Top 10 Things You Missed in the Background of Bluey

“Bin Night”
While the family is taking out the bins and watching the trash truck, Bingo is learning about finding a way to become friends with a new, initially combative, person. However, upon closer inspection, we realize that she isn’t the only one learning something new. Bluey appears to be wearing a karate uniform during the evenings the bins need to be taken out. On the first night, she’s wearing a white belt, indicating that she is a newbie to the karate world. However, with a keen eye we can see that by the end of the episode she’s advanced to a yellow belt! It’s a neat little bit of storytelling that provides a subtle glimpse into the characters’ evolving lives as time passes.

“Grandad”
In this episode, we get to meet Chilli’s father, who initially has a hard time slowing down even though he’s getting older. Soon, Chilli is led on a mad dash to catch her dad, Bluey, and Bingo. As they run and hide from her in the wilderness, we get a quick glimpse of something that gives us insight into her younger days. Indeed, carved into a tree just out of focus is Chilli’s name! We can assume this is something she did when she was running around these very woods as a young pup. It’s an adorable little peek into what everyone’s favorite mom was up to when she was closer to her girls’ age.

“The Weekend”
The weekend is here and it’s time to play! While acting as a moving statue, Bingo happens upon an adorable insect that captures her attention. However, there’s something different in this episode that we didn’t notice the first time around! Looking closely at Chilli when she returns from her jog, we see her music player. Zoom in and you’ll see the album cover is a dog version of the famous prism from Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon”. We don’t usually see much of the parents’ preferences when it comes to music and entertainment. This neat inclusion allows us to get to know Chilli a little better, outside of mom duties.

“Phones”
When Grandad comes over to the Heeler house for some playtime, he ends up quite surprised by how much Bluey and Bingo work phones into games. While he learns to adjust, eagle-eyed viewers might notice a very special guest appearance in the background. The Australian children’s music group the Wiggles appear in a signed photo, or at least the dog versions of them do! It’s an especially interesting catch when you realize that the leader of the Wiggles, Anthony Field, has actually voiced both Postie and Rusty’s father in the show. This is hard to spot or recognize at first, but once you know, it’s clear it’s a sweet nod to other figures in Australian kids’ entertainment.

“Bingo” & “The Show”
Jean-Luc, Bluey’s French speaking friend that she met while camping, made a strong impression. In fact, in his original episode, we can see that the family is likely French-Canadian based on the maple syrup on their table. But in this episode, we realize just how important he is to Bluey when we see the drawing she presumably made of the two of them. The work of art actually makes more than one appearance in the series, displayed on the wall in Bingo’s eponymous episode, as well as in the Mother’s Day-focused “The Show.” There’s important conversations being had in the foreground while it’s visible in the background, but it’s adorable to know how much that trip and friendship means to Bluey.

“Hammerbarn”
Is there anything quite as exciting as a trip to a warehouse store with all sorts of odds and ends? While our eyes are drawn to Bluey and Bingo’s imaginary homes in the cart, we nearly miss what’s going on elsewhere. As the cart heads down a large aisle, you can see items in the background with an interesting set of names. Pay attention, and you’ll notice that “Dmitri,” “Claude,” (clod) and “Edelgard” (AY-dl-gard) are written in bold letters. These happen to be the names of the house leaders in “Fire Emblem: Three Houses,” from the popular strategy game franchise. There’s something so satisfying about spotting the references that artists sneak into their work from media they presumably enjoy.

“Fancy Restaurant”
Some kids want to avoid seeing their parents be romantic, sorry, romance. Others, like Bluey and Bingo, sometimes just want to see a smoochy kiss! To try and set the mood, the imaginative family creates a pretend fancy restaurant. As usual, Mum and Dad play along. As Bandit declares this restaurant to be the fanciest in town, a set of sharp eyes will reveal that even the lights hilariously disagree. Just as he finishes his sentence, one of the bulbs in the string lights behind him flickers and burns out. Another follows suit a bit later in the episode! It seems like the fanciest restaurant in town might be in need of some repairs.

Various
The license plate of a vehicle might not be a place your eyes typically wander, so you probably missed this creative detail. The Heeler family car’s license plate reads “419 HLR.” While most could probably guess that “HLR” stands for Heeler, there’s seemingly more to this hidden message. Hexadecimal color codes are used to identify different hues. It just so happens that “419fff” is the code for a shade of blue that looks a lot like something we see all the time: Bluey and Bandit’s fur! Even better, if you take the message all together, you get Blue Heeler — the very same breed of dog our title character and her dad are!

Various
What’s better than a cute background detail? One that’s stretched over several episodes! In “Markets,” we see Bluey eager to spend her tooth fairy money and the many hands the 5 dollar bucks exchanges. In the end, it’s given to a street performer. This cash happens to have a special sticker on it that allows us to find it tucked into other scenes as it passes around the entire city! In “Dance Mode,” we see the same bill in the hat of the aforementioned busker. Later on in “The Quiet Game,” astute viewers will notice the very same performer spending that exact bill at an ice cream stand. Talk about dedication on the creative team’s part!

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

While Bandit Blocks the Slide, the Pup Waiting at the Top Wipes His Boogers & Doesn’t Look Too Good!

Chloe & Bluey Continue Their Game of Princess & Horse

That Stuffed Animal Looks an Awful Lot Like Sans, Doesn’t It?

Festivities Are Clearly Coming Soon with the Wrapping Paper & Gift Already Out

Chloe’s House Address Is Properly Numbered to Remind Us She’s a Dalmatian

Various
Animators often know how much folks love Easter Eggs, so why not make one for dedicated fans to keep track of?! Long Dogs are small dogs of various forms and colors that appear in the background across the series. In the first episode, for instance, we see a blue Long Dog with stripes resting on a shelf along with other toys. A different one is hiding in “Christmas Swim” wearing a Santa hat. Even in a flashback-heavy episode like “Baby Race,” a Long Dog makes itself present, hiding on top of a cabinet and wearing a diaper! And those are just a few examples out of many. If you’re on a rewatch of the show, take some time and see how many you can find!