u/Schoolmaster30

I graduated from uni this monday. I had a big trim the day after so it will take around 1.5 years to grow the hair to this length.

I blurred other people with Snapseed healing tool.

Hi. (I don't know how to re order pictures once selected 😭)

I've had long hair most of my life but I cut it short (3rd pic) just to say I've done it and I knew it was never going to be permanent so I grew it back and the journey has been hilarious and awkward but glad it's back down my back . 🫂 I guess you guys can tell chronology by the length of hair . 🤭

Sorry for bad pic not good at taking pics and title is supposed to be funny and corny to lol.

When I say "humancore" whimsy, I mean mermaids just doing underwater versions of human activities or living like humans but the "undersea" version. Like mermaids riding giant seahorses (when we know of course seahorses that gigantic are not a thing, even in a world where belief for mermaids can be lightly suspended) or living in sea cottages and sea castles that are just like a regular castle or cottages but made from shells or corals.

These motifs are adorable in children's books and decorations and fun in cartoons (Disney's little mermaid series leaned hard into this much more than the movie did), but I was wondering if a book, film, video game, or other piece of media meant for older than middle grade can use this style without it seeming weird or cliche or suspending disbelief?

What do most mermaid fans think?

Mermaids being fictional creatures, obviously the tails are up for interpretation, but I was wondering what style of tales your average mermaid fan best likes.

When I was a kid growing up there was a surprisingly small variety. You had the basic green fins of Ariel in the cartoon or you had Barbie mermaid in pastel colours ranging from hot pink to pale blue. Even movies like The Thirteenth Year (which stands out as one of the few merman movies) weren't especially creative in the tail department. (Splash had a neat looking tail, but unfortunately I didn't see it as a child despite being a millennial, which is a shame because kid!me loved Rom Coms and Mermaids and would have been thrilled if she knew it was a thing!)

I did see some very, very interesting and beautiful mermaid tails in picture books that had a bit more variety than movies growing up. But these were overshadowed by more generic ones which were more popular and based off they Disney Ariel style.

It wasn't until I was a teenager I saw more interesting (but still streamlined and functional looking) mermaid tails. Fifteen year old me was really impressed with how sleek and long Aquamarine's tail was, and seventeen year old me originally thought the orangey tails from h2o looked a little stubby in comparison (though as an adult I would argue I now actually prefer the h2o tail design to the Aquamarine one).

But in the current age of people cosplaying as mermaids online there have been a lot more creative designs for tails. I've seen tails that are bright red meant to be devil or vampire mermaids, lavender "dragon" tails. And as drop dead gorgeous as they are, I'm often caught thinking those don't even look especially aquatic anymore. They're so unfish-like I sometimes think they miss the point.

Looking at the tail for the recent live action version of the Disney Little Mermaid I find myself conflicted. Because it's unique and kind of pretty the way it has all those flowing tendrils, but at the same time it looks more cartoon-y than the cartoon did. It makes me miss the simplicity of the original design, and how it was immediately identifiable as a "mermaid tail". I kind of think we peaked in media with the H2o tails and then we got so insanely elaborate we don't even know what it's supposed to be anymore.

I will admit I think genre plays a huge part. If it's dramatic gritty story then a mermaid with a flashy pink beribboned tail looks absurd but in an underwater fantasy cartoon where everything is supposed to look like it's from a children's colouring book a more elaborate tail looks cool.

But what do you think? Does the style of the tail effect how you feel about a mermaid story as a whole? Does it distract or pull you out of it? What's your favourite mermaid tail design?

One the hand puppet and the other one a person, she was a mean spirited celebrity.

In a lot of mermaid stories, especially TV and film since it's usually not feasible to film your entire media piece underwater or in the ocean (but in non visual mediums like books too, for narrative purposes) there will usually be a huge chunk of plot where the mermaid is on land.

Which got me thinking, what do most mermaid fans prefer? A story where the mermaid's tail remains but is hidden in some way, typically by putting her in a wheelchair (think Miranda, the book version of Aquamarine, or that one scene from the ABC family film Princess)? A story where the mermaid CAN change her tail to legs but there usually some rule that she can't touch water or be out after sunset (think Splash, movie!Aquamarine, Mako Mermaids)? A story where a transformation is possible only as part of a magic spell or potion and is largely irreversible (think Little Mermaid)?

Which do you like best, and is your preference just your preference for fun or personal taste reasons or do you feel it makes for a better narrative?

Also, for life-long mermaid fiction fans, has your preference changed since you were a child? Is there a mermaid to human transformation plot ex machina you'd cringe at as a viewer/reader now but in childhood wouldn't have batted an eye at or been bothered by?

I made this for a summer art conquest.