The Good: Decent sculpted details, Good balance, Amazing sound clip
The Bad: A little expensive/surface detailing
The Basics: The 2014 "25th Anniversary" ornament from The Little Mermaid was exceptional in almost every way, making it a must-buy Disney ornament!
Disney is making major bank off fans who collect Hallmark ornaments this year. While there are several ornaments that might make collectors balk, the ornament that celebrates the 25th Anniversary of The Little Mermaid is not one of them. The 2014 The Little Mermaid 25th Anniversary ornament is a near-miss on perfection and it is easily one of the best ornaments produced this year. Augmented with an amazing sound clip and glitter, the The Little Mermaid 25th Anniversary ornament could use a little more accenting on the crevices for the statue portion of the ornament, but it otherwise incredible!
For those unfamiliar with The Little Mermaid (reviewed here!), early in the film, the mermaid Ariel pines to go into the airy world. Having found a statue of the prince on a sunken ship, Ariel imagines what life would be like outside of the ocean.
Katrina Bricker did an absolutely incredible sculpt for the ornament and with the addition of a sound chip, the ornament was one of the more expensive Disney ornaments at an initial release price of $24.95 . . . but it was well worth it!
Basics
The "25th Anniversary" ornament recreates Ariel and the statue from the sunken ship as they appeared in The Little Mermaid, during Ariel’s iconic song “Part Of Your World.” The ornament, released in 2014, is an incredible sculpt of the mermaid Ariel and a good sculpt of the Eric statue under the sea in The Little Mermaid.
Measuring four and three-eighths inches tall from the bottom of the statue to the top of the heads of the character, the "25th Anniversary" ornament is a slightly larger than normal-sized Disney character ornaments. It has a decent presence for the tree or on a desk with its 2 3/4" width and 2 1/4" depth. Despite being $24.94, it is reasonably priced for the size (which is pretty awesome for an ornament that has a sound chip).
The Hallmark The Little Mermaid "25th Anniversary" ornament is made of a durable plastic and has Ariel, leaning on the statue, singing right to the statue’s face. The coloring on Ariel is amazing; her tail is slightly metallic and features glitter that makes her look appropriately fishy. Because she comes from an animated source material, Ariel’s skin tones being cast in monotones and her hair being monotonal red is fine. Ironically, the statue has more depth and shading than Ariel’s skin and hair, but the sculpted nooks and crannies are not accented with paint to make them truly pop. The contrast between the detailing on Ariel’s tail and the statue is not a dealbreaker, but it is noticeable the difference in quality between the two.
Features
As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, The Little Mermaid "25th Anniversary" is wonderfully accented by a sound chip. Powered by a watch-style battery that the ornament comes with, a press of a button on the statue’s base activates the sound chip. The song “Part Of Your World” plays out a speaker on the top of the base and I was pleasantly surprised by the volume on the song. The sound clip is 41 seconds long and features the actual score and vocals from the film The Little Mermaid. Given how loud and long the sound clip is, it is surprising that this ornament is not a battery hog, but having played it more than thirty times since the ornament was released in July, and seeing no evidence of the volume diminishing, it seems like this is an awesome feature for the ornament.
Balance
As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake The Little Mermaid "25th Anniversary" ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate Disney movie Christmas Tree, the "25th Anniversary" ornament could be one of the must-have The Little Mermaid ornaments, especially given the quality of the sculpt and sound clip. The ornament has the standard brass hook loop embedded into the top center of the front of Ariel’s head. This is fairly obvious and necessary for the ornament. Fortunately, at that position, the 25th Anniversary ornament hangs perfectly level. The balance for this ornament is incredible, save when one pushes the button to activate the sound chip. Given how the ornament has a flat base to the statue, that it hangs level is very noticeable.
Collectibility
Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally limited edition original U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (reviewed here!). Within a few years, every major franchise from Star Wars to A Nightmare Before Christmas to Indiana Jones started making Hallmark ornaments. The Little Mermaid "25th Anniversary" is one of many The Little Mermaid ornaments the company has released and one of several Disney ornaments on the market for 2014. This ornament has by no means sold out. Even so, given how impressive this ornament is, I would not bet on it being available on clearance for those who like to invest in ornaments and buy low. Despite its high initial price, I suspect that it will still appreciate in value, making it a must-buy.
Overview
Fans of The Little Mermaid, Disney, Ariel, and Hallmark ornaments are likely to love the The Little Mermaid 25th Anniversary ornament and want to get it while they are still available. The Little Mermaid 25th Anniversary ornament makes one wish for more Disney anniversaries to pop up and Hallmark to immortalize them!
For other Disney-themed Hallmark ornaments, please check out my reviews of:
2014 "Welcome To Halloween" The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2014 All Eyes On Belle Beauty And The Beast ornament
2014 Olaf Frozen ornament
2013 Under The Sea The Little Mermaid
2013 The Nightmare Before Christmas Jack’s Sleigh O’Scares
2013 Tiana's Party Dress The Princess And The Frog ornament
2013 Beautiful Belle Beauty And The Beast
2013 Fierce With A Frying Pan Tangled ornament
2013 Ariel's Big Dream The Little Mermaid ornament
2013 Merida The Archer Brave ornament
2012 The Circle Of Life The Lion King ornament
2012 Jack Sneaks A Peek The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2012 Monsters, Inc. ornament
2012 Merida Brave ornament
2012 It's All About The Hair Tangled ornament
2011 Rapunzel Tangled ornament
2011 CLU’s Light Cycle from Tron: Legacy ornament
2011 Up ornament
2011 A Snowy Surprise The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2011 Captain Jack Sparrow Pirates Of The Caribbean ornament
2010 Tron: Legacy Light Cycle ornament
2009 Welcome To Christmastown The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
9/10
For other ornament reviews, please visit my Ornament Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2014 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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