Guilt-ridden millennials are its target audience
One of the musical highlights of the original, animated Little Mermaid is a scene in which Ariel, newly human, tries to get Prince Eric to kiss her. If he doesn’t, she’ll turn back into a mermaid, but because Ariel has lost her voice, her main job is to sit there looking available; the actual seduction is stage-managed by her crab friend Sebastian, who sings encouragement into Eric’s ear …
