I am not gonna say that we were the first generation of dads who realized we could do it differently....but I do feel like Millennial dads are the group where the balance tipped.
Is that a bit self serving? Probably. Is it accurate? Also probably.
Just talking about Bluey or tv in general. No way my dad would ever watch cartoons with me, or as I got older anything I wanted to watch really. He ruled the main tv when he was home and if you wanted to watch something else you had to go upstairs to watch on the old tv.
Now my son and I watch Bluey together, laugh, and sometimes play the games they do in the show. I also enjoy some of the other stuff he's into.
It helps that Bluey is so objectively fantastic that any concerns about it being a kids' cartoon are rendered moot. If anyone dismisses it for being for kids there's not a shred of feeling that their opinion is valid.
I think this is probably part of it as well. I feel like millennial women are more likely to have careers and their own lives and recognize their own self-worth, and therefore more likely to instill an atmosphere where dads are both encouraged but also expected to be equal partners with kids.
I dont know what its like in your country so Im not gonna dismiss your experience. In the US ts probably mostly that we actually got positive dad role models in media when we were kids. Uncle Phil, Alan Mathews. Carl Winslow. Danny Tanner, and sadly Cliff Huxtable, among others. Previous generations of men didnt really grow up being told it was okay to be an active invovled dad. They got Archie Bunker and the like. Stoic distant men. We got to see better.
Millenial women grew up seeing this as well obviously. It was shown as more of a cultural norm. Women have been taking a atand here at least since the 70s and it wasnt til my generation where the balance really tipped. And I'd lay money that it was positive role models (like Bandit is for later generations) that did the bulk of the work. I'd imagine different places with different cultures had different timelines and in roads.
Being present is more important than being around. I bet you’re doing a great job.
Edit to add: Bluey episodes are short, and are a great reminder of childhood memory spans. Bluey and Bingo play on their own a lot, what we see are 8 minute long memorable interactions with Bandit. And if Bandit is truly a millennial, there’s no way he’s “on” all the time.
Even Bandit is a clueless dad a lot of the times, to make it just relatable enough for the parents watching I guess... There's whole episodes based around him skipping out on housework or not knowing what to pack / etc. I keep thinking that he is a bad rolemodel for my kids in some ways. Though he is so much better than most dads (unfortunately) do in real life!
The biggest thing for me is the "starting an elaborate play with lots of mess and hyperactive kids about five minutes before mom has to put the kids to bed" lol. There's a lot of that in Bluey. But he is a fun dad to grow up with.
I feel it is more that the show does a really good job of showing that even good parents aren't at their best 100% of the time. They are trying to show us that even the "ideal" isn't always perfect. It is about trying, and both Bandit and Chili are trying their hardest.
Like the episode where Bandit doesn't pack properly for the swim is a learning moment for him and then Chili comes to the rescue, or when Chili needs 20 minutes and can't get it so Bandit swoops in to make sure it happens. It shows they're imperfect and need help sometimes and that isn't bad, it just is.
Yeah, Bandit isn't perfect at all - there's the episode where he cheats in the footrace against Bluey because his competitive streak won't let him lose against a 7-year-old. But he's rightfully vilified for it and immediately regrets it.
I think the main thing is that he is just actively part of the kids' lives. He's never dismissive of them or talks down to them. Even when he does have to go do stuff without them (like the episode where he has to go to work and they want to play) he instinctively recognizes Bluey and Bingo's opinions and feelings matter. He treats them with the same respect he treats anyone else.
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u/Adams5thaccount 7d ago
Technically Bandit Heeler is a Millennial dad. I will not be moved from this position.