guide book tidbits
Just some info from the Guidebook I found interesting!
HISTORY & CUSTOMS
It’s implied the language of mermaids has changed over time (as our language does). Because long ago, when humans and merpeople co-existed peacefully, they’d trade resources and “learn to speak in the others’ tongue”. (pg. 19)
Off the coast of “Nevezuela”, there are cave markings of the old relationship between merpeople and humans. There is also this old recitation. It’s a bit wordy, but the last two paragraphs are as reads:
“Guided by ancient fears, [two rulers] kept their realms divided, bordered by the same churning surf, yet worlds apart... Until a storm cast their children ashore together, mermaid and man, side by side... and love turned the tide” (pg. 20)
Sounds like a prophecy to me!
Merpeople’s customs seem to be a blend of nature + ancestral worship. They have celebrations based on moon and sun types, as each one is said to have a magical effect on merpeople. The Coral Moon brings good fortune to merfolk, so merpeople gather in groups to celebrate it in the Carinae Sea. (pg. 60) Each Sister is responsible for hosting one moon and one sun celebration. And all merpeople travel to their respective seas during these celebrations.
Merpeople have a lot of celebratory events and holidays. They celebrate birthdays and weddings, and other new customs, like the moon and sun cycles mentioned previously, but also others like a “Meal of Gratitude” where they enjoy a “feast of seagrass”. (pg. 74 + 75)
Merfolk and humans have mixed legends and myths. By this I mean, sometimes merfolk will tell folk tales that are about other merpeople, humans, or both being involved. Humans do the same, and Lashanah used to tell Eric quite a few merfolk stories when he was a child. (pgs. 174 - 188)
ANATOMY & DAILY LIFE
Merpeople vary from “more fishy” to “more human-like” in appearance. They can look a clear cut 50% human and 50% fish (ex: the Sisters), meanwhile there are merpeople that have a higher percentage of fishy features, including fins for ears, for hair, distinct gills on their necks, etc. However the reverse, merfolk with a higher percentage of human features, are not depicted. So no, nothing like this 💀 (src: several illustrations throughout the book)
Merfolk babies are referred to as “hatchlings” by the human researcher who “wrote” the guide. I guess this is supposed to signify they come from eggs and not live births. (pg. 29)
There are two types of merpeople: regular mermaids and “singing mermaids” aka sirens. (pg. 26) Eric alternates throughout the book of being wary of Sirens vs defending them. He never takes issue with regular merpeople though.
On that same note, there seems to be a bit of a prejudice from humans’ POV. Sirens are the main ones humans are wary of and fear, while they view mermaids as ambiguous/neutral (pg. 102)
Sirens have different song types. Ranging from offensive (ex: causing a shipwreck), to defensive (ex: shark summoning), to passive (ex: creating a calm sleep), to helpful (ex: granting luck). And more. (pgs. 36 - 39)
Every merperson has a companion/familiar. Size does not matter and it can range from a small fish to a massive whale. It just depends on which type of sea creatures are commonly found in that merperson’s waters. These companions assist in the life’s journey of the merperson. (pgs. 40 & 54-57) Eric says if he were given the choice, he’d pick either an otter or a whale to be his companion.
Most merpeople live in the Twilight Layer of the ocean. (pg. 43)
It seems all merpeople can sing, but only the songs of sirens have actual abilities. I could very well be wrong, this is just my interpretation of the book. It says for merfolk, “finding one’s singing voice is a rite of passage, denoting a coming of age” (pg. 66) and I struggle to see how singing can be this important if only a chunk of the population partake in it.
Anywho, merfolk do need to practice their singing, and they have the ability to “trap musical notes” in bubbles to review later or create their own symphony. Only experienced vocalists can do this though. (pg. 67)
Merfolk diet consists mostly of shellfish and aquatic vegetation. It appears they don’t eat crab, lobsters, squids, or octopus though and see them as companionable. It’s not explained why they don’t give a fuck about shrimp, because despite those exceptions, they do eat shrimp. (pg. 75)
They have sports and athletic games. Their version of “chicken” is diving into pitch black trenches and the first to quit loses. Another is where they see if they can hitch a ride on an unknowing giant squid. (pg. 76)
The merpeople in Perla’s waters ride elephant seals for sport. With a harness, reins, saddle, the whole shebang. (pg. 150 - 151)
SEA CREATURES & ITEMS
The ring Queen Serina passes down to Eric for his betrothed looks strangely like a “Sapphire Mermaid Ring” that’s described as a pale blue and symbolizes repairing rifts and brokering peace between humans and merfolk. There’s a legend that some humans can look into mermaid sapphires and see into mermaid life underwater. (pg. 11) I have no idea how to take this information, but it’s possible Serina also had no idea what’s been in her family for generations.
There’s a bioluminescent sea dragon that has “glowing, veined wings” that resides in the Abyss layer of the ocean. (pg. 51) I don’t know if this is referencing another disney movie, but there’s an illustration and it’s... straight up a dragon. I might post a picture because it looks cool af. (Note: I don’t believe it’s depicting Sisu’s kind as it has two horns and wings)
Water Nokks (the water horse in Frozen 2) exist in this universe! They’re said to mostly reside in the Saithe Sea/Dark Sea that Princess Karina reigns over. (pg. 123) Does that mean Frozen and TLM2023 exist in the same universe? Who knows!
THE ROYAL FAMILY
Merfolk rulers are trained in combat. (pg. 79)
The royal advisor is usually a “small” sea creature. Sebastian is the current one, but its believed an octopus and/or a seahorse were his predecessors somewhere down the line. (pg. 97)
Tragedy of the Mermaid Queen (pgs. 98 - 99)
Mala used to communicate with humans using Great Crested Terns as a courier service before humans and merpeople were divided. She knows how to write and use to write messages on “scrolls of seaweed”. (pg. 104)
Tamika once wrestled a tiger shark into submission (pg. 112)
In Karina’s waters, her Palace City is underneath a massive iceberg. From our POV, it essentially hangs upside down. (pg. 124)
There’s a legend that Indira once saved her subjects from a “rampaging giant venomous sea snake”. (pg. 128)
Caspia created a river to provide merfolk with easier traveling routes to other kingdoms. Which is ironic as it’s said she’s a homebody and only travels for “all-sea gatherings”. (pg. 136)
Each Sister and their people have their own customs. For example, the way their people greet each other, what they consider rude or pleasant, what they eat, etc. (pgs. 111, 119, 126, 135, 142, 151, 158)
Ariel is already the ruler of her sea (the “Carinae Sea”). This caught my attention because I thought she was just in training for it during the movie, but no, she’s the ruler of that sea. (pg. 152)
The other Sisters all have their own palaces in their oceans. Since Triton’s Great Palace already had its home in Ariel’s sea, she just lives in one of its towers. (pg. 156)
URSULA
It’s believed that Ursula, as a half human half octopus, is either an extremely rare species or is the only one of her kind. (pg. 163)
There is a 3-part system to most if not all of Ursula’s spells/deals: The Want, the Take, and the Rule to Break. (pg. 170) So for example, for her “Transformation Spell” The Want = wanting to be human, the Take = the merperson’s voice, the Rule to Break = true love’s kiss. Ursula was not exaggerating in the movie when she said Ariel was “almost too easy” as she fit the 3 categories perfectly.
Ursula uses latin for her spells (pg. 171)
NOTABLE LEGENDS / TALES
“Legend of the Dagger Shell” - basically an enemies to lovers about a “hard-bitten and unfeeling” merman and a rude as fuck fisherman. The two fall in love right as the merman is about to kill the fisherman. (pg. 182)
“The Flute of the Deep” - a mix of the Spongebob Jellyfish Jam episode and the Legend of the Pied Piper. Basically there’s believed to be an entire village who’s children went missing after they wronged a mermaid. (pg. 183)
“The Tale of the Great Briny Storm” - a merman in this tale can supposedly hear a human’s thoughts??? It’s not clarified whether all merpeople are telepathic, or if they’re only telepathic towards humans, or if only this one guy has telepathy. But he can hear a human woman’s thoughts on land and they fall in love. (pg. 184)
I have a sneaking suspicion the guy might’ve been a young Triton, given that towards the end of the tale, when the merman and the human woman are forced apart, “the sea sent a great storm to lash shutter and shake cave” and from the Sea King’s chapter, it’s said only he has the ability to summon storms via his trident. I could be wrong though! Just a theory.
“The Tale of a Thousand and One Shipwrecks” - a lot of the boats in the shipwreck graveyard are Ursula’s doing. When two continents’ navies were at war over their waters, she had had enough of their nonsense. She stole her brother’s trident and sunk both factions. (pg. 185)
“The Tale of the Great Sea Flood” - this one was intense. One of the Seven Sisters was kidnapped by humans (I suspect Mala because of the other TLM novel). Triton got big mad, so 1) he caused a tsunami, then 2) the “water took his form” (???) and he lifted roofs and building walls to locate his daughter, and 3) grabbed handfuls of land and pulled them down to the sea as retribution. And this is one of the main reasons why the ocean “steals a bit of land from the shore year after year, as payment for the humans’ treachery”. (pg. 186)
If I’m right that the kidnapped mermaid is Mala, that also means the figurehead at the front of Eric’s ships are inspired by her, since upon seeing the illustration on the page, Eric says as such in his notes. (pg. 187)
QUESTIONABLE BITS
The Conch - there’s a page that explains that merpeople use conch shells to communicate. Eric takes note of this and even says the illustration present reminds him of the one in his collection. (pg. 69) I say this is questionable, because it makes his line in the movie about having no idea a conch shell could be used to make noise, a bit off.
In the illustration for Princess Mala’s ocean, her palace has stairs. (pg. 109) I don’t know why they’d need them though. Maybe just aesthetic?
Eric has already heard about Ariel! The book describes her in detail (illustration and name) and Eric says she reminds him of his mermaid figurine. (pg. 152) It begs to question how he wouldn’t recognize or suspect something was up in the movie. But I suppose it can be argued that seeing something in a book and then meeting the person in real life are two very different things.
And that’s it! This post is entirely self indulgent as I just wanted to share my thoughts on some of the info in the guidebook. If you’ve read all this, I’m glad you found it as interesting as I did!
