Orson

**Orson** is a Little Mermaid fancharacter and the antagonist in the rewritten sequel, The Little Mermaid II: History Repeats.

He is an ominous-looking octopan and the son of the canon villain, Ursula; replacing the sister character from the original sequel.

In the reboot, he targets an older Melody for his revenge scheme after learning about his mother's celebrated death, which her parents are to blame for. She's blind for his intentions and thinks he's a friendly witch who came to fulfill her wish of exploring the sea.

Her belief he's her friend makes her come back to him after every ditching attempt, which allows for a more genuine relationship to grow between the two.

Orson made his first online appearance at Tumblr on May 9, 2019.

## Backstory

>    Orson was conceived when Ursula was still the ruler of Atlantica, and was a prince in his first 2 years of life, until Triton and his army reclaimed the palace. Ursula was supposed to receive severe punishment, but the young Orson's existence earned her a mere exile.
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> The family of two had to live secluded from not only Atlantica, but all octopan establishments, since Ursula's failure as a leader had led to many unnecessary casualties. She was no longer deemed welcome within her own community.
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> Nevertheless, Ursula proved to be a decent mother; and didn't want her son to get involved with her battles. Triton expressed worry she'd raise him with vengefulness in his heart, to which she said she had no intention of raising a warrior.
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> She and Orson adored each other, though she could be snappy when her patience was tested and would casually send him outside to play when tired of his presence. He was often a spectator of her shady businesses and raised to find magic and scamming people normal. She did not train him to be a witch, interestingly enough, to which Orson guessed she preferred a normal future for him without the invitation to more persecution.
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> His father only shortly stayed around and Orson bears no memories of him. He was an uptight man who disliked Ursula's vocal and playful side, and eventually her appearance started to annoy him as well. They separated soon after Orson's birth and he didn't care to stay involved with his upbringing. Ursula hadn't looked for love since, and her ex instilled a somewhat negative opinion on men in her; which is slightly heard back in the first movie's song "Poor Unfortunate Souls" -though targeted at humans.
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> When Orson was old enough to leave his parental home, she gifted him the sister of her twin eels as a departure gift. He would regularly visit her, until many years later, when he found her lair abandoned with no trace of what happened. He spent years trying to find her, and when he came across a group of merchildren reinacting Eric and Ariel's victory from the last movie, he went mad with grief and planned revenge.
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## Personality

Orson has a serious personality like his father, but shows off slivers of his mother's flamboyant side when he's revelling in his own success. Still, he prefers silence and solitude, making it a chore for him to be around the bouncy Melody. He grows to like her for her optimism and unbiased view on everything, though tends to call her foolish over it to her face.

His biggest struggle in the story is to admit he likes her, since she is the daughter of his enemies and a mermaid, who are already his enemies. In order to respect his mother's passing, he keeps himself in a state of anger as to stay focused on his plan. Not until Melody surprises him by apologizing for her death does he allow doubt to enter his mind.

Other than that, Orson goes through little character development and keeps most of his traits throughout the story. He refuses to apologize for attacking Melody's parents, though has shown to regret the outburst that decreased her trust in him.

## Appearance

Orson is a tall and muscular octopan with long black tentacles that form into a tank top, and has sharp nails, fangs, small ears, angular black eyebrows, blue eyes, and the same nose and skin colour as his mother. There's a mole on his face at the same spot as well. His bangs are grey, the rest of his hair white.

He's in his late 30s, but considered a 20-year-old because of his slow ageing process as an octopan.

## Trivia

* Orson's voice is described to sound like "an American Shaun Morgan" and his music style not unlike Seether;
	+ He owns a self-made "electric" guitar, assembled with the bones of a shark. The bass and overall loudness of the instrument is thanks to the strings being woven out of the flesh from the vocal cords of sea mammals;
	+ He supposedly came up with the (hard) rock genre as a teenager, which did not exist in the 1800s;
	+ Nobody else likes the sound, including his own mother and Melody.
* Orson used to have long hair as a teenager.
* Orson used to be overweight throughout his childhood.
* Orson doesn't get an appropriate welcome from the Atlantians, even after dating their princess;
	+ Ariel and Eric stay somewhat cautious of their distant son-in-law as well.
* Orson's favourite food is shark.
* In I Can't Remember, it's suggested Orson is a flawed witch because he can't cook.

## See also

* The Little Mermaid II: History Repeats
* I Can't Remember (Threequel/spin-off)
* Pass Slowly (Music video)
* Oktavus
* Octopan