LEGO Disney Princess: The Castle Quest is an animated action/adventure crossover special developed by LEGO in collaboration with the Disney Princess franchise. The special premiered on Disney+ on August 18, 2023 as part of World Princess Week.
Synopsis[]
In LEGO Disney Princess: The Castle Quest, Tiana, Moana, Snow White, Rapunzel, and Ariel are off on an adventure as they are each unexpectedly transported to a mysterious castle. Shortly after arriving, they soon discover that Gaston has hatched an evil plan to take over all their kingdoms! The Princess characters must work together to solve challenges hidden deep within the castle walls and try to save their kingdoms from Gaston. Will bravery, quick-thinking, and teamwork prevail?
Plot[]
The story begins under a clear, bright blue sky, where Rapunzel is happily painting a picture. She becomes startled by large storm clouds forming overhead, and drops her paintbrush.
Snow White, Tiana, Moana, and Ariel see them too.
The scene soon changes to show a castle, which is surrounded by a magical, bubble-like dome. Inside, Gaston is trying out a magic wand. Behind him, King Triton is captured in a tank, with his trident outside.
Gaston aims the wand at the trident, but the magic doesn't work, and the trident remains firmly in place.
King Triton tells him that he will never get the trident, because it's too sacred. But Gaston dismisses him. He turns to the Magic Mirror, asking it, out of spite, to tell him how many castles he controls. It tells him that he controls many castles, and shows images of the castles. The Mirror tells him that he could gain even more kingdoms, as long as nobody interferes.
Gaston is offended at the fact that anyone would dare try to challenge him. But King Triton tells him that if he lets someone challenge him, he might win the trident, Ariel, and all seven of the seas, if he overtakes them. But if King Triton's warriors win, then he will have to be released to his rightful home, trident and all.
Gaston isn't fazed by the challenge, and asks the mirror to bring forth the bravest warriors of all. The mirror begins to summon people that it warns that together, are strong enough to put him in his place. It summons Snow White, Moana, Tiana, Rapunzel, and Ariel. Gaston tells them that if they complete all three challenges that he will set up, then they win.
He begins the challenge by puncturing the tank, which means that King Triton is slowly running out of water. They have to complete the challenge before he runs out of water, and dies.
Snow White, Rapunzel, and Tiana go into a room with an apple symbol while Ariel and Moana enter a room with a seashell symbol. Inside each is a cozy room. But they soon realize something is missing: the Magic Carpet and the Sundrop Flower. Ariel and Moana ask the enchanted dresser if they can look inside, and she gladly agrees, her doors open to reveal a beach, and Gramma Tala swims out as a manta ray. Moana rushes into the dresser with Ariel. Ariel digs into the sand with a key, and they find a treasure chest with a map inside. Moana and Ariel quickly set sail on the map's route.
Meanwhile, Tiana finds her father's cookbook on a shelf, which strangely opens to become a door. Leaping through it, Tiana, Snow White, and Rapunzel find themselves in a dark forest, where Rapunzel's hair starts to glow. They assume the magic flower is close by. They find it after a long search, but the trees grab them when they try to pick it. Wrestling free, they quickly pick the flower.
Ariel and Moana, still looking for the Magic Carpet, find it being hauled away on a ship. They sneak on, and fight the pirates, getting Carpet back.
Once everyone found what they were looking for, they're transported back to the castle. All the objects that they've found get transported to Gaston, to his delight.
The Princesses all stand in front of one last door, which is decorated with a dragon design. When they go inside, it's a thorny, black maze, that adds walls when they have insecurities. Once they notice this, everyone tries their best to believe in themselves. Ariel climbs to the top of the wall and sings, destroying the entire maze. But as soon as she does, Maleficent appears. Gaston is prompting her to eat them. But they notice that her wing is broken, and fix it. Once they do, Snow White talks to her, and explains the situation. After that, Maleficent turns on Gaston, letting the girls escape.
Once they get back to the castle, King Triton has run out of water. Ariel cries, but she's told not to give up. Using her father's trident, she commands it to take him to the sea, which it does.
The Magic Mirror tells them that the castle is theirs, and they each have their own special rooms. The girls admire the castle, glad that Gaston is defeated, and their work here is done.
Cast[]
- Jodi Benson as Ariel
- Anika Noni Rose as Tiana
- Mandy Moore as Rapunzel
- Auli'i Cravalho as Moana
- Katherine Von Till as Snow White
- Richard White as Gaston
- Jim Cummings as King Triton
- Corey Burton as Magic Mirror
- Jo Anne Worley as Wardrobe
- Roland Rubio as Flower
- Jeff Bennett as Mr. Smee
- Barrett Leddy as Iago
Trivia[]
- This was one of the few productions based on the Disney Princess franchise that actually showcased the Princesses (especially the earliest three Princesses, such as Snow White) as more proactive characters.
- Continuity-wise, this special very likely takes place after the events of the Princesses' respective debut films Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Little Mermaid, The Princess and the Frog, Tangled, and Moana. This is especially hinted when Snow White, in one scene, mentions the entire events of her film.
- A number of Disney characters make non-speaking appearances throughout the special. These include:
- The Prince's horse, the haunted trees and the baby bluebird from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
- Eudora and James (on a picture) from The Princess and the Frog.
- Gramma Tala (as a manta ray spirit) and Ocean from Moana.
- Magic Carpet from Aladdin.
- Maleficent (as a dragon) from Sleeping Beauty.
- Sebastian from The Little Mermaid.
- Among Gaston's collection of stolen magical artifacts include:
- King Triton's trident and Ursula's Necklace from The Little Mermaid.
- Genie's Lamp and the Golden Scarab Beetle from Aladdin.
- A pumpkin and the Fairy Godmother's magic wand from Cinderella.
- The Enchanted Rose, Enchanted Mirror, and Beast's ripped portrait from Beauty and the Beast.
- A lantern and Vladimir's helmet from Tangled.
- Sword of Shan Yu and Cri-Kee's cage from Mulan.
- Aurora's tiara, the Sword of Truth and Shield of Virtue from Sleeping Beauty.
- Louis's trumpet from The Princess and the Frog.
- Moana's shell from Moana.
- This special marks the first time someone else other than Gilbert Gottfried voices Iago in an animated production after Gottfried's death in 2022.
- Jim Cummings, who previously voiced King Triton in The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning, reprises his role as the character, due to the death of his original voice actor Kenneth Mars 12 years earlier.
- Snow White's weapon, an axe, is a reference that most things in the dwarves' cottage is made of wood, and wood is made from trees, which are what axes used to chop down.
- It is revealed in this special where Ariel has the ability to magically transform from human form to mermaid form once she comes into contact with the ocean (or vice-versa) similar to Madison from Touchstone Pictures' Splash, which is evident she she and Moana team up to travel through the oceans. This is however contradictory to her depiction in the previous The Little Mermaid films such as The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea where she needed to be magically transformed with her father's trident in order to assume her mermaid form and vice-versa.
- Cinderella, Aurora, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Merida and Raya are not present in this film.
Videos[]
