Man, I love how I'm the only one so far with a really negative concrit. That's not a good sign. XD I am very sorry that my take on Ariel doesn't fit your perception of her, but, if I may say, I do feel there are a few...flaws in reasoning here. Or at least some widely different perspectives.
I definitely don't want to say Ariel has developed much, but she had been at Fandom for over a year now. Of course she's not going to be the same character from your childhood, as she's had a year of different experiences under her belt. I agree that it's made her flightier. She's constantly being given new distractions and new exciting things to explore, so I imagine her attention span has gone to hell.
She is more flirtatious because she hasn't fallen in love at first sight with anyone and she's a bit more experienced in the field of love than canon Ariel might have been. I think it's really unfair to suggest that she's serial dating and insta-crushing, too. It's very easy for her to like people, but she even hasn't really dated anyone since Bruce. There's been some flirtations with Chuck, and she may be starting something up with a new character, but I hardly call that serial dating to be interested in someone. Or to acknowledge the fact that they are cute and attractive and potentially date-able.
I think writing people off as boring/grumpy/unfun if they aren't interested in the things she's interested is pretty canon, though, really. At least, usually in those situations, I try to think of how she'd try to coax Flouder into doing things, but perhaps I'm off-shooting it a little. It's true that I haven't really watched the main canon in a bit, but I do read a lot of the side stories and books that Disney puts out, and I use that as a lot of my source, since they go more into her character than a 90-or-so minute movie might. Canon memes have shown me that not as many people are familiar with those, so perhaps that's where some differences develop.
The focusing on a few things is mostly due to the fact that I have a lot going on and my availability is everywhere, so finding something to anchor her on makes it easier for me.
I'd absolutely love to develop something deeper, but, unfortunately, it never seems to work very well for me lately. Perhaps that means it's time to put her away, but, to be honest, I'm still having fun with her and would like to get a little more out.
I will definitely consider some of these criticisms and continue to try to improve myself, so thank you for the perspective. But I don't think the view is as narrow as you seem to think it is.
Re: Ariel / Alexander of Daventry / Shunsui Kyōraku / Jane Porter / Butters Stotch / Charlie Swan
I definitely don't want to say Ariel has developed much, but she had been at Fandom for over a year now. Of course she's not going to be the same character from your childhood, as she's had a year of different experiences under her belt. I agree that it's made her flightier. She's constantly being given new distractions and new exciting things to explore, so I imagine her attention span has gone to hell.
She is more flirtatious because she hasn't fallen in love at first sight with anyone and she's a bit more experienced in the field of love than canon Ariel might have been. I think it's really unfair to suggest that she's serial dating and insta-crushing, too. It's very easy for her to like people, but she even hasn't really dated anyone since Bruce. There's been some flirtations with Chuck, and she may be starting something up with a new character, but I hardly call that serial dating to be interested in someone. Or to acknowledge the fact that they are cute and attractive and potentially date-able.
I think writing people off as boring/grumpy/unfun if they aren't interested in the things she's interested is pretty canon, though, really. At least, usually in those situations, I try to think of how she'd try to coax Flouder into doing things, but perhaps I'm off-shooting it a little. It's true that I haven't really watched the main canon in a bit, but I do read a lot of the side stories and books that Disney puts out, and I use that as a lot of my source, since they go more into her character than a 90-or-so minute movie might. Canon memes have shown me that not as many people are familiar with those, so perhaps that's where some differences develop.
The focusing on a few things is mostly due to the fact that I have a lot going on and my availability is everywhere, so finding something to anchor her on makes it easier for me.
I'd absolutely love to develop something deeper, but, unfortunately, it never seems to work very well for me lately. Perhaps that means it's time to put her away, but, to be honest, I'm still having fun with her and would like to get a little more out.
I will definitely consider some of these criticisms and continue to try to improve myself, so thank you for the perspective. But I don't think the view is as narrow as you seem to think it is.