I need to step up on my soapbox for a moment to defend the fictional character called Muffin that appears on the kid’s TV show Bluey and explain why diversity doesn’t just matter, but why it belongs in a kid’s show.
I love Bluey. My toddler loves this show. My partner loves this show. My partner and I have watched this show without our toddler and I’ve even watched this show by myself on occasion. It’s a great show that focuses on a family that subscribes to gentle parenting techniques and teaches life lessons in a rather subtle way in 7-minute episodes. It’s fantastic and Chilli and Bandit are definitely amazing parents.
Forced Diversity
I noticed a trend among different Bluey Fan groups, specifically around “forced diversity” and this seemingly universal hatred of Muffin. This has become increasingly obvious after an article, written by a woman of color named Beverley Wang, was published on April 13th. Beverley praised the show but criticized its lack of diversity:
“As a parent of colour, I am always conscious of the presence — or absence — of diverse representation in kids’ pop culture, what it means for children and the conversations we have around that. I sincerely believe you don’t have to be ‘Other’ to think about this too. We live in a world where the majority of main characters on children’s television are white; where there are more animals than people of colour protagonists populating the pages of children’s books. Where are the disabled, queer, poor, gender diverse, dogs of colour and single-parent dog families in Bluey’s Brisbane? If they’re in the background, let them come forward. (Maynard, voiced by Sean Choolburra, I’m looking at you.)”
Beverley Wang, “I’ve learnt a lot from Bluey, but can the show be more representative?” (Apr. 13, 2021). ABC Everyday.
In these various groups, people would repost the article or articles that responded to it, and comments left and right were defending the show, saying that it’s already diverse. I know some examples include the episode called “Camping” where Bluey befriends Jean-Luc, a French-speaking dog, and the episode “Circus” where Hercules is bigger than the rest of the kids. Some did say that the season 2 character Jack is “probably” ADHD, and I know that the show includes some self-aware moments when the pups acknowledge a physical deficit like Snickers in “Shadowlands” and “Typewriter”, Pom Pom in “Seesaw”, and even Bingo in “Bin Night” because she was upset when she was called “stubby.”
Intentional Diversity
These are all great references, but Beverley was not wrong. There is zero representation of sexual orientation or gender identity. All of the parents are cis gender and in heterosexual relationships. There are zero blended families, except maybe Winton who had a throwaway line in “Helicopter” that implied his parents were divorced. No half-siblings. No adopted children. Even in “Barkey Boats”, they push heteronormitivity when two 12-year-olds clearly have a crush on each other, and Bluey and Mackenzie are teased, clearly “shipped” together by their classmates at the start of that episode.
I’ve seen photos that included a puppy in a wheelchair, so where are they in the show? Why haven’t we met a 3-legged dog? Perhaps we will in season 3.
Many people seem to think that forcing diversity into a show will ruin it. To those people, I ask why? Bluey’s writers have done a great job with some diversity thus far. It hasn’t been “shoved down your throats” to quote some comments. It’s been subtle. Intentionally adding diversity is not the same as forcing it. To these people, I ask them to trust the writers. We are allowed to make requests like “add more diversity please” and I trust that if the show writers are listening, they’ll figure out a great way of doing it.
To make my point, I look to the episode “Muffin Cone” because Muffin clearly struggles with impulsive thoughts (wants to suck her thumb) and then the compulsive actions (actually sucking her thumb) and her mother, Trixie, forces her to wear a cone to prevent the behavior… as if that will stop the impulsive thoughts. When Bluey and Bingo first see Muffin wearing a cone in the doorway, they are shocked and say, “whoa”. Throughout the episode, we see the cousins modify how they play with Muffin so that Muffin can be accepted and included despite being hindered from wearing a cone. The parallel storyline is that Trixie is unable to refrain from eating the chips that Chilli sets out, showing she too struggles with impulse control. At the end of the episode when it’s another day and Muffin and her dad are coming over to visit, it shows Muffin at the door with her cone on again, but this time, Bluey and Bingo are HAPPY!
This is what acceptance looks like. The first time they saw Muffin in a cone, that was new to them. It was different. They have since learned how to play with a kid in a cone through experience and exposure. The second time they saw it, they were happy to play with the kid in a cone. It became normalized for the Heeler children.
Embrace Diversity, Embrace Muffin
But what grinds my gears is when I see graphics and memes posted in these Bluey “Fan” groups that reveal their hate toward Muffin’s character. Muffin is 3 years old. She is loud and demanding as evidenced in “Library”, “Ice Cream”, “BBQ”, and “Charades”. It’s also obvious that Muffin’s parents give in to her often, and that the members of these groups really disagree with that. Trixie and Stripe are doing a damn good job. They have a spirited child. Everyone works to accommodate Muffin because she is neurologically different and that’s how you de-escalate the situation. Nana makes that lesson pretty clear in “Charades” and yet it is lost on the adult neurotypical viewers of this show.
It is fortunate that Muffin is a fictional character, because what if she was a real child? Children like Muffin absolutely exist. You might be the parent of a Muffin. You might be related to a Muffin. Your kid’s best friend might be a Muffin. This is how people view neurodivergent characters, people, and children.
This is what people mean when they say adding diversity will ruin a show: you don’t like seeing us. I’ve seen comments from people who admit to skipping some of these Muffin-centric episodes because they don’t want their child to mimic her behavior. They’re choosing to exclude representation of people that are different from them, and that’s a shame. This is how kids learn how to accept diversity, and when you shield them from it, they pick up on that.
This essay was originally posted by me in the Bluey Family (Worldwide) Facebook group as a group document on April 30, 2021. A group admin shut down comments within hours of it being posted due to adults getting hostile over underrepresented people asking for more representation. Apparently we “have enough” or just need to make our own cartoons. Yay! Discrimination solved! /sarcasm
