Bluey can't get to sleep, so Mum reads her one last story; but they are interrupted by Unicorse, the most annoying hand puppet in the world, whom Bluey tries to reform.
Tropes:
- Agony of the Feet: In the story Chilli is reading to Bluey, the queen steps on a prickle when she gets out of her litter to have a walk, which makes Unicorse cackle hysterically.Bluey: Unicorse, that's mean! How would you feel if you stood on a prickle?
Unicorse: I'd feel good! I'd feel so good, I'd dance! (starts dancing while blasting disco music from a mini-speaker)
Bluey: You wouldn't dance! You'd be crying like the queen! - Barefoot Cartoon Animal: It's a plot point in the picture book Chilli reads to Bluey, as everyone in the Queen's kingdom goes shoeless. Because of that, it hurts when they step on prickles, forcing the Queen to come up with a solution, and eventually leading to the invention of shoes.
- Black Comedy Burst: When Bluey asks Unicorse what his favorite food is, he gets up to Bluey's face and darkly responds "children". Bluey has no idea what to make of that answer, but Unicorse goes back to his obnoxious self before really giving his answer of fried chicken.
- Character Catchphrase: Unicorse's is "Aaaaaand why should I care?". After the first time Unicorse utters this, Chilli mutters that she had forgotten about the character's catchphrase, and sure enough, he says it twice more in short succession.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Throughout the story, Chilli and Bluey struggle to finish the story despite Unicorse's best efforts to be disruptive and obnoxious. It's only once mother and daughter make the effort to focus more on finishing the book that things start looking up. In the end, everyone goes home happy: Bluey gets to finish the story, Chilli gets to see her daughter go to bed, and Bandit got to keep the peace between them both.
- Foreshadowing: Bluey declaring that she'll try to change other people so not going to sleep is normalized sets up the framing of the story where she (and Chilli) learn that changing other people is difficult.
- Hard Truth Aesop: Sometimes, even when you give someone a chance to change for the better, some people refuse to change. Unicorse embodies this, as his obnoxious personality does not improve by the end of the story.
- Hate Sink: In-Universe and invoked. Bandit takes on the role of the rude and annoying unicorn puppet Unicorse in order to deliberately give Chilli someone she can channel her ire and irritation towards, without lashing out at Bluey for not going to sleep. It works! Not only is Chilli able to vent her anger properly without straining her relationship with her daughter, but Bluey gets a life lesson from the experience.
- Large Ham: Unicorse is loud, dramatic and obnoxious.Chilli: Unicorse, Bluey is finding it a little hard to get to sleep, so we're actually trying to calm things down a bit.
Unicorse: Well, it's gonna be hard WITH ME AROUND! YEEEEEEAAAHHHHHHH! - Malicious Misnaming: Unicorse keeps getting Chilli's name wrong, calling her names like "Silly" and "Millie". Given his Jerkass personality, he's very obviously doing it on purpose to wind her up.
- Minor Injury Overreaction: Unicorse flips out when Bluey lightly touches him on the shoulder.Unicorse: Ow! My back! My neck! My back and my neck! Whiplash, whiplash! Call my lawyer!
- No Sympathy: When Chilli reads the part in the story where the Queen steps on a prickle and hurts her foot, Unicorse's reaction is a shameless laugh at her expense. Bluey tries to elicit Unicorse to show the storybook character some empathy for how it would feel, but he instead insists he'd "feel good" stepping on a prickle and would dance instead.
- Offscreen Teleportation: When Bluey asks Unicorse how he'd feel if he stood on a prickle, Unicorse exclaims, "I'd feel good! I'd feel so good, I'd dance!" and teleports from the front to the back of the couch while dancing and playing music.
- Plot Parallel: In the storybook, the Queen's journey to protect her subjects from prickles acts as an allegory for Chili and Bluey's quest to finish the story in spite of Unicorse's disruptive personality. Her approach at covering the land in leather (and tiring from it) reflects how futile Bluey's efforts to change Unicorse are. When the story reaches the part where she decides instead to simply make shoes for her people, it's at a point in the episode where Bluey and Chili have decided to focus on what they can control (finishing the story) instead of what they can't (changing Unicorse).
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Chilli reads Bluey a story about a caring queen who tries to keep her subjects from stepping on prickles by covering her entire kingdom in leather, and when that doesn't work, invents the idea of shoes.
- Sheathe Your Sword: After many attempts to get Unicorse to behave himself for story time, Chilli and Bluey come to the conclusion that perhaps they can try ignoring him instead. Although it takes a couple tries, Bluey and Chilli manage to finish the story in peace while Unicorse not only fumes for attention, but grows preoccupied with getting confrontational with his lawyer.
- Simple-Minded Wisdom: The Queen can't cover the entire kingdom in leather no matter how hard she works. But, then, the Jester suggests that instead of trying to cover the whole kingdom in leather, she should just cover her feet. This leads to her inventing shoes, so nobody will ever have to step on prickles ever again.
- Stealth Pun: The Queen from the story appears to be a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
- Symbolism: Reflecting their reality, the storybook is about a Queen (Chilli and Bluey) trying to deal with prickles in her kingdom (Bluey refusing to stay in bed, Unicorse's obnoxious personality). She tries covering her kingdom in leather (telling Bluey to just go to bed, adjusting Unicorse's personality) but to no avail (Bluey simply isn't able to fall asleep right away, Unicorse refuses to change). It's only once Bluey and Chilli make an effort to try to tolerate Unicorse that they start reading the part where the Queen comes the resolution: instead of covering her entire kingdom in leather, she should focus on covering her subjects' feet to protect them from the prickles. This reflects what both parties are learning: you can't control everything and should focus on the things within your control.
- This Is Gonna Suck: "This episode of Bluey, unfortunately, is called 'Unicorse'."
- The Unreveal: We never get to see what was in Unicorse's book with the unicorn in it that he wanted Chilli to read.
