Princesses getting new look

[AndyS2992]

All look fine except Ariel Will kids recognize that it is her? Personally don't like that outfit at all.

Add some glitter seashells/fish and some frills and this dress would have been much better than that awful one in that photo.

 

[Sped2424]

Im sure kids won't have a problem recognizing her she is the only redhead.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I think it's obvious the reason why Ariel's dress is always a little weird is because the dresses she wears in the film just don't look right for the park.

The pink one possibly could work, but they'd have to do some major enhancing.

 

[Spo0nfulofSugar]

Eh, to me I feel like Ariel's redesign was the least needed, so they made hers (to put it nicely) mediocre.
That way in ten years when they redesign her again we can all rejoice and be glad that monstrosity is gone.

 

[J03Y]

ew-oh why didn't they give Ariel her pink dress?

the others are fine but i mean the pink dress looks so much better on her and she only wears it in the cartoon.

 

[Fantasmic]

Oh the Ariel dress is terrible! It looks like it would suit Jasmine more!!
Tsk.

I LOVE Aurora's new dress though.

 

[bigAWL]

I hesitate to denounce the new Ariel dress based on that photo, but I will say I always like her current dress.

Based on Spo0nfulofSugar's posted photo, it looks like they attempted to match the style of her pink dress much more closely... off the shoulder... puff sleeves hanging down rather than standing up... sheer sleeves covering the arms to the wrist. But they decided to keep the aqua color, which is perfectly fine with me - she is a mermaid, afterall.

 

[WDWYankee15]

I hesitate to denounce the new Ariel dress based on that photo, but I will say I always like her current dress.

Based on Spo0nfulofSugar's posted photo, it looks like they attempted to match the style of her pink dress much more closely... off the shoulder... puff sleeves hanging down rather than standing up... sheer sleeves covering the arms to the wrist. But they decided to keep the aqua color, which is perfectly fine with me - she is a mermaid, afterall.

I think they went with teal/aqua previously because it is the color of the sea and they felt they needed to choose something besides pink so that Aurora and she did not look too much alike. Easy recognizability, especially, with young children is important for Disney. Further, Ariel is not identified with a signature dress/look as she changes many times in the film (to include the fact that in part of the movie she has a tail!). So it is easiest to put here in an dress color. I like her dress the way it is and already has the "sparkles" on it that the revamp seems to be doning for all the other princesses. I say leave her dress alone. The others so far have been a great improvement though.

 

[TeraWDW]

I'm in love with Aurora's new dress! Thank god they fixed those awful shoulder things, haha. Now I'm just worried about Ariel's dress. But is Ariel ever anywhere else besides New Fantasyland?

 

[WDWYankee15]

I'm in love with Aurora's new dress! Thank god they fixed those awful shoulder things, haha. Now I'm just worried about Ariel's dress. But is Ariel ever anywhere else besides New Fantasyland?

Norway and the Castle for meals and in the parade. Also I believe in DL she does not meet as a "mermaid."

 

[BlackCauldron]

I think they went with teal/aqua previously because it is the color of the sea and they felt they needed to choose something besides pink so that Aurora and she did not look too much alike. Easy recognizability, especially, with young children is important for Disney. Further, Ariel is not identified with a signature dress/look as she changes many times in the film.

I'm not getting how children would not be able to differentiate Ariel from Aurora if they both wore pink? Ariel is the only redhead in the bunch. You could put her in a potato sack and she would still stand out from the rest of the group.

I do agree though that finding a "signature" dress for Ariel is quite difficult because she is most recognizable in mermaid form and she did wear a few dresses in the film. I think the issue with Ariel is not that she has so many outfits in the film, but that none of the dresses she wears are terribly memorable. Keep in mind that Belle has two looks in the parks and you can still figure out who she is, whether in the ball gown or her peasant dress.

I never understood why they put Ariel in the blue/green monstrosity. It looks slightly similar to her wedding dress with a few modifications, but she still remains the only princess who does not wear her film costume. I have no idea where the inspiration for her "new" look comes from and why they decided to just make something "unique". Ariel NEVER wore anything off the shoulder. It looks like she and Jasmine has a sleepover and she stole her clothes. It would have made more sense to try to recreate the pink dress or, better yet, her peasant dress that she wore during "Kiss the Girl." I think that stands out as the most memorable dress she wears in human form.

If the below FAN could come up with looks THIS good, why can't Disney's costume department. Despite the fact Ariel is in PINK there is NO mistaking who she is.

 

[bigAWL]

I'm not getting how children would not be able to differentiate Ariel from Aurora if they both wore pink? Ariel is the only redhead in the bunch. You could put her in a potato sack and she would still stand out from the rest of the group.

I do agree though that finding a "signature" dress for Ariel is quite difficult because she is most recognizable in mermaid form and she did wear a few dresses in the film. I think the issue with Ariel is not that she has so many outfits in the film, but that none of the dresses she wears are terribly memorable. Keep in mind that Belle has two looks in the parks and you can still figure out who she is, whether in the ball gown or her peasant dress.

I never understood why they put Ariel in the blue/green monstrosity. It looks slightly similar to her wedding dress with a few modifications, but she still remains the only princess who does not wear her film costume. I have no idea where the inspiration for her "new" look comes from and why they decided to just make something "unique". Ariel NEVER wore anything off the shoulder. It looks like she and Jasmine has a sleepover and she stole her clothes. It would have made more sense to try to recreate the pink dress or, better yet, her peasant dress that she wore during "Kiss the Girl." I think that stands out as the most memorable dress she wears in human form.

If the below FAN could come up with looks THIS good, why can't Disney's costume department. Despite the fact Ariel is in PINK there is NO mistaking who she is.

If you closely at the pink dress in the movie it is off the shoulder. I think they really tried to model this new dress off the pink one (more than anything else)... except for the color, of course. I tried to adjust the hue on the new dress to get a better idea of what color it actually is.

 

[BlackCauldron]

I found another picture of her in the pink and I renig - it is off the shoulder. But the neckline of her pink dress and her new green dress are way off. Maybe it will look better once we see more pics and angles of it.

 

[WDWYankee15]

I'm not getting how children would not be able to differentiate Ariel from Aurora if they both wore pink? Ariel is the only redhead in the bunch. You could put her in a potato sack and she would still stand out from the rest of the group.

I do agree though that finding a "signature" dress for Ariel is quite difficult because she is most recognizable in mermaid form and she did wear a few dresses in the film. I think the issue with Ariel is not that she has so many outfits in the film, but that none of the dresses she wears are terribly memorable. Keep in mind that Belle has two looks in the parks and you can still figure out who she is, whether in the ball gown or her peasant dress.

I never understood why they put Ariel in the blue/green monstrosity. It looks slightly similar to her wedding dress with a few modifications, but she still remains the only princess who does not wear her film costume. I have no idea where the inspiration for her "new" look comes from and why they decided to just make something "unique". Ariel NEVER wore anything off the shoulder. It looks like she and Jasmine has a sleepover and she stole her clothes. It would have made more sense to try to recreate the pink dress or, better yet, her peasant dress that she wore during "Kiss the Girl." I think that stands out as the most memorable dress she wears in human form.

If the below FAN could come up with looks THIS good, why can't Disney's costume department. Despite the fact Ariel is in PINK there is NO mistaking who she is.

I'm not going to dispute that she is a red head and easy to pick out, but I am just talking about Disney's thinking. There thinking is also about merchandising. They often sell items with multiple princesses and having two in pink just doesn't seem like something they want to do. I am not saying it makes sense. I'm just saying I think this is why things are what they are. Certainly lots of things Disney does does not make sense from our prospective, but they seem to or must have some rational for what they do.

My guess is the aqua color comes from reversing this dress from the end of the film. You don't want her looking like a bride in white so they reverse and make the accent white and the dress aqua.

The funny thing is that if they want each to have its "own" color, then Ariel could have pink and Aurora could have blue. Most fans get upset that Aurora is not in Blue because it is felt that is her "color." It is speculated that she is not in blue because the blue shade that makes most sense for her is too much like the color worn by Cinderella. And the funny part about that is many argue that Cinderella should not wear blue because her gown was white in color and the film "lighting" in the scenes is a bluish tone so at times her gown may appear blue.

What does all this mean??? It means that for some reason it would appear that they want each princess to have a distinctly different look (and the dress color is the first thing/and biggest thing that catches ones eye). I'm sure it is all about marketing.

 

[MissAlmyra]

I love Ariel's current dress, and agree that a lot of the film designs wouldn't quite work in person. (Those sleeves!) The off the shoulder look of the new dress doesn't seem to have the right fit, and looks less regal in comparison when standing next to a dress like Belle's. Off the shoulder coupled with poofy sleeves makes it look a bit too much like an 80's prom dress! Also, the lower part of the skirt lays a bit flat, versus the fullness of her current dress.
Overall I'm liking the new designs; vast improvements in fabric choices, wig styles, etc...but poor Ariel deserves something a bit more suited to a Princess!

 

[WDWYankee15]

Last I checked Prince Charming isn't wearing a "blue" jacket. It is just the "lighting" in the room that makes his jacket and her dress appear "Blue."
\

Meanwhile the Fairy Godmother is wearing "blue" and you can see that comparing the two, Cinderella is not.

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Sleeping Beauty....

 

[bigAWL]

I love Ariel's current dress, and agree that a lot of the film designs wouldn't quite work in person. (Those sleeves!) The off the shoulder look of the new dress doesn't seem to have the right fit, and looks less regal in comparison when standing next to a dress like Belle's. Off the shoulder coupled with poofy sleeves makes it look a bit too much like an 80's prom dress! Also, the lower part of the skirt lays a bit flat, versus the fullness of her current dress.
Overall I'm liking the new designs; vast improvements in fabric choices, wig styles, etc...but poor Ariel deserves something a bit more suited to a Princess!

Well The Little Mermaid did come out in 1989. It pretty much is an 80s prom dress. This might be the first of the new designs that I don't like, but I'm still holding my own judgement until more photos come out.

And in general, I think the key to trying to understand why Disney would change these dresses and colors and looks from their original movie designs, is to understand that Disney is generally more into marketing than "historical" accuracy, even when talking about their own history. Another example: Mulan was not born into royalty and did not marry into royalty, yet she is actively marketed as a Disney Princess. [editing to add...] I think the last thing in the world she wanted to be was a princess.

 

[WDWYankee15]

And in general, I think the key to trying to understand why Disney would change these dresses and colors and looks from their original movie designs, is to understand that Disney is generally more into marketing than "historical" accuracy, even when talking about their own history. Another example: Mulan was not born into royalty and did not marry into royalty, yet she is actively marketed as a Disney Princess. [editing to add...] I think the last thing in the world she wanted to be was a princess.

BINGO!

 

[Jose]

Well, I think that Ariel's dress is not finished yet... just look at the unfinished corset that she's wearing in the photo

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

Oh it's finished.