Characters / Lu & the Bally Bunch

Charactes from Lu & the Bally Bunch

Main Characters:

Tropes in general for the main characters:

• Beware the Nice Ones: All the little buglets are generally nice, happy, and well-meaning, but are not prone to becoming quite upset when things don't go their way.
• Cool House: Lu lives in a strawberry house, Elodie lives in an apple house, Biba and Barnaby share a carrot apartment building, and Gus lives in a water lily houseboat. Declan's case is an exception that his house resembles a teapot, which is also his family's cafe and does not look like plant matter, but still this trope nonetheless. It is implied that Shella's shell also doubles as a house for herself.
• Happy Rain: All the main child characters are fans of the rain except Elodie.
• Kids Love Dinosaurs: Especially Lu, Gus, Declan, and Biba.
• Ocular Gushers: All of them have a tendency to cry like this when things go wrong.
• Playing House: Lu, Gus, and Barnaby once played this, with Lu as the mother figure, Gus as the father, and Barnaby as the baby.
• Vague Age: Averted. All of the Bally Bunchers are all around three to five years old.

Lu

Lu is a playful and creative ladybird who loves polka dots and dinosaurs. She lives in a strawberry house with her Mam and Dad. She is confident, self-assured, and is great at doing funny voices which her friends love. She loves playing with the other little bugs but she does like things to go her way, so she’s learning all about compromise.

• Expressive Ears: Lu's pigtails act as these, perking up when happy and drooping when sad.
• Genki Girl: She is energetic and always on the go.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Her biggest weakness is her tendency to be this. Be it seeing someone else having what she wants and does not have or feeling someone is stealing another's attention from her, she is quite prone to envy. It may or may not come from her being an only child, though.
• The Leader: Just as it's her name in the title, so too does she wants to take initiative in bringing others under her wing.
• Picky Eater: In Wibble Blobs. Though she would immediately has this opinion changed.

Declan

Declan loves being the center of attention, taking risks, and pushing rules. He lives with his dad and his older brothers Dermot and Dara.

• Animals Hate Him: Dots refused to play with him in "But Why?". Possibly subverted as she is seen interacting positively with him at the end of the episode, although it's left ambiguous whether it's in his imagination or reality.
• Beware the Silly Ones: Although it doesn't happen too often, he can get angry when pushed to the limit, as seen in "That's My Favourite."
• Big Brother Worship: Looks up to his older brothers, Dermot and Dara.
• Class Clown: Downplayed; He loves joking around, but not to an extent where he actively disrupts class.
• Curious as a Monkey: Always asking questions, to the point there's a whole episode dedicated to it.
• Keet: Is the most energetic out of all the bugs.
• Missing Mom: His mom is absent.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The Manly Man to Barnaby's Sensitive Guy.
• Shared Family Quirks: Episodes such as Droopy Patrick and Goodbye Rain Boots imply that he got his jokester side from his dad.
• Toilet Humor: The bug that initiates this the most, usually talking about toilets and even burping in one episode.
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Has a fear of the water, as revealed in the episode “Swim Class.”

Biba

Biba is an empathetic, energetic butterfly who can sometimes sit in her feelings until they erupt. She lives in a carrot apartment with her mama, papa, and baby brother Bo.

• Ageless Birthday Episode: Averted. She turns four in her birthday episode.
• Beware the Nice Ones: When she gets mad, she gets mad.
• Big "SHUT UP!": In "Fruit Caboose": STOP SHOUTING!
• Boyish Short Hair
• Cool Big Sis: To her baby brother, Bo. Well, most of the time.
• Emotion Suppression: Has an unfortunate habit of doing this, as demonstrated in episodes such as "Play with Me!" and "Elevator Play Date."
• Heart Symbol: She has it in everywhere, practically. It's on her clothes in some way, she has a lunchbox shaped like one and notably, she has a couple of these adorned on each of her wings.
• Pretty Butterflies
• Primal Fear: Has a bad fear of the dark. Lu learned this the hard way.
• Shrinking Violet: Can occasionally be a bit reserved, especially when playing with the much-louder and outspoken Lu.
• Speech Impediment: She speaks with a small, yet noticeable lisp.
• Tantrum Throwing: In "Tidy Up", she got so angry at Lu for ruining her super star that she cried to go home and threw the smushed star onto the table, accidentally destroying Gus and Elodie's dragonfly toy.

Barnaby

Barnaby is a happy, sensitive bumblebee who’s still learning about personal boundaries. He lives in a carrot apartment with his two mothers and his twin siblings Aidan and Lola.

• Acrofatic: Is on the chubbier side, yet is able to fly around and (almost) do a roly-poly easily.
• Big Fun
• The Glomp: Loves giving out hugs to the point where he once thought Elodie no longer liked him just because she refused one.
• Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The Sensitive Guy to Declan's Manly Man.
• Virtuous Bees: He and his bee mother are portrayed as good people.

Elodie

Elodie is a confident, fun-loving bug, but she can miss some emotional cues from others. Her parents don’t live together and she has a cousin named Etienne, who occasionally visits. At the end of the first season, she graduates from Shell School and moves on to big school.

• All Girls Like Ponies: Her dad owns a horsefly ranch and she enjoys watching them ride.
• Beautiful Singing Voice: Gets a standing ovation from the other bugs after performing "Frere Jacques" in "Xylophone Blues".
• The Baby of the Bunch: Inverted. She is the oldest of the bunch, at almost five years old.
• Bilingual Bonus: She is fluent in both English and French.
• Control Freak: Temporarily became one in “Elodie Wants to Decide” where she controlled exactly how her playdate went without considering how her playmates may feel.
• The Heart: She loves animals, is a great friend, and occasionally helps settle the bugs' arguments.
• Rain, Rain, Go Away: Isn't the biggest fan of rainy weather.
• Worm in an Apple: Lives in an apple house, which, despite her inability to fly, hangs on top of a tree branch.

Gus

Gus is a serious bug who loves to follow rules and point out unfairness if he sees it. He lives in a water lily houseboat with his grandparents, mother, and older sister Grace.

• The Baby of the Bunch: At three years old, compared to the rest of the Bunch being between three and a half and five.
• Character Development: Gus was much quieter and introverted in earlier episodes but has seemed to warm up in later ones.
• Elmuh Fudd Syndwome: Has a minor case of this. Justified, since he is a toddler.
• Hates Being Touched: Downplayed, as though he did not enjoy Barnaby's hugs in "Bug Hugs", he isn't seen as hating them, just not in the mood at that very moment.
• Odd Friendship: Has one with the much-louder and more outgoing Declan. They are commonly seen hanging out together, and have starring roles together in Tower Tower Wow and But Why.
• Kids Hate Vegetables: Averted. His favorite food is Brussel sprouts. He loves them to the point where he brought one to school as a “home toy” and dressed up as one for Costume Day.
• Perpetual Frowner: Especially in earlier episodes.
• Pint-Sized Kid: He's the shortest out of the Bunch.
• The Smart Guy
• The Spock: Likes to do things the proper way.

Supporting Characters:

Shella

Shella is a snail and the teacher at Ballybug’s Shell School, which is housed on her back! She helps the children learn how to navigate their new feelings and friendships.

• Bigger on the Inside: Her shell is. So much so, that even she can magically shrink herself into it and grow herself back out!
• Cool Teacher: A constant provider of good advice, comfort and awesome songs for the children.