How Australia’s ‘Bluey’ conquered children’s entertainment
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Note: my usage of "traditional values" is not meant to evoke anything political or intended to be interpreted from a culture war lens. I just mean it positively portrays a family dynamic that can be universally appreciated.
…but there’s a lot of what seems like the kids just steamrolling their parents. That’s not sustainable for me. Being a parent is like having two full time jobs. It’s hard enough as it is to just get through the day. The bar is set a little too high.
But hey, my wife and I agree with this, so y’all do you! I’m sure most of our kids will probably turn out just fine no matter how much we model ourselves after Bandit and Chili.
I think it is a wonderful show regardless.
Edit: Knowing the average age in this industry, I have the distinct feeling that quite a few people who are not parents are involving themselves in these discussions and moderations. Just wait. I'm offering a realistic viewpoint positioned against a cartoon. And I'm not being a jerk about it.
I say it gives children unrealistic ideas about how much play time the average parent can engage in without getting a crick in their back.
My 4 year old loves playacting scenes and games from Bluey but he also understands that I'm not an anthropomorphic dog. Or, for that matter that our dog can't do most of the things the dogs on Bluey can.
I respectfully disagree with your second point, while it might make parents (like me) guilty about not playing so much with kids, I think kids themselves can separate reality from TV pretty well.
I think you can also see a shift to "lower the bar," though, especially in the third season. Bandit also seems to take a less prominent role. This was disappointing to my family; it seemed like some of the show's "purity" was lost to social pressure or something.
But yes, ignoring that kind of reasoning, it does set a very high bar.
Also, the parents do have quips/groaning about the requests of the kids from time to time which is does add to the authenticity.
I love the episode where the mom is trying to leave the house with the kids, and she just runs back into the bedroom to scream for a bit before coming out to talk.
Might misremember the details, but it immediately made me love the show.
(We haven't watched an episode in many months, but referenced it when my son was taking forever to brush his teeth and I got frustrated.)
The problem is his aim was never to be an educational show for parents, but to be an entertaining show. It wouldn't be as entertaining if Bandit didn't play with the kids all the time.
So yeah, although it is a great kid's show and a much better example of parenting than other shows...we should keep in mind it's ultimately entertainment, not a parenting bible.
Edit: typo.
Every time I hear this framed as a complaint, I feel the tiniest bit guilty—just for a moment—for personally identifying with Bandit's level of playtime effort and enthusiasm. But I can also commiserate with the few episodes where he let's on just how exhausted he actually is.
- It doesn't display the dad as a bumbling idiot for a start, an unmistakably uncommon move in home set shows.
- It doesn't synthetically force women to the center stage for the sake of scoring points with left leaning audiences.
- It doesn't shoehorn in political messages that don't belong and largely harkens back to a time where childrens television didn't require scrutiny of the publisher just to see if it fit the parent's flavor of morality.
- It largely fits the actual day-to-day life experiences of individuals who are most likely to have kids young enough to watch Bluey, namely millennials.
- Parent's are main characters in a lot of the episodes: The parents in Bluey aren't some side-object only included for the sake of completeness. The parents are main characters and are developed as thoughtfully as the children. By doing this the producers were able to garner attention from both the children and the parents. It's honestly a bit of a shame that we've sidelined parents for so long for fear of offending people.
- The show unashamedly depicts an intact household with two loving, heterosexual parents. It's "stunning and brave" in the current culture.
- The show depicts two children who are absolutely uninvolved or unconcerned with their sexual identity, despite the current narrative being that they are the age at which they should be.
- The show is diverse, but not for the sake of checking a box. There is no prioritized group in the show and tension between the breeds of dogs are displayed as equitable and able to relate to one another with minimal conflict (much like in real life, despite what you may have heard).
- There is no mention of a god. There is no big G god, nor any pagan gods. There are no "spirits", no "forces", no "inner being" that is wrestled with. It's a kids show and stays a kids show.
I could go on, but at this point I feel I've overstayed the common HN user's tolerance.
You seem to be implying that it's abnormal for heterosexual parents to be depicted in children's media. Is that what you meant?
>- The show depicts two children who are absolutely uninvolved or unconcerned with their sexual identity, despite the current narrative being that they are the age at which they should be.
Hm, the "current narrative"? What do you mean by that?
As a child of the Captain Planet and D&D moral panic era, when was this time you harken back to?
Eh? I'm trying to think of peer shows of Bluey... Peppa Pig and Daniel Tiger come to mind (Trash Truck anyone? Charming little show), heterosexual parents are by far and away the norm. The idea that it's "brave" to show them feels like a conservative talking point that's out of step with reality.
> unconcerned with their sexual identity, despite the current narrative being that they are the age at which they should be
Speaking of conservative talking points... again, I'm really struggling to think of peer shows that have six year olds discussing their sexual identity.
It's not something that kids might consciously notice, but it's grating and not what I'd exactly call a positive message.
While I agree it’s not a real positive note, it does seem to reflect reality to some extend (in the sense that my wife thinks she’s always right).
I’m fairly certain Peppa’s dad is just modelled on an overconfident 50’s dad.
It’s funny though, so I can live with it.
One moment it's considered brave to even feature a single, intact heterosexual couple of married pigs in a cartoon, but when challenged on this being an insane take, utterly divorced from reality, we've fallen back to "sometimes the cartoon pig dad has humourous foibles as part of his character"?
I don't really know why you thought it was an appropriate direction to take the "there are no heterosexual couples depicted in modern children's TV! / Yes there are, are you mad?" thread though. Maybe you can enlighten us?
The replies disagree with your assertions and are providing concrete examples. All of the replies are civil. One might call it civil discourse.
However, I suspect from the priming of your last line that you will not view it that way, and instead view it as "the average HN user" being intolerant of your ideas.
Instead, may I suggest engaging with the replies?
There's one particular episode - "Sleepytime" - which I cannot bring myself to watch anymore because I get so emotional. Every parent I talk to with young kids who has seen the episode agrees and knows what I mean. It's really that good, and despite being a fun little show there are a lot of episodes that are actually art.
I'll add that although the kids in the show sometimes get up to mischief, they never do anything that I don't mind my own toddler emulating. My child now rings her xylophone, commands the rest of the family to freeze, and we have fun playing along.
My endorsement of the show is that it feels like one of the great sitcoms like Cheers or Frasier, Golden Girls or Roseanne. The stories are never pandering or simple. You never quite know where they’re going to go with a plot line so when it lands, you’re often delightfully surprised or floored. Most kids shows seem like a low effort afterthought full of contrived vapid nonsense. As far as I’m concerned my kids can watch as much Bluey as they like and I’ll buy the shit out of their merch if it signals to other networks to get off their asses.
Forgot to mention the animation in the show is absolutely some of the best I’ve ever seen in a cartoon. I really appreciate the way the show models real physics as things would be in the real world. One of my biggest pet peeves of kids shows is when they show something that is physically impossible (not for comedic purpose, just lazy storytelling). It’s basically just thumbing its nose at kids’ intelligence.
Kids brain is not adult brain. You need a different kind of training material.
Tom coming back 1 second after being blown up with dynamite makes sense?
Maybe these kinds of cartoons are bad according to you.
There it research that kids are more interested in stuff which is surprising (fixation period, ...) because that builds a model of how the world works, not the easily predicted stuff.
dclowd9901 already said the issue is when it's "just lazy storytelling". Pixar shows you can tell great stories with cartoon physics.
You don't eat only sugar. You don't eat only carbs. You don't eat only protein. Your body needs a mix.
Many people want their kids to have a healthy diet. Saying Nutella is a "sometimes food" is not the same as saying Nutella is "bad", or that it's a "never food."
Tom & Jerry is a sometimes food. Other shows exercise a different range of critical skills.
I was gobsmaked when I saw a clip from Mr. Rogers where Daniel Striped Tiger asks Lady Aberlin "What does assassination mean?", in a special episode created after the assassination of RFK. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQv0ZtpRdNk And Mr. Rogers could tackle racism head-on, like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4recJ6qXyk in an era when blacks were prohibited or physically attacked for trying to go to "white" pools.
Bluey could take on these sorts of topics for kids, in an age appropriate way. Tom&Jerry could not.
Nor could Blippi, so it's not just cartoon physics that's the issue.
But Mr. Rogers couldn't pull off the classic "coyote paints a picture in a wall, Road Runner enters the picture and speeds off into the distance, coyote tries and crashes into the wall" gag, nor should it. I don't think it's a good idea for kids to only watch Mr. Rogers-type shows either.
> kids are more interested in stuff which is surprising
Strange then that kids' cartoons are often so formulaic.
"The Animal Mechanicals are sent to a new floating island to resolve a problem. The team comes up with a plan, and each team member gets to use their special abilities to help out. There are problems along the way, but they are resolved and everyone is happy at the end."
"Something goes wrong. The Paw Patrol are called to help. Ryder comes up with a plan, the pups use their special abilities to help out. There are problems along the way, but they are resolved and everyone is happy at the end. Except for Mayor Humdinger."
But it’s all in service of telling a fun, unique story, so it gets a pass.
Taking Bluey as a specific example, it's really nice to model positive family relationships. Sesame Street's original goal was to "master the addictive qualities of television and do something good with them."
Video edutainment is a futile proposition. Get your face out of the screen while you still can, and be present to your fellow man.
One thing I think that illustrates this is that my daughter will often have questions for me after watching Bluey. Like actual meaningful questions about life or how the world works. If she’s watching TOTS, she’s just sitting there mouth agape and maybe getting bored enough to just walk out of the room.
Parenting is a marathon, not a race. If it takes a village, parents need to be able to rely on the village from the time to time.
Some kids don't live in a place where they can interact with the natural world, for starters, because our society is awful.
Additionally, not everything even in kids entertainment is dreck either. You have your Bluey's, and you have pregnant Elsa spiderman keyword slurry. A spectrum you'll find in basically every media, kids and otherwise, between actual art that's made by people wanting to share something, and content-mill designed-by-committee (or AI) bullshit that's designed to keep your attention.
The unfortunately true part is now more than ever so much more of the latter of this spectrum is present than the former, because everything in our society is done for profit and not to make the world better, and it's far more profitable to make by-the-numbers repetitive minimum-viable-product garbage that people will tolerate rather than truly great things that take time and care to create that people adore. But that's a curation problem, not a problem with the media itself.
Edit: Pretty much all the top Bluey episodes have a good emotional pull to them. See https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/mar/21/the-10-best-...
So, I think it will _make sense_ on its own, but I think it _really_ hits hard if 1) you weren’t expecting it and 2) if you have kids.
Are you referring to how it references the fact that parents will eventually leave their kids when they die?
That’s only mentioned indirectly by the mom, no?
Is there a deeper story that I am missing?
Some things that I think make it hit differently:
* The house and most scenes are dimly lit
* You see the family in various stages of sleep
* The musical score has some intense crescendo
* The vulnerability it shows
It's a small glimpse of night time in a house with a child that is still transitioning to sleeping on their own. Having had kids, that weight being lifted as they finally "get it" is a unique feeling of bittersweet relief. It also shows the lengths the parents go through to make it a graceful and comforting transition.
Every milestone your kid reaches marks the end of their previous self and we grieve never getting to see that little person again.
Children open your heart to so much joy and so much grief.
This is how I felt about the episode before I had kids. I thought it was a fine episode but nothing special. Onesies was my favorite. Of course, we wanted kids, so that hit me where I was at the time. Now I have a two-year-old, and I "get" Sleepytime. There is nothing extra to explain except that it will just mean more to you.
Not saying you don't have kids, just my own experience with it.
She stays around as an advocate for the other side, without sabotaging his attempt.
So many episodes that all have great messaging for both child and parent.
The one I am talking about is "chest"
Bingo: "Are they happy tears, Mum?"
The density of emotion that is packed per minute of each episode is absurd.
Similar to Peppa Pig, the scenarios are often recognizable in a family with young children, but they're generally funnier and the characters are more loveable.
The animation style is a refreshing break from the bright colourful garbage most CGI studios seem to churn out on an assembly line.
And like you said, they won't pick up bad ideas from the show.
Daddy Pig is fat, useless, convinced he's an expert in everything but failing every time. His parenting skills hover around 0, and always needs to be rescued, usually by Mummy Pig. So much for healthy co-parenting.
Furthermore, Peppa is mean to her friends, who like her regardless, she always gets special treatment.
I'm not saying there isn't a lot of good stuff in PP, there is for sure, but the issues above feature in every episode and they really get to me now.
On the other had, I wonder if that is why I gravitated towards King of the Hill in my early years. Generally a positive male role model, competent, trying to do the right thing by his family and community.
For example, in the "Copycat" episode Bluey finds an injured bird and she and her dad take it to the vet. It dies anyway. But it's a valuable lesson for Bluey: she learns that some things are out of her and her parents' control and by the end of the episode she comes to accept it. They would never do an episode like that on Peppa Pig.
(I currently have a Bluey-obsessed toddler).
So long, Spanky.
I mean the guy is one of the world's top experts on concrete, that's hardly "useless"
and the "dad is the wacky one and mum handles organising" is a pretty common trope in other shows, such as... Bluey :)
It's honestly refreshing seeing the two parents in Bluey, because neither are being degraded and they have a good relationship and exhibit good teamwork.
Also the animation for bluey and peppa pig use the same software, CelAction2D. There is an ending of bluey episode which shows the animators using the software to build the scene. My little one was amazed and asked me to get the software. She has an artistic side but this pushed her into learning about animation
I used to be frustrated that the parents in Bluey seem to have endless energy and attention to devote to their kids – at least with S&D, I didn't feel like there was such a lofty version of parenting with which to compare myself. But I've come to realize that the playful and fun dad in Bluey is a much better role model, for me personally, than the dads who are just sort of vanilla and kind (Daniel Tiger, Doc McStuffins), not to mention the dads who are just awful (Peppa Pig). Physical comedy, imaginary play, and committing to the bit, are all great for having fun while also connecting with young kids. Sarah and Duck obviously didn't teach my any of that, so it's been a useful change of pace as my daughter has gotten older.
The Grandad episode also hits hard as my parents age and I see them only a few times a year.
I just wish they'd say what the music is in the credits - my wife and I often hear something that's familiar but can't put our finger on what it is.
Just Google “holst Jupiter”.
Is there a new show coming?
And does anyone know where I can buy an uncensored DVD or downloads collection?
One thing I admire about the show is that all the children actors' identities are a secret. No one outside of the show's team knows who voices Bluey and Bingo (other than the fact that they're the daughters of someone who works on the show), which probably affords those girls as much of a 'normal' life as possible, something that celebrity children wouldn't ever get to experience.
That also makes me wonder if the reason we're not getting more than 3 seasons is that their voices will change. But man, I really hope he puts out more stuff, whether in the Bluey universe or elsewhere.
Conversely other shows have had many different voices actors without noticeable detriment by their targets audiences, such as Peppa Pig, discussed elsewhere here.
Indeed, I can't emphasise enough just how much this is underplayed in:
> One storyline contrasts the adult dogs struggling to construct flat-pack furniture while the children create their own adventure
This is a short episode that's fun for kids to watch with some adventure and a bit of parents struggling to build some furniture. It also covers the evolution of life on the planet and futures beyond, growth, aging, letting your children go. It's like 5 minutes and entirely self contained, it's truly incredible.
They crammed so much into so little time, it's truly impressive. That episode also depicts a religious creation myth with the parents as deities who provide materials that create the world and are depicted as gods in the kids' "cave paintings". It joins with the aging theme by having the raised deck where the parents are be where the kid playing the aging mother goes after her child moves on, complete with a blink and you miss it homage to Michelangelo's "The Creation of Adam" followed by the Dad saying "This is heaven" to close the episode.
It is. I'm aware I'm gushing about it a lot but it's very impressive. It doesn't even feel rushed. To reiterate a point from earlier, this is all while being a fun thing for young children to watch.
It shows about a kid bird and her younger sibling exploring their island. It has supportive parents. Themes in the show are exploration, family ties, friendships, problem solving, independence etc.
I guess my kids are a bit young and missed it. Same as how many people without kids in the appropriate age range may not have heard of bluey.
Going to try it with my kids, thanks for the recommendation.
But it could just be that the Poppler song is also based on some classical tune. ;)
I've felt more in touch with my own imagination since I started watching Bluey. I've actually been writing music and sketching in my spare time again, which is something I haven't done since before the pandemic.
It's actually helped me piece together things that I felt as a child that I never properly dealt with, or even knew how to voice back then. I've been able to find healing and peace, and articulate stuff in therapy a bit better.
In general, I just feel a bit happier and a bit better after watching an episode of Bluey. Sometimes I just want to watch something to feel positive emotions without it being overly-happy fluff. There's a realism to Bluey that makes it easier for me to "let my guard down" and feel happiness.
I do kind of live vicariously through Chilli, with my hope being that I can be a mum some day.
Oh, and my cat now has a nickname: Muffin. Make of that what you will.
My daughter sent me a meme with the punchline "When you think your child is Bluey but really your child is Muffin". Make of that what you will :)
Edit: I have to admit that Muffin is my favorite character in that show. Make of that what you will.
1. It portrays wholesome and positive family relationships, particularly between father and daughters. The girls are also good to one another, with occasional conflict kindly and realistically resolved.
2. It tells simple stories without pushing political messages. Unfortunately, children’s television at large has become another victim of the culture wars, with heavy-handed social messages infecting what should be simple cartoons. Bluey is something I can trust.
3. I don’t have to expose my kids to American accents. They’ll have more than enough of that from regular programming when they grow up.
Out of curiosity, as a non-parent, do any galling examples come to mind?
I kinda giggled at this, because I just last night saw "Pass the Parcel", which to me was the one time they sent this up and they did it so well.
I did wonder if there'd be any outcry over the DIY episode which is about evolution. Certain cultures seem to have serious issues with that. It did also hint at afterlife, however.
What’s the concern here? I understand American media dominates everything, so I’m guessing you don’t want your kids to pick up small bits of American accent when they’re still developing?
Having a greater variety of shows that model the diversity of the English language would probably have gone some way to dispelling that damaging self-belief? I really love the existence of shows like Derry Girls, because they make me less self-conscious of my 'exotic' accent.
One digs up bones and the other sniffs for drugs.
Just one source I found: https://www.reddit.com/r/bluey/comments/ipi4ft/a_thread_for_...
It's an absolute gem, folks.
If you're so inclined, we found a nice cake topper on Etsy for _my own_ birthday this year: https://www.etsy.com/listing/1481048560/inspired-bluey-caket... turns out to be easily adapted to read "Turning 40" rather than "Turning 4". Super cute & the girls adored it.
In the end, Muffin, her scream echoing—Bluey and Jean-Luc, their tails wagging!
(My wife who’s not really an Trekkie pointed this out to me. Also there’s another read about Jean-Luc’s departure as death and an eventual reunion in the afterlife when we will all finally understand each other. Read it as you like it.)
Chilli's wisdom definitely hits hard if you have full context. The ending of this episode (and even the book version) nearly brings me to tears every time.
The Daniel Tiger potty song & book is gaining traction with our youngest, though
However, I do think that having complex messages that aren't easy to understand is probably important for young children. "The world is a complicated place" is a lesson I wish even more adults understood. And I've learned that children may show no comprehension of something the first few times they hear it, but it's in there, making connections, shaping the brain as it grows. I can't tell you how many times I've told my daughter something I thought went way over her head (and did, at first), but randomly came out again months later. So by all means go for the simple Daniel Tiger message when it helps them through a problem they're having. But don't underestimate their capacity for deeply integrating ideas from everything they see and hear -- and I love Bluey for being by far the best young kids' show for them to integrate into their brains.
I love that this post is on HN. It's helping me frame why I like Bluey so much. I'm also going to try that Sarah and Duck mentioned elsewhere.
Another thing that most people wouldn't experience is seeing episodes set in places I might have been in the last couple of weeks. It's obviously stylised and interpretive, but a lot of the buildings and places are very accurately represented!
I don’t think uncanny is the right word. It’s just bad. The depth and lighting is just wrong.
My favorite scene is him assembling flat pack furniture without reading the instructions, proudly declaring he won’t take advice from a cartoon dog.
Man, make sure you don't kill yourself trying! I always think the other parents in the neighborhood want him to dial it back so they don't look bad.
My favorites are always the grannies ("Oh no, my coins!"). My wife loves "Fairytale" because we both grew up in a far off place called the 80s and can relate to all of it.
A few others are good fun as well like Grizzy and The Lemmings. But Bluey reigns supreme.
Although I wish the phone game didn't have in app purchases. At least the Bluey video game on Steam is good and without in app purchases or micro transaction nonsense.
Out of curiosity, as a non-parent, what makes it crap?
There's lots of videos of kids unpacking presents, or having tantrums to get what they want, or weird videos of adults shouting at children... Or videos showing people play computer games for hours on end.
You are vastly underestimating what small children can understand.
Paw Patrol is essentially the laziest most nonsensical writing, because of course you don't have to write well if you have enough colour being vomited at the screen and you're really just trying to sell toys.
Bluey is essentially the opposite of that. There's decent stories, it seems to tackle some tough stuff sometimes, and just generally it seems well-written and much more representative of what life is like for people (them being dogs notwithstanding).
Separately, I've also seen some straight up terrible stuff on Youtube. Just random garbage which is probably these days more LLM-generated but clearly used to be created by throwing darts at a board. For example, I opened up youtube kids, said I was a parent, and clicked Explore and this was one of the first videos that came up: https://www.youtubekids.com/watch?v=tOXszq1-rxs The themes tend to be (ab)using well-known properties kids already know to get them to watch your video. This came up as related, and at least involves a Yoga routine but you can see the other elements are there: https://www.youtubekids.com/watch?v=QM8NjfCfOg0
At least back when my kid was small the YouTube algo would start feeding them up after the second or third video. You’d turn around to make dinner and come back to this never ending loop of … crap.
Frankly, I was pretty impressed with the hustle and curious what the tech stack looked like.
Parent of five here. Crap = glorifying bad behavior, teaching bad values (this will be different for every family), depicting no consequences for poor decisions, and/or resolving conflict using only violence.
In general, things that mom and dad don’t have to either retcon or have a long discussion about why it is bad.
And that's before even considering factors like providing educational or positive-role-model value, just a sheer "is the script, like... a story, with characters?" level. Or the animation quality (universally garbage, of course).
[1] Not even getting into the absolute insanity of Youtube—look up some of the kid-targeted "story"-type Minecraft machinama on there to see some of the most uncanny "narrative" ever, tons of them go on and on and on with the trappings of a story but no actual story, just things happening one after another and weird nebulous goals that never seem to get any closer, like some kind of drug-fueled automatic-writing experiment, it's a friggin' fever dream. And that's before you get to the extremely weird Youtube crap aimed at kids.
So like every JJ Abrams production.
"They throw Kirk off the Enterprise! And... uh... Old Spock just happens to be there! Like, right there! Because it's less work for me if he just is, for no reason! I don't want to think of a real reason and maybe have to go back and revise stuff, or remember things later, to integrate that! He just is!"
"They escape on the Millennium Falcon, and Han and Chewie show up... uh, I guess they'll need another ship for that, so now we have two. And I guess there was a homing beacon on the Falcon, that got activated, and Han just happened to be about five minutes away and already sitting in his cockpit and ready to go and not already on the way somewhere else, in hyperspace? Yeah, doesn't matter, I just need him to be there now so he is, doing something else would be hard. Oh shit I have two ships now, and I need them all on the Falcon, so, uh... monsters and pirates destroy the extra ship I just introduced! Yeah there are monsters and pirates now. Do either of those stick around or come back, or are they, like, foreshadowed? No, I just needed them to destroy this ship that I manifested for my own convenience, but no longer have any use for."
"I need these characters to go somewhere else, so, uh... someone/something shows up and chases them away! There are no other consequences or meaningful connections, they just get chased so that they leave and go to where I need them to be."
Et c.
[EDIT] To be fair, most writers do some of this, they just don't do it quite so willy-nilly and build entire plots that way.
[EDIT EDIT] This also doesn't necessarily mean his movies are bad. The plotting... I mean, that part's bad, incredibly bad, like, paragon of bad plotting, should-be-covered-in-film-schools bad, in some of them. But it's not impossible that a movie could still be entertaining, or even good, despite that. I don't mean this to dismiss his entire body of work as absolutely and entirely bad, and actually started out defending him as markedly better at everything than the kind of scripts and TV shows I was writing about, which he certainly is.
It’s like that experiment with chess masters. They show them a board mid-game then ask them to re-create it (which they can do easily), but then they do the same with a random configuration of pieces, which they fail. It’s because there’s no logic to it for their brain to “chunk”. I think it’s the same reason why a movie that you didn’t think was “bad” is completely forgettable. Your brain is built for remembering narratives, but it can sniff out when it doesn’t make sense. Has nothing to do with genre. You can probably remember the main beats of a Pixar film you’ve seen once, even though it was talking toys or whatever.
Yes, a childrens show is censored, in current year.
Why? Because some jokes don't play well with adults, even though they go right over kids heads.
Have a Google for "Bluey censored" to see what I mean!
https://www.fatherly.com/entertainment/banned-censored-bluey...
A couple of them I can understand (like being safe, not showing kids to slide on a wet tile floor), some I can see parents being appreciative for not having to answer questions about certain topics --- but some "edits" like cutting out farting seems a bit too over the top. My preschooler has just discovered farting and thinks it is _hilarious_ (because it is!). I'm proud as can be, but Mom just rolls her eyes. Proud dad here.
Aboriginal players of Aussie Rules football had to put up with a lot of abuse from some few members of the crowd making monkey noises and shouting "ape man" and stuff along those lines .. I'm guessing the "ooga booga" comes from idiots chanting that from the cheap seats.
Adam Goodes coped the worst of it for calling them out.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Australian_Dream_(2019_fil...
https://thefinalquarterfilm.com.au/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3OJ0kzSXQE
There are worse insults, but none of them are good.
Huh? I'm pretty sure I saw this scene on Disney+.
It was one about spiders, and basically about how spiders are cute, cuddly and there's no reason to be scared of them.
I mean, I sympathise with the decision... Just funny.
Having lived in the US for 10 years and returning couple of years ago (with my first 30 years in Australia), I feel like Bluey does a great job of showing some key cultural differences between these countries. I’ve seen some American viewers get quite cross by what they see as a totally unrealistic portrayal of life, but things really are pretty fundamentally different over here.
And extrapolating from things that are inevitably close, as listed in https://blueypedia.fandom.com/wiki/Real-Life_Locations
And the buses aren't Translink livery, they're all blue, white, and yellow, so definitely somewhere within BCC, not Moreton Bay Region (although I shouldn't assume you meant the Moreton Bay council).
That said, you could be using Moreton Bay when you really mean SEQLD anywhere north of the Brisbane River, it's been known to happen.
Compared to what I was brought up with (The Simpsons etc) it's nice that children are not only taught interesting values but also what the values of parents are
The boomers parents made shows like Father knows best, leave it to beaver, etc, where the father was an almost unimpeachable authority figure. Boomers (and gen x) made shows like the Simpsons and family guy, where the oaf father comes in, and family is mostly viewed as dysfunctional, an obligation rather than something to be enjoyed. Gen x produced shows like Bob's burgers which removes some of the physical violence of the family but maintains the Father as an aloof oafish character. And millennial fathers, as depicted by TV, are like bandit. The oaf is gone, but so is the dictatorial authority figure.
I don't know, I just don't get it. When people describe it as wholesome to me it feels like the opposite - it shows an unhealthy relationship between the kids and the parents, and I don't feel like it teaches my son any valuable lessons at all.
They are pretend playing. There is no indication Bingo meant to actually harm her dad. I pretend fight and let my toddlers beat me up, but I am sure they know only to do that when pretending.
My opinion anyway.
What would you like to happen? I’m not sure I understand here. I’m completely ok with Bluey’s dad not retaliating. Being a Dad means sometimes, you have to take a punch.
>>Being a Dad means sometimes, you have to take a punch.
Sure - but as a dad you are also responsible for making sure your child understands that hurting other people is not ok, and they shouldn't do it again, pretend play or not.
Look at Peppa pig(which has a whole host of its own issues, but whatever) - any time Peppa and her brother do something wrong they get an explanation why it was wrong, how it could have hurt or made someone else sad, they apologise and sing/dance about it - most of the time it teaches a good lesson while still being amusing for little kids.
In my experience, below 3.5 or so, more sing song-y and basic repetitious stuff is digestible. Bluey episodes have a plot and lots of dialogue that has to be followed.
My son is 2.5 and he absolutely understands what's happening in cartoons. He will comment on action saying clear things like "daddy he hit him in the head!" And then you have to pause it and actually explain it's not nice and you shouldn't do that. I wish shows clearly aimed at small children didn't have those moments.
I did not interpret Bandit feeling any material amount of pain in the scene. More like feigning it for the kids’ entertainment. Also, it was Bingo that punched him (the 4 year old).
My wife and I banned Bluey in our house a couple years ago. We use TV as "quiet time" for our kids (currently ages 3 to 9) after lunch, replacing the time when they used to nap, and Bluey seems to make them go crazy. I haven't even watched any of the episodes, so I can't object specifically to any of the content; we just observed a consistent, counterproductive effect on their behavior.
My neighbor, another dad of two toddlers, expressed something to me a few months ago that was similar to your opinion.
I'm honestly stunned by the overwhelmingly positive comments on this thread, and I'm wondering if I should actually try watching a couple of the episodes mentioned here.
Yes you absolutely should. One of the things I really like about the show is it promotes imaginative play. It addresses things like how to deal with being bored. Shows like paw patrol and stuff have zero imaginative anything. It's one of the things I love about Bluey.
I probably won't ever have kids, but having had a bit of a tough childhood, Bluey is actually pretty stellar viewing even as an adult.
I find that in a sense the show takes the "bumbling dad" and "uptight mom" stereotypes and kind of shows them in a more realistic way that says "hey, it's alright... they care a lot about each other and they figure out how it all works together."
A kid hits dad in the groin and he doesn't try to strangle them (a la The Simpsons) he absorbs a common mistake and rolls on. The mom is a bit uptight, but doesn't helplessly groan in the background like Marge. Sometimes these qualities are shown as strengths, other times as weakness... there are entire episodes where the dad's irresponsibility gets saved by mom's uptight nature... or where mom is too stressed and dad needs to take over and be the clown for a bit.
IMO it's not a show that's meant to model ideal behavior, but it's about how families and relationships can work despite not always being ideal.
But for young children? It seems to enforce bad habits, encourage rampant consumerism (the infinite amount of toys for every occasion), implicitly “play along” with bad behavior while ignoring dealing with punishment (at least in the episodes I watched), and depict fairly unrealistic playtime scenarios.
For younger children at least, I think PBS content does a way better job. As mentioned elsewhere, for toddlers, you can’t go wrong with Daniel Tiger. For older children, I recommend checking out Rosie’s Rules and Alma’s Way.
I also think that it shows an unhealthy relationship between the kids and the parents, and was banned in our household
As others have said: it's because the show isn't trying to force any ridiculous cultural progressivism on my children.
But also: it doesn't seem to be made by (am I joking?) the same people who would otherwise make slot machines. While other kids shows seem like an outright attack on my children's attention, this show is just happy, wholesome short stories about a family having fun together. We absolutely adore this show in my household.
As a sidenote: it's very hopeful to me that a show like this (utterly non-political, just shows a happy family) is as popular as it is. It's culturally dominant for kids. I hope this is a lesson for Disney et al. (Disney+ does carry this show in the US, but it is not produced by them.)
Seems ridiculous to me; they show "traditional" gender roles in the ripoff show to avoid "indoctrination".
Reminds me of shows like Little Bear or Magic School bus. Teaching kids about topics, while entertaining them and modeling good behavior.
One other interesting note: all the home schooled families around us (from the hippy commune to survivalists, left & right) rave about Bluey. So it has a very good cross ideological / cultural appeal (given the global audience). Ultimately, I think it’s because it hits on a deep truth about supporting one another - that everyone can connect with and want to pass to the next generation.
My 20 something sister with no kid watches it.
Pretty much spot on, it has a couple funny quotes like the Bluey episode about a cricket match beating the ratings of the actual cricket match, and how the ABC (Australia's BBC) gave the international rights to the British BBC (which was a rather colossal mistake).
Haha - this is what I told someone the other day. Brandon (Bluey’s dad) is a source of inspiration for me. I’ve put his lighthearted parenting tricks to work with much success!
"Now let's see if you can stay silent until you turn 13." :D
We really love Bluey.
I live in the city (Brisbane) the show is set in
Effectively every detailed background is recognisable but tastefully selected (not shoved down the viewer’s throat)
If you do ever visit Australia, take the kids to see Brisbane
My partner manages front of house for the Live Action Bluey theatre show, she was the first person to put Bluey on my radar (we have no children)
The live action show was so popular they’ve recently just put it on for a second session
The kids get to watch Bluey inside the QPAC building (a common background in the show, next to the Eye of Brisbane)
A few episodes have been butchered because something was found offensive - like the kids playing cavemen and saying Ooga Booga or the parents sighing while weighing themselves on a scale. Come on!
Just leave it alone and serve it as is. The creators expressed a few times he's almost had enough of edits over dumb things.
They also tried to get re-dubs done to remove the Aussie accents, luckily that was pushed back on.
There seems to have been a period in television where any "hard" english accent had to have an accompanying subtitle under it. Thankfully I don't seem to see this anymore.
One of the things I liked about Peppa Pig was my kiddo would start to take a british accent and say things like "Ready, Steady, Go!" or "Mum"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Custard_(band) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v03j7my0V6c (relatively recent single)
1. The internal walls of Bluey's house are timber using VJs (vertical joins), typical in Queenslanders (historical style of house in Brisbane & Queensland).
2. The panoramic shots of Bluey's house identifies it to locals as clearly situated somewhere in the city's hilly inner west, with St. Brigid's Church [1] in Red Hill identifiable, as well as Mount Coot-tha in the background.
Of course, there's a lot more in the drawings that shows local detail (plants, animals, etc). The above are just two that are particularly nice for Brisbane ppl to see and recognise.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Brigid's_Church,_Red_Hill
Although the Dad never seems to work, plays all day, and sets the bar pretty high for me especially on the last 2 of my 5 children. I'm out of steam.
I too succumb to the emotional episodes, and I am grateful for every tear I share with my kids!
I grew up watching Bugs Bunny, Davy and Goliath, Gumby, and All in the Family as a young kid for a contrast!
Bluey: "You're always at work!" Bandit: "I'm never at work!"
What a gem of a show, though yes, it does set the bar pretty high. Though on the plus side I can now burst into a room shout "It's Dad" and my 4 year old will reliably slow clap and then burst into laughter :P
I will say that Bandit definitely gives off a vibe of being flexible, but I never got the impression it's deliberate. He cares more about his kids than work. At least, that's my interpretation.
The channel is required to make a certain percentage of Australian content, and without the need to worry about advertising, subscriber numbers and merchandising revenue, it has become a haven of local creativity.
I think Australia also struggles to find global audiences, as in some ways the world is still recovering from Australian craze global audiences had in the 90's (Crocodile Dundee, Crocodile Hunter, Mad Max, etc). So finding a new audience with children is perfect.
The US has PBS Kids. They produced plenty of shows like Bluey, such as Arthur, Dragon Tales, Clifford the Big Red Dog and Sesame Street, and a bunch of others. Idk what the lineup is like today though, my experience is from the 90s-2000s.
In Canada, CBC also had CBC Kids, but the content was garbage and not young children friendly, so most parents ended up having us watch PBS or Family Channel (what Disney Channel was called in Canada) instead.
The UK has CBeebies on BBC which had fairly decent content, and often co-produced with PBS.
Now that I saw this article and discussion, I'll be trying Bluey next.
It’s just enough time for my kiddo to learn the value of patience. But not so long, that I need to fast forward.
Any veteran parent can give many examples of early interactions that ended up molding their children forever.
Hasn’t figured out the voice controlled outlet the TV is plugged into yet.
E.g. https://old.reddit.com/r/australia/comments/16a8s6d/clothes_...
This quote about a particular episode sums up Bluey for me. It's tremendously well written - funny to both kids and adults alike, and often hits you in the feels. It's genuinely good TV.
The reason these new shows are connecting with us now is precisely because of their outright rejection of this. Sometimes things can just be nice, and fun, and good, and there's no smirk to the camera, or higher level joke being made. It just is.
Postmodern meta-irony is out. Radical sincerity is in.
One thing I really appreciate is that it's quiet, the characters are soft spoken, stock sounds don't play constantly, there isn't constant music, it's simple and doesn't make my head hurt.
Turns out it’s them playing stop the music, and each character is called out as they keep dancing. Still, the names are definitely coming from farts…
Hopefully some HNers down under can enlighten us!
There are episodes where it feels like the entire point is to get the adults in the room misty-eyed and sniffling, and it all relies on contexts that younger children just absolutely wouldn't have - but they'd still have a good time! And while Bluey and Bingo (the kids on the show) frequently learn lessons, as you'd expect from educational children's media, those lessons are almost always coupled with examples from Bandit and Chilli (the parents) on how to constructively _teach_ those lessons.
(Not to mention, a bunch of episodes are just straight-up the parents learning lessons, while the kids are just being kids and having fun.)
For me, it fills the niche that Bob's Burgers used to fill - an example of a family that's quirky but genuinely loves one another, and communicates (both their love and in general) to move past situations that could become much more serious without it. (Bob's Burgers has fallen off -- to me -- because the characters feel a lot more like caricatures of their earlier selves and most modern episodes seem to rely on one or more characters carrying the "idiot ball" to make anything happen, but that's a rant for another time.)
My wife and I watch an episode every night after dinner to relax after stressful days (two episodes on the really stressful ones) and it's just... Its' very good. We always feel better by the time the credits roll. We've watched a few episodes with kids and they have a good time, but we've also watched a few episodes with other adults, and it's catharsis. It's on another level entirely. I can't imagine what it's going to be like for kids who grew up watching Bluey, to rewatch it as an adult and catch the entire other level it works on. I'm jealous. <3
I think this is what gives Disney, and every epic kids’ show, intergenerational momentum.
It would be interesting to see a chart with kids preferences - I bet kids enjoy Bluey far less than other shows since it's not optimized for them, but for parents.
When I was a kid it was a free market - I had a bunch of channels with a bunch of cartoons and I chose which ones to watch.
If you think about it, kids crack like addiction to cartoons doesn't make sense to adults (there are theories), so that raises questions if adults can pick for kids, and not for what they imagine kids would enjoy.
This is similar to Friendship is Magic, which I'm surprised nobody else has brought up yet. A kid's show that doesn't write "down" to them, and is written by people who are creating what they wanted to see when they were that age. That's how you make truly good entertainment!
What confuses me is why are their politics so messed up when it comes to tech.
It helps that I'm a fan of blue heelers, the real Australian shepherd (though I also love the American breed called "Australian shepherd").
"Oh man, the songs." - Bandit, "Movies".
Technically breed through and through to be cattle dogs.
Big difference being shepherd dogs focus outwards and protect, sheep dogs work and move herds on command using eyballs and stalking body language, whereas cattle dogs are "heelers" they get in close and literally bite the heels of massive stubborn cattle that won't budge until nipped.
Heelers are great dogs IF you can live with their needs - they seriously live for three to four hours of hard exercise a day, flat out running, herding, chasing, interacting. If you can't do that then don't get a heeler, they're smart and you'll pay for it.
If you don't have a herd of cattle at least live 10 km from a beach and make them run after you while you bike, motorcycle, or drive slowly there.
Getting a throwing stick that'll travel the lebgth of a football field and|or a tennis ball launcher is a good way to keep them moving, they'll fetch at extreme range for good few hours.
Play fighting is normal human behavior. In the show they can see the characters resolve their differences and make up. Not so much with the lady in the checkout line screaming, or the dude fighting the other dude outside wal-mart for the last playstation 7.
Bluey is probably the last thing in the universe that's going to screw your kid up.
Again, i am only saying this not an appropriate show for a kid this age. When he grows up to age where I can sit and explain/teach him things I'll be OK with a much wider type of media consumption.
In Cartoons, characters do all kinds of things that aren't real. They don't watch fighting and then think "oh hey I should be fighting kids", any more than they think "oh hey I should be dropping an anvil on a coyote". Their brains are more complex than that.
You are projecting your fears on the kid, but fear isn't rational. I recommend finding out for certain how cartoons have an effect on the psyche of a child. Look up some general psychology and child psychology. Confirm whether these biases and assumptions are real or not. Use knowledge and facts, not fear, to dictate your choices.
I mean, different dog breeds have different talents. In Bluey, the Sausage Dog has his moment where he can't run very well but he can roll (at least I think that was how it went). All the different dog breeds get get to use their special talents.
I don't really think the different breeds of dogs are supposed to be taken as different human ethnicities or whatever, I think it's just a shorthand to show that kids can be different in all kinds of ways and have fun together. Athletic kids, bookworms, social butterflies, introverts, adventurous, and yes different cultures/ethnicities/religions/etc
What a great way to prepare the next generation for a life where most real estate will be beyond reach for most families. And where most parents work all the time and are tired on weekends.
The series has a good soundtrack and voice acting. The mobile game is fine. The Nintendo Switch game is disappointing.
Also, isn't Bandit (Bluey's dad) pretty much the definition of "And where most parents work all the time and are tired on weekends."? Except he's tired pretty much all the time.