MERMAIDS
Mermaids is an Australian made-for-tv movie that was styled as a series pilot. Unfortunately the series itself never took off, which is a pity because the premise of the show (though admittedly fluffy) is attractive and I for one would've definitely watched it. Taking place in the modern day, the movie follows the adventures of three estranged mermaid sisters who find that they need to work together.
The story starts when their father (who may or may not be the sea king) is killed by a fishing bomb. This prompts Diana, his eldest daughter, to head to land for the first time in her life to get revenge. There she meets up with her two younger sisters June and Venus, who are already on land for their own individual reasons, and the three have to work together to bring their father's killer to justice. Just like the mermaid of Splash, these mermaids gain legs when dry and a tail when wet, but in this version, although the mermaids are real, they are also magical and have a number of special abilities.
Diana (Erika Heynatz) is the eldest of the three sisters. Following her Roman goddess namesake,
Diana is the strongest and wisest of the three, although she has a bit of a temper and detests
everything to do with humans. Diana also has abnormal strength that makes her handy in a fight, and her
mermaid item is a trident that can handily shrinks into a silver comb. She's the one who wants to avenge
their father's death at all costs.
Venus (Nikita Ager) is the middle sister. As you'd expect, she's the one that has men
eating out of the palm of her hand. She's normally adventurous and outgoing, but she's been bound to land
against her will and needs her sisters' help to break free. Her mermaid item is a tiara, and her power
is the ability to hypnotise men and get them to do whatever she wants. She's also
the unofficial peacekeeper of the trio when things get a little out of hand.
June (Sarah Laine) is the youngest of the trio. Once again taking only a smidgen after
the Roman goddess she was named for, June wants to find love and a happy ending for herself. It is because
of this that she was disowned by their father, so she's the only permanent resident of land among
the sisters. June's part in the story pretty much takes after the Hans Christian Andersen version, which
was a nice touch.
You would've thought that a set-up like this would be perfect for a campy tv series. (I miss Ocean Girl.) Not only are there three beautiful mermaids to look at, there's elements of fantasy, romance, comedy and even a little martial arts thrown in... And yet, the series never came to fruition. I would've loved to see the three sisters develop and each of them find their own happy endings, but alas it was not meant to be.
