Featured Image Credit: Disney / X/@LasVegasLocally
Topics: US News, Film and TV
Ben Thompson
It's being likened to the infamous Glasgow Wonka experience, that's just how much of a disaster a recent Bluey event in Las Vegas was.
If you're of a certain age - or maybe if you don't have kids - the name Bluey won't mean much to you.
Bluey is a cartoon dog who has been at the centre of an Australian cartoon since 2018.
The anthropomorphic pup has been a hit with families and spawned tons of merchandise, which led to a Las Vegas restaurant deciding to capitalize by hosting a 'Meet Bluey' event.
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Dirt Dog, a chain of hot dog restaurants in the Nevada city, put on a day of games and a meet-and-greet.
Their promo read: "Celebrate Bluey with us! Marathon of all the Bluey episodes! Meeting with Bluey & Friends. Face painting. Games & special Bluey treats."
Let's just say, it didn't go down well at all... and you could say it left kids feeling 'blue-y'.
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The free event was blighted by face painting being done by an amateur. Sweet treats were also running low, with most of them gone before all the kids even got inside the restaurant.
More than 3,000 people had RSVPed for the event, with children queuing down the street.
This hype likely only added to the disappointment.
And as for Bluey himself? He was described to be a 'guy in a onesie'.
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Furious parents took to social media to blast the event and its shortcomings.
"Temu Bluey costume and decorations from Dollar Tree featured at Dirt Dog Las Vegas Rainbow! Thanks for ruining my 3-year-old’s day!", one person fumed.
Another raged: "Total waste of time!! If you want to attract people to your establishment don’t false advertise. "Bluey was a guy in a onesie. Long lines for nothing. Kids were super upset and so are the parents."
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Others on the event page described it as a 'scam' and a 'joke'.
One frustrated mother told FOX5: "The kids were distraught. Some kids were crying. Some kids were upset, crying on their parents' shoulders."
Dirt Dog has since issued an apology on social media, claiming they had been 'overwhelmed'.
Their statement, posted to Instagram and Facebook, said: "We are truly sorry this event wasn’t the expected experience.
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"We were overwhelmed with the turnout to this event. We will continue to improve on our events so we can ensure nothing like this will happen in the future."
There have been a few people coming out in defence of Dirt Dog, pointing out that the event was free and so no money was lost going to it.
What do you think?