Princess Merliah

Crown Princess Merliah of Oceana is the main protagonist in Barbie in A Mermaid Tale and Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2.She is played by Barbie and voiced by Kelly Sheridan. She is a surfer from Malibu and a half mermaid princess of Oceana. Merliah was born to Queen Calissa and Rip. She is the grand-daughter of Break and also niece of Eris.

Mermaid Tale
Merliah was born half-human and half-mermaid. She was born in Oceana, an underwater kingdom, ruled by her mother Queen Calissa, but her father was just a usual human. When she was just a little baby, her mother gave her to Rip's father, Break, because she was born with legs and couldn't live in Oceana.

When growing up, Break thought Merliah couldn't handle the facts. He had told her that her parents died when she was a baby. She grew up as "super-surf champion". She also has two friends named Fallon and Hadley, and the trio loved to surf and Merliah was one of the competitors of the team Malibu. She always won every surfing competition, and that's why she is nicknamed the Queen of The Waves. She even had no idea about her origins and thought that she was a normal teenager, when she was really a mermaid princess and the daughter of the Pacific ocean's queen.

One day, when she was in a surfing contest, her hair unexpectedly turned pink and she was able to breath underwater, and she was surprised to hear a pink, sparkly dolphin named Zuma talking. When she got home, Break told her the truth about her past, but she doesn't believe it. But when Zuma tells her that everything Break told her was true, she yanks off the magical necklace given to her as a baby, it was revealed that her mother was alive. So she comes with Zuma to Oceana, but just to see her mother to change her back to just a "normal" girl. Over the course of her adventure, however, she starts to accept her mermaid half. Merliah learns that, what makes you different may be your greatest strength.

Mermaid Tale 2
In Oceana, the residents were celebrating Merliah's one-year anniversary of her arrival to Oceana. In the human world, with support from Break, Hadley and Fallon, Merliah was competing in the annual Surf Invitational at Laguna Beach. Merliah and her biggest surfing rival, Kylie Morgan from Australia, were very competitive with each other. In the competition, Fallon came third place, Kylie was second, and Merliah was first. The next part of the competition would see Kylie, Merliah, Fallon and their friends going to the World Championship Surf Invitational in Australia. Snouts came to see Merliah, so she went with him to tell her mother about the surf meet.

Calissa showed Merliah her see shell, and Merliah watched her mother's memories of her first Changing of the Tides Ceremony. Calissa explained that to make merillia, a mermaid in the royal family had to sit on a throne in the city of Aquellia. Then, they must recite an ancient rite. At mid-day, they would be able to make merillia. Calissa wanted Merliah to see the ceremony, but Merliah considered the World Championship Surf Invitational to be more important. After an argument, with Merliah refusing to go to the ceremony, she left her mother, who was heartbroken.

In Australia, Kylie won the first round of the World Championship Surf Invitational. However, at one point she kicked Merliah off of her surfboard, and it caused Merliah to do a handstand while she surfed. When they returned to the shore, everyone ignored Kylie, even though she won the first place and Merliah won the second place. A group of people went to interview Merliah about her handstand, and she was even picked to be a model for a surf gear company by its founder, Georgie Majors. Their first photo shoot took place that night at a luau. While Merliah was modelling, she had to take off her magic necklace because it wasn't made by Wavecrest. She gave it to Hadley to keep safe.

Meanwhile, Kylie was told by Alistair, an evil fish, that Merliah's necklace gave her a magical advantage. Kylie decided to listen to him and stole the necklace while Hadley was busy eating. Kylie used it to became a mermaid and went to the bottom of the deepest trench of the ocean with Alistair, while Merliah, Hadley and Fallon looked for her necklace. In the ocean, Snouts witnessed Kylie being trapped in Eris' whirlpool by Alistair. With Kylie inside, Eris was freed. Snouts went to Merliah, who was still looking for her necklace hours later. Merliah could sense that the ocean was in danger, so she followed Snouts to the whirlpool, hoping she would be back in time for the final part of the surf competition.

Merliah tied a plant around her waist and went into the whirlpool that Kylie was in. Kylie was freed, but the current of the whirlpool was so strong and the plant tied around Merliah wasn't strong enough to pull her out. Kylie and Snouts helped her to climb out, and the whirlpool disappeared. Kylie told Merliah that Eris had gotten out of the whirlpool. Merliah explained to Kylie that Eris is her aunt, and she would have to stay in the Oceana to stop Eris, so Kylie apologized to Merliah for steal her necklace and tries to give it back to her, but her mermaid tail turned into legs and Kylie loses the ability to breathe underwater, and Merliah decided give her necklace to Kylie to prevent her from drowning and Kylie decided to stay and help.

Queen Calissa was at Aquellia preparing for the Changing of the Tides Ceremony with mermaid ambassadors from different oceans. Eris found them and made their worst nightmares come true, so Calissa could no longer swim, and she sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Merliah could sense that her mother was in trouble, and met up with Zuma. They found Calissa, and Merliah and her mother apologized for their misunderstanding.

Merliah, Zuma, Kylie and Snouts were unable to lift Calissa from the ocean floor even when working together. Merliah decided she would sit on the throne in Aquellia instead of Calissa, and lose her legs forever to save her mother and Oceana. In Aquellia, Merliah and her friends got past Eris’ henchmen, large evil fish named Stargazers, and saved the ambassadors.

After getting Eris away from the throne, Merliah sat on it and recited the rite for the Changing of the Tides Ceremony. Unfortunately, because she had no tail due to Kylie having her necklace, nothing happened. Kylie stopped Eris from hurting Merliah and gave Merliah back her necklace. She quickly became a mermaid again and was able to reflect one of Eris’ nightmare spells back at her.

Once the ceremony was performed, Queen Calissa and the ambassadors’ nightmares were gone. Merliah gave Kylie the necklace to wear so she could breathe underwater. Alistair pretends he wasn’t working with Eris at all, so one of the ambassadors considers making him a pet. Everyone notices Eris, who’s worst nightmare came true: she had legs, and would have them forever.

Eris was locked away somewhere secure by the ambassadors, and they left. Merliah felt sad that she would never be able to surf again, but she was supportive of Kylie anyway. They went back up the surface to watch Kylie compete. Kylie wanted to give Merliah back her necklace, but Calissa and Merliah decided she should keep it because she helped to save the ocean.

Merliah told her mother she wished she could still change back so she could show a new trick to Kylie. Suddenly, with just those words, Merliah was able to become a human again. Merliah was overjoyed and Calissa told her that, because the ritual at the ceremony transforms a mermaid into her fullest self, Merliah’s fullest self was clearly both human and mermaid.

Merliah got to surf in the final stage of the competition, but because she was able to make Merillia, she became distracted and lost to Kylie. When Kylie was being rewarded, Georgie Majors offered to make her a surf gear model beside Merliah. Kylie decided to share her trophy with Merliah, because she felt that it was special to be a part of something big. They held up the trophy together, and were cheered on by the hundreds of people in the crowd.

Personality
Princess Merliah is competitive, proud, and brave. She loves to surf more than anything, and sometimes puts her own desires and wants over the needs of others--but she always does the right thing in the end. Although she has come to embrace her mermaid heritage, she loves to spend time with her friends above and below the waves.

Physical Appearance
Merliah is an American teenager. She has a heart shaped face, and naturally tanned skin from spending most of her time in the sun. She has blue eyes and long blonde hair. When she came of age, her hair gained pink highlights when it came into contact with water. Her makeup consists of pink toenail polish and pink eye shadow. She is 17 years old.

Mermaid Tale
Her two-piece swimsuit has hot pink, orange, and white. She has a strap-bra with short, pink bottoms. She wears a pink necklace that was given to her by her mother when she was little. She sometimes wears a sleeveless blue top with a hood and orange flip-flops. When trying to be a mermaid, she has to look like one. She wears a fake mermaid tail and bra with the colors deep-purple and sky-blue.

After transforming, she has become a real mermaid. Her tail color is pink and orange, with flower designs on it. The top only has one strap on the right and a flower on it, too. She also wears a new white-and-pink necklace given to her by her mother. Her hairstyle has changed; it was now long and wavy, with a crown that matches her tail

Mermaid Tale 2
Her two-piece suit at the beginning is similar to the one she wore in the first movie, except this one is violet with another type of flower printed on it. It also has flowers on the straps of her bra. She also wears the magical necklace that lets her turn into a mermaid. In Australia, she wears a two-piece suit of many colors (mostly pink, but blue and yellow, as well). She is (sometimes) shown wearing her magical necklace.

In Austraila, Merliah is picked to be the new model in Wavecrest Surf Gear, which she accepts. Her bikini is similar to the first movie, but the details on the top are different. She was forced to change her necklace with another one that Georgie Majors gives it to her. Her hairstyle is changed, as well. As a mermaid, her bra is identical to the one of her second swimsuit, but sparkly. Her tail has a sparkly, violet belt with a golden brooch, and the colors are now pink and yellow. Her hairstyle is re-used from the Wavecrest Surf Gear, with a dark-pink crown with lighter pink jewels.

Queen Calissa
Calissa is Merliah's mother. Merliah was raised away from her mother because Calissa feared she would be in danger if she grew up in Oceana, so Merliah believed that her mother had died along with her father, Rip. When Merliah first learned about her mom, she didn't want to meet her. She preferred to stay with her grandfather and forget everything. But, Merliah finally realized that she has mother who loves her and saved Calissa risking her own life. Now, Merliah has a strong relationship with her mother. Calissa loves her daughter more than anything, and Merliah is very friendly and nice to her. Calissa loves images of Merliah as a baby. They love to spend time together.

Break
Break, Merliah's paternal grandfather, raised her. They live together at a surf shack in Malibu. In Break's eyes, Merliah is still a baby and he loves her very much. Merliah loves him, too, and goes to him for advice. Merliah was angry on him when he told her the truth. Afterwards, Merliah told Break that she'll always come back to him, even after she found her mother. They have lot of fun together.

Friends
Merliah has very close relations with her best friends, Fallon and Hadley. She tells them everything and they are always ready to listen her. They love to surf, talk, and spend time together. They have their own surf team in the Malibu. It seems that Merliah is their leader. Fallon and Hadley are only ones who know about Merliah's secret (although Kylie found out by accident, and Break always knew this).

Quotes

 * "Craziness clearly runs in my family."
 * "Mermaids don't exist."
 * "I need help! I thought I was breathing underwater, I thought a dolphin was talking to me."
 * "I am Merliah, half-mermaid princess of Oceana and it's my duty to protect my subjects."
 * "Why swim when you can shred?"

Trivia

 * A doll of Merliah appeared in the 2011 movie Soul Surfer. It was shown a few times in the movie. Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2 and Soul Surfer have similarities, such as the main character and the antagonist accepting a trophy together at the end of the movie, and the main character modelling surf gear.
 * Merliah could surf before she could walk, as described in her scrapbook.
 * In some Barbie in A Mermaid Tale 2 illustrations, she has no pink highlights when she appears human.
 * In the storybook, Merliah wears a blue and pink bikini top with a flower design in her human form; in the movie, she wears her usual pink bikini top, which also she wears in mermaid form.
 * Her name was originally Marisa.

Goofs

 * In the first film, when Merliah puts her clothes on the rock before jumping in the water, her clothes are slowly sinking into the rock.
 * In the first film, when Merliah takes out the Celestial Comb she is wearing again her swimsuit again and the necklace that her mother had given her.
 * In the second film, Merliah's necklace appears when she's sitting on the throne. When the Changing of the Tides Ceremony is about to begin, it disappears.