The Little Mermaid: 9 Fiendishly Clever Easter Eggs You Probably Missed

5. Rapunzel Loves The Little Mermaid

Tangled The second of the Easter Eggs devoted to The Little Mermaid from other Disney films, this Tangled nod (which also features a knowing reference to Beauty & The Beast) reinforced Ariel's position as one of Disney's beloved Princesses. In amongst Rapunzel's various daily activities that are designed to stop her from going stir crazy or imagining a life beyond her castle, including her well-thumbed library of books, is a blink and you'll miss it shot of The Little Mermaid book (as well as a copy of Beauty & The Beast) as shown above. Despite being half a fish, this reaffirms that Ariel deals with exactly the same issues that both Rapunzel and Belle are faced with - they are all captive in one way or another, unhappy with their lot in life and driven by dreams of freedom and romance that they supplement with fantasies - Belle and Rapunzel in the form of books, and Ariel with her collection of human artefacts.
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