Sadly, I'm beginning to lean this way. I just don't hold out a lot of "hope" for Disney in terms of its Modern princesses. I don't hold out a lot of hope for Moana, either. We have five Modern girls now, and out of those, I only "like" two of them. It's not even "love," it's only more of a "toleration" thing. I love none of the Moderns the way I did some of the Classic and some of the Renaissance. Though I did not love every single Classic or Renaissance girl, I could and did like all of the Classic and Renaissance characters... because there was a "middle balance" struck somewhere between their bad and their good traits. By contrast, I find the Moderns have personalities that trend really strongly toward the bad end: they are less kind to others; they openly ridicule people; they certainly aren't above stooping to some low, cut-throat behavior when they want their way ( tricking people, punching people, lecturing and nagging people to death about how they have superior interests, motivations, dreams, etc.). And sometimes, like Elsa, they are way too passive to have any "agency" of their own.

With the Moderns, I keep pinching myself for having to ask, "Remind me just why am I rooting for her, again?" Because, I can't help it. I don't like having this question resurface in the back of my mind.

I don't find ANY of the DP characters ( Classic, Renaissance, Moderns) to be Mary-Sues. They AREN'T. I don't find any Disney characters to be Mary-Sues. But I do find the Moderns less likeable overall, and their moral behavior is very questionable to me, which makes me less hopeful about Moana. Or any other girl who follows her.

^ I do have to say I disagree with you about the modern DPs.

"By contrast, I find the Moderns have personalities that trend really strongly toward the bad end: they are less kind to others; they openly ridicule people; they certainly aren't above stooping to some low, cut-throat behavior when they want their way "

Isn't this kind of a good thing, really? I mean, all of those "bad" things you mentioned are things that all people do, which just means that the DPs are getting more realistic, in a way. I guess it's subjective, but I'd prefer a flawed character than an idealized one, personally.

But as for the question, I just don't think we need any more princess characters. More heroines would be cool, though.

^It's good for some people, I guess. However, the older DPs ( Classics and Renaissance) ALL had their shortcomings as well. I pointed this out in my Vices of The Disney Princesses series of articles. However, the older girls weren't "featured" in Disney marketing by the taglines "she doesn't need a man; she is feminist and a better character because she wants to open her own business; she's better because she isn't true-love focused, etc., etc." In effect, the whole Modern princess culture is all about being as polar opposite from the Renaissance and Classics as possible. I don't find that necessarily good. I find that to be very, very subjective in the appreciation area. I don't appreciate Tiana's, Elsa's, Anna's, Merida's, or Rapunzel's personalities as much, as say, Mulan's. Despite all the window dressing of frilly sparkly clothes, songs, and prince-tag-alongs, I'm always going to wonder if this story truly reaches me? Now that is the question.

I guess these Modern princess stories reach me. They reach me in a very negative way. The meat of these stories are all about experiences/things that happened to me in REAL life: isolation, perpetual bullying, bad choices, miserable people who were cut-throat and treated me like trash. Yes, I suppose these princess characters are very realistic. But are they FUN people?? Probably not. People who act like the Modern princesses do, usually made me miserable to interface with on a daily basis, because they were headache-inducing bullies. They enjoyed giving me pain in real life. What do I reach for, for relaxation? Do I ask a bully to help me relax? After all, I must share my own life with cut-throat people who have bad personality quirks. My entertainment doesn't need to be full of them, too, does it? I need a reprieve from rude, mean people. I get a steady diet of being bullied, humiliated, and screwed. The Moderns are mostly like the people who have always targeted me for their enjoyment. Those are just the cold facts.

I cannot begin to vouch for your life experiences, Sarchasm, but maybe, you weren't the target of mean people. Maybe, you were not exactly with the "in-crowd," but you certainly weren't with the rejects ( people who were oddballs and who were constantly picked upon). I fell into the reject category, unfortunately. Maybe, that's why the take-charge Modern princesses, who don't ever really get sidelined or rejected--- appeal to you, and not to me?

This is very, very subjective. And again, my personal view is this. As these girls become more and more realistic, the "magic" quality leaves the story entirely. No one believes in magic and happily-ever-after in real life. And yes, originally the Disney of yesteryear was more about fantasy, not reality. So basically, Disney's Modern formula is becoming less and less about a "happy" place for people to go, and is instead about perpetuating the negativity that is already present in the world. Sure, they sugarcoat the meanness with sparkles, songs, and flash-- but for me, that's frosting with a bitter aftertaste. So, I'm not liking it as much, after sampling.

And I like Esmeralda and Megara A LOT. And Jane Porter, and others. The Disney heroines are better because Disney does not feel the need to IMPRESS PEOPLE by making them. The heroines don't get the kind of scrutiny the DPs do. We need more heroines. There is seriously a DEARTH....

So, yes, I think the excessive additions of yet more princesses to the lineup might actually be a corporate business strategy to monetize, more than it is providing us--- the audience--- with an actual story and a character development arc to appreciate. And I'm not appreciating what little character development there is in the Modern formula. The modern format bases itself on reality. And reality is narrow, harsh, and unforgiving for people like me. In stories, movies, and animation, the characters learn from their experiences, grow up, and can change because the script says to do so. In reality, people don't change their "ways." So I probably won't find characters who mirror real life patterns to be loveable, likeable, or good examples to emulate. I see those types all the time in real life. In real life they never "change."

I hope you can understand where I am coming from, and aren't offended. Being rejected has traumatic side-affects, hahaha. It's not just an inability to relate to characters such as Tiana and the Moderns. I find that I don't relate to real live people who didn't experience rejection and isolation, and who always made sure that they got their way, even when it took hurting me for them to succeed. It's tough, anyway.

They REALLY need to separate the years out more, though. Cinderella was created thirteen years after Snow White, and Ariel was created THIRTY YEARS after Aurora.