Bill Brantley claws the shit out of 'The Little Mermaid'

Ben Brantley's my idol. After much consternation, it goes something like Maureen Dowd, Jesus, Nellie McKay and Bill Brantley.

His recent review of Disney on Broadway's adaptation of The Little Mermaid was chockful of candy-coated zingers.

Best line? "The whole enterprise is soaked in that sparkly garishness that only a very young child — or possibly a tackiness-worshiping drag queen — might find pretty...In like manner, most of the performers approach their characters with the forced jocularity of actors marking time in a theme park until a better job comes along."

Zing!