by Rollo » January 15th, 2016, 2:01 pm
Sarabi is probably the strongest female character in the franchise. Perhaps not physically, but emotionally. She's still the leader in all of the lionesses' eyes and would be expected to retain composure, despite losing her husband, son and her kingdom in the same day. That's a lot for someone to take... and then the subsequent starvation and mistreatment. It's hard to imagine how she coped. By the time Simba returned, she was on her last legs. It could be assumed that maybe it was too much for her to cope and perhaps she passed shortly after the events of the first film.
I still think an answer should've been given in Simba's Pride. Even just one line to hint that she's no longer there and reunited with Mufasa. It's horrible thinking she was just retired with no consideration for what the fans would think. Then again, SP had a habit of not answering questions straight forwardly - i.e Kovu's father.
I would love to have her mentioned in TLG. I'd expect she'd be a great role-model for the girls, especially Kiara. Sarabi's the ultimate Queen.