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Tuesday, 31 May 2005
 I remember the time, when we used to live in Negros, we had this spectacular 75 gallon ?Reef Tank? filled with live corals, scallops, crabs and other ?inverts? picked up from a nearby beach. Unlike other beaches frequented by both local and foreign tourists, this beach seemed undisturbed. Its sandy shores and tide pools remained untouched.My brother and I used to inspect tide pool boulders for colorful sponges, sea anemones, star fishes, limpets, shells and other tiny marine creatures, clinging onto rocks. In the aquarist?s lingo, what were doing is called ?dipnetting? or collecting species from the wild. For me, the ocean offers more than just collecting tiny sea life for aquarium captivity, it rouse a world of imaginations. A universe of mythical beings, shaded as the creatures from its depths. Just like those who were fascinated by vampires, witches, werewolves, dwarves, elves and other ethereal organisms, I am enthralled by the beauty and enigma of mermaids. Once perceived by sailors and mariners from encountering dugongs and manatees, mermaids are half women, half sea beasts that inspire both fear and fascination. Tales were made regarding these mythical creatures. There were tales that appeal to children. There were stories created as foundations for forbidden love. There were stories made to scare readers and there were stories made as mere vessels for physical fantasies. But I noticed, most of the mermaid tales that I?ve seen seem to focus on the male character?s corporeal and charismatic charms and not so much on the physical beauty and mysterious attributes of the mermaid character. Let?s take Disney?s The Little Mermaid as an example. After rescuing a shipwrecked prince, the mermaid character expressed vocally how beautiful the prince was. But as the movie progress, there was no hint for this prince to express what he sees on our mermaid heroine, verbally. Another mermaid story, titled Dyesabel had its ?prince? in the character played by Richard Gomez. The movie?s mermaid character (played by Alice Dixon) was awes trucked by the male character as he unintentionally displays his physic before the admiring mermaid (And at the viewers.) There was even a write up that the whole Dyesabel movie was tailor made for Richard Gomez. If so, then they should have made a merman movie starring Richard Gomez in the first place. Then here comes a more recent mermaid T.V. drama, Marina. The main mermaid character in the show was played by Claudine Barretto. The show does not only put the mermaid beauty in the back seat, it also had close up shots of male underwear crotches. I could only shake my head in dismay in relation to these shows. And it compels me to wonder: ?Can any body make a mermaid story with the mermaid character?s charm and beauty as its main focus?? My frequent beach combings with my brother stirred my imaginations. The salty ocean breeze, swaying palm trees, the sound of surf as it touch the sandy shores, all integrated to form a new universe. A cosmos filled with native imageries, towering coconut trees, exotic orchids, white sandy beaches, wondrous islands, volcanic canyons, green fields and Blue Mountains, indigo seas, deadly weapons, gorgeous native girls and heroic warriors. A sphere, where humans and mythical beasts live and co-exists. Here, a young, beautiful mermaid princess struggles to save her father and her people from the clutches of a growing evil and confront her father?s deadly secret. The world of, Princess Ranao.
Posted by victorinoparaiso at 12:06 PM JST
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Updated: Friday, 5 August 2005 5:54 PM JST
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