Triton

King Triton is a large, handsome elderly merman with fair skin and a massive, well-muscled physique. He has long white hair, a thick, matching beard and mustache, a widow's peak hairline, and bushy, gray eyebrows. As a child, he had freckles and his hair was originally red but turned auburn (the same color as his daughter Attina's hair) when he was a young merman. Like his daughter, Ariel, Triton has blue eyes (which are olive green in Ariel's Beginning), though they are more of a grayish hue compared to hers. Because he is a merman, Triton's lower body is a navy-blue fish-like tail with cyan, translucent fins and a matching, fish-lip waist-line. Triton also has three signs of his royal status; he wears gold gauntlets with borders on the edges and five studs around the middle on his forearms, stopping just below the elbow, a golden, five-pointed crown resembling a sea star, and, most important of all, wields the legendary trident, a golden, three-pronged weapon with vast magical powers and abilities

The prequel film The Little Mermaid: Ariel's Beginning, initially depicts Triton as a devoted and loving father and husband. After his wife's death, Triton becomes extremely strict due to the grief he suffered over his queen's death, but he eventually comes to terms with the incident, showing this by allowing music back into Atlantica after previously banning it in the wake of the tragedy.

The television series, set before the events of the original film, shows Triton as a wise ruler. He is prejudiced towards humans, possibly, due to the death of his wife, Athena, even though her death was an accident and despite evidence that merpeople are half-humans themselves, including Triton himself. Although he is constantly at odds with Ariel, regarding humans and her dangerous adventures, he has shown to have a large feeling of guilt and remorse for upsetting his beloved daughter.

In the original film, Triton is a flawed yet caring father. He is a strict disciplinarian whose overprotective nature towards his daughters has been the source of conflicts between him and Ariel, especially, due to her obsession with humans. He is both extremely short-tempered and bad-tempered simultaneously, if he is provoked enough. It was also briefly implied that he didn't particularly care if a human ended up drowning, as when arguing with Ariel shortly after discovering that she saved Eric.

When Ariel tried to explain that Eric could have died if it wasn't for her, Triton unmovingly stated that it was "one less human to worry about" in response, despite confirming shortly afterward that he doesn't even know Eric. His eruptive nature, when pushed far enough, was also shown to lead to violent acts, as he destroyed most of Ariel's human artifacts as a way to "get through to her" after the possibility of losing his daughter to the human world was brought into play.

Despite this, Triton immediately expressed remorse afterward, as his angered expression softened to one of despair. After Ariel goes missing, after becoming human, he blames himself for the situation and tirelessly spends his time searching for her, unable to rest, until she is safe at home, proving that he is able to admit when his actions have gone too far. Earlier in the film, he also confides in Sebastian out of the fear that he may have been too strict with Ariel, proving that he struggles in both keeping her safe and being a loving father.

By the time of the sequel, Triton has become more rational and accepting of humans. He is still presented as a very wise ruler, although he now has much better control over his temper. But his aggressive nature still remains in times of crisis. He has a soft spot for his first granddaughter, Melody, and greatly values her well-being. When Ariel declares that Melody is to be raised as a normal human for her own safety, Triton is noticeably upset as he had hoped to get to know his granddaughter, but lets Ariel decide, proving that Triton has learned to trust Ariel's choices, even if he does not agree with some of them.