Reasons Why Robin is Barney's Bride (Part 4)
If you haven't read Parts 1 - 3, you can read them here:
Part 1 (Reasons 1 - 39)
Part 2 (Reasons 40 - 63)
Part 3 (Reasons 64 - 79)
*Warning*: Contains my own theories and speculations on what may happen on HIMYM. Some of my speculations may be proven wrong in upcoming episodes.
My reasons and speculations cover episodes from S1.01 - S7.19.
Reasons Why Robin is Barney’s Bride (Part 4)
80. Neil Patrick Harris has always been very vocal throughout the years about his liking of the Barney/Robin pairing. While he was filming the S6 finale “Challenge Accepted,” he gave an interview in which he said that “I’m for Team Barney and Robin too. I get no say in the matter, but I think she’s great. Cobie’s hilarious and smells like the ocean” (Source). He knew by this point that Barney was the groom in the wedding flash-forward, but he didn’t know who the bride was going to be yet. In another interview, Neil even admitted to sneaking in moments between Barney and Robin when they aren’t written in the script. He said, “I always throw in little longing glances at [Smulders] because I think she’s great. And I always hope that they use those shots” (Source). In a recent interview with USA Today however, Neil said, “the Barney and Robin chapter happened,” as if to say that their relationship is over (Source). I find it very interesting that he would say that now when he has always supported the B/R relationship in the past. I think he knows who the bride is now and I think it is Robin. Therefore, I think he is currently trying to draw less attention to the Barney/Robin relationship so that people will think it is a lost cause. This way, when Robin is revealed to be the bride in the season finale, people will be surprised by it b/c they didn’t see it coming or had lost hope for Barney and Robin ending up together. By the time Neil gave that USA Today interview, Cobie Smulders had already given an interview where she said she knows who the bride is (Source). I think Neil had to know who the bride was at the time he did the USA Today interview if Cobie knew by that point. Cobie’s interview took place after the November sweeps episode “Rebound Girl.” This leads me to believe that Robin has to be the bride, otherwise why was Cobie informed of the bride’s identity so far in advance? In a recent interview, Becki Newton (who plays Quinn) said she doesn’t know if Quinn is the bride or not b/c they haven’t shot the season finale yet (Source). I don’t understand why the creators wouldn’t tell Becki that her character is the bride if that’s the case; Cobie and Neil already know the identity after all. If Quinn is the bride, wouldn’t Becki already be informed of this? Then again, Becki might already know who the bride really is. She just doesn’t want the media and viewers to know that she knows, that way we’ll all think she could be a real contender for the bride.
81. In an interview, Craig Thomas talked about what’s coming up in the second half of S7. He said Robin would be career-focused and Barney would be dating Quinn. He went on to say about Barney and Robin: “So we’re going to watch them go into different directions for a little while, but those two actors and those two characters have this huge, crazy chemistry that I can’t say we’re done exploring. They inform each others’ lives in enormous ways. We’ll see more of that…before the series is done, we’ll have to address that more” (Source). I think Craig accidently gave away that Robin is the bride through his use of the phrase “for a little while.” This means that Barney and Robin will be going in different directions for awhile, but, eventually, their paths will converge again. They will get back together once they “fix” the messes that they are right now. If Robin is Barney’s bride, that would explain why they inform each others’ lives in enormous ways and why Craig said we will see more of that before the series is over.
Craig Thomas’ word choices in interviews have given away plot points before. For example, when asked if Barney was very serious about Nora, he said, “He’s pursuing her [in the premiere]. It’s a new Barney. It’s Barney on Step 1 of this new path. But ultimately, Robin has feelings for Barney” (Source). I originally interpreted this as Barney would break up with Nora upon learning Robin had feelings for him (b/c of Craig using the word “ultimately”). In a way, that is what happened. Barney thought he had a shot with Robin after the events of S7’s “Disaster Averted” and “Tick, Tick, Tick,” so he broke up with Nora to be with Robin. Therefore, I don’t think it is out of the realm of possibility that Craig would unintentionally give away a plot point through his choice of words.
82. I know some fans have speculated that Robin can’t be Barney’s bride b/c she ends up with Crush Guy (played by Michael Trucco). In S6’s “Hopeless,” Future Ted revealed that Crush Guy would be making a comeback; however, this hasn’t happened yet. Craig Thomas said in an interview that “We thought [Robin's love interest this season] would be Michael Trucco, but he got booked on something else that shoots in Vancouver.” Carter Bays added, “I think we can say the character of Kevin was created in his absence…We will find a way to use him. We’re not going to leave any loose threads.” Thomas then added, “We’ll get to that, but it’ll have to be in a different way than we wanted just due to - sometimes logistics just come in” (Source). If the writers planned Crush Guy to be what Kevin ended up being, then Robin and Crush Guy would have broken up eventually. He was never going to be the great love of Robin’s life. I think Robin can still be Barney’s bride even if Crush Guy doesn’t reappear this season. He can come back next season, and he doesn’t necessarily have to be a love interest for Robin. He might be a last temptation for Robin before she gets married to Barney, but, in the end, she loves Barney so she would never do anything to jeopardize their relationship. There are so many things the writers could do that don’t conclude with Robin ending up with Crush Guy. Crush Guy could work with Robin; Barney could be insanely jealous of him b/c Ted told Barney about Robin’s past crush. Robin could still be Barney’s bride, which I think the writers intended to be the case when they created Crush Guy in S6 to be a love interest for Robin in S7. It just seems weird to me that the writers were already planning/setting the stage for Barney’s and Robin’s love interests for S7 in S6 if Robin isn’t Barney’s bride. The writers already seemed to be setting up obstacles for a Barney/Robin S7 reunion in S6.
83. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Robin is Barney’s bride, but I think the following possibly points to Quinn not being Barney’s bride. In the opening for S7’s “Karma,” Future Ted says that the beginning of 2012 started out being a crazy year; Barney met a girl named Quinn.... I think the way the writers worded that Barney met Quinn is weird if he ends up with her. To me, it doesn’t sound like Ted’s kids know who Quinn is. If Ted’s kids knew Quinn, Ted should have stated that “Barney met Quinn,” not “Barney met a girl named Quinn.” This might not be a clue or anything, but I just think the word choice the writers decided to use here is strange if Quinn ends up with Barney (which I really doubt will end up being the case). I don’t feel it’s too outlandish to think the writers might have done this intentionally b/c they did this before in the S7 premiere “The Best Man” when Future Ted refreshes his kids’ memories about Nora by saying “Remember Nora?” I’m sure a lot of the audience thought this was just a refresher for them b/c of the summer hiatus (a kind of “previously on…” statement), but really it was a refresher for Ted’s kids, reminding them about her b/c they don’t know her. I don’t think what Future Ted said about Quinn is an absolute guarantee that his kids don’t know her, but I just think it sounds funny to have Future Ted word it that way if they do.
Another thing about Future Ted’s line about Barney meeting Quinn in 2012 is the fact that even though Quinn might have seen Barney before at the strip club, they hadn’t technically/officially met each other yet. I think it is important to point out that in S6’s “Hopeless,” when Barney’s dad talks about how you have to meet the right person before you settle down, he says to Barney, “Who knows, maybe you’ll meet her tomorrow?” and Barney replies, “Maybe I met her already.” I think the writers deliberately had Barney say that line b/c it will prove true in the end. I think Barney already met his bride by the spring of 2011 when that line was spoken. This would rule Quinn out as his bride b/c he didn’t meet her until February 2012. This line could still refer to any woman Barney met prior to saying that line, but I really think it is supposed to be a clue that Robin is his bride. I know there is a possibility that the bride could be someone we haven’t met before, but I think this is highly unlikely. There have been too many bride hints sprinkled throughout the past two seasons that point to the bride being Robin, and I think the way Barney/Robin have been handled after November sweeps is a good indication that something else is going on under the surface. The writers haven’t yet let Barney and Robin have a conversation about all that went down between them and they seem to be ignoring each other now. There has to be a reason for this. Also, if the bride ends up being some random woman, it won’t have the same significance to Ted’s story as it would if the bride is Robin.
84. Craig Thomas said this about the Robin/Barney/Quinn storyline: “He's [Barney’s] trying to deal with this huge information he's got between him and Robin and how he moves forward from it. He needs to lock horns with somebody [Quinn] to get his mind off what's happening” (Source). Craig is pretty much saying that Quinn is a distraction for Barney b/c he doesn’t want to think about how Robin broke his heart back in November by choosing Kevin. I think we saw a hint of this being the case in S7’s “No Pressure” when Ted confronted Barney about Robin, and Barney told him everything about what happened between him and Robin and how she broke his heart. Then in the next episode (“Karma”) Barney is trying to move on by distracting himself with Quinn. He is trying to force himself to believe there is something there between them in order to not think about the person he would rather be with - Robin. Barney will come to realize that no matter how hard he tries to fight it, “no one and nothing else can compare” to Robin (from “Tick, Tick, Tick”). In a recent interview, Becki Newton said this about Barney: "I think we won't know if he's truly over Robin. Maybe we'll never know. I think he's trying to be over Robin” (Source). I think Becki knew that Barney is not over Robin when she gave this interview, but she was acting as if she didn’t in order to increase bride suspense. What Becki said about Barney trying to get over Robin makes me think that Barney’s relationship with Quinn is just a distraction for him b/c he is trying to move on from Robin, but in the end he will be unsuccessful. The audience will be made aware that Barney was never able to truly get over Robin when she’s revealed as the bride during the season finale wedding flash-forward. Barney will never have to get over Robin b/c he ends up with her.
85. I found it interesting that in S7’s “The Burning Beekeeper,” Barney and Robin, in separate scenes, both told Lily that she doesn’t need to throw out the Gouda when it fell on the floor b/c of the ten second rule. I think the writers are trying to show how Barney and Robin think alike and how they both react similar in similar situations. There are a lot of examples of this throughout the whole series, but I really believe this one was deliberately put in this episode. Barney and Robin haven’t had much screen time together after November sweeps; the only one-on-one scene they had together happened to be in this episode. I think the writers are deliberately trying to make us think about Barney and Robin - even when they are not in a scene together - by having them each say similar things when the other character is not around. This might not be the strongest reason/clue why Robin is Barney’s bride, but I think it is important to point out at least.
86. In S5’s “Home Wreckers,” Future Ted says this about his mother’s decision to marry Clint and his own decision to buy his Westchester house: “Sometimes our best decisions are the ones that don’t make any sense at all.” I was reminded of this quote when Robin said to an oblivious Barney who is on the phone with Nora in S7’s “The Best Man,” “I know we didn't work out the first time, and I know it doesn't make any sense. But I can't shake this feeling that we belong together.” I wonder if this was a deliberate callback to what Ted said in “Home Wreckers” b/c even though Robin doesn’t think getting back together with Barney makes sense, if they did get back together, it would be one of the best decisions she ever made (especially if she thinks they belong together). If Robin ends up being Barney’s bride, I think the parallels between those two quotes could very well have been intentional on the writers’ part.
87. At the end of S7’s “Tick, Tick, Tick,” Barney is waiting at the bar for Robin to show up at MacLaren’s at midnight. That scene makes me think of Barney as a groom waiting nervously for his bride to walk down the aisle. All his friends are there waiting beside him too; Marshall (a groomsman), Ted (the best man), and Lily (the maid of honor). Then Robin walks into the bar, the expression on Barney’s face when he sees her is one of pure love; he looks truly happy for that one second before Kevin comes walking in behind Robin. I think that scene was staged that way for a reason. That night is the worst of Barney’s life; he got his heart broken that night. If Robin is his bride, the happiest day of Barney’s life would play out very similar, but instead of Robin shaking her head “no,” she will say “I do” to marrying Barney. This relates to the timing theme too b/c it didn’t work out for them that night (they didn’t get back together), but it will someday and it will play out very similar to this scene, except with a different result. I truly believe the scene was staged this way intentionally as a hint that Robin is Barney’s bride.
88. At the end of S1’s “Purple Giraffe,” Robin is hanging out with the gang for the first time in their usual booth. She teases Barney a bit about him not having a date tonight and Barney says, “I’m not sure I like her.” Then Robin helps Ted get more drinks at the bar and she tells Ted, “You are a catch. You're gonna make some girl very happy. And I am going to help you find her.” I find it interesting that in this episode Barney says he doesn’t like Robin during their first real interaction with each other. It is really funny looking back on that scene b/c we know now that Barney considers Robin his soulmate and best friend (S7’s “Tick, Tick, Tick”). Also, I’ve always felt like Robin saying she is going to help Ted find his soulmate was foreshadowing. I don’t know if it was intended to be at the time, but I’ve always thought Robin would have something to do with how Ted meets the Mother. At the end of the “The Pilot,” Future Ted sums up by saying, “But that’s the funny thing about destiny, it happens whether you plan it or not. I mean, I never thought I’d see that girl again. But as it turns out, I was just too close to the puzzle to see the picture that was forming. Because that kids, is the true story of how I met your Aunt Robin.” Ted’s son says annoyed, “Aunt Robin?” and Ted’s daughter says outraged, “I thought this was how you met Mom.” Future Ted answers with, “Will you relax? I’m getting to it. Like I said, it’s a long story.” This makes me think that Ted meeting Robin was important b/c it eventually led to him meeting the Mother. When the writers decided that Ted meets the Mother at a wedding, I would have assumed that it would tie up the series better if the wedding was Robin’s, but they decided to reveal that it was Barney’s. Now, because we know it is Barney’s wedding, I think it would make the most sense for it to be Robin’s as well. It would explain why Ted started his story on the day he and Barney met Robin, and why it was so important to show Robin becoming a member of their little group in the following episode. Future Ted’s meeting the Mother story could be justified as being “a long story” if it really is about how Barney and Robin became the people they needed to become in order to get married to each other, and also about how Ted became who he needed to become in order to meet the Mother (which is what Future Ted said the story was about in the beginning of the S3 premiere episode “Wait For It”). Now I know the things I pointed out were not intentional when the show started, but I think if Robin is Barney’s bride, it has retroactive significance. However, I do think the writers went back and watched the entire series to see how they could connect a lot of the stories Future Ted has told his kids to the Ted-meeting-the-Mother conclusion. I think once they watched the whole series again, they came up with Ted meeting the Mother at Barney’s and presumably Robin’s wedding. There are a lot of moments throughout the entire series that will have retroactive significance if Robin ends up being Barney’s bride. I can’t fathom why the writers would ever have Barney end up with anyone other than Robin if they can make the entire series look planned out from the start if they make Robin Barney’s bride. It just wouldn’t make sense for the bride to be anyone but Robin.
89. I believe the writers purposefully want things in the S7 episode "The Best Man" to be open to interpretation so everyone doesn't come to the conclusion Robin is the bride right away. They want viewers to second guess things. I think that is what the director was doing when having Alyson (Lily) act slightly confused in the scene when she tells Ted the bride wants to see him. People may interpret it as Lily being confused as to why the bride would want to see Ted, but others, including me, interpret it as Lily being unsure as to why Robin wants to see Ted at that moment. Ted probably already went to see Robin not that long before. Lily might be wondering why Robin wants to see Ted again after already talking with him.
90. Craig Thomas said this in an interview about Barney’s wedding day: “It’s not a wedding day that will go completely smoothly, but it will end with Barney being married. It's not a fake-out. It's not going to be something where he runs away from it. Barney Stinson will get married that day and we will show to whom and exactly how it goes down." (Source). Some fans jump to the conclusion that there must be a bride switch or something b/c the wedding day doesn’t go completely smoothly, but I don’t think that will end up being the case. I think Barney will marry the person he set out to marry in the first place (who I think will be Robin). Maybe the wedding doesn't go particularly smoothly (besides just the fact it rains on the wedding day) because Ted has to constantly go back and forth between the bride and groom all day. In S6's "Big Days," when Lily comes outside to tell Ted he is being summoned, Ted says "What now?" like he has been being summoned all day long. Even though the wedding day doesn't go smoothly, the writers have said that Barney does go through with it in the end. I think the most that will happen is some silly wedding day mayhem like what happened during Marshall and Lily's wedding. Plus, the wedding day will happen in one of the last episodes or the very last episode of the series because Ted meets the Mother on that day; therefore, I don't think the wedding will be that dramatic or a complete disaster. I think the last episode will concern itself with Ted meeting the Mother. To have Barney's wedding be full of disaster would distract too much from the real story -- the one the whole series has been leading to: Ted meeting the Mother. The things not running smoothly that day are probably going to be played for laughs once the show gets to the wedding day.
91. Carter Bays said this in an interview at the end of S6 about Barney’s future wedding day: “It'll be the end of somebody's love story and the beginning of Ted's” (Source). I think it will be the end of Barney and Robin’s love story and the beginning of Ted and the Mother’s love story. Maybe Future Ted has been telling Barney and Robin’s love story this whole time to his kids b/c it is at their wedding where he meets their mother. It would explain why Future Ted started his story with how he (and Barney) met Robin if she ends up being Barney’s bride. Carter considering Barney’s wedding the end of Barney’s love story with Robin (if she is the bride) makes sense b/c that is exactly what Future Ted said about what he thought his wedding day to Stella would be: “The perfect ending to a perfect love story” (S4’s “Happily Ever After”). Carter’s wording is very similar to what Future Ted said in that episode, so it makes me think that the creators consider the happily ever after (what they refer to as the end of someone’s love story) to be the day he or she gets married. Carter doesn’t mean Barney and Robin won’t go through with their wedding like many fans interpret him as saying in that interview. Craig Thomas even went so far as to clarify Carter’s statement in a later interview. Craig said Barney does get married that day (Source).
Part 5 (Reasons 92 - 113)
Thanks for taking the time to read my reasons and speculations. I appreciate it!
Theories supporting Robin as Barney’s future bride
1. vivekheron came up with an interesting theory that argues that Barney's wedding flowers being purple is a clue that Robin is his bride. He points out that in S2's "Slap Bet" Ted pictures his wedding to Robin where purple and white flowers are the wedding flowers (Robin wedding picture) & (Ted wedding picture). Ted dated Robin for a year so he would probably know her favorite flower and therefore he would imagine her favorite flower as being one of their wedding flowers. Roses are also imagined by Ted as one of their wedding flowers (Wedding picture with roses). Then in S5's "Double Date" Ted pictures his wedding to the girl he went out with twice where roses are shown to be the wedding flowers (Wedding picture). Ted is a romantic so he probably likes roses b/c they are associated with romance. Ted didn't know this girl well enough to know what her favorite flower was so he just pictured his own favorite flower as the wedding flowers. We know from S6's "Challenge Accepted" that Ted spends a lot of time picking out the perfect orchid for Zoey since that is her favorite flower. I think it is safe to say Ted takes flowers very seriously. He would want to make sure he had his potential bride's favorite flower at their wedding. We also know that Barney's wedding will have purple and white flowers (Barney’s wedding flowers) and that lilacs (which are purple) will be a featured flower. (The S6 DVD extra "what we know about your mother" mentions lilacs are the Mother's favorite flower and that Ted gave her a lilac the moment they met, aka at Barney’s wedding.) If purple and white flowers are Robin's favorite flowers then this might be a clue that she is Barney's bride since his wedding will feature purple and white flowers.
2. gemsquashes pointed this out to me, which I thought was worth mentioning: “In [S6’s] ‘False Positive’ Barney gives up many of his old suits to the church. We know he gets married in that same church. Straight after he gives them up, we cut to a shot of Robin getting her photo taken, and then follows her talking to Ted about his being her best man one day. I just felt that juxtaposition was kinda symbolic, since Robin is THE Suit ([S4’s] ‘The Leap’), so it's a bit like Barney giving up 'lesser suits' (cough*bimbos) on one of the few occasions he goes into a church.” I thought this was a very interesting interpretation of those last few scenes in “False Positive.” I think if Sam’s church is the same church from S6’s “Big Days,” then I can also see Sam being the one to perform the wedding ceremony for Barney. I really do think Robin asking Ted to be her best man was foreshadowing, but it is interesting that maybe even Barney giving away his suits (bimbos) could be seen as a bride clue since Robin is THE SUIT Barney referred to in “The Leap.” I think Robin is Barney’s “right fit” aka THE SUIT/the “right tie.”
3. gemsquashes also informed me of this theory that compares Alfred Mosby/Virginia/Clint to Ted/Robin/Barney. In S2’s “Brunch,” Ted and Robin are compared to Ted’s dad (Alfred) and Ted’s mom (Virginia). Virginia didn’t want to have kids, but Alfred did. They didn’t have much in common; Alfred was a “much more head in the clouds romantic” and Virginia “was much more down to earth.” She didn’t even want to go out with him at first, but he spent months badgering her until she finally gave in. In the long-run, Ted and Robin can’t make it work between them (S2’s “Something Blue” and S7’s “No Pressure”), just like how Ted’s parents couldn’t make it work between them either. In S2’s “How Lily Stole Christmas,” we find out that Virginia is dating a friend of Alfred’s named Clint. In S5’s “Home Wreckers,” Clint and Virginia get married and Clint seems a bit like Barney when he talks about Virginia being “very erotic.”
gemsquashes went on to point out that in S5’s “Home Wreckers,” “Future-Ted mentions the possibility that he could meet his future wife at his mom's wedding (Bays and Thomas said they had the goalpost of Barney getting married by the start of Season 6 (Source) so the events of 5.20 could be foreshadowing of the wedding at which Ted actually does meet the Mother. Assuming they already had Barney getting married in mind by 5.20, it would be an interesting parallel.” And if Robin is Barney’s bride, then it could make the wedding parallel hold up even more if Robin is to be compared to Ted’s mom, Virginia, and Barney is to be compared to Clint.
Also in “Home Wreckers,” Future Ted states how it didn’t make any sense for his mother to want to be with a guy like Clint, but yet being with Clint was the best decision Virginia ever made. He goes on to say, “Sometimes our best decisions are the ones that don't make any sense at all." This quote comes to my mind when Robin says to an oblivious Barney in S7’s “The Best Man,” (which I already talked about in reason #84, but in order to draw a parallel between Barney/Robin and Clint/Virginia, I will restate it): “I know we didn’t work out the first time, and I know it doesn’t make any sense. But I can’t shake this feeling that we belong together.” If Robin is Barney’s bride, maybe being with Barney will be the best decision Robin will ever make, even if to her it doesn’t make any sense (just like Virginia’s decision to be with Clint).
4. ilovebarbin pointed out that during S7’s “The Broath” Robin was wearing a blue dress (the color of the wedding dress in Roman times) when Barney told the story of Caesar and the broath to the gang. manda600 elaborated on this theory by explaining that “In Biblical and Roman times the color of purity was blue, not white. White as the color for a wedding dress didn't really take on popularity until the 1840's because of Queen Victoria (although by that time the tradition was silver, not blue, but it still wasn't white). So I believe they're suggesting that a blue dress, like Robin's, in Roman times would have been considered like a wedding dress, and in an episode where Barney's telling stories of ancient Rome it's meant to be a clue. I don't know if it's intentional but I certainly do like the idea.” Yes, Robin’s dress being blue in that particular scene with Barney telling the broath story set in Roman times might not have been intentional, but who knows, maybe it was. Maybe the costume designer has knowledge about the history of wedding dresses worn in Roman times so she purposely made Robin wear a blue dress in that scene. I wouldn’t put it past a show like this that seems to put a lot of significance/hidden meaning in certain objects. When I first watched the episode, Robin’s blue dress did grab my attention b/c I am constantly looking for bride clues; it made me think about how a bride needs something blue for her wedding. Maybe Robin’s blue dress is supposed to be taken as a subtle bride clue? But only viewers who look deeper at the show and analyze it would be able to pick up on the clue.
Thanks again for reading my reasons, and also for reading these theories that some other HIMYM fans came up with. I appreciate it.
Part 5 (Reasons 92 - 113)