The best episodes of Blue attracts children and adults. Blue is an animated children’s program from Australia. The series revolves around a talking dog named Bluey and his family. Each episode finds Bluey and her friends and family learning a new lesson, usually about growing up. It may seem like a typical children’s show, but it has really broken through barriers to become one that parents don’t mind watching with their kids and that even some teenagers are willing to watch.
This willingness of older audiences to watch the show comes from many of the episodes featuring more mature themes that are not always present in children’s television programs. As a result, the lessons learned don’t just apply to younger members of the public. The show is incredibly imaginative with some of Bluey’s play or even sleep sequences creating some great artistic scenes that adults will appreciate. Blue has become the best modern children’s show with these great episodes.
10
Library
Season 2, Episode 30
Starting the best Blue episodes is “Library”. The episode introduces Muffin, a young cousin of Bluey and Bingo who often causes chaos when she appears on the series.
Here, Muffin is at her father’s peak, telling her how special she is. Believing that he is literally the most special child in the world, Muffin understands that this means that everything must always be done his way. She takes this philosophy to Bluey and Bingo’s game “Library,” and she hears some hard truths.
The fact that Muffin’s father has to admit that she may not be the most special person in the world and that she won’t always get what she wants is not something most children’s shows would address. Children’s programs aim to boost children’s confidence and teach them lessons in morality. Here, the audience learns along with Muffin that overconfidence can lead to selfish behavior, a valuable lesson for children and a great one for parents to see happen.
9
Flat package
Season 2, Episode 24 The episode is good for a lot more than just meta humor…
Bluey’s dad, Bandit, manages to get a little meta when he sets up a swing in this episode. When looking at the instructions, he says he won’t listen to a cartoon dog. It’s the kind of thing that will make parents laugh, but might go over the heads of kids watching. The episode is good for a lot more than just meta humor.
“Flatpack” follows the old idea of parents assembling the furniture while their children prefer to play with the boxes. It’s true that young children will find countless uses for a large box, and here Bluey and Bingo trace the story of life.
Bluey and Bingo let their imaginations run wild with the box, starting with a mother and a little fish, moving on to dinosaurs, cave dogs, and eventually Bingo taking an elderly Bluey into space. It’s a wildly imaginative and wonderfully done romp sequence.
8
Facetalk
Season 3, Episode 23
“Faceytalk” is another great one Blue episode to feature Muffin in a prominent role. This time, a puppy is getting a lot of screen time, and the episode uses this to comment on the way so many kids have fun today.
Bluey and Bingo can see their cousins through what basically looks like Apple’s Facetime calling system. However, when Muffin has problems with her father, instead of listening, she steals his phone and leaves the house. The episode then takes the audience through the chase sequence through the phone’s own point of view.
This means the audience sees things like filters being used to turn Muffin’s father into a bikini-wearing gorilla. It’s a break in the format of how Blue episodes are usually made, which is a lot of fun to watch. It will also be fun for adults to hear debates about parenting practices, since “time outs” are considered unfashionable parenting.
7
Jumpsuits
Season 3, Episode 32
While Bingo pretends to be the cheetah his onesie portrays and has a lot of fun, Brandy becomes the emotional center of the episode.
“Onesies” is one of the Blue episodes that feature a much more mature theme than typically found in a children’s program. This all happens thanks to Bluey’s Aunt Brandy bringing animal onesies for the kids to wear.
While Bingo pretends to be the cheetah his onesie portrays and has a lot of fun, Brandy becomes the emotional center of the episode. Although she wanted to do something nice for her sister’s children, being around them weighs on her because she cannot have children of her own.
Infertility is a common topic in adult-oriented sitcoms and dramas, but it rarely appears in a series where children are the target audience. It’s certainly the kind of episode that could allow parents to open a dialogue with their children about the subject, if they wanted.
6
Camping
Season 1, Episode 43
Blue is known for creating silly, imaginative stories that move and bring audiences to tears, seemingly out of nowhere. “Camping” falls into this category of Blue episodes.
The episode shows Bluey and her family going on a camping trip. While there, Bluey meets Jean-Luc, but he only speaks French, so they have trouble communicating. Despite this, the two begin a kind of friendship that involves hunting a wild pig. Things get a little more emotional when Jean-Luc leaves and doesn’t get to say goodbye to Bluey.
The show is a great example of how kids can easily come together to find things in common, even when they may be so different at first glance. It also has a great future premise, as the characters meet again as teenagers, after Jean-Luc has learned English.
5
baby race
Season 2, Episode 47 This one will touch parents’ hearts, especially when it comes to the end of the episode.
A lot of Blue focuses on the titular character as a child, but there are a few episodes that show Bluey at different ages. This episode flashes back to Bluey when she was a baby, making her mother Chilli the true main character of the episode.
Chilli is worried that Bluey is not progressing as quickly as other babies her age. She seeks advice from a pediatrician, other parents, and family members about her concerns. Some are dismissive, while others use “tricks” that don’t work, thinking they are helping Bluey and Chilli in the process. Ultimately, it’s a mother of nine poodles who reminds Chilli that she’s a great mother, something she needs to hear when she feels like a failure. All children grow and learn at different rates.
This one will touch parents’ hearts, especially when it comes to the end of the episode. It switches from telling Chilli’s story to seeing the point of view of the child Bluey as she begins to walk for the first time – straight to her mother.
4
To relax
Season 3, Episode 40
Adults often have a much harder time relaxing than children. There’s a lot of pressure on adults to meet deadlines, get their work done and, in Chilli and Bandit’s case, take care of their children. Chilli finds the idea of relaxing so difficult that she buys a book about it when the family goes on vacation and tries to follow the book’s advice.
When that doesn’t work, she seeks out her own children and watches them having fun with nothing but a recliner. She realizes that even trying to relax has put a lot of pressure on herself and decides to just “do it” like children do.
It’s a reminder that there is an innocence to childhood that plays with the wonder of the world around everyone and does not bow to the fear of judgment. It’s a Blue episode that parents can learn from. Embracing the inner child is definitely a good way for audiences to have fun.
3
Rain
Season 3, Episode 18
“Rain” is a seemingly simple episode. It’s about Bluey playing in the rain. It is also, however, one of the best animated episodes of the entire series.
The episode shows a storm in the middle of the day sparking Bluey’s interest. She decides to play a game to stop a jet of water from going down the sidewalk in front of the house. Her mother intends to stay dry, but eventually she gives in and joins Bluey in their impromptu game, not caring if it rains a little on her.
What makes this episode so good is that there is almost no dialogue in it. Instead, it relies on the animation and sound design of the rain itself to tell most of the story. It’s beautifully done and something out of an older era of animation.
2
The Signal
Season 3, Episode 49
Blue episodes usually average about seven minutes each. There are, however, some special episodes that have longer runtimes. “The Sign” is 28 minutes long. That’s four times the average episode length, and there’s plenty of room for more story and depth.
The episode begins immediately after the events of Season 3, Episode 48, when the audience sees a “for sale” sign in Bluey’s family’s yard. It’s truly a love letter to the parents and children who watched the show, as the episode recalls knowledge of events from previous seasons of the show. It also explores the idea of what it means to move to a new home, for both children and adults.
While most of the show’s episodes are actually standalone, it’s best to be familiar with the show. Many of the episode’s more emotional moments will mean more to longtime viewers. There’s also a lot in the episode that will make even parents cry.
1
Bedtime
Season 2, Episode 26
Next to “Flatpack”, “Sleepytime” is one of the most creative and imaginative episodes of the series. The idea of the episode is that Bingo tries to sleep through the night in her own bed, so the story is divided between her dream and what Chilli and Bandit are facing in the real world.
Bingo’s dream is the most beautiful part of the episode. She takes a trip through the cosmos complete with liquid Jupiter, butterflies around Saturn and, of course, the heat of the sun. The sun, however, has the voice of Bluey and Bingo’s mother, demonstrating how she gave them life and provides them with warmth and comfort on a regular basis.
“Sleepytime” is so well done that it’s hard to imagine any episode of Blue always being able to overcome the beauty and creativity of it.
Bley is an Australian animated children’s program centered on a family of talking dogs. Bluey is an Australian Blue Heeler Cattle Dog and, along with her sister Bingo, mom and dad, Bluey always finds herself in the middle of an adventure.
- Cast
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David McCormack, Melanie Zanetti, Ninthe van Schie, Brad Elliott, Myf Warhurst, Meg Washington, Dan Brumm
- Release date
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September 30, 2018
- Creator(s)
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Joe Brum