I may have my petty qualms about Disney's practice of raiding their past triumphs to flood the home video market with inferior direct-to-DVD sequels, but they definitely pull out all the stops when releasing their bonafide classics, both in terms of the quality of restoration and quantity of extra features. This two-disc set of "The Little Mermaid" is no exception. Easily one of the best animated films Disney ever made, even if you already own the previously released single disc version, this one is hard to pass up.

In this era of CG animation, it might be hard for some to remember or appreciate the impact "The Little Mermaid" had, not only on Disney's animation department (it pretty much single-handedly returned the studio to the dominance over the medium it enjoyed in the 40s & 50s), but on family oriented films in general. If it weren't for the creative and financial success of this one, it's likely "Beauty and the Beast," "The Lion King" and "Aladdin" - not to mention the plethora of non-Disney efforts throughout the 90s - would have ever existed. Of course, much of that is due to the story itself, in which free-spirited mermaid Ariel meeting the man for her dreams, who, unfortunately, happens to be human, and her sometimes foolish efforts (which involves sort of a deal-with-the-devil with the vengeful Ursula) to get him to fall in love with her. The best animation in the world can't save a movie that doesn't have a good story, and this time Disney finally goes back to doing what they did best during their first golden age, which is loosely adapt and simplify a classic fairy tale, tweak it around a bit (which mainly consists of excising the dark underpinnings), then add dynamic musical numbers while still emphasizing the characters. The formula was so fool-proof that Disney essentially revisited it for nearly every one of their animated movies afterwards (that is until Pixar came along and once again redefined the medium). Even if you don't take into account this film totally rejuvenated a studio, it is still arguably one of the five best animated movies Disney ever made. It's a perfect marriage of story and song (the musical numbers aren't clumsily worked in...they become part of the narrative itself). The animation, of course, is outstanding, very much retaining the overall look of Disney's greatest classics. I guess it's also worth mentioning that "The Little Mermaid" is probably one of Disney's last 100% traditionally animated films. By the time of their next film (the Oscar nominated "Beauty and the Beast"), CGI had already begun to rear its head. While that isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's sort of nice to come back to a film that's been painstakingly hand-drawn with such attention to detail.

The picture quality alone makes this disc worth owning. This is easily the best the film has ever looked. The difference between this transfer and any previous home video release is obvious the second you pop in the disc. Colors are vibrant, lines are sharp and black tones totally accurate. In fact, the overall picture quality is so good that occasional flaws in the original animation are sometimes noticeable. The sound is render in 5.1 Dolby Digital, as well as an 'enhanced Home Theater Surround' track; the difference between the two tracks is arguable...or maybe not, since I haven't really upgraded my own home theater system in awhile. No matter...the film sounds great, with terrific balance.

Like most other special editions of Disney movie, the extras run the gamut from outstanding to pointless, but the sheer quantity of them earns an A- rating. Of the truly useful extras, the best ones are related to the movie itself, such as a great making-of feature and some deleted scenes. There's also a fun feature about a 'Little Mermaid' theme park ride that was proposed but never realized; through CGI, we can go on a virtual tour of the ride. Other kid friendly features include a new game, a preview for the inevitable "Little Mermaid III" (undoubtedly another direct-to-video opus), and a "DisneyPedia" segment that's about the real-life aquatic creatures that inspired their animated counterparts. There's also an animated short, "The Little Match Girl," which is kind of charming. A few of the other features are also fairly worthless, and smack of Disney nepotism, such as a new music video by teen heartthrob Ashley Tisdale, who totally butchers "Kiss the Girl," and countless trailers for other upcoming Disney DVD releases.

This version of "The Little Mermaid" is, without a doubt, worth having in any collection. Aside from being one of Disney's best films, featuring a classic story and loaded with great songs that are perfectly merge with the narrative, it is masterfully restored to its original pristine glory. Disney, and traditional animation in general, has seldom been this perfect. Very highly recommended.