You don’t have to be a dad to recognize that the 5 best episodes of Bluey for Bandit can teach us all valuable lessons about kindness.
Whether he’s being subjected to Bluey or Bingo’s newest game or teaching a valuable lesson, Bandit (voiced by David McCormack) is always a reliable presence on Bluey. But Bandit’s best episodes boil down to more than just when he’s silly or stern. As with virtually every other aspect of the show, Bandit has become a fully-realized character with his own unique flaws and quirks. Here are the 5 best episodes which exhibit his best qualities, ranked from worst to best.
5. DADDY DROPOFF
Season 2 Episode 8
Sometimes as parents, it feels like you’re in a constant state of doubt about whether you’re ever doing the right thing for your kids. No matter how much good you try to do for your kids, there’s always a sense that you could be doing more, or the sense that what you’re teaching won’t rub off. The final moments of season 2’s “Daddy Dropoff” shows how our kids can pick up on what we do, even when we probably don’t realize it.
In the episode, it’s Bandit’s turn to drop Bluey and Bingo at school and, as usual, he gets caught up in playing their games. Almost all of the episodes on this list make me feel like an insufficient parent, but “Daddy Dropoff” is particularly devastating because it shows that the smallest, least time-consuming bits of play – even when you’re running late and feel the least playful – can have long-lasting benefits in ways you’d never expect.
4. FAIRYTALE
Season 3 Episode 26
Every kid comes to the realization sooner or later that their parents are not only real people just like them, but that they’re deeply flawed and imperfect. In season 3’s “Fairytale”, Bluey teaches perhaps its most instructive lesson, and it’s a vulnerable story from Bandit’s childhood. Every other show would depict Bandit as the victim of bullying, but “Fairytale” puts a reversal on the trope, to show a time when he was cruel to his brother during a summer holiday. And, true to the Bluey edict, after Bandit is jinxed, everyone else commits to the bit and keeps the game going. Even when the show gets a little heavy-handed with its messaging, as it does here, it manages to do so in a fun, often funny way. “Fairytale” is another example of the show imparting messages to kids but fleshing out its characters in interesting, bold ways.
3. FANCY RESTAURANT
Season 2 Episode 17
We’ve seen plenty of instances where Bandit is a great father, but “Fancy Restaurant” shows how he’s a great partner to Chilli. Bluey had shown glimpses of Bluey and Bingo’s parents’ relationship, and in the season 2 episode, the kids make a game of adding some romance. Bluey and Bingo create the fake restaurant to get Bandit and Chilli to “smoochy kiss”. The show’s creators know that it’s healthy for kids to see a loving relationship between their parents, but are realistic enough to show how difficult that can be for adults with young kids.
Simultaneously the funniest and most romantic episode, “Fancy Restaurant” sees Bandit express his love in the most vulnerable way: eating the depraved concoction that Bingo whips up from the fridge. The episode doesn’t show Bandit and Chilli’s relationship as perfected by its conclusion, but it shows that it’s a constant work in progress.
2. SEESAW
Season 2 Episode 28
Most Bandit-centric Bluey episodes deal with him making things better for his kids. The season 2 episode “Seesaw” deals with him making things better for one of his kids’ friends. Pom Pom, a pomeranian and easily the most adorable character the show has ever drawn, is too small to do a lot of things with Bluey, Bingo, and their friends. So Bandit, without prompting, concocts a game where he sits on one end of the seesaw, knowing he’ll be too heavy for Bluey and her friends to move him. Children’s shows and movies have dealt with insecurity before, but Bluey does it in a sneaky way here. Bandit never explicitly states his plan, but once the pieces fall into place, it’s a smartly executed piece of storytelling, showing how to build confidence in an engaging way.
1. TAKEAWAY
Season 1 Episode 14
Bluey showed from its very first episode, “Magic Xylophone”, that it was a show where its titular character’s dad would constantly be put through the ringer. Several of the first season’s episodes deal with variations of the same theme: Bluey and Bingo drag Bandit into their games and fantasies, at the risk of his physical safety and sanity. “Takeaway” traps Bandit, Bluey, and Bingo at a Chinese restaurant as they wait on his spring rolls.
Perhaps the most stressful episode of Bluey overall, the episode will give any parent PTSD if they’ve had to bring impatient kids along somewhere that’s not implicitly designed for fun. There’s loads of funny moments as Bluey wants to shower under a water spigot, and Bingo has to pee, and Dad just wants them both to sit still and be quiet. But the final moment shows early signs of what later Bluey would perfect, as Dad gets a sign from the universe to simply let his kids be kids, and it’s the essence of who Bandit is in a nutshell – er, spring roll.
Two new episodes of the series Bluey are now available to watch on Disney Plus. The remaining new episode, “Surprise!” (S3E49), will be available to stream on April 21, 2024. Read our list of 5 best episodes of the show’s other characters:
- Bluey: 5 best episodes of the character Bluey
- Bluey: 5 Best Episodes of Bingo
- Bluey: 5 Best Episodes of Chilli
- Bluey: Supporting Characters’ 5 Best Episodes
