The Little Mermaid 1½

The Little Mermaid 1½ is a 2021 American/Australian direct-to-video animated musical comedy adventure film released by Walt Disney Home Entertainment on February 10, 2021. The film is a prequel/parallel/midquel to 1989's The Little Mermaid and focuses on the Mouse duo Jaq and Gus from Cinderella before, during and after the events of the original film. The film, setup as a frame story, starts out playing the very beginning of the original film. Jaq and Gus are shown in silhouette commenting on the movie being shown before them, in a style similar to that of Mystery Science Theater 3000.

Reviews were generally positive from critics and audiences.

Plot
The film starts as Jaq and Gus are shown watching the The Little Mermaid in a dark theater when Jaq suddenly uses a remote control to fast-forward to where they appear in the film. Gus argues that the film shouldn't go out of order and attempts to rewind the film back to the beginning. Jaq and Gus start fighting over control of the film until they agree that the film should tell their side of the story. Throughout the rest of the film, it is occasionally interrupted to have Jaq and Gus comment on whatever is happening. Mystery Science Theater 3000-like moments occur as the characters comment on the original film's proceedings.

At Jaq's mouse colony far away from Atlantica, Jaq takes jobs as a digger and a sentry, but despite his mother Ma's encouragement, he cannot seem to find a good job for himself. After his Uncle Max is nearly eaten by Flotsam and Jetsam on his watch, Jaq decides to leave the mouse colony and find a place that is right for him. He is encouraged by a seagull named Scuttle to seek Hakuna Matata and to look beyond what he sees and has the intuition to head for Pride Rock. Along the way, Jaq and Gus meet for the first time and set out to find a "dream home."

The adventures of Jaq and Gus begin to coincide with the events of The Little Mermaid at this point. They arrive at Atlantica, but to their dismay, a herd of animals is already there. While Jaq and Gus are walking through the herd of fish witnessing the presentation of the newborn princess Ariel, Gus accidentally flatlets, which causes a few fish to pass out and collapse. The fish in front see this and believe that the fallen merpe are bowing, and soon they all bow together. Ariel's father, King Triton, was very puzzled at seeing this, but his Harold the Seahorse tells him that they are bowing to Ariel.

Jaq and Gus continue their journey and find a new home at a watering hole that looks like a miniature version of Atlantica. One morning, they are disturbed by some noise from outside, which is actually Andrina, Arista, Adella, Alan, Aquata and Attina Sebastian, and the mermaid singing "Daughters of Triton". Jaq is angry and hits the leg of an Fish supporting the tower of starfish. The shell jumps in surprise and causes the tower to collapse, explaining why it collapses in the original film.

Jaq and Gus's home is ruined by this event. Gus tells Jaq about a "dream home" in the jungle, but Jaq ignores him. They travel to the ship graveyard and witness shark watching her and Flounder from outside. That night, going further into the graveyard, they watch an army of fish marching to the instrumental opening of "Under the Sea", and the duo escapes. Later, they end up in the gorge only to encounter a violent storm arrives, the same one from the original film in which Ariel loses his Prince Eric. While trying to fire from the ship, they fall down a waterfall, which leads to the "dream home" that Gus had described. The song "Hakuna Matata" has turned into a sing-along. Jaq and Gus later find Ariel, and the film shows some of their life in the sea throughout the years. Ariel re-encounters Ursula. Afraid of losing their friend, Jaq and Gus try everything to stop Ariel to visit Ursula the sea witch. Ursula fall off the cliff in the original film when Jaq and Gus trip Ariel and Ursula with a vine. In the original film, Jaq and Gus reappear in another place at the end of the "Poor Unfortunate Souls" s. Although they fail, they are happy to see Ariel and Eric and running off to the grasslands. They mistake "Kiss the Girl". In the morning, however, they realize that Ariel has returned home to challenge Ursula. Gus and Jaq disagree about whether to go after Ariel, but ultimately both decide to return to Atlantica.

There, Jaq and Gus re-encounters Ma and Uncle Max for the first time since he left the colony. Ma and Max make a system of tunnels to trap the Flotsam and Jetsam while Jaq and Gus create a diversion, from spinning plates, to doing the Can-Can, to breakdancing, and finally, to everybody's amazement, horror, and disgust, proposing to Flotsam and Jetsam. This diverts the Flotsam and Jetsam long enough for the meerkats to complete and collapse the tunnel trap.

After defeating Ursula, Realizing that Ariel truly loves Eric, Triton willingly changes her from a mermaid into a human permanently and approves her marriage to Eric. Ariel and Eric marry on a ship and depart and Jaq tells Ma that he found his place, but something is still missing: his family. In the end, Jaq and Gus return to their sea paradise, bringing Timon's entire mouse colony with them. The mouse now have a safe, work-free place to call home, and Jaq is hailed a hero.

When the film ends, in the dark theater, Gus insists on watching it again. Jaq protests until all of their friends from the movie come to watch it as well, soon joined by numerous other Disney cartoon characters (with Gus commenting that he still does not "do so well in crowds").