Maybe the ‘Little Mermaid’ book in Tangled isn’t simply the story of Ariel’s life but is one of the many pre-defined narratives that a princess’ life can follow in this repeating Disney universe. Maybe the ship belongs to some other ill-fated Disney parents. So maybe Ariel doesn’t find Elsa’s parent’s ship. Like a computer trying to solve some cosmic puzzle, the Disney universe keep taking the same pieces and combining them in different ways in an attempt to find some great answers. ‘Daughters who dream of freedom, parents who die tragically and evil relatives who seek to control them.’ In the conclusion to The Disney Theory I argue that the fairy tales and recurring characters of the Disneyverse are archetypes in a grand repeating narrative of: The simple (and boring) answer would be that it doesn’t. So, the question: how can Ariel find the ship from Frozen if it exists as just a fairy tale in the connected world of Tangled? It’s the wreck that Ariel explores in The Little Mermaid. Not content to link just Frozen and Tangled, the threads stretch even further to connect to another Disney fairy tale that also shares an author with Frozen.īecause the sunken ship of Elsa’s parents has appeared in the Disney world before.
Like all great conspiracies, the Frozen theory doesn’t stop at the easy connections. Three years later, when Arendelle opens its gates for Elsa’s coronation, it’s actually the first chance Rapunzel will have had to pay her respects to the previous king and queen – or rather, her aunt and uncle. Poor Anna was then also left so Elsa’s absence wasn’t so suspicious. Having seen his magical niece kidnapped by a jealous witch, it’s understandable that Elsa’s father wouldn’t want anybody to know about his daughter’s powers. This is why he teaches his daughter to hide her abilities, and later decides not to bring her to her cousin’s wedding for fear she might reveal them. ‘Conceal, don’t feel, don’t let it show.’ The troll chief even asks ‘Born with the powers or cursed?’ as if he is aware of their family history. So of course when Elsa magically injures Anna, her father immediately knows where they have to go, retrieving a book on trolls and how they can help cursed youngsters. To find out more, you should read The Lion King Theory.)
(Elsa’s not the only member of Disney royalty with control over the elements. Unlike her sister, Frozen‘s Anna is a redhead and never displays any magic ( or does she?) When Rapunzel cuts her hair it turns brown like her mother’s and she loses her magic. Clearly the blonde daughters of this royal family are somehow susceptible to developing magical abilities. It also explains Elsa’s magical abilities, and how the King is so prepared for a magical child. The family resemblance between Tangled‘s Queen and Frozen‘s King is striking, and it makes sense given the setting of the films that a Norwegian princess (the Frozen animators have acknowledged Norway is basis for Arendelle) would end up married to a German king (‘Rapunzel’ was written by German authors, The Brothers Grimm).
The Queen from Tangled and her brother, the King from Frozen.
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