It’s her birthday, and the gift that delights Merida is not a doll or a toy, but a bow.

Merida’s independent spirit is obvious from the moment we meet her as a tiny girl living centuries ago in the Scottish Highlands. “There’s not someone else who’s going to rescue her and fix it all for her.” “She’s much more relatable,” said producer Katherine Sarafian, who talked by phone to KidsPost about the movie, which opens Friday.

(Pixar is the studio that created other movies including “ Toy Story,” “ Cars” and “ The Incredibles.”)

She’s Pixar’s first heroine (a female hero), and the movie’s creators wanted her to be different. The star of the new animated movie “ Brave” isn’t a Disney princess. Movie princesses usually wear puffy dresses, have perfect hair and wait around for Prince Charming to save them from an evil witch. But, first, here’s a refresher about Merida’s mischievous brothers in Brave. Since we’re seeing Merida a little older, more mature, and as queen on OUAT, the princes could have grown up a little too. On the Once Upon A Time wiki page for Merida, her family tree only lists “three brothers.” So, not a lot of details yet, but we hope these three boys are just as fun as their Pixar counterparts if we ever do meet them. And, there isn’t a lot of information from OUAT on what she will find at the end of her journey. So, in an act of aggression, Merida’s brothers were kidnapped by a rival clan and she is on a journey to save them. Merida tells Emma, “In my land, people, well men, don't think a woman can lead.” To which Emma replies, “Not just in your land.” Preach, sister. However, in the ABC series, Merida is now queen and the rival clans aren’t happy about it. I can never get away with anything.” The boys spend the film finding trouble and causing trouble, often as comedic relief. In Disney’s 2012 movie Brave, Merida introduces her redheaded triplet siblings as, “The princes. But, what happened to Merida's brothers in Brave? Will their fate be the same on OUAT? In this OUAT world, Merida is on a quest to save her brothers. Just when you thought you’ve met all of the princesses from the ABC series’ Disney-based universe, we meet Merida from Pixar’s Brave. Once Upon A Time recently premiered its fifth season, introducing new characters and a new realm - Camelot.

Merida brave brothers