-speaking territories, is a 1999 Japanese anime television series produced by Toei Animation in cooperation with WiZ, Bandai and Fuji Television. It is the first anime series in the ''D ...

''.

References

External links

* * {{The Little Mermaid (Andersen) 1991 anime television series debuts Anime and manga based on fairy tales Fuji TV original programming Mermaids in television Television series created by Jean Chalopin Television series by Saban Entertainment Television shows based on The Little Mermaid Witchcraft in television Adventure anime and manga Fantasy anime and manga Romance anime and manga