How We Met Robin Sparkles [with Cobie Smulders] | S2E9 "Slap Bet"

Summary

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How We Made Your Mother: "How We Met Robin Sparkles" [with Cobie Smulders]

Episode: S2E9 “Slap Bet”

Date: December 22, 2025

Hosts: Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas
Special Guest: Cobie Smulders

Episode Overview

This episode of How We Made Your Mother delves into “Slap Bet” (Season 2, Episode 9)—the iconic How I Met Your Mother episode where Robin’s popstar alter ego, Robin Sparkles, is revealed and the legendary Slap Bet is born. Josh and Craig are joined by Cobie Smulders (“Robin Scherbatsky”) for an in-depth, heartfelt, and hilarious breakdown of how this landmark episode came to life, its cultural legacy, and how stepping outside the sitcom formula helped transform HIMYM.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Listener Letters: What the Show Means to Fans

• The episode opens with a moving letter from Isabel in Breckenridge, Colorado, about how HIMYM has carried her through hardship and life changes.
  • “What Star Wars is to Ted is what Himym is to me.” [01:31, Isabel]
• The emotional impact of the show and podcast on fans is a recurring theme.
  • Craig: “That's an honor. I'm so happy the show and the podcast found you.” [03:33]

2. Welcoming Cobie Smulders

• Craig introduces Cobie as their “amazing special guest” to unpack Robin Sparkles and “Slap Bet.” [04:03]
• Playful banter about Cobie’s “French countryside” wallpaper sets an intimate, friendly tone.
  • Cobie: “It is my personality. It is who I am.” [04:14]

3. The Origin of Robin Sparkles

• Reflecting on how Cobie first heard the pitch: Robin’s secret past as a Canadian pop star.
  • Cobie: “I was very surprised and excited…I think you came to me and you're like, we're gonna do a music video, and you're gonna be singing. And I’m like, I mean, I can sing like, when I'm by myself, like, or in the car.” [05:59]
• Cobie’s background in musical theater (“Putting on the Ritz” in high school) [06:47], but admits this request felt “outside the realm” of what had been done on the show.
• This new direction was “outside the box”:
  • Cobie: “I was kind of scared but really excited that you took a chance…It was outside the realm of what we had been doing.” [07:48]

4. How the Idea Came About

• Craig credits Greg Malins with suggesting Robin’s secret pop star backstory, partly inspired by Alanis Morissette. [09:51]
• The writers wanted the reveal to be more than a gag:
  • Craig: “We figured out it’s about this idea of when you're newly in love with someone…does this person have a secret?” [10:11]
• The structure: The signature HIMYM mystery—why does Robin hate malls?

5. Creating and Shooting “Let’s Go to the Mall”

The Challenge

• The creators had to lobby CBS to fund a full-scale music video (“giant mall set, 100 dancers, and a robot”).
  • Craig: “We had to ask CBS…for an entire other shoot day to build a gigantic mall set…a full day shoot with choreography you learned, right, Cobie, over many days.” [16:01]
• The plan: upload the full video to MySpace (pre-YouTube virality).

In the Studio

• Recording details:
  • Craig recalls going to composer John Swihart’s studio with Cobie. Nerves were high.
  • Cobie: “He gave me a green apple first—which is something, I guess, the pros use…cuts the phlegm. Didn’t really do the trick! I had a shot of whiskey, and we just kind of found our groove.” [17:59–19:10]
  • John Swihart’s reassurance: “Don’t worry, we can fix stuff.” [19:54]

Choreographing and Filming

• Shooting was “an enormous production number,” four minutes long with a large faux band and dancers.
• Cobie’s gratitude for feeling supported:
  • “It brought me so much joy because it felt like I was not alone in this process. Like, they were very in…and that also just made the day even more wonderful.” [23:39]
• Shout-out to the hair, makeup, and wardrobe teams: “There’s a lot of bedazzling!” [23:39]
• Craig: “It was one of the most fun things we ever did on the whole show.” [25:20]

Notable Production Memory

• They had to improvise and work quickly, with a “nine to seven” day for the music video.
• Pam Fryman, normally directing sitcom episodes, was asked to direct a full music video. [25:44]

6. The Episode’s Mystery Structure & Emotional Core

• The episode is rooted in a relationship mystery—hiding embarrassing pasts and deepening intimacy.
  • Josh: “If people know this, I won’t be loved…But in fact, you know, even Ted, I think, says it like, I love you more knowing this.” [31:31]
• The cultural context—pre-viral video era, and how such a secret could exist.
  • Cobie: “Robin Sparkles was so dead and buried for Robin Scherbatsky that she never, ever thought that this would come up.” [32:45]

7. Reception and Legacy

• Initial Canadian reaction: “General excitement” from Canadians, especially family, but cult fandom grew over time. [14:40–15:54]

• The music video went viral years later, even becoming a playable song on Just Dance 3, alongside Britney Spears and Aretha Franklin!

  • Craig: “I looked up the lineup…Kobie, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Aretha Franklin, Robin Sparkles.” [49:31]
  • Cobie: “It makes sense.” [50:08]

• “Let’s Go to the Mall” had its roots in a melody Craig wrote as a teen (“Jumping in the Snow”).

  • Craig: “If it sticks in your head for 15 years, there’s probably something to it.” [40:25]

8. The Character After Robin Sparkles

• Did playing Robin Sparkles reshape Cobie’s approach to Robin?
  • Cobie: “I just kind of thought, you know, she might be more fun…allowed to be goofier…It made her…a better sense of humor afterwards.” [43:01]
• The protective effect of costumes: “It gave you a lot of armor to be ludicrous in a way that looked liberating.” — Josh [44:47]
• On her daughters: Her kids haven’t watched the show, except maybe the pilot and the Sparkles video! [34:57]

9. Episode Highlights and In-Jokes (General Impressions)

• Many “general impressions” called out:
  • Ted’s “guys, guys, guys” as an inside joke about their 1st AD Michael Shea. [45:36]
  • Barney’s nose for age: “I just turned 30” scene. [46:22]
  • Marshall’s Sasquatch concern. [46:33]
  • “Premature slapulation.” [53:01]
  • The slap bet’s enduring legacy and the chemistry of the ensemble.

10. The Emotional Impact & Fan Letters

• Cobie reads a touching letter from Sarah about the existential comfort and philosophy of the series:
  • “There's a certain churning in the chest, a bubbling energy that’s hard to name that How I Met Your Mother stirs in me…It’s a fingerprint, a time capsule, a reflection of who I was, who I am, and who I hope to be…The story is always bigger than the end.” [55:57–58:54, Sarah]
• The hosts and guest are visibly moved.
  • Craig: “We’re all trying to fight back tears and, like, hold it together.” [59:24]
  • Cobie: “I wish she (high school me) knew where she was going. I wish she was gonna be an international faux celebrity.” [50:37]
  • “How could we have known? When you were eating an apple and drinking whiskey in that studio that it would lead to somebody feeling that way?” — Craig [59:54]
• Josh: “You were not hired because you could do a Canadian pop star!” — marveling at the series’ evolution and Cobie’s flexibility. [61:01]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Cobie Smulders (on getting the Robin Sparkles news):
  “I was kind of dazzled by the request…and just not knowing how to really proceed, but really excited to just try something.” [09:22]

• Craig Thomas (on the genesis):
  “It couldn’t just be a one-off…this has to be about something.” [10:48]

• On recording “Let’s Go to the Mall”:
  Cobie: “I had a shot of whiskey. And then we just kind of found our groove.” [19:10]
  Craig: “It was one of the most Hollywood things we had done.” [22:41]

• On vulnerability:
  Josh: “If people knew this about me, I wouldn’t be loved. But in fact…I love you more knowing this.” [31:31]
  Cobie: “I just kind of thought she might be more fun…allowed to be goofier…It made her a better sense of humor afterwards.” [43:01]

• On the show’s legacy:
  Craig: “Pop culture—beyond the Mondays at 8:30.” [54:45]

• Fan Letter (Sarah):
  “It’s a fingerprint, a time capsule, a reflection of who I was, who I am, and who I hope to be. It’s home. And every time I press play, it reminds me that sometimes the longest way around really is the shortest way home.” [58:01]

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Timestamps for Significant Segments

• 03:52 – Cobie Smulders joins the episode.
• 05:28–09:22 – Cobie recalls learning she’d play a Canadian popstar.
• 09:51 – The backstory pitch and emotional depth of the episode.
• 14:25–16:01 – Discussing the Canadian reaction and the show’s growing cult fandom.
• 16:01–22:41 – Creating, recording, and filming “Let’s Go to the Mall.”
• 25:44 – Directing the music video, surprise at the “porn” intro video.
• 31:31 – On secrets, intimacy, and the episode’s emotional heart.
• 34:57 – Cobie’s kids and their relationship to Robin Sparkles.
• 49:31 – “Let’s Go to the Mall” lands on Just Dance 3.
• 55:57–58:54 – Cobie reads Sarah’s fan letter; everyone gets emotional.
• 61:01+ – Reflecting on the gift of long-running stories, the joy of saying “yes” in creative risk-taking.

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Summary Takeaways

• Robin Sparkles’ origin was an audacious, creative leap, grounded by Cobie Smulders’ game, comedic performance and the writers’ commitment to emotional depth.
• The music video was a huge gamble and wild production for a sitcom—ultimately a fan-favorite moment that exemplifies the show’s willingness to swing for the fences.
• The Slap Bet and Robin Sparkles became two of the show’s most enduring, meme-able, and meaningful elements.
• The episode reminds both cast and audience that sitcoms can be both riotously funny and deeply moving—“a philosophy class disguised as a sitcom.”
• Fan relationships with the series are intimate and lasting, often serving as comfort and nostalgia, intertwining with listeners’ real-life milestones and struggles.
• How I Met Your Mother’s willingness to take creative risks, challenge sitcom “rules,” and be emotionally vulnerable is what keeps it resonant years later.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Show

This podcast episode is much like “Slap Bet” itself—hilarious, nostalgic, emotionally rich, and full of behind-the-scenes gold. It’s a love letter to HIMYM fans and creators who said “yes, and…” to creating something uniquely heartfelt and enduring.

Transcript

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[Isabel (Listener/Caller)]

Hi Josh and Craig. My name is Isabel and I'm coming to you from the beautiful mountains of Breckenridge, Colorado. Not to be a major buzzkill, but in February of this year I lost my job. It was one of the most painful periods of my life and if I'm being honest, it still is. My job was my whole life something I dedicated most of my time and energy to because of how deeply I adore it. Losing my job felt like losing a limb. I was lucky enough to find work quickly thereafter, but the job came with a bit of driving and honestly, I've never been much of a podcast girl until now. Only a few short weeks after starting my job in the mountains, this podcast started and it felt like destiny. This summer I've had to spend 10 weeks in Breckenridge without my husband and my dog, which has been really hard for me. On night one of being on my own, I restarted the show again and as I'm closing in on my last week here, I'm about to finish How I Met yout Mother has truly been with me throughout the best and worst moments of my life, from using a speech that Ted gives in season nine at our wedding all the way to now, as this show continues to heal my soul, as I process the immense grief of losing my job. What Star wars is to Ted is what Hinum is to me. Thank you so much for creating a show that has kept me positive and hopeful. Even in the worst of times.

[Josh Radnor]

I'm alone. What a pity I won't be soon in New York City when I see you. Please permit me to tell you everything in New York City.

[Craig Thomas]

Wow.

[Josh Radnor]

What a letter. To start off another episode of How We Made youe Mother, I'm Josh Ratner. I'm here with my friend Craig Thomas. Hello. Hey, Josh.

[Craig Thomas]

That was amazing. That letters.

[Josh Radnor]

That is amazing. We're talking about How I Met Yout Mother, a TV show we made together from 2005 to 2014. We are delighted to hear these letters. I love the idea that one that someone's going through something tough and the show is a balm for their soul. But also just that we keep her comfortable on the company on that drive is so great.

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Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. That's an honor. That is an honor. I'm so happy the show and the podcast found you, and it is a good one. I hope you're driving. I hope you just started the drive and you're just starting because now we get to reveal to you the amazing special guest that we have for this particular episode of the podcast, Josh Radner. Do you want to talk about it?

[Josh Radnor]

It's always fun to do. It's always fun to do this podcast, but it's an extra special day when Coby Smulders drops by to hang out with us, and we have her here today. Hi, Kobe.

[Craig Thomas]

Hi, Kobe. Hello.

[Josh Radnor]

Hello.

[Cobie Smulders]

Hello.

[Josh Radnor]

We wish you could see this wallpaper that she is.

[Craig Thomas]

Kobe has great wallpaper. It's such nice wallpaper. She just slapped it up there right before we started.

[Cobie Smulders]

It is my personality. It is who I am.

[Craig Thomas]

That is your main way of expressing who you are. That wallpaper.

[Josh Radnor]

Is there a hot air balloon in there that feels.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, there's a hot air balloon. It's the French countryside. Don't you want to go?

[Craig Thomas]

I want. I want a Mary Poppins style. Hop into that wallpaper and have an adventure. You know, here's why Coby's here. Here's why Coby's here. I mean, Kobe's here because she's Kobe. And she's amazing, and we're just lucky she's here. But we had to have her here because we are talking about one of my favorite episodes of all time. If I had to choose one, it might be. I don't know. This is, like, so up there for me. Slap Bet, AKA How We Met Robin Sparkles.

[Josh Radnor]

When people do the listing of the All Timers, you know, the top 10 How I Met yout Mother epis, this is always, like, somewhere in the top three. Often listed as people's favorite. Yeah, yeah, maybe.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Top three, for sure.

[Josh Radnor]

So this. This was kind of like an instant classic. I do remember this landing, like, with a real mighty kind of splash.

[Craig Thomas]

Yes. This. This made us. This made us feel like we had a TV show that might not get canceled. Koby, tell me. Tell me the story of when we came to you and told you, hey, listen.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

You know your character, Robin Shcherbatsky. Yeah. She was a Canadian pop star as a teenager. And you're going to do that, and you're going to. We're going to create a whole other Persona, and you're going to perform it and sing a song. Tell us about just what that sounded like to your ears in 2006 or whenever we have.

[Josh Radnor]

When did this episode air, Alec?

[Alec Lev]

Yeah, this was on November 20, 2006.

[Craig Thomas]

I feel like I remember telling you this idea. I feel like we were at a party. Am I right about this? I can't remember. Tell me what you remember.

[Cobie Smulders]

This is what I remember. I don't remember the location, but I do remember being kind of. I was very surprised and excited. And I don't think when you first brought it up to me, I saw it fleshed out. I was sort of like, okay, it's a joke. It's a. We're already running with this. Robyn is a Canadian, sort of part of her. Of her character. And I think you came to me and you're like, we're gonna do. And we're gonna do a music video, and you're gonna be singing. And I'm like, I mean, I can sing, like, when I'm by myself, like, or in the car.

[Craig Thomas]

Had you ever sang before? Had you ever professionally sang before? I don't even know the answer to that.

[Cobie Smulders]

This is a great question. And the answer is yes. The answer is shockingly yes. I was in musical theater in high school, and for some reason, the theater teachers gave me a song which was putting on the Ritz.

[Craig Thomas]

Good song.

[Josh Radnor]

I think it'd be nice if you just give us A little hint of what could you put on the Ritz right now?

[Craig Thomas]

What a tip.

[Cobie Smulders]

Have you seen the well to do Walk in a Park Avenue?

[Josh Radnor]

I feel like I'm in Vancouver in the 90s.

[Cobie Smulders]

It also took place during a production of Singing in the Rain, in which that song does not exist in the actual movie. Movie. So it was just sort of like for funsies moment. And I had a similar reaction, Craig, when you said, you know, we're doing this song and we're doing this thing. And to. When they pitched it to me when I was in the 12th grade, going like, you know that this is not. Like, this is not what I do. Like, I could do other things. Like, we could choose another lane. So I was really. I was kind of scared, but I was really excited that you took a chance. It was a bit of a. I mean, it was outside the realm of what we had been doing, you know, it was. I'm trying to remember. I'm sure we had used Josh and Neil's and Jason's singing abilities up before this in a different episode. I can't remember right now.

[Josh Radnor]

I don't know if I had sung on the show. Really.

[Craig Thomas]

No.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah, not yet.

[Craig Thomas]

For Josh. Yeah.

[Cobie Smulders]

Maybe I just broke the ice. I just crashed through the ice. It's like, well, she's doing it like.

[Craig Thomas]

The space chimp that we sent up in outer space to start musical episodes of this show. We didn't really. This was the big musical thing. I think you thought I was fucking with you at first.

[Cobie Smulders]

You're welcome. I think I did. I think I did think it was a joke. And then I also don't think I realized, like, what, you know, what this entailed. You know, we went on. You wrote a. You wrote a whole song. You wrote a whole song. Not just enough for clips to be played during the episode, but. Yeah. So if we're starting at the beginning, you know, for me, it was just sort of. I was kind of dazzled by it. I was kind of dazzled by the request and kind of not knowing how to really proceed, but really excited to just try something.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. You. Yes. Ended it immediately, and you committed so hard to it. And it was an insane, batshit pitch. It was such a crazy thing to come in the beginning of season two and say, we're gonna learn this about Robin. But the way you just, like, you're like, yeah, we're doing that. I can do that. And, you know, it turned into one of the best episodes we ever did. So thank you for that.

[Cobie Smulders]

How did this even come to you as an idea like, where did it even stem from?

[Craig Thomas]

We had Greg Maylands on an episode a couple weeks ago and he. That was his pitch. He said, I think that the backstory for Robin should be that she has this secret one hit at that time. One hit wonder. Of course, we loved this so much that we turned this into a multi, multi season. Many different steps of reveals of how much Robin Sparkles really did. But at the moment, it was. She was a one hit wonder in Canada. Kind of inspired by Alanis Morissette's backstory a little bit. And. Yeah. And it was just like, that was such a funny idea. But then it's like, how is that an episode? How do we really make that about something? And then we kind of figured out it's about this idea of when you're newly in love with somebody. Ted and Robin, does this person have a secret? How do you. It's about two people getting to know each other. Like, we made it. We figured out an emotional story that got to this and that's when it worked. Right. It couldn't just. We didn't want it to just be a one off, like one funny flashback. We're like, this has to mean. This has to be about something.

[Josh Radnor]

Also structured it like so many. How I met your other episodes is a mystery. There's a mystery at the heart of it. She hates. She has a visceral hatred of malls. Why? And it goes into so many different places. But at the beginning of it, it did remind me that it's strange to meet someone, like, out in the wilderness. Like, I met my wife. We had a lot of mutual friends. Right? Which was. I think you and Taran had mutual friends, right? Kobe. There's something when you have mutual friends that it's a little bit like they've been a little bit vetted or kind of pre appro. When you meet someone and you're like, I don't know any person who knows this person. Like, this person could have, like, bodies in their closet. Like, who knows what is going on?

[Craig Thomas]

It's two factor authentication.

[Josh Radnor]

That's right. That's right.

[Craig Thomas]

You want one other source besides the person.

[Josh Radnor]

Ted gets scared because he realizes, like, oh, we just met this person in a bar and like, Ted lied about his Canadian ties and Canadian girlfriend. Who. You know, can you trust Canadians? We don't know.

[Cobie Smulders]

You can. By the. The answer is yes, you can. Cuscanadians.

[Josh Radnor]

And I wrote you this little ditty to sing to you in New York City. We'll be Right back.

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[Cobie Smulders]

Hi, I'm Jessica St. Clair. And I'm June Diane Rayfiel. And we are two friends trying to survive the chaos and celebrate the joy that life throws our way. And we do it every week on our podcast, the Deep Dive. Sometimes we dig into the deep stuff, like how I communicate with my dead best friend. And sometimes we give bad advice based off a TikTok I saw. And we're not gonna apologize for that. Absolutely not. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll hire a psychic medium. Join us, won't you? Listen to the Deep Dive wherever you get your podcasts from Lemonada Media.

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[Josh Radnor]

And now back to the show.

[Craig Thomas]

When this aired, my sense is Canadians loved this. And as the series went on, we heard a lot about it. When it first aired, what was the response? Like, what did Canada say at first. First about it. You talk to Canada most mornings, right?

[Cobie Smulders]

Well, the prime. The prime minister called me immediately. No, I think it was, I think with a lot of moments on our show, the love and the interest kind of came later. Like immediately. Yes, from my family. Like, my family were so excited. I mean, every Canadian is like, excited to talk about Canada and being Canadian and Other Canadians, like, it's a thing. It's a thing. And so I think there was a general excitement. General excitement, excitement.

[Craig Thomas]

Well done. Kobe nailing it better than us.

[Cobie Smulders]

Still there. It's still in there. It's also like, it's not just Canada. It's also like the 80s. Like, it's also this like lovely nostalgic moment. And who didn't, who didn't go and hang out at malls of my generation, like, that's what we did. That was all that we had to do. So it was sort of a two prong thing. And yeah, it was sort of like my family was very excited, but they were also just like, you know, my family but friends, really excited. But the, the. The love of Robin Sparkle specifically, it.

[Craig Thomas]

Only grew like our show.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, it grew, like, with time.

[Josh Radnor]

Yes, it did feel those first couple seasons, we were just making it for our families.

[Craig Thomas]

It really did. It kind of did. We were not a huge hit. We were not a huge hit. I feel like this was such a star turn. This was such a. Like, look what Robin Scherbotsky Kobie Smulders can do now. I want to just say this so people understand. We were not a hit show. We were not supposed to be spending lots of money and going over budget because we were not the show that was getting the most money at cbs. We had to ask cbs, here's what we need. We need an entire other shoot day to build a gigantic mall set and like 100 dancers and a robot. And we had to go ask them for money. And we're like, by the way, you're only gonna see a tiny fraction of that on the episode, but trust us, we're gonna shoot a four minute video. It's a full pop song. We've written a full pop song and there's gonna be a full video. We had to spend so much money to do a full day shoot with choreography that you learned, right, Kobe? Over many days. And that was a full extra shoot day, which we had never done. We never did that. It was a lot of time, a lot of money. And we said, we're gonna take that whole video and put it up. I think at the time it was MySpace. That's how long ago this was. And we're like, we're gonna get a lot of traction on MySpace. That will be an E that will always exist, so it will be worth it. But, you know, it wasn't like this song that we were gonna release yet. I mean, the funny thing is that song took on a life of its Own. We'll get to that. That song wound up on Just Dance 3. That song is literally on Just Dance 3, a video game. Like, Dance. Like, that song really became almost a hit on its own. But, like, tell us backing it up. Tell us about what it was like to go sing that song, to go record that song at John Swihart, our composer, his studio. I remember going with you, Kobi. It was just you and me, and we went to John Swihart's studio, and you're like, I've never done anything like this. It was. I remember it was early in the morning, and you were like, all right, now you're gonna sing let's Go to the Mall. Like, tell us about what that felt like. And I do feel like there was at some point, maybe some. Some alcohol involved. I think we had a little. A little shot of courage right before we started singing.

[Cobie Smulders]

I don't think it was right before. I think it was, like, halfway through. I think it was. We started. We tried. You guys set up a really nice, safe space for me. And first of all, like, the song is so great. Like, it's such a great song to begin with. She's slightly pitchy. You know what I mean? Like, she's a little. And I did find that with every. Like, with the Robin Sparkle songs, they were, like, just a little out of reach for me, Just a little high. So I think that's what started. I think I did it a couple of times, and we were, like, getting into it, and probably John, who's probably been in the room with many people who are. We're. We're learning and figuring it out as they go. Like, I was. He was like, why don't. I think he gave me a green apple first? Which is something, I guess the pros is. He gave me a green apple.

[Craig Thomas]

He did green apple. Because it cuts. It cuts the phlegm, right? Yeah. It's like I had never known that.

[Cobie Smulders]

It cuts the phlegm. It cuts the flam.

[Josh Radnor]

Those first takes, you guys were so phlegm filled, you would even believe.

[Cobie Smulders]

You're so flemmy. So flemified. And. And then I. I basically. Then I tried again, and obviously the. The apple wasn't working. Or maybe I was just, you know, it was. It's all new for me. It was all new for me. And I think I was feeling self conscious. And I was also, what, 23 years old, 24 years old. Like, I was still very young, which also worked in my favor in terms of. Of being brave through the rest of it, I think. But I definitely did. I had a shot of whiskey. And then we just kind of found our groove, didn't we, Craig? Like, we just kind of. We recorded it. And then I also remember John, like, this is a memory that's coming back and John being like, don't worry, we can fix stuff. You know, like we like.

[Craig Thomas]

Wait, what do you mean? Why are you saying that?

[Cobie Smulders]

And why do you think that's something that we need? I thought it was excellent, which I'm sure was a thought that went through my mind, but then was immediately replaced with like, replaced with like, oh, thank God that we can kind of adjust some of this stuff. And then I think my favorite part of it was, you know, we recorded it. And then you're like, let's just do it again. Or let's just do it again. But you just add things as you say it. Like, I think hoop earrings are mentioned. Let's do it was like a cooly most ever. And I think that you were on board to sort of like, help with some of those choices. But gosh, it was such a good day. And then that was like just the song and what you were just saying, Craig, of like, we have to ask for all this extra time. It was like, oh my God. Yeah, we have to like record the song and then we have to like, get the song in a place where it sounds really good and add the instrumental. And then it's. And then it was learning the choreography.

[Craig Thomas]

A lot of choreography. A lot. That was like a four minute dance video.

[Cobie Smulders]

It was a big day. It was a big day.

[Josh Radnor]

This was like your version, Kobe of like, this is what it's like to be on Glee all the time. Like, you have to do the TV show and then you have to do this whole other musical.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah. Which is why, like, much more talented people are doing Glee and I'm not. Like, it is like a, a full time 24 hour existence.

[Craig Thomas]

You were so good at it, though. You were so good at it. All that choreography. You sang the hell out of it. It sounds great. All those Sparkle songs. You sound great on. I, I, I love. I show those songs to my kids and my kids are like, those are fucking great songs. And I say to Celia, who's nine, stop saying fuck all the time. But she says it about this.

[Josh Radnor]

You know what I hadn't noticed in the the video at the end, the album title.

[Cobie Smulders]

Is it not let's go to the Mall?

[Josh Radnor]

Well, that's the single album that it came from, was called Make It Sparkle.

[Craig Thomas]

Make it sparkle. That's the album from Dominant Records. Which is. Which is an inside joke for my band, Dominant Records. Dominant Records. What was it like having to learn all that choreography and shoot that video? Because that video. I hope people will go online and watch just the full. The full video. You can go to YouTube and find, like the form. I mean, we'll put a link in the show. Notes, Alex. Like, it's a four minute full dance video. You really only see part of it in the show. And it was heartbreaking, absolutely heartbreaking that we couldn't put every second of it in the episode. But of course it's a four minute song. But the video is so good. What was it like? It really was an enormous production number. It was very Hollywood. It was one of the most Hollywood things we had done.

[Cobie Smulders]

It was very Hollywood. It was sort of, you know, not to go back full circle, but very a la Singing in the Rain, where it was like in the movie, this corner is the green screen and then over here is the food court. And then over in the back is where the band was. And I should say I had the best faux band on the planet.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah. Let's say who was in the band?

[Cobie Smulders]

It was Dave and it was Dave Baker.

[Josh Radnor]

Approved.

[Craig Thomas]

Dave Baker. Was he on the keytar or was he on the keytar?

[Cobie Smulders]

Yes.

[Craig Thomas]

Matt Kuhn, then writer's assistant, future writer Matt Kuhn on the stand up digital Dr. Like, not a real drum set. And he played it standing up like Jem and the Holograms, if anyone remembers that reference. And Jamie Adamec and Carl, who are two assistants to different. Carl is our assistant, Carl McLaren, namesake of the bar. He was on the keyboard rocking a very Flock of Seagulls. Great wig.

[Cobie Smulders]

It brought me so much joy because it felt like I was not alone in this process. Like, they were very in, they were very in and they were very excited. And that also just made the day even more wonderful. But, and I will say, as we're shouting people out, like the hair and makeup team, you know, there were so many Lona Jeffers and Jen Turchi and like, they just. I had multiple wigs and then it was like different styles and it was like. There was obviously like an amazing wardrobe involved. There's a lot of bedazzling. So it was like just an incredible. It was a real team effort for the whole thing. But, yeah, it was a big day. I remember being like about 3, 3/4 of the way through going like, oh, wow, this is, you know, this is. This is a lot. But we did A lot of the pieces. Like, we. We did a lot of the choreography at one time. And we had, like, the most amazing dancers as well. Like, the most amazing background dancers. And one guy who was, like, doing the robot very well. And he was also very. He was very cute.

[Craig Thomas]

He was the love interest.

[Cobie Smulders]

He was very cute.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. Hair like Gretzky. That's his name. I don't know his name.

[Cobie Smulders]

And by the way, he did. I want to say better than Gretzky.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

There, I said it better than Gretzky.

[Craig Thomas]

You were gonna get in big trouble for that. But it was good hair.

[Josh Radnor]

Wait, remind me if. Did we shoot the whole. The show in three days and add an extra day of shooting or. Did shoot it in two days and that was the third day was shooting the video?

[Craig Thomas]

No, we shot it three. It was a full show. And then the video. The video is really only a small part.

[Josh Radnor]

Did you do it on a weekend?

[Craig Thomas]

I think we just did it on a weekend.

[Cobie Smulders]

I think we did it on, like, a Tuesday.

[Josh Radnor]

A Tuesday after the re. Oh, yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

So you had spent days learning the choreography. We shot it on a Tuesday. We probably did a special, like, table read run through. Like, we. I think we ate up a day. But yeah, it was a full, like, nine to seven at night. Like, full day cramming that video in. And it was. It was great. It was one of the most. It was maybe one of the most fun things we ever did on the whole show.

[Josh Radnor]

It'd be fun. We should ask Pam, though, also, because I don't think Pam had been asked to direct a music video before in her career. That was such a funny ask of her, too.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, totally. And I rewatched the episode just because I knew we were gonna be talking about it today. Cause I was like, how well do I remember it? And I had completely forgot about the whole porn thing. I had completely forgot.

[Craig Thomas]

Blocked it out.

[Cobie Smulders]

Shooting. Even shooting. Shooting the intro video, which was like the teaser video, which made me so. It made me laugh so hard. The. How about I sing you a song? Like, it was so.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God. The moment where you sort of dance. Prance off screen there.

[Cobie Smulders]

I was like, I don't even remember it. I don't remember that. It was so funny.

[Josh Radnor]

Unbelievably good porn acting, though.

[Cobie Smulders]

Like, thank you, sir.

[Josh Radnor]

Like Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights level.

[Cobie Smulders]

Like, really? That means a lot. Spectacular really means a lot. Thank you. Thank you.

[Craig Thomas]

Why did that music video begin with that scene? Like, in real life? Why did that music video start that way?

[Josh Radnor]

It's it's like exploitation of young pop stars.

[Cobie Smulders]

That's it.

[Craig Thomas]

That's it.

[Cobie Smulders]

It is such a great. I mean, it is such a good episode. The slap bed of it all, the weaving through the commissioner, like Lily being the commissioner. All things I completely forgot. I think I was probably on another planet like, like, like practicing my, my, my, my grape vine or whatever.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

But it was just. I mean, it was just such a dream and it was so fun and weird and I just felt like I felt so lucky. And I, I think I've said this many times and I probably said it the last time I was here, so I apologize. But I think the joy about being on the show was it felt different. It felt like we were doing new things that we were challenging our wr. To kind of think outside this multicam sitcom box that we were in or that we were among. And this was, I think, again, I can't really remember. I'm sure there were moments of glimmers of versions of this that we had done in other episodes, but this just felt like, oh, whoa, they're really taking a swing and they're really doing something interesting and kind of taking a little bit of a risk. And I also thought that. But this was much later in our run.

[Josh Radnor]

I thought so too. I thought it was third or fourth.

[Craig Thomas]

Season, but it's crazy because it's true. And it introduces the Slap Bet to the Slap Bet and the Slap Bet Commissioner. Like these two. Two of the most beloved and like, enduring aspects of the entire series happen in this one episode. This 22 minute episode, season two, episode nine. And like the, the amount of mileage we went on to get from Robin Sparkles and the Slap Bet, we milked those things for all they were worth. I mean, we.

[Cobie Smulders]

But it's just, It' it's just such a great setup. Like, I was so. I was like, I rem. And I. And I had that memory too of Jason kind of gently caressing Neil, like in scenes sometimes, you know, like, like as a. Like. And I'm like, oh my gosh, what a great. It's such a brilliant. It's just such a brilliant tool that, that you guys came up with. And I. People love it.

[Josh Radnor]

I don't think that Jason Siegel, I don't think Jason Segel loved every bit he was given on How I Met yout Mother. I think we can say that, yes. But, boy, did he love the slap back.

[Craig Thomas]

He loved the slap and he loved.

[Josh Radnor]

Being able to slap. And we were talking Coby before you got here. Those slaps are amazing.

[Cobie Smulders]

They are amazing.

[Josh Radnor]

They look really.

[Cobie Smulders]

Are they real or are they not? Because I kind of remember Neil being like, you really have to slap me.

[Craig Thomas]

Those guys agreed that in interviews they would say it was real and it was definitely not real. And for like years they were like, no, it's real. They just were fucking with journalists.

[Josh Radnor]

I mean, it looks like Neil, he spins Neil's head around like a couple times on his neck.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, it's like a cartoon.

[Craig Thomas]

Kobi, do you know you hinted at this earlier, rewatching the episode last night for the first time in a while. I was so relieved the episode was good. Cause I can remember giving. Cause Carter and I wrote that song let's Go to the Mall. And I remember giving notes on like the bass drum and hi hat pattern of the song and giving these incredibly granular notes. Obsessing about the song, obsessing about the music video, the behind the scenes black and white thing. Cause every 80s early 90s video had that. Now it's backstage in the video and you're saying every detail of the song and the video. It's the hardest I've ever worked on anything. And then I sort of forgot to pay attention to what the episode was at all. And I was like, oh, right. We're also shooting this episode this week and watching it last night. The fact that it is a good episode, it is a good mystery. How I Met yout Mother mini mystery episode. And it works. I was so relieved. I was like. I just remember being irresponsibly over focused on the song and video.

[Josh Radnor]

Wait, who? Craig, who wrote this episode?

[Craig Thomas]

Was this you guys? Courtney Kang is the writer on this one. Yeah, yeah. And Courtney did a great job. And it's really a mystery episode. You kind of forget.

[Josh Radnor]

This is something I try to do on this show. It's like try to figure out kind of the beating heart underneath the thing. But I do think that one of my favorite tropes on How I Met yout Mother is kind of like how I met everyone else. Like filling in the lore on who these people were and how they have arrived at this moment. You know, filling in the backstory. This is such a good fill in for. And like you said, it's the mystery. But there's also a core thing, I think. And correct me if you weren't thinking this, Koby. But like, she's ashamed of it, right? Like, it's this. It's this thing of like in her background that is like shameful. And there's like that thing where you think, oh, no, no, no.

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If.

[Josh Radnor]

If people know this, I won't be loved. If people knew this about me, I wouldn't. I. I won't be loved. But in fact, you know, even Ted, I think, says it like, I love you more knowing this, you know? So I think it's like. It's that reveal of. It's a deepening of intimacy through this hilarious reveal.

[Craig Thomas]

That's why it works. It's. It's actually about something. Yeah.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, I think you're right, Josh. I think it did add. And. And also, I think, you know, Robin is not a very emotional person and is very, like. Like, you know, not secretive, but she's just. Is just. She's not. She's not intimate.

[Josh Radnor]

She's guarded.

[Cobie Smulders]

She's guarded. And. And also, like, she's trying to be a journalist. And this is. And it's also really funny. There's an aspect of this that's really interesting, too, which is, you know, this is before a viral video, right? Like, even in Barney's setup of it, he's like, I found a guy in Singapore or somewhere. Like, he's like, who has a tape, and he's. And he sent it to me, and it's downloading into my space. Like, it was like. Like there was no such thing as a. As a viral video. So I think Robin Sparkles was so dead and buried for Robin Shtabotsky that she. She never, ever thought that this would come up.

[Josh Radnor]

You could make the case that Robin Shtcherbotsky invented the viral video between Robin Sparkles and her falling in the poop on the thing, which seemed to also have some virality to it.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yes, you're right. You're right.

[Josh Radnor]

She was really. Yeah, she was the beta test for viral videos.

[Cobie Smulders]

Y. Yeah. Yeah. It was just. It was a different time, and it was a different time for us, too. You know, like, it was just this time where it felt like if you had done something like that in your youth, it would be found immediately now. Like, it would be. You would be able to be everywhere. It would be. You probably post it yourself on Instagram.

[Craig Thomas]

It's a period piece.

[Josh Radnor]

Do you guys remember. Was this before that Rebecca Black Friday video? Remember that? I think it was way before.

[Cobie Smulders]

Got to get down with Friday.

[Josh Radnor]

But this is guy that is a kind of, like, Robin Sparkles thing.

[Craig Thomas]

It's very Robin Sparkles. It is. It's true. Yeah, it's. It was. It's a period piece that. That this secret could remain a secret because it was actually kind Of a hit in Canada, but it is buried. It really does feel very 2006.

[Josh Radnor]

Well, it's also Kobe. It's kind of like things can hide in Canada. Like the Tragically hip.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yep.

[Josh Radnor]

You know.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

They cannot make their way down for whatever reason.

[Craig Thomas]

Canada.

[Cobie Smulders]

Well, first of all, they did. They are very, very popular international band, so they're fine. But.

[Josh Radnor]

Well, they were a little more popular in Canada than elsewhere.

[Cobie Smulders]

They are popular in Canada.

[Josh Radnor]

They played arenas in Canada and smaller clubs. The rest of the world.

[Cobie Smulders]

If you say so, Josh. If you say so. I. I'm going to. I'm agree to disagree.

[Craig Thomas]

Kobe's about to storm off. Kobe's about to storm off. The podcast.

[Cobie Smulders]

Don't.

[Josh Radnor]

If you talk shit about the Tragically hip to a Canadian.

[Cobie Smulders]

Flames, flames. Flames. On the side of my face.

[Craig Thomas]

On the side of my face.

[Josh Radnor]

Look, I'm a fan. I'm a fan.

[Craig Thomas]

Did you just do a clue reference? Did you just do the line from clue that I quote, 75 a day with my daughter?

[Cobie Smulders]

God, Kobe, it's fun in our house as well. We still got it.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

Thank God.

[Craig Thomas]

That is a very tasteful clue. Kobe, speaking of your daughters and like, doing clue bits, which you doing clue bits with your daughters makes me love you even more.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yes.

[Craig Thomas]

Do you. What do your daughters think of you as Robin Sparkles? Have they seen this episode? Have they seen you doing that full video? Have they seen.

[Cobie Smulders]

Mom, do you want to know something absolutely bonkers. They've never seen the show.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

I think it's like, I think they've. I apologize. I think they've seen maybe the pilot and they've seen the Robin Sparkles video, But I don't know. I think it was. You know, first of all, they have to be like, a certain age, right. For our show. I think it's like, you gotta be careful about that. And now, like, I have a 16 year old who could totally watch it, but, like, doesn't want to. I think she's like, you're just so in the show. You're in the show alone lot.

[Josh Radnor]

And I'm trying to downplay your presence in my life.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah.

[Cobie Smulders]

Like, I'm cool.

[Craig Thomas]

Like, how I met your mother is your Robin Sparkles for your daughter. Someday you'll discover this thing I did.

[Josh Radnor]

My misspent youth. Yeah. And this old man, he must admit he fell in love with you. Knew you.

[Craig Thomas]

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[Craig Thomas]

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[Cobie Smulders]

So that means a half day. Yeah.

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[Cobie Smulders]

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[Craig Thomas]

End of commercials back to show the.

[Cobie Smulders]

Younger one has actually funnily enough been asking and I'm like, let's give it maybe like two more years. Let's give it like two more years. And if you're still interested, we can, we can. But I think, you know, they have seen the, they've seen Robin Sparkle's video and they know the song. And I remember playing the song a lot, especially back in the day because wasn't it, Craig, wasn't it a song that you had already written in. Wasn't it called let's go play in the Snow?

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, yeah, okay. It was called Jumping in the Snow.

[Cobie Smulders]

Okay. Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

This is a really weird fun fact about, about let's Go to the Mall. It was one of the first melodies I ever wrote on guitar. I was a drummer in high school and I picked up the guitar, started messing around with chords and like started writing melodies. I wanted to write songs. This is when I was like 18 years old and I came up with that melod the melody of the chorus of let's Go to the Mall. But I didn't know how to write a song. So me and my friends, who is like a lyricist, we've written a lot of songs under my friend Andrew Majewski. We wrote it as a children's song because I didn't feel I could write a real song yet. And the melody was Jumping in the Snow. It was a song about kids playing in the snow. I don't know why. We were 18 writing children's songs. We were really fucking weird. But it was like jumping in the snow. Oh, like an Eskimo. Oh. It was like that exact melody. But it always stuck in my head. It stuck in my head.

[Josh Radnor]

It's like McCartney and scrambled eggs.

[Craig Thomas]

It was the scrambled eggs. It was my McCartney, scrambled eggs. But that melody always stuck in my head. And when we got to this idea, I thought, there's something here. There's something about that melody. The fact that I remember this. I'm like, whatever, I'm 31. I remember this melody from when I was 18. That has to mean something. So then we took that melody of having the chorus melody. And then I sat with Carter, I said, this is the chorus. And Carter, I think, came up with a verse melody, like. And we just. We then co wrote that entire song. We wrote a bridge. Very much a co write, the two of us. But that was the beginning spark. Was this one beginning spark. Let's see what I did there. A sparkle spark. And Carter. Very much Carter. Yes. Anded. Yeah, I did. Yes and did. And it was just like right in. He was like, yeah, that's the chorus. Here's an idea for the verse. And it was just. It just happened. We wrote it in like one afternoon.

[Josh Radnor]

You know, Craig, it's a good reminder for any creative people out there. Like, nothing is wasted like drafts in your computer. Like little melodies you have kicking around. Like they might come back. They just haven't found their home yet.

[Craig Thomas]

If it sticks in your head for 15 years, there's probably something to it. I wrote a lot of other melodies in between those moments that I didn't remember, but I remembered that one. And. Yeah, and I was. And getting in there. Kobi. I just flashed back to you guys. So this is the part where I have to rap. I remember. I think that was when the whiskey came out. I think that was the moment the whiskey came out.

[Josh Radnor]

We got that.

[Craig Thomas]

So they're like, still, I'm rapping now. I went and took them all. And you were like, that might have been the whiskey moment.

[Cobie Smulders]

That's interesting.

[Josh Radnor]

And all she had in her Stomach was green apples, so she probably got pretty good.

[Craig Thomas]

It was nine in the morning. You had an apple and whiskey on your stomach, and that was what fueled the genius.

[Cobie Smulders]

Sounds like a good day, Swihart.

[Craig Thomas]

And I said, you're like, how am I gonna rap? And we're like, at the end each word, I went to the mall with a couple of friends, and on friends, we're gonna, like, have five of you saying friends. I had a whole week's allowance to spend, and something about that pushed you over the top. You're like, all right, so I can do five of me just punching that word. So all I have to do is get to that last word, and then there's gonna be this big punch on that last word. I feel like that pushed you through that and the whiskey got you through it.

[Cobie Smulders]

But it's also like, that's talk singing. I could do that all day like that. And that's like, where the funny is, you know, that's where, like, the funny lies in the song and the rest of it is, like, it'd be good if, like, you were on key. Like, that would be. That would be just nice for the ear. But the.

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[Craig Thomas]

We can fix it. We can fix it.

[Cobie Smulders]

We could do so many things. You don't. You don't even. Can't even imagine what we could do. Yeah, but I do. I do. I'm now remembering that. And then I think we went from the rap into the, like, improv. Let's do it, kind of.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. And you threw out some improvs in there. You were amazing at that. You found the character. As we did that song. You really did. You defined the character while doing that song. Because we did it before we shot the episode.

[Cobie Smulders]

Obviously, we did.

[Josh Radnor]

Koby, did you. On the other side of Robin Sparklez, did you have a different understanding of Robin Scherbotsky? Like, the next step, like, you obviously. Cause you get more information as you go about what your character is trying to. So the character knows things that you, the actor, don't know. Right. Which is such a strange thing. But then as the series goes on, you know more. So I'm wondering. It's funny that she chose journalism, which is where she could be there, but kind of objectively observational, not the protagonist of the thing.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah. Yeah. That's where my mind went, too, is the choice in journalism just being like, I'm a part of it, but I'm not. Not on. I'm not center stage. Although she is for a lot of it.

[Josh Radnor]

It's like, I'M a serious person.

[Cobie Smulders]

I'm a serious person. I'm gonna prove it to you. But I think that generally after that, I. I just kind of thought, you know, she might be more fun. Like, she was, you know, she might just be kind of goofier and allowed to be goofier. Not just sort of like. I think that her comedy up until that point was more, you know, situational. You know, she's reporting the story or she's sort of talked about, as opposed to having. Yeah. Having. Just being present and silly in scenes. It made her. I think it allowed her to have a better sense of humor afterwards.

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Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

I also think there's a distinction to be made between sometimes as an actor, you're asked to do things that the character might be embarrassed about, but is so much fun for you. The actor playing something that character would be embarrassed about. There's also the reverse where you kind of do things where you're like, this is actually embarrassing me as an actor. But I felt like the joy with which you played that was kind of like the character was humiliated. But, boy, Cobie Smulders was having the time of her life.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah, I was having a great time. I was having a great time. It's true. Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

You seemed fearless. That video. Like, how did it feel, that video shoot? You seemed so fearless and so committed. It was like a whole other level. Like, were there moments shooting it where you're like, this is insane, or were you just, like, all in?

[Cobie Smulders]

I was pretty all in. Again, there was a lot to do. Like, it just felt like there was not really a moment in which to be, like, sitting in one of those director's chairs going, like, gosh, what are we doing? And what am I doing? And did I do that okay? It was just sort of like I had to just kind of stay on the treadmill. Right.

[Josh Radnor]

Well, you were also. You had on, like. I always felt like Neil had on, like, a costume of armor as Barney, which allowed him to do this insane stuff. Cause he was never, like, mistaken for himself. And I felt like when you put on that wig and those, like, webbed gloves or whatever, the net. You know what I mean? Like, just whatever costume. It gave you a lot of armor to be ludicrous in a way that looked liberating.

[Cobie Smulders]

Totally, totally, totally. It was. It really was. And it was fun to do something really different and unique. Like, it was. It was such a.

[Josh Radnor]

It was such a gift. Let's run through a couple things that we just. Any, you know, as the office ladies call it, what do they call it overall impressions?

[Craig Thomas]

Overall impressions. Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

We should call ours general impressions.

[Craig Thomas]

General impressions.

[Josh Radnor]

General impressions. Was this the debut I noticed? Ted said, guys, Guys, guys. Was that the debut of mimicking Michael Shea, our beloved first assistant director with Guys Guys?

[Craig Thomas]

It may have been. Oh, I missed that.

[Cobie Smulders]

God, this was a big episode. If that is true.

[Josh Radnor]

That was literally for us. That was not for the folks at home. Guys, Guys, guys. Was a total. Because he would wrangle the set by going, guys, guys, guys.

[Craig Thomas]

Right.

[Josh Radnor]

And then whenever we could, whenever it was written, guys. From the. For the rest of the show, everyone would just say it three times.

[Craig Thomas]

Right, right. You didn't even have to write it. We knew you were gonna say guys, guys, guys. If we wrote the word guys.

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

It's so stupid.

[Cobie Smulders]

It's so good.

[Josh Radnor]

Barney's nose. When she says, I just turned 30 and he's out of there. That's kind of a crusher.

[Craig Thomas]

Brutal. Just brutal. He's a sociopath.

[Josh Radnor]

Brutal. Also, one of my favorite martial lines. I'm not afraid of Sasquatch. I just think we should be on alert that he won't go to the Pacific North.

[Cobie Smulders]

You.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah, the entire Pacific Northwest. Better. Better to be safe.

[Cobie Smulders]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

That's also. I mean, you guys have been watching the show up to this point more. More than I have. So I. I need to go back. But it did fell feel like a really gelled episode where, like, even the, like, the Marshall and Lily, like, she pulled out all that info and then. And that you knew she knew that info. And that Barney. This is new information for him, and he's, like, amazed by, like, there was a lot of, like, gold in this episode that sort of made this group feel like a real group. And even, like, even there was a moment, like, at the end, there's, like, a tag, and everybody's making fun of me, and it's just like this kind of, like, kind ribbing that's happening. It's a really. Yeah. I felt like this episode was just, like. I don't know if we had gelled up until that point. I feel like we had to a degree, but this one just feels. Felt like a special one.

[Josh Radnor]

And it felt like, to me, the writers knew exactly where the comedy could be mined from each character's perspective or angle.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah, that's right. And that tag was a bit of improv, too. We had a few lines for you guys because we knew we wanted to see more of that video. We've had to see more of the video to justify the massive Cost of having shot that video. And we're like, the tag has to be. You get to see more of the video, but you get to see them watching the video. And Robin has now softened and she is okay sharing this part of herself with Ted. I love the idea, Kobi, that to you, you viewed it as, I wanna be a serious journalist, so I'm hiding this part of my past that is really part of what was happening there. But once she lets go of that and connects with Ted, she's. It's very loving. That Tag. The group loves that this is her past. Right. They love Robin and they love that they know this about her. And we had you guys just actually watching the video and saying stuff. I think some of that was just like improv. Maybe. We went in, gave a couple lines. I love. I don't know if Allie improvised this or if we wrote it, but where she. She goes. So wait, you wanted us all to go to the mall today? But it was very loose, that tag. It was like you guys were hanging out, fucking around with this video the way that an actual group of friends would. And it really. It was one of the most natural feeling scenes we had ever shot. Just that little bit. And felt it's. So you want to hang out with those people. You know, it's one of those moments.

[Josh Radnor]

And I think there was a feeling, like I said earlier, like we suddenly knew her better. Like it was. She was more in focus for us. More to make fun of, but more to love, right?

[Advertisement Voice (Masterclass/Monster Energy)]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah, that's right.

[Josh Radnor]

I. Barney has one of my. I would say in. In terms of weight for it, if you were. If you were ranking those. Lactose intolerant is number one.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah, that's number one.

[Josh Radnor]

My second favorite might be porn. Wait for it.

[Craig Thomas]

What was the rest of that gonna be? Who knew?

[Josh Radnor]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Who saw that coming? Yeah.

[Advertisement Voice (Masterclass/Monster Energy)]

Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Here's a fast fact. I'm gonna throw one in here. I looked up. Cause the song as it became this song became actually popular on its own and took on a life of its own a little bit. And it got On Just Dance 3, as I referenced earlier. And I looked up the lineup of the songs on Just Dance 3, like the video game. And this is the names I read. Kobe, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Aretha Franklin, Robin Sparkles. That is like. There's like 30 songs on there. But as you scroll through, you get that experience that I just described to you.

[Josh Radnor]

When you look at Rushmore right there.

[Craig Thomas]

Aretha Franklin, Kobe Smulders as Robin Sparkles, it makes sense.

[Cobie Smulders]

It Makes sense. No, it makes sense. It makes sense.

[Josh Radnor]

You know, Aretha Franklin. Aretha Franklin couldn't sing without green apples and whiskey. And she always hit the last word. If you listen to her, she's always hitting that last word. Yeah. Yeah.

[Craig Thomas]

Five voices on every last word. Could. Could. Putting on the Ritz. Kobe Smulders, teenage Kobe Smulders. Could have imagined on the track, listening with Aretha Franklin as you were singing put on the kid. Your mind would be blown if you could go back in time. But it became a real song. The song got around.

[Cobie Smulders]

I wish she did. I wish she did. I wish she knew where she was going. I wish she was gonna be an international faux celebrity. I really wish. I really wish. I remember. I remember coming off of the stage. This is just another high school story. Cause you guys are begging for them. I came off of the stage after performing. You know, in high school, you have, like, three performances, and I was like, the first one. And my mom came to the show, and she saw me backstage, and she was very exciting. She goes, oh, my God, Cogie, it was so wonderful. You just went out there and you couldn't sing a note of it, but you just sang it out anyway. And that's how I still feel about Robin Sparkle.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God. Well, guess what? You're on an album or a video game with Aretha Franklin. That's a. So scoreboard, Koby.

[Josh Radnor]

One of the things that I had forgotten that we had that I thought was so funny was me doing this super fast quizzing of you over the wedding details.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, so funny.

[Cobie Smulders]

I had forgotten about that completely myself.

[Josh Radnor]

And stumping you on what was your name?

[Craig Thomas]

The name, Every detail but the name. So funny.

[Josh Radnor]

And I loved when you said. You said we paid extra for the sax because I just love that smooth alto sound.

[Craig Thomas]

Every detail was perfectly constructed except the guy's name.

[Cobie Smulders]

She had the whole.

[Josh Radnor]

She had the whole thing down.

[Cobie Smulders]

She had her whole backstory worked out. She just, you know, just that one piece of the puzzle she desperately needed.

[Josh Radnor]

What library? The one on fifth. I used the Canadian Mall Marriage Six house.

[Cobie Smulders]

So good.

[Craig Thomas]

I forgot about the episode. I really forgot. I was so focused on. I really forgot. Every joke.

[Josh Radnor]

The slap bet and the video. Take over your memory of it. But there's a whole story going on that is, like, quite good and compelling.

[Craig Thomas]

It is. It's a mystery. And it is. It's deepening. Ted and Robin's relationship. It really has merit as an episode. That was my favorite. That was a big relief because I always felt like I really didn't pay as much attention as I should have to the episode, but it's actually good.

[Josh Radnor]

I love Lily's like, really taking the Slap Bet commissioner so seriously.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

And Barney, we were talking about when he's describing it, and Pam just pushes in slowly like it's Amadeus, you know, just pushing in on him.

[Craig Thomas]

This is.

[Josh Radnor]

I also loved premature Slapulation is fantastic.

[Cobie Smulders]

That's a good one. That's a good one.

[Craig Thomas]

Well, it's one of my all time favorites. It's one of my all time favorites. And little did we know. This is the great thing about a long running series.

[Cobie Smulders]

It is my favorite. It is officially my favorite.

[Craig Thomas]

You are a genius in this one. It is so great. If we only could have known how many more things we were gonna do about Robin Sparkles. Cause in the moment you're just like, this seems funny. Let's do this. And we got seven more years in which to keep peeling back the layers and finding all these other twists and turns. Just about that one part of Robin that is the gift of a long running TV show. You don't have all the ideas all at once. You really dig and excavate who these people are. And I love what you said, Kobi, about like you felt a lightness and a silliness and some other speed for Robin was like unlocked by this episode. And that is the gift of this specific process of a long running TV show.

[Josh Radnor]

And I think for you guys, Craig, like you were still figuring out what your superpowers were narratively.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

And once you did this, you're like, well, wait a minute. What can we do next? Like, absolutely. The sky was the limit in certain ways.

[Craig Thomas]

We were extremely shameless. Carter and I, about milking things for all that they were worth. And we were not afraid of like beating it to death and doing it eight more times. I don't know if that's like our Letterman roots. Writing on a talk show, doing five shows a week. You're like, if you get something, you just keep doing it.

[Josh Radnor]

You know, Jordana said to me last night when we were watching this episode, she goes. Cause she'd never seen How I Met yout Mother. She goes, I know about Robin Sparkles. I know the phrase let's go to the mall. And I know about Slap Bet.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah.

[Josh Radnor]

But she's never seen the show. So it just shows you that it invaded the culture.

[Craig Thomas]

Pop culture.

[Josh Radnor]

Beyond the Mondays at 8:30.

[Craig Thomas]

You know, it's a good one. Kobe, we're gonna. We should let you go.

[Josh Radnor]

You can take down that wallpaper.

[Craig Thomas]

Now take that wallpaper straight down. I don't know what's under there.

[Alec Lev]

Now I'm just gonna cut in. I'm just gonna say that Kobe's actually not gonna go. We're gonna. We're gonna. We're gonna go to our music. That's gonna take us into our. What we call in the show, C Block. So. So we could say thank you to Kobe, but she's not going anywhere.

[Josh Radnor]

So, Kobe, stick around for the C block, will you?

[Cobie Smulders]

C block can't wait.

[Josh Radnor]

Here we go.

[Craig Thomas]

Let's go to the C block.

[Cobie Smulders]

Let's go to C block today.

[Alec Lev]

All right, so we are. This is it. This is our C block now. And so as listeners know, we obviously love hearing your voice messages, which we often put at the front of the show, as we did today. And you could write into us also with some stories about what How I Met yout Mother means and meant to you. And you just go to howemadeyourmother.com and click on Contact. And at this point in the show, Josh and Craig will read one of those letters. But we have a guest reader today who has volunteered to read one of these beautiful messages we've got. So, Kobi, I'll hand it over to you.

[Cobie Smulders]

Thanks so much, Alec. Okay, this letter is from Sarah. Do we know where Sarah is? It's just Sarah. Sarah, this one was written by you. Thanks for writing in. There's a certain churning in the chest, a bubbling energy that's hard to name. That How I met your mother stirs in me. It's the same feeling I had as a teenager, staring out bus windows with my earbuds in dreaming of college, adulthood, love. Something just around the corner, not quite tangible, but pulsing with promise. That hopeful ache, that beautiful suspense, that goosebump sense of something coming for me. This show has always been more than a sitcom. It's a philosophy class hidden behind slap bets and legend, wait for it, dairy punchlines. It's a meditation on fate and free will and how often we don't even know which one we're living out until years later. It's all about how love doesn't always come when you expect it it, but how every choice, every detour, every mistake somehow still stitches its way into the story. Himyim is memory. It's seventh grade, me watching for the first time, racing to catch up before season eight aired. It's a yellow umbrella hanging in my closet. Not just a symbol, but a promise. It's signed photos from Josh and Koby with more Signatures to come because dreams are still in progress. It's white noise and comfort lullabies in the form of laughter and narration. As I fall asleep to the rhythm of lives, I feel I've. Sorry.

[Craig Thomas]

Oh, my God.

[Cobie Smulders]

I feel I've lived alongside my own. It's friendship. Like the time I sneakily slipped. Let's go to the mall onto my friend's phone while downloading Adele. Now she hears it and thinks of me.

[Advertisement Voice (Rosetta Stone)]

Me.

[Cobie Smulders]

Because this show ties us together in unexpected, hilarious, and oddly meaningful ways. It's love. Josh mentioned his relationship would survive if Jordana didn't love himyim. Mine would not. Thankfully, thankfully, Jordana does so. And so we are laughing, crying, quoting, and understanding. The story is always bigger than the end. This show isn't just a favorite. It's a fingerprint, a time capsule, a reflection of who I was, who I am, and who I hope to be. It's home. And every time I press play, it reminds me that sometimes the longest way around really is the shortest way home. Thank you for this podcast. I've been waiting for years for this. Sarah.

[Craig Thomas]

My God, Sarah. That was a good one.

[Cobie Smulders]

Very sweet. Very sweet. Sarah.

[Josh Radnor]

Sarah, if you're listening, and I hope you are, I just want to say your insights into the show are so fantastic and beautiful and sensitive, but you're also a beautiful writer, I hope. Yeah. It's so sensitively written and incredibly moving, as you could see. I mean, wow, what a treat to hear these. And thank you for that. That was really special.

[Cobie Smulders]

Really special.

[Craig Thomas]

Yeah. You made us all cry. You made us all cry. What can we say? You made us cry. Sarah, we're so honored the show means that to you. We're all trying to fight back tears and, like, hold it together. We're limping. We're going to somehow get to the end of this episode without bursting into tears. That was really beautiful. Thank you so much.

[Cobie Smulders]

So sweet. I think it's just. I think it's just, like, how. How important it is to people's lives. Like, it's just so. It's overwhelming a little bit. You know, it's a little.

[Josh Radnor]

I know it's a little overwhelming.

[Craig Thomas]

It's beautiful, guys. How could we have known? How could we have known when you were eating an apple and drinking whiskey in that studio that, like, somehow it would transmit into the world and lead to somebody feeling that way? It's really kind of magic. Kobe. It's really. Yeah, it's really special.

[Josh Radnor]

It's also, Craig, like, when she said it's a philosophy Class masquerading. It's a sitcom, you know, Like, I think you guys were able because of the form of it. It was familiar, it was lovable. You wanted to be inside of the story, inside of the bar, inside of the apartment with these people were great company, but it allowed you to kind of smuggle in these deeper things that are in every episode. If you look at it, you can. I mean, we're really trying to tease out some of the deeper.

[Craig Thomas]

This is maybe our funniest episode we ever did. And it's still very sweet and about intimacy. It's actually about something in the end in a way that I almost forgot because the bells and whistles are so fucking funny in this one. And Colby, it's just. You're just fucking magic in this one. It's so good. I was just watching it last night going, I can't believe this is our show that we got to do this. It's, it's, it's just, it's an all timer. Thank you for coming to do this today.

[Josh Radnor]

Like, Kobe, when we auditioned, like, Kobe was not hired because she could do a Canadian pop star. Like, like, you know what I'm saying? Like, this was something you guys just, like, figured out. Like, it was like discovering a whole other, like, wing of a house where you're like, wait a minute, this is their mansion.

[Craig Thomas]

Like, oh, there's a mansion over here. Yeah, totally. Well, thank you guys for. Yes. Ending all the crazy. Like, Kobe, you just.

[Cobie Smulders]

Thank you for writing it.

[Isabel (Listener/Caller)]

Dude.

[Craig Thomas]

This was the ultimate. Yes. This was the ultimate. Yes. And okay. You're so lovely to do this. Kobe, we love you.

[Josh Radnor]

Always. So good to see you, Kobe.

[Cobie Smulders]

Love you all.

[Josh Radnor]

I am guilty. Please acquit me. All sins are forgiven in New York City.

[Alec Lev]

How We Made youe Mother is hosted and executive produced by Josh Radner and Craig Thomas and is presented and distributed by the Office Ladies Network and Odyssey. This episode is also executive produced by Jenna Fisher and Angela Kinsey. The show is produced and edited by me, Alec Lev and our co producer is Doug Matica. Our audio producer and make is Alex Reeves at Pointe Blue Studios. Our digital content producer, AKA Gen Z Master, is Emily Blumberg. Artwork by John Morrow. Please follow rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts or your podcast player of choice. It really does help the show. Our theme song is New York City by our own Josh Radner with additional music by Craig Thomas and Andrew Majewski. Special thanks to Lola Kennedy and Elliot Connors. Visit how we madeyourmother.com to learn more and click on the contact page to send us an email or a voice message. Your stories and questions are an important part of the show. Subscribe to Josh Radner's Muse Letters on Substack and check out his music and everything [e-mail] Order Craig Thomas Debut novel, that's Not How It Happened, wherever books are sold, and check out his other published [e-mail] and you can subscribe to My own Dead Fathers Society, also on Substack, to learn more about how you make a difference, this show's ongoing campaign to raise money for congenital pediatric heart disease research. Check out the Make a Difference tab at the top of our website. People will in fact die.

[Josh Radnor]

The real question it just hit me. Am I in love with you or just New York City?

[Craig Thomas]

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[Craig Thomas]

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