Next month, animated television phenomenon Bluey is set to premiere two episodes globally for the very first time. Up until now, fans outside of Australia have had to wait a year or more to see episodes that originally aired in their country of origin. The Pop Break is here to hype this release and hopefully convince some non-parents to hop on the bandwagon for one of the most important and beloved animated series of all time.
Previously, we brought you 5 episodes of Bluey to make you laugh, but today we are taking a different approach.
Our next stop on this hype train is a quick preview of five episodes that are sure to make you cry. Why would we do this to you? What’s so good about feeling sad?
Well, as Sally Sparrow once said on Doctor Who (another international powerhouse series): sad is “happy, for deep people.”
If you are here with enough curiosity to learn why folks are raving about Bluey, you are certainly one of those “deep” people. That’s why we’ve curated a list that showcases Bluey’s ability to help you feel vulnerable and embrace your feelings.
While this article sets out to identify some of the most emotional Bluey episodes, it’s important to establish three universal truths:
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There is no such thing as a bad episode of Bluey.
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The “worst” episode of Bluey is still miles ahead of most other shows produced for children or adults. Every episode on this list and beyond is oozing with noteworthy humor, style, and emotion.
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Lists like this are subjective and should only be used to facilitate conversation and build community around this pop culture phenomenon. Bluey knows how to dig deep into our souls, and each episode will land differently in the heart of each viewer. All of those takes are valid.
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: One obvious snub from this list is the deeply emotional “Onesies” (3.32). Be on the lookout for that episode in a future installment.
Now it’s time to tug at those heartstrings. Remember, this list is in chronological order since the moments that pack that biggest emotional punch are so unique from viewer to viewer.
“Copycat” (1.38)
“Dad, I don’t want the budgie to have died.”
–Bluey
If you take a chronological voyage through all that Bluey has to offer, by the time you arrive at “Copycat,” you’ll understand that the show is equal parts zany and contemplative – but you are about to learn that some of the show’s most powerful material involves accepting and reflecting upon death. Admittedly, “Copycat” is not the first episode to hint at forces and misfortunes beyond our control. Back in “Bumpy and the Wise Old Wolfhound” (1.32), you saw Chilli sniffle and hold back a tear during Bingo’s extended hospital stay. She was moved by Bluey’s get-well video for her younger sister, and the short film’s conclusion that “being sick is just a part of life.”
So why are we talking about “Copycat” instead?
This episode pushes that vibe another step forward by raising the stakes and showing us what it might look like when a child internalizes death as a concept for the first time. In its opening moments, “Copycat” catches the viewer off guard by presenting itself as an entirely different type of episode. Bandit and Bluey find themselves stuck in an increasingly high stakes game of copycat until they stumble upon an injured bird. Despite their best rescue efforts, it dies on the veterinarian’s table. After returning home to hug her mother, Bluey engages her family in a reenactment of the entire death sequence. When Chilli tries to present her daughter with an alternate happy ending, Bluey pushes back. She insists that the bird has to die, and later “copycats” Bandit’s earlier claim that death is “out of our hands.”
Bluey may deliver this line with a smile and sense of acceptance on her face, but it still takes you back to the moment when death first entered your consciousness; you may shed a tear, but it will come from a place of strength, growth, and acceptance.
“Rug Island” (2.10)
“Oh, it’s my ship. They’ve come to take me home.”
-Bandit
In this episode, Bandit gets sucked into playtime after Bluey and Bingo construct a backyard island out of potted plants and rugs. Their world of imagination springs into life with the addition of colorful, connectable felt pens; the girls use the pens to represent everything from fruit and fish to a roaring campfire. Bandit takes some time out of his morning routine to pretend he has been shipwrecked on rug island. Together, the Heelers play out a carefree day without work and responsibilities – fueled purely by innocent childhood imagination. Bandit is nearly sucked out of the game when he tries to return their neighbor’s rugby ball (in the world of their game, it is a sacred egg), but in the end, he puts the game first and earns the weighty title of “not a grownup.”
Unfortunately, all good things come to an end; the call of adult life and responsibility draws Bandit home. He leaves rug island with his daughters’ solemn blessing and a parting gift. When Chilli asks Bandit what the girls gave him, he stares wistfully at a single felt pen and says, “everything.” While this might activate parental tears a bit more efficiently, any adult out there can relate to having left behind the carefree world of childhood imagination that once dominated their life. Watching Bandit reclaim it, even for a moment, is sure to move you.
“Flat Pack” (2.21)
“Thanks for looking after me.”
-Bingo
While Bandit and Chilli are preoccupied with the tension surrounding the assembly of a new porch swing, Bluey and Bingo build a fantasy world from the unending waves of boxes and packaging material. Technically, it’s not one world, but an evolving universe that advances over the course of the episode. At first, the girls portray a mother and daughter pair of young fish swimming in the ocean.
By the end, the “fish” have evolved into leaders of a civilization on the eve of interstellar travel. Watching the girls grow up so quickly may already have parents a bit misty-eyed, but the episode ups its game with the girls’ final evolution. Bluey suddenly and seamlessly hunches over to support herself on a nearby cardboard roll and takes on an elderly affectation to wish her “adult” daughter good luck on a voyage to the stars.
They share a touching hug and exchange thanks as “elderly” Bluey wonders what to do next. Her parents motion her up to the completed porch swing. As she approaches, she grabs her mother’s hand. We get a close-up of their meeting hands bathed in sunlight that puts The Creation of Adam to shame. If you aren’t already crying when Bandit says, “Ah, this heaven.” it is quite possible that you don’t possess a soul.
“Grandad” (2.29)
“I remember when you used to take me swimming here…that was a long time ago.”
-Chilli
This is a beautifully-structured episode of Bluey. We open on Chilli and the girls paying “Grandad” a visit. In fact, this is his first appearance on the series, and one of the earliest pieces in the emerging puzzle of Chilli’s complicated family dynamics. Chilli is deep in the throes of the anxiety that befalls all adults looking after an ailing parent. She drives up to her father’s home with a look of absolute horror and frustration at the sight of him pulling up a stump in the front yard when he should be resting after a sensitive medical procedure.
Grandad sees his daughter’s rage and runs off into “the bush” with his granddaughters. Chilli goes into full special ops mode as she tracks the trio and provides a window into her childhood upbringing: “Nobody knows this scrub better than me!” she declares. We see Chilli’s comfort with the backwoods of her upbringing, as well as her confident familiarity with her dad’s old fishing buddy: “Can it, Maynard!”
Your tears will start welling up as Chilli closes in on her quarry as he laughs with his granddaughters at the docks. Your first tear will fall when she offers a gentle, heartfelt “hooray” in response to Bluey’s declaration that Grandad is finally resting. You’ll find those tears flowing freely when Chill remarks that it’s been a long time since she was a girl. Finally, you will simply dissolve into a puddle of your own tears when Grandad responds, “no, it was yesterday,” and Chilli fades into her childhood self as she rests her head on her father’s shoulder.
“Baby Race” (2.47)
“You’re doing great.”
-Bella (Coco’s Mum)
At first glance, this episode may seem out of sync with the stated objectives of this piece. How could an episode so grounded in the complexities of motherhood possibly appeal to non-parents who still haven’t watched an episode of Bluey?
First of all, this episode gives you non-parents a chance to catch a few laughs at the expense of the new parents in your lives. As Chilli recounts some of the emotional strain of early motherhood through flashbacks, she admits to getting caught up in the performative, milestone-based, downright competitive underbelly of parenting. She becomes a bit of a braggart about Bluey’s “advanced” accomplishment of rolling over ahead of her peers. Chilli begins to tie her sense of worth and belonging in the social hierarchy of her friend group to the development goals of her child. As she awaits Bluey’s first steps, she is repeatedly confounded and frustrated by curveballs from her daughter, like bum-shuffling and crawling backwards. Non-parents will recognize the extent to which their loved ones have been sucked into similar ugly cycles of both misplaced pride and misplaced negativity.
Now, the episode certainly isn’t trying to be cruel to Chilli or new parents. It is asking viewers to consider how the worries, fears, and constant dialogue around parenting practices can morph into something nasty and competitive. Fortunately, our last set of tears today are happy tears.
When new mom Chilli reaches her breaking point, her friend Bella (Coco’s Mum) recognizes the signs of an emotional struggle and stops by to check in on her friend. Bella is currently parenting her ninth newborn and she has moved beyond the petty pride that can confuse new parents. She listens to Chilli’s concerns and then tells her something she needs to hear…she is doing great. In the present, Chilli sheds a full tear recalling the memory of that act of kindness before explaining her ultimate philosophy of letting every child “run their own race.”
If that isn’t enough to open up the waterworks, we close on a shot of baby Bluey finally taking her first steps – driven by pure adoration for her mother. A mother who is doing her best. A mother who is doing great.
Those are five episodes to help you understand the emotional depth that makes Bluey so special. Next time, we’ll explore five episodes that showcase some of the innovation that puts Bluey miles ahead of its contemporaries.
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the global debut of “Ghostbasket” on April 7 and the record-setting, 28-minute episode, “The Sign,” on April 14th.
