Ariel (The Little Mermaid) released a four-issue "The Little Mermaid Limited Series" comic book series. In 1994 Marvel Comics released its own title, "Disney's The Little Mermaid", which ran for twelve issues. All these comics are prequels to the film, and feature Ariel a mermaid living under the sea having adventures with Flounder and Sebastian, and thwarting villains that wish to take over or destroy Atlantica. In 2000, Ariel became an official member of the newly launched Disney Princess line, an umbrella franchise that includes various Disney princesses under its banner. Ariel is one of the original 8 characters that were included at the
The Little Mermaid (franchise) due to various circumstances. In 1985, "The Great Mouse Detective" co-director Ron Clements discovered a collection of Andersen's fairy tales while browsing a bookstore. He presented a two-page draft of a movie based on "The Little Mermaid" to CEO Michael Eisner and Walt Disney Studios chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg at a "gong show" idea suggestion meeting. Eisner and Katzenberg passed the project over, because at that time the studio was in development on a sequel to their live-action mermaid comedy "Splash" (1984) and felt "The Little Mermaid" would be too similar a project. The next day, however, Walt Disney Studios chairman