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Australian animated TV show Bluey has an episode that is not available on Disney+, Polygon reported.
Bluey is a cartoon show which features a family of dogs. Each episode lasts seven minutes and deals with stories that run the gamut from Darwinian evolution to Ikea furniture assembly.
The show, currently streaming on Disney+, is a joint production between Australia's ABC and the U.K.'s BBC, and airs in other platforms worldwide.
Bandit's baby Bingo
Of the 141 Bluey episodes, only 140 are available on Disney+. The one episode that isn't is called “Dad Baby.” It's available on the BBC network as well as other broadcast channels in both Australia and the U.K. It is also an extra in the show's DVD boxes.
The episode is also available for purchase on iTunes and clips can be seen on the show's official YouTube channel. The one place you can't see the episode is on Disney+.
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The big question: Why?
To answer that would be to make conjectures. Let's start with what the episode is about.
“Dad Baby” tells the story of Bluey (a six-year old Blue Heeler puppy) finding an old baby carrier. His father, Bandit, wears it to demonstrate how it's used and Bingo, Bluey's sister, pops inside.
Bandit jokes about how difficult it is to carry another small creature around one's stomach. This prompts Bluey and Bingo to play a game they call “Dad Baby.”
They recruit their next-door-neighbor, Lucky, to play the midwife. Bandit plays the dad, and Bingo plays the baby. Bingo's “birth” is depicted as causing as much discomfort the way a pregnant female would experience.
The whole scene is played for laughs. However, Bluey (the show) is known for being steadfastly dedicated when it comes to telling the truth to children (and grown-ups).
While the episode isn't graphic — it is, after all, an animated show geared towards preschoolers — it also showed what childbirth entails. The scene involved Bingo's head popping up between Bandit's legs, and Bandit's point of view in the hastily set up birthing pool.
Joe Brumm, Bluey's creator told The Hollywood Reporter said that he knew that the episode would likely not be shown in the U.S. However, he explained that the idea was just “too funny not to make.”
“What are you going to do, not make ‘Dad Baby'? I love it,” he added.
Again, it bears repeating that the episode is not at all graphic. However, it is truthful about how pregnancy — and childbirth — is difficult.
Maybe Disney didn't want children to know this is exactly how they come into this world.
But if the episode had been readily available, answering a child's question of, “Mommy/Daddy, where do babies come from?” can be as easy as turning to Disney+.
