Bluey

Bluey is an Australian preschool cartoon created by Joe Brumm.

The show follows six-year-old Bluey Heeler as she and her family play games with each other. Bluey is accompanied by her four-year-old sister Bingo, her father Bandit, and, occasionally, her mother Chilli. In some episodes, Bluey is also accompanied by some of her friends.

The series premiered on the Australian ABC on October 1, 2018. Disney later acquired overseas distribution rights to the show in mid-2019, under the condition that the characters' Australian accents would not be dubbed over in United States airings. The series then premiered in the United States on September 9, 2019.

Tropes used in Bluey include:

• A Dog Named "Dog": Jack Russell is a Jack Russell.
• Absentee Actor: Bandit doesn't appear in "Sticky Gecko."
• Aesop Amnesia: Granted she is a kid, but Bluey tends to forget to consider Bingo's feelings.
• Agony of the Feet:
  • Chilli accidentally steps on a badge in "Sticky Gecko."
  • Muffin tosses a doorstop onto Bandit's foot in "The Sleepover".
• Ambiguous Situation: In "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound", we never find out why Bingo was in the hospital. It's said she was "sick", but what illness it was is left unsaid.
• Amazing Technicolor Wildlife: Of the subtle variety.
  • Bluey, Bandit, Nana, Stripe and Socks are Blue Heelers who are literally blue.
  • In "Camping", Jean-Luc and his family are Labradors with indigo fur.
  • Coco and her family are pink and purple poodles.
  • Juniper is a Shiba Inu with purple fur.
• Amusing Injuries: This often happens to Bandit during Bluey and Bingo's games. Though this also occasionally happens to Chilli.
• An Aesop: Each episode shows Bluey, her family, and/or her friends learning one while they're playing.
• Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny: Jack from "Army." He even has ADHD.
• Awesome McCoolname:
  • Captain from "Barky Boats" has a pretty badass name.
  • In "Fancy Restaurant", Bandit plays a guy named Romeo McFlourish when his daughters are pretending to have a restaurant.
  • In "Hairdressers", Bandit plays a man named "Burt Handsome".
• Bad Bad Acting: In "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound," Bluey sends Bingo a homemade movie that contains a lot of mistakes and bloopers.
• Big No:
  • Bluey screams this in response to Chilli telling her to go to bed in "Fruit Bat."
  • In "Mums and Dads," Rusty yells this when Bluey tries to change his diaper while they're playing the titular game.
• Bilingual Bonus: If you're fluent in French, you'll understand everything Jean-Luc is saying in "Camping".
• Bowdlerise:
  • Some scenes were deleted in the US release, like a pony taking a dump onscreen in "Markets."
  • Bingo asking Bandit how a baby ends up in the mother's belly in “Daddy Putdown” is also cut on Disney Junior airings.
  • In US airings of the episode "Trains," Bluey's line, "It's a piece of poo," is changed to "That's a slug."
  • For some reason, Bandit belching due to eating too much sauerkraut in "Chickenrat" is changed to him sneezing in a few international releases, such as the Mexican Spanish dub.
• Bratty Half-Pint:
  • Bluey can be naughty at times.
  • Muffin can be annoying, especially in episodes like "Charades" and "Library".
• Broken Pedestal: Downplayed, but in "The Dump", Bluey is disappointed in Bandit for attempting to throw out one of her old drawings and comes to the realization that he's not the world's best dad as she previously thought.
• But Now I Must Go: At the end of "Camping," Jean-Luc goes home, at the cost of not being able to see Bluey for years.
• Butt Biter: Socks bites Bandit's butt at the end of "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound."
• Butt Monkey:
  • Poor Bandit, always getting hurt during Bluey and Bingo's games. This becomes literal in "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound", when Socks bites his butt.
  • Wendy often ends up witnessing the Heelers' shenanigans, to her chagrin.
• Calling Your Bathroom Breaks:
  • In "Takeaway", Bingo says that she "need{s} to do a wee" after drinking a lot of water.
  • In "Camping", Bingo wakes up in the middle of the night to suddenly inform Chilli that she has to urinate.
• Catch Phrase:
  • Bluey often says "For real life," whether it's a question or to emphasize something.
  • Bandit sometimes says "Oh, biscuits!" (with or without the "oh").
• Cheerful Child: All the kids in this show are playful to some extent, especially Bluey and Bingo.
• The Chew Toy: Bandit tends to suffer because of his daughters' shenanigans, and it's always hilarious.
• Christmas Episode: Two of them:
  • The first one is "Verandah Santa," in which Bluey, Bingo, and their cousins play the titular game on Christmas Eve.
  • The second one is "Christmas Swim," where Bluey gets a new doll named Bartleby and, fearing that her family plays too rough with him, tries to protect him from them.
• Cloudcuckoolander: Bluey and Bingo's games can be flat-out weird; justified, as they're respectively six and four-years-old.
• Cone of Shame: Muffin is forced to wear one in the aptly-titled episode "Muffin Cone" so that she can get out of the habit of thumb-sucking (to her frustration).
• Cute but Cacophonic:
  • In "Hide and Seek", Bluey finds her old Chattermax toy, only to find out that it will not shut up.
  • Muffin can get shrill when she's angry.
• Dark Reprise: In "Camping", the sweet theme that played throughout the episode gets a sad piano version when it's revealed that Jean-Luc had to leave the campsite.
• Deadpan Snarker:
  • Chilli has a dry sense of humor at times.
  • Bandit can be snarky sometimes, particularly in "Teasing".
• Department of Redundancy Department: From "Family Meeting":

On the morning of this morning...

• Determinator:
  • In "See-Saw", Pom Pom the Pomeranian stops at nothing to get to the other children on the see-saw, despite her small size.
  • "Bike" is all about this. Bingo, Bentley and Muffin are determined to finish several challenges, and Bluey becomes determined to ride a bicycle.
• Disembodied Eyebrows: Every character's eyebrows float above their heads.
• Disney Death: Played for Laughs in "Daddy Robot", when Bandit powers down.
• The Dividual: The Terrier triplets are the twindividual variety. None of them even have names.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: In "Sleepover," Muffin acts delirious when she's been trying to wean herself off of naps, even arguing with inanimate objects and yelling non-sequiturs. Bluey and Bingo try to keep her awake so they can have more fun. It's basically a stand-in for someone trying to party with a drunk friend.
• Dr. Jerk: Bluey pretends to be a doctor in "Hospital", but she's not a very good one. She keeps giving Bandit "needles" with a toy cylinder and tries to give him an operation without any anesthetic.
• Dub Name Change: Jean-Luc from "Camping" is renamed Johnny in the French dub, going hand in hand with Keep It Foreign.
• Ear Notch: Bob has one on his right ear.
• Early-Bird Cameo:
  • Uncle Rad is first seen in a family photo in "Charades" (though with a different design) before his proper debut in "Double Babysitter."
  • Similarly, Chilli's sister, Brandy, is first seen in one of Chilli's old family photos in "Obstacle Course" before making her actual debut in "Onesies."
• Ears as Hair:
  • The fur around Indy's ears is braided.
  • Missy has beads around her ears.
• Edible Theme Naming:
  • Muffin, Bluey and Bingo's younger cousin, is named after the titular food.
  • Snickers the Dachshund is named after a certain brand of chocolate.
  • Pretzel is named after pretzels, as you'd expect.
• Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: Muffin speaks this way.
• Expressive Ears: Bingo's ears droop in sadness when she fears that she has ruined Mother's Day in "The Show."
• The Faceless: Rusty's father in "Army" is only shown from the back, though we do see his nose.
• Furry Female Mane:
  • Frisky has a ponytail.
  • Indy has braids.
• Furry Reminder: The dogs' tails sometimes wag when they're happy. Taken to the extreme with Socks, who acts more like a real puppy (at least until "Christmas Swim", when she starts walking on two legs like the other dogs).
• The Gadfly: Bandit can be a troll, especially in the aptly-named episode "Teasing."
• Gasshole: Bandit often breaks wind, usually for fun. Additionally, he belches a few times due to eating sauerkraut in "Chickenrat" (although this is changed to him sneezing in some international versions). And this is a major plot point in "Family Meeting" when he's accused of "fluffing" on Bluey's face,
• Gender Blender Name:
  • Mackenzie is a boy despite having a name usually given to girls. Averted in the Mexican Spanish dub, where he actually is a girl (at least until he became a guy again in later episodes after the dubbers realized their mistake).
  • Downplayed with Chris Heeler, as her name is short for Christine.
  • Bentley is a girl, despite her masculine name.
• Genki Girl:
  • Bluey is an energetic six-year-old.
  • Muffin can get hyperactive sometimes.
• Getting Crap Past the Radar:
  • Literally in the episode "Markets". Buttermilk, a pony dressed as a unicorn, poops onscreen, causing Bluey and Indy to run away screaming, after which Indy says, “That was disgusting!”
    • Sadly averted in US airings, where that scene actually didn't get past the radar.
  • As mentioned above, at one point in “Daddy Putdown,” Bingo asks Bandit how babies get in a mother’s belly. After a beat, Bandit lets go of the swing he was holding, causing Bingo to get dizzy.
  • Muffin acts like she's drunk due to missing her nap in "The Sleepover".
  • In "Bob Bilby", Chilli flirtatiously asks Bandit if Bob is ready. Just then, Bandit's camera flashes and takes a photo of her (not to mention, the camera is right by his crotch).
• Good Parents:
  • Bandit is wise yet good-humored, and is glad to play with his daughters.
  • Chilli is nurturing and always willing to give her daughters a hug when they need one.
• Green Around the Gills: In "Fancy Restaurant", Bandit eats Bingo's disgusting cuisine and turns green (despite the fact that since he's covered in fur, it shouldn't be visible).
• Groin Attack:
  • In "The Claw," Chilli throws a toy at Bandit and it hits him in the groin.
  • In "Verandah Santa," Muffin accidentally jumps on Stripe's crotch.
  • Bandit gets hit down there with a football in "Rug Island".
  • Implied in "Sleepytime". Bingo dreams that she's jumped on the Great Red Spot on Jupiter. Cut to the real world, where Bandit is clutching his groin in pain.
• Gratuitous English: Bluey says, "Bye!" in English in the Mexican Spanish dub of "Hospital".
• He Cleans Up Nicely: In "Puppets", Bluey and Bingo give Unicorse a makeover to impress Chilli. Even though he's just a puppet, he still looks handsome after having his hair pimped out.
• Heroic BSOD:
  • Bingo goes through this twice in "The Show", thinking that she's ruined Mother's Day.
  • Bingo suffers a brief one in "Butterflies" after Bluey abandons her to be with Judo. She is initially unresponsive when Bluey tries to apologize, but she snaps out of it when Bluey sings the ladybug song that Bingo had been singing before.
• Infertility Angst: The show all but outright states that Chilli's sister Brandy can't have children.
• Innocently Insensitive:
  • Bluey sometimes fails to consider Bingo's feelings, though it's not usually on purpose.
  • Socks. Mainly due to being a year old at the start of the series, she's too wild to know right from wrong.
• Jaw Drop: Chilli goes slack-jawed at the sight of Bluey taking her first steps at the end of "Baby Race".
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Muffin's a Bratty Half-Pint, but she still loves her family.
• Jerkass Ball: Bandit holds it in "Obstacle Course." He brags when he beats Bluey at the game the first time, and he also cheats at the end when Bluey is about to beat him.
• Keep It Foreign: In the French dub of "Camping", Jean-Luc the French dog speaks English with a British accent. He's also called Johnny.
• Keet: Jack Russell from "Army" can't sit still for long and is constantly on the go.
• Large Ham:
  • Bluey can get a bit too into the games she plays.
  • Muffin can get loud when she's upset.
• Law of Inverse Fertility: It's heavily implied that Brandy wants kids, but is infertile. Chilli says there's something she wants, but can never get, and Brandy is shown looking at the clouds wistfully while there's a small cloud in between two larger ones.
• Lethal Chef: In "Fancy Restaurant", Bingo mixes several foods (including cheese, mashed potatoes, spaghetti, and olives) together, making a very...gross result. Bandit ultimately decides to eat it for Chilli's sake and it makes him nauseous.
• Lull Destruction: A rather sad example in the Italian dub of "Camping". In the English version, Bluey weeps silently after she learns that Jean-Luc has left the campsite, but in the Italian version, she audibly sniffles and sobs.
• Massive Numbered Siblings: Coco is revealed to have eight siblings in "Baby Race".
• Military Brat: Rusty's dad is revealed to be in the army in "Army".
• Miniature Senior Citizens: In "Granny Mobile", an elderly pug is the exact same size as Muffin (a toddler).
• Mood Whiplash:
  • The first few minutes of "Copycat" are about Bluey playfully imitating Bandit...and then they find the badly-injured budgie who fails to survive.
  • Bandit "powering down" in "Daddy Robot" is rather sad, until Bandit loudly farts.
• Mister Seahorse:
  • Discussed in "Hospital" when Bluey (who is pretending to be a doctor) asks Bandit if he has a baby in his belly.
  • At the end of "Shaun," Chilli says that the titular emu (who is actually Bandit's hand) has given birth, and the two babies are played by Bluey and Bingo's hands.
  • In "Dad Baby," Bluey gets Bandit to reenact Chilli's pregnancy with Bingo after Bandit's old baby carrier is found.
• Ms. Imagination: Bluey and Bingo love to use their imaginations in their games.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Bluey feels terrible after she leaves Bingo alone to play with Judo in "Butterflies".
• Never Say "Die": Heartbreakingly averted in "Copycat" when Bluey and Bandit take a severely injured budgie to the veterinarian. She is unfortunately unable to save the budgie's life, and sadly tells Bluey that the budgie died.
• No Name Given: The Terriers, as if they weren't indistinguishable enough. Although according to the Italian dub's credits for "Mums and Dads", one of them is named Joe.
• Noodle People: Snickers. Then again, he is a Dachshund.
• Overly Long Gag: Bingo pees behind a bush for almost a full minute in "Takeaway", to Bandit's chagrin, who has to deal with crows attacking their food.
• Palette Swap: Rusty looks exactly like Bluey, only he has red fur instead of blue.
• Peer Pressure Makes You Evil: Sort of. In "Butterflies", Judo tells Bluey to leave Bingo for their game. At first, when the remorseful Bluey goes to apologize, she says Judo "made" her do it before admitting that she wasn't forced per se.
• Perma-Stubble: Bandit, Bob, Stripe always have stubble on their faces.
• Pink Means Feminine: Coco has pink fur.
• Potty Emergency:
  • Bingo needs to pee in "Takeaway" after drinking too much water and is told that the bathrooms are too far away, so Bandit gets her to pee behind a bush.
  • Happens to Bingo again in "Camping" late at night, so Chilli gets her to whiz behind a bush.
  • In "Featherwand", Bluey and Bingo use the "magic" wand to keep the toilet lid shut when Bandit has to go. He resorts to taking a leak outside, only to get caught by Wendy.
  • Happens twice in "Road Trip". Bluey first has one when she's in the car, so she goes behind a bush. Right after she's done, Bingo says she has to go too, so she does the same thing and waves at the "gray nomads" driving by.
• Potty Failure: Defied. In "Fruit Bat", Bingo decides to use the bathroom before going to bed so that she doesn't wet the bed, calling it a "tactical wee".
• Punctuated! For! Emphasis!:
  • Muffin yells, "I! Hate! Plant!" in "The Sleepover" due to sleep-deprivation.
  • Uncle Stripe shouts, "Read! The! Apron!" in "Christmas Swim".
• Puppy Dog Eyes: Literally. Bluey and Bingo do this occasionally, and they call it their "please face".
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Ironically, Bluey is the Genki Girl red to Bingo's sensitive blue.
• Screaming At Squick: In "Markets," Bluey and Indy do this when Buttermilk the "unicorn" defecates in front of them (although this scene was omitted in the US release).
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here:
  • In "Horsey Ride", Stripe does this when the kids tell them to say "I do." in horse language.
  • A less played for laughs example in "Verandah Santa", when Socks runs out of the room heartbroken after Bluey refuses to leave her anything because she bit her.
• Seldom-Seen Species: It's more of a Seldom-Seen Dog Breed. Australian Cattle Dogs, or Heelers, are not a type of dog most people know of (or at least not in America).
• She Cleans Up Nicely:
• Ship Tease:
  • Bluey and Jean-Luc have some teasing in "Camping."
  • Indy and Rusty also have some of this at the end of “Early Baby” and in “Mums and Dads.”
• Shout-Out:
  • Two in "Featherwand". Bandit says "You shall not pass", and Lucky's dad runs like in Naruto.
  • In "Hide and Seek", the Chattermax is a toy owl that never stops talking, in a similar vein to Furby.
• Shrinking Violet: Bingo can be timid and sensitive at times.
• Sick Episode: In "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound", Bingo is in the hospital with some unknown illness.
• Single Tear: Shed by Bluey after finding out too late that Jean-Luc has gone home in "Camping."
• Slapstick Knows No Gender: Chilli is not spared from comedic injuries if she joins in on Bluey and Bingo's games.
• Sneeze of Doom: In some versions of "Chickenrat", Bandit belching and giving himself away during a game of hide-and-seek is changed to him sneezing instead.
• Something Else Also Rises: In "Bob Bilby", Chilli seductively asks Bandit if Bob the puppet is ready...and then Bandit's camera flashes and takes a pic. It's also worth noting that the camera is by Bandit's groin at the time, and he has an expression of awe on his face.
• Species Surname: Well, Breed Surname. Bluey and her family, who are all Blue and Red Heelers, all share the last name Heeler. The same thing applies to most of the other dogs in the show.
• Speech Impediment: Jack in "Army" has a subtle lateral lisp.
• The Speechless: Socks doesn't speak, she just growls and barks. Justified, as she is a year old. However, she can say a couple of words such as "ballerina", as shown in "Charades". Averted with "Christmas Swim" onward, as she has since learned to talk more.
• Stylistic Suck: The movie that Bluey sends to Bingo in "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound". It's loaded with bad acting and sucky special effects, but that just makes it even cuter and funnier. And the lesson that everyone gets sick sometimes makes it pretty sweet.
• Take a Third Option: After making up in “Mums and Dads,” Indy and Rusty try to decide who should stay home and take care of their baby, and who should go to work. They then decide to pretend that it’s the weekend so they can both stay at home.
• Tears of Joy: Chilli sheds these twice in "Baby Race". First she does it after the flashback of hugging Bella, and then during the flashback of baby Bluey taking her first steps.
• Tears of Remorse:
  • Bluey tears up when she's apologizing to Bingo in "Butterflies."
  • In "Bob Bilby", Bingo runs to the porch in tears when she realizes that all the family did with Bob was spend screentime with him.

Bingo: I'm the worst friend Bob's got. He's never going to want to visit again.

• Theme Tune Roll Call: The intro calls out the Heeler family's names.

Mum! Dad! Bingo! Bluey!

• Through a Face Full of Fur: In "Fancy Restaurant", Bandit (who is covered in blue fur) turns green in the face thanks to Bingo's horrible cuisine.
• The Talk: Defied in "Daddy Putdown" (though this scene was deleted in American airings). Bingo asks Bandit how babies get inside their mothers, and Bandit is quick to change the subject.
• Time Skip: At the end of "Camping", the scene cuts to several years in the future (presumably when Bluey is a teenager), and then she finds Jean-Luc.
• Toilet Humor: Happens occasionally, though, given the ages of Bluey and Bingo, it's not too much of a surprise.
  • Buttermilk the pony defecates onscreen in "Markets" (although this was deleted in US airings).
  • Bandit sometimes farts during games.
  • Bingo has a Potty Emergency in "Takeaway," though this is played for laughs, especially when she urinates for quite a while.
  • When Bluey and Socks (as Barnacus and Bumpy) are skipping around a yard in "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound", Socks suddenly takes a dump offscreen.
  • In "Fruit Bat", Bingo decides to have a "tactical wee" before her bedtime, which is immediately followed by Bandit saying that bats pee upside down and get it all over themselves.
  • In "The Weekend", Bandit excuses himself to use the bathroom, but Bluey and Bingo follow him in there and Bluey comments on the stench.
  • In "Featherwand", Bandit has a Potty Emergency and decides to pee outside. The disgusted Wendy yells at him.
  • There are two jokes about Bandit peeing the in pool in "Swim School". He is initially accused of it, until he does it for real at the end of the episode.
  • "Dunny" is all about Bluey and Bingo trying to get Chilli to say the word "dunny" when she says it doesn't sound like a good synonym for the bathroom.
  • "Family Meeting" revolves around Bluey accusing Bandit of far- er, "fluffing" in her face.
  • Muffin accidentally runs into the bathroom while Trixie is using the toilet in "Faceytalk." (though this was removed from the Disney+ release)
• Too Long; Didn't Dub: At the end of the Mexican Spanish dub of "Verandah Santa", Bandit yelling, "You naughty kids!!" is kept in English.
• Tooth Strip: Visible on every character.
• Unreliable Narrator: Maybe. Bandit says at the end of "Fairytale" that a young Chilli said his full name and broke the curse of him being unable to talk. However, Chilli has no memory of this event, so who knows who's telling the truth?
• The Unreveal: In "Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound", it's never revealed what illness Bingo was suffering from, though it was apparently bad enough to be sent to the hospital.
• Unusual Euphemism: For unknown reasons, in "Family Meeting," farting is referred to as "fluffing."
• Vomit Discretion Shot: A variation in "Fancy Restaurant". At the end of the episode, Bandit eats Bingo's awful food and starts to gag. The scene then cuts to the credits.
• Wham! Line: During the Time Skip in "Camping", Bluey goes to the campsite where she first met Jean-Luc, and then...

Jean-Luc: Hello, Bluey.

• What the Hell, Hero?:
  • In "Verandah Santa", Bandit calls Bluey out for not giving Socks anything while they're playing the titular game.
  • Bingo gives Bandit a short one in "The Dump" for attempting to dispose of Bluey's old drawings.

Bingo: You're a baddie.

• Wild Child: Well, Socks is a dog, but she acts like a real puppy, unlike all the other sapient dogs on this show. In the later episodes, however, she starts to walk on two legs and talks a little bit more.
• World of Funny Animals: A world of talking dogs.
• You Are Better Than You Think You Are: In a flashback during "Baby Race", Chilli feels like she isn't raising baby Bluey right, but Bella tells her that she's doing just fine, as Bella has had eight other children besides Coco.
• Younger Than They Look: Chilli has gray hairs, unlike her older sister Brandy. It's implied that raising two daughters is why she hasn't aged as well in comparison.