Strong emotions, adventure in intense yet lackluster show.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
a lot
Many moments of tense music and a dark, threatening feel. Some surprise scares. Villains are a skull pirate and a sea witch with an army of toxic, green-eyed sea monsters. Characters are often chased, hit, tangled up, and caught by the monsters. They fight back; monsters disintegrate when attacked. As episodes progress, threats grow stronger: A boy is turned into a sea monster, and a villain blackmails a character threatening their children, and takes "the source of life" out of a character (spoiler: he returns at the end). Recurring themes of parental separation with Merlinda's mom missing and dad's health threatened.
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Characters develop crushes and there's mild flirtation. Two boys are interested in the same girl and act jealous of each other. Light bickering soon turns into friendship. A character kisses another on the cheek.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
No advertisement but many themes of consumerism and popularity. The villain makes a deal to produce toxic waste that creates monsters in exchange for gold coins. There are social media websites called "Merstagram" and "HeyYou" and a character is put down for not having many followers.
Language
very little
Some use of old-fashioned pirate terms like "matey" and "scurvy dog."
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.
"Together we can do anything, with courage, love and friendship." Keep oceans clean. Care for our oceans and our planet. There's life everywhere; it's all connected. Love is one's strongest power.
Positive Role Models
a little
Merlinda is dutiful and caring, always looking out for her kingdom. She means well even if she sometimes makes reckless decisions like skipping class, jumping off great heights, or putting herself in danger for a bigger purpose. She's very loyal to her friends. Two of her friends are marine rescuers on environmental missions to clean the waters. The king is authoritative toward his daughter but learns his lesson.
Diverse Representations
very little
Diverse main cast, yet the princess character is White and blond. All three girls are strong and skilled warriors. Friend Nerissa is Black and works as a royal guard in the palace. She's portrayed as distrustful and a rule breaker, which could be seen as playing into negative stereotypes. Her role as both a friend and a worker in the castle might create an uncomfortable power imbalance at times, especially when compared to their other friend, Sasha. Female character design promotes an unrealistic body standard with impossibly slim waists. The show repeats some outdated tropes like the "damsel in distress."
Parents need to know that there's more beyond the surface of Mermaid Magic than what initially meets the eye. While there are bright colors and sparkly mermaid magic, the story by the creator of Winx Club is complex and gloomy. It follows a trio of best friends who must save their kingdom from villains who want to destroy the land. An army of gross-looking sea monsters appears in every episode, and characters are often chased, caught, and in battle. The threat grows scarier as the episode progresses, and characters are transformed into monsters or disappear. The main character, Merlinda, lost her mother when she was young, and that separation still hurts her. Despite the intense mission, friendship and teamwork are central themes, and the girls work together to achieve their goals. While the show is not a standout, it keeps you curious about what will happen next and might entertain kids who like princesses and can handle some visual discomfort.
Strong emphasis on popularity through social media. Flirty manipulation for the girls to get what they want. My 8 yr old daughter was watching and we ended up turning it off.
Every episode depicted boys as incompetent and worthy of assault. In the first two episodes boys are all shocked unconscious by the girls and had orange juice splashed in eyes for comic relief. Dont empower girls by abusing and humiliating boys.
What's the Story?
Merlinda and her friends Sasha and Nerissa live in the enchanted world of Mertropia, where the power of MERMAID MAGIC lets them switch between fins for swimming and legs for walking on land. When the magical pearls that protect their realm start to lose their power, Merlinda takes it upon herself to cross a portal to the surface world to find new pearls that could save her father (the king) and the kingdom. With her friends by her side and the new ones she meets along the way, she'll face legendary villains, uncover a ploy of toxic waste, and discover the truth about what happened to her mother.
An intriguing storyline isn't quite enough to make up for the show's unappealing villains and clichéd portrayals. Mermaid Magic has strong female leads but falls into old tropes and awkward ideas about royalty. While it does have some nice themes about friendship and protecting nature, it seems to struggle with its target audience. It's a little too complex and scary for younger viewers and too simple for older kids. If your kid isn't particularly into mermaids and magic, this may be a pass.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the friendship in Mermaid Magic. Merlinda, Nerissa, and Sasha are totally different but make each other strong. In what ways do they complement each other?
The sea monsters in the show are creatures born of toxic waste. Talk about the harm of polluting our water and the impact it has on sea life.
Celia and Tyler are marine rescuers. They take care of sea animals and collect litter from the oceans. Brainstorm and look up ways you can also help by picking up litter from beaches or saving water use at home.
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Fernanda Camargo
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
