Robin Scherbatsky
Encyclopedia
Robin Charles Scherbatsky, Jr. (born July 23, 1980) is a fictional character
created by Carter Bays
and Craig Thomas
for the CBS
television series How I Met Your Mother
, portrayed by Canadian
actress Cobie Smulders
.
), who was intent on having a son, Robin was raised as if she were a boy. This ended when she was fourteen and Robin, Sr. caught her kissing a boy from her hockey team and realized he had a daughter after all.
Robin then moved in with her mother; during that time she became a Canadian teen popstar and recorded a minor Canadian bubblegum pop
hit called "Let's Go To The Mall" under the name "Robin Sparkles". After an accompanying music video
and the ensuing year-long mall tour, she developed a serious aversion to shopping mall
s. Robin followed "Let's Go To the Mall" with the "artistic follow-up" "Sandcastles in the Sand
". In this video, Robin as Robin Sparkles appears with Canadian actor Alan Thicke
, her boyfriend (played by James Van Der Beek
), as well as a special guest appearance by Tiffany
. There was also a failed attempt at a variety show co-starring with Thicke. Sparkles also appeared on the Canadian educational children's show Space Teens with Thicke where two teen girls traveling through space in a curling stone–shaped spaceship "solve mysteries using math" featuring the song “Two Beavers Are Better Than One” further parodying Canadians (It was also implied that the aforementioned show had some 'sexual' hints, in particular a multiplication segment that challenged the girls to multiply 23 X 3 by using a "Joystick
," but Robin says it was just a children's program).
As an adult, Robin is embarrassed by her teenage stardom, and though she admits resenting her father's methods of raising her, Robin still enjoys cigars, frisbee, hockey, scotch, guns, and saying 'eh'.
for a New York cable news channel, Metro News 1
, and became a host of her own morning talk show that airs at 4:00 in the morning. She lived in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn until her temporary unemployment (before the morning talk show) forced her to move in with her ex-boyfriend, and the show's main character, Ted, only briefly residing with Don, her colleague and then-boyfriend (she returned to Ted's apartment after the breakup, as Don moved to Chicago). Like Smulders, she is originally from Vancouver
, and has a younger teenage sister named Katie, who appears in "First Time in New York
". Although she was a reporter for "fluff news pieces" at the end of news segments at the time of first meeting Ted, over the series she has worked her way up to be lead news anchor at Metro News 1, before taking a prominent anchoring position in Japan, only to return to New York and, with help from Barney Stinson
, host her own talk show.
She has performed several embarrassing dares on television in exchange for money from Barney, including saying the word "nipple", spanking herself, and honking her own breasts. In "Mary the Paralegal
", Robin won an award for her report on Pickles the singing dog, and attended the Local Area Media Awards show (LAMA's) with the group. She brought Sandy Rivers, a fellow reporter, as a date in order to make Ted jealous.
It was originally thought that Robin was the only main character on the show who smokes cigarettes sober (as Marshall has admitted to smoking while drinking and Lily smoked on her wedding day), but in the episode "Last Cigarette Ever
" it is revealed that everyone in the gang was addicted to smoking at some point in time and would eventually quit. Ted asks her about her smoking in "Moving Day
", and Robin tells him no, but is then shown smoking in the hot tub in her apartment later in the episode. She has an in-depth knowledge of cigars and was shown enjoying one with Barney in "Zip, Zip, Zip
" at his cigar bar, with a glass of Johnnie Walker
Blue Label whisky, in Marshall's car in a flashback with Lily in the episode "Arrivederci, Fiero
", in a flashback very late at night before Marshall was scheduled to take the bar exam in episode "Dowisetrepla
", and with Barney in Ted's new car in "The Chain of Screaming
".
Robin has often stated her attraction to men with battle-scars or wounds, especially bruises and injuries that have come from fights or sports. In "The Fight
" she shows a vast change in interest in Barney once she believes he has gotten into a fight.
Robin is also an avid gun enthusiast, shown in multiple episodes brandishing a Desert Eagle
(despite the fact that civilian handgun permits are severely restricted in New York City), as well as having a subscription to Guns & Ammo
magazine and having taken Marshall to the shooting range in order to get over Lily.
She has been known to use the word "Literally" far too often, as pointed out by Ted in "Spoiler Alert". She also has a tendency to use the phrase "but um" when interviewing a guest on her talk show which was turned into a drinking game by Ted's students in "Jenkins
". According to Ted, she cannot tell a lie without giggling, but she has been shown numerous times throughout the series lying smoothly.
It is also revealed in "The Goat" that by Ted's 31st birthday, Robin will be living in Ted's apartment. This happens in "Not a Father's Day
" when Robin moves into Ted's apartment after coming back from Japan
, and then again in "Doppelgangers
", when Robin, then living with her then-current boyfriend Don, left him. Future Ted reveals that Robin traveled the world and lived in many different countries.
Despite having been in relationships with both Ted Mosby and Barney Stinson, and having rekindled her friendship with Ted, it's strongly implied she never let Barney go. Despite spending part the most part of "Challenge Accepted
" plotting with Barney a way to prevent Ted from pursuing a meaningless relationship with Zoey, and rekindling her relationship with him in the process, she also pressures Barney into approaching his current love interest, Nora. However, when Barney asks Nora for a cup of coffee, she first smiles but suddenly looks jealous.
In the season 7
premiere episode "The Best Man
", Lily confronts her about her feelings for Barney, and advises her to tell him about her feelings. She is about to when Barney first pulls her for a dance, and later she is interrupted when Barney gets a call from Nora. Barney asks for help on how to speak to Nora on the phone, so Robin tells him what he should say, but what are really her feelings. In "The Stinson Missile Crisis
", she assaults a woman setting out to destroy Barney's relationship with Nora. She is sent to court-mandated therapy, where Kevin (Kal Penn
) is the therapist. They start dating shortly after. But Robin still can't keep her hands off Barney. In "Disaster Averted" it is shown that she almost kissed him after Hurricane Irene. At the end of the episode, after they talk about it, they kiss in the cab. After having spent the night together, in "Tick Tick Tick" Barney and Robin decide to split up with their partners and get together again. Barney breaks up with Nora but when Robin talks to Kevin, she cannot break up with him and they stay together. In "The Rebound Girl" Robin tells Barney that she is pregnant.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
created by Carter Bays
Carter Bays
Carter Bays is an American television writer. Along with writing partner Craig Thomas, he is best known as creator, writer, and executive producer of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother. He has 70 episodes of the show under his belt from 2005-2009, and has been nominated for six primetime Emmy...
and Craig Thomas
Craig Thomas (screenwriter)
Craig Thomas is an American television writer, he, along with writing partner Carter Bays, has written episodes of American Dad!, Oliver Beene, Quintuplets and the hit CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, which they created in 2005. He has been nominated for six primetime Emmy Awards...
for the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television series How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother is an American sitcom that premiered on CBS on September 19, 2005, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays.As a framing device, the main character, Ted Mosby with narration by Bob Saget, in the year 2030 recounts to his son and daughter the events that led to his meeting...
, portrayed by Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
actress Cobie Smulders
Cobie Smulders
Jacoba Francisca Maria "Cobie" Smulders is a Canadian actress and former model, known for her role as Robin Scherbatsky on the CBS television series How I Met Your Mother.-Early life:...
.
Early life
Born July 23, 1980 to Robin Charles Scherbatsky, Sr. (Ray WiseRay Wise
Raymond Nicolas "Ray" Wise is an American actor, known for his roles as Leland Palmer in Twin Peaks, as Leon C. Nash, right-hand henchman to villain Clarence Boddicker in the science fiction classic RoboCop, and recently as the Devil in the CW television series Reaper.-Life and career:Wise was...
), who was intent on having a son, Robin was raised as if she were a boy. This ended when she was fourteen and Robin, Sr. caught her kissing a boy from her hockey team and realized he had a daughter after all.
Robin then moved in with her mother; during that time she became a Canadian teen popstar and recorded a minor Canadian bubblegum pop
Bubblegum pop
Bubblegum pop is a genre of pop music with an upbeat sound contrived and marketed to appeal to pre-teens and teenagers, produced in an assembly-line process, driven by producers, often using unknown singers.Bubblegum's classic period ran from 1967 to 1972...
hit called "Let's Go To The Mall" under the name "Robin Sparkles". After an accompanying music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
and the ensuing year-long mall tour, she developed a serious aversion to shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
s. Robin followed "Let's Go To the Mall" with the "artistic follow-up" "Sandcastles in the Sand
Sandcastles In The Sand
"Sandcastles in the Sand" is the 16th episode in the third season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 60th overall. It originally aired on April 21, 2008.- Plot :...
". In this video, Robin as Robin Sparkles appears with Canadian actor Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke is a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains.- Early life :...
, her boyfriend (played by James Van Der Beek
James Van Der Beek
James William Van Der Beek, Jr. is an American television, film, and stage actor, known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery in The WB series Dawson's Creek...
), as well as a special guest appearance by Tiffany
Tiffany (singer)
Tiffany Renee Darwish , known popularly as Tiffany, is an American singer and former teen icon. She is most notable for her 1987 cover version of "I Think We're Alone Now", originally recorded by Tommy James and the Shondells in 1967. Released as the second single from her eponymous album, Tiffany,...
. There was also a failed attempt at a variety show co-starring with Thicke. Sparkles also appeared on the Canadian educational children's show Space Teens with Thicke where two teen girls traveling through space in a curling stone–shaped spaceship "solve mysteries using math" featuring the song “Two Beavers Are Better Than One” further parodying Canadians (It was also implied that the aforementioned show had some 'sexual' hints, in particular a multiplication segment that challenged the girls to multiply 23 X 3 by using a "Joystick
Joystick
A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...
," but Robin says it was just a children's program).
As an adult, Robin is embarrassed by her teenage stardom, and though she admits resenting her father's methods of raising her, Robin still enjoys cigars, frisbee, hockey, scotch, guns, and saying 'eh'.
Character history
Robin is a news anchorBroadcast journalism
Broadcast journalism is the field of news and journals which are "broadcast", that is, published by electrical methods, instead of the older methods, such as printed newspapers and posters. Broadcast methods include radio , television , and, especially recently, the Internet generally...
for a New York cable news channel, Metro News 1
NY1
NY1, New York One, is a 24-hour cable-news television channel focusing on the five boroughs of New York City. In addition to news and weather forecasts, the channel also features human-interest segments such as the "New Yorker of the Week" and the "Scholar Athlete of the Week", and specialty...
, and became a host of her own morning talk show that airs at 4:00 in the morning. She lived in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn until her temporary unemployment (before the morning talk show) forced her to move in with her ex-boyfriend, and the show's main character, Ted, only briefly residing with Don, her colleague and then-boyfriend (she returned to Ted's apartment after the breakup, as Don moved to Chicago). Like Smulders, she is originally from Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, and has a younger teenage sister named Katie, who appears in "First Time in New York
First Time in New York
"First Time in New York" is the 12th episode in the second season of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on January 8, 2007.-Plot:...
". Although she was a reporter for "fluff news pieces" at the end of news segments at the time of first meeting Ted, over the series she has worked her way up to be lead news anchor at Metro News 1, before taking a prominent anchoring position in Japan, only to return to New York and, with help from Barney Stinson
Barney Stinson
Barnabas "Barney" Stinson is a fictional character created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas for the CBS television series How I Met Your Mother, portrayed by Neil Patrick Harris. The character has been extremely well received by critics and has been credited for much of the show's success...
, host her own talk show.
She has performed several embarrassing dares on television in exchange for money from Barney, including saying the word "nipple", spanking herself, and honking her own breasts. In "Mary the Paralegal
Mary the Paralegal
"Mary the Paralegal" is the 19th episode in the first season of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on April 24, 2006.- Plot :...
", Robin won an award for her report on Pickles the singing dog, and attended the Local Area Media Awards show (LAMA's) with the group. She brought Sandy Rivers, a fellow reporter, as a date in order to make Ted jealous.
It was originally thought that Robin was the only main character on the show who smokes cigarettes sober (as Marshall has admitted to smoking while drinking and Lily smoked on her wedding day), but in the episode "Last Cigarette Ever
Last Cigarette Ever
"Last Cigarette Ever" is the eleventh episode of the fifth season of the CBS situation comedy How I Met Your Mother and 99th episode overall. It aired on December 14, 2009.- Plot :...
" it is revealed that everyone in the gang was addicted to smoking at some point in time and would eventually quit. Ted asks her about her smoking in "Moving Day
Moving Day (How I Met Your Mother episode)
"Moving Day" is the 18th episode in the second season of the television series How I Met Your Mother, originally broadcast on March 19, 2007.- Plot :Ted and Robin have decided to move in together...
", and Robin tells him no, but is then shown smoking in the hot tub in her apartment later in the episode. She has an in-depth knowledge of cigars and was shown enjoying one with Barney in "Zip, Zip, Zip
Zip, Zip, Zip
"Zip, Zip, Zip" is the 14th episode in the first season of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on February 6, 2006.-Plot:...
" at his cigar bar, with a glass of Johnnie Walker
Johnnie Walker
Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch Whisky owned by Diageo and originated in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland.It is the most widely distributed brand of blended Scotch whisky in the world, sold in almost every country with yearly sales of over 130 million bottles.-History:Originally known as Walker's...
Blue Label whisky, in Marshall's car in a flashback with Lily in the episode "Arrivederci, Fiero
Arrivederci, Fiero
"Arrivederci, Fiero" is the 17th episode in the second season of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on February 26, 2007.- Plot :...
", in a flashback very late at night before Marshall was scheduled to take the bar exam in episode "Dowisetrepla
Dowisetrepla
"Dowisetrepla" is the 7th episode in the third season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 51st overall. It originally aired on November 5, 2007.-Plot:...
", and with Barney in Ted's new car in "The Chain of Screaming
The Chain of Screaming
"The Chain of Screaming" is the 15th episode in the third season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 59th overall. It originally aired on April 14, 2008.- Plot :...
".
Robin has often stated her attraction to men with battle-scars or wounds, especially bruises and injuries that have come from fights or sports. In "The Fight
The Fight (How I Met Your Mother)
"The Fight" is the tenth episode in the fourth season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 74th overall. It originally aired on December 8, 2008.- Plot :...
" she shows a vast change in interest in Barney once she believes he has gotten into a fight.
Robin is also an avid gun enthusiast, shown in multiple episodes brandishing a Desert Eagle
Desert Eagle
The Desert Eagle is a large-framed gas-operated semi-automatic pistol designed by Magnum Research in the U.S. and by IMI in Israel; the pistol is manufactured primarily in Israel by IMI...
(despite the fact that civilian handgun permits are severely restricted in New York City), as well as having a subscription to Guns & Ammo
Guns & Ammo
Guns & Ammo is a magazine dedicated to firearms, hunting, competition shooting, reloading, and other shooting-related activities in the United States....
magazine and having taken Marshall to the shooting range in order to get over Lily.
She has been known to use the word "Literally" far too often, as pointed out by Ted in "Spoiler Alert". She also has a tendency to use the phrase "but um" when interviewing a guest on her talk show which was turned into a drinking game by Ted's students in "Jenkins
Jenkins (How I Met Your Mother)
"Jenkins" is the thirteenth episode of the fifth season of the CBS situation comedy How I Met Your Mother and 101st episode overall. It originally aired on January 18, 2010...
". According to Ted, she cannot tell a lie without giggling, but she has been shown numerous times throughout the series lying smoothly.
It is also revealed in "The Goat" that by Ted's 31st birthday, Robin will be living in Ted's apartment. This happens in "Not a Father's Day
Not a Father's Day
"Not a Father's Day" is the seventh episode in the fourth season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 71st overall. It originally aired on November 10, 2008.- Plot :...
" when Robin moves into Ted's apartment after coming back from Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and then again in "Doppelgangers
Doppelgangers (How I Met Your Mother)
"Doppelgangers" is the 24th and final episode of the fifth season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, and the 112th episode overall. It originally aired on May 24, 2010.- Plot :...
", when Robin, then living with her then-current boyfriend Don, left him. Future Ted reveals that Robin traveled the world and lived in many different countries.
Despite having been in relationships with both Ted Mosby and Barney Stinson, and having rekindled her friendship with Ted, it's strongly implied she never let Barney go. Despite spending part the most part of "Challenge Accepted
Challenge Accepted
"Challenge Accepted" is the twenty fourth and final episode of the sixth season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother and the 136th episode overall. It aired on May 16, 2011.-Plot:...
" plotting with Barney a way to prevent Ted from pursuing a meaningless relationship with Zoey, and rekindling her relationship with him in the process, she also pressures Barney into approaching his current love interest, Nora. However, when Barney asks Nora for a cup of coffee, she first smiles but suddenly looks jealous.
In the season 7
How I Met Your Mother (season 7)
The seventh season of the American television comedy series How I Met Your Mother was announced in March 2011, along with confirmation of an eighth season, and premiered on September 19, 2011 with two episodes airing back-to-back.-Main cast:...
premiere episode "The Best Man
The Best Man (How I Met Your Mother)
"The Best Man" is the premiere episode of the seventh season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother and the 137th episode overall. It aired on September 19, 2011.-Plot:...
", Lily confronts her about her feelings for Barney, and advises her to tell him about her feelings. She is about to when Barney first pulls her for a dance, and later she is interrupted when Barney gets a call from Nora. Barney asks for help on how to speak to Nora on the phone, so Robin tells him what he should say, but what are really her feelings. In "The Stinson Missile Crisis
The Stinson Missile Crisis
"The Stinson Missile Crisis" is the fourth episode of the seventh season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother and the 140th episode overall. It aired on October 3, 2011.-Plot:...
", she assaults a woman setting out to destroy Barney's relationship with Nora. She is sent to court-mandated therapy, where Kevin (Kal Penn
Kal Penn
Kalpen Suresh Modi , best known by his stage name Kal Penn, is an American film and television actor, producer, and civil servant....
) is the therapist. They start dating shortly after. But Robin still can't keep her hands off Barney. In "Disaster Averted" it is shown that she almost kissed him after Hurricane Irene. At the end of the episode, after they talk about it, they kiss in the cab. After having spent the night together, in "Tick Tick Tick" Barney and Robin decide to split up with their partners and get together again. Barney breaks up with Nora but when Robin talks to Kevin, she cannot break up with him and they stay together. In "The Rebound Girl" Robin tells Barney that she is pregnant.