Slap Bet

"Slap Bet"
How I Met Your Mother episode
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 9
Directed by Pamela Fryman
Written by Kourtney Kang
Production code 2ALH09
Original air date November 20, 2006
Guest stars

Candace Kroslak (Girl #1)
Rachel Specter (Girl #2)
Timothy Prindle (Mr. Johnson)

Season 2 episodes

"Slap Bet" is the 9th episode in season 2 of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on November 20, 2006. This episode was originally titled "Robin Sparkles."

Contents

Plot

Ted, Marshall, Lily, and Barney find out that Robin does not want to go to a mall, and Robin doesn't want anyone to know why she's averse to malls. Ted tries to guess and in doing so reveals that he was trapped under a fake boulder at a mall in Ohio when he was nine. Marshall believes that Robin was married in a mall in Canada, while Barney believes that Robin did pornography in Canada. They agree to a slap bet (where the winner of the bet slaps the loser as hard as he possibly can) and appoint Lily as the slap bet commissioner.[1] Ted thinks both ideas are ridiculous, but tries to find out if she's married. Robin tells Ted that she is married, having married a guy in a mall. Ted promises to keep it a secret, but then tells Marshall and Lily. Seeing as he's won, Marshall slaps Barney, but Barney still investigates the subject.

Shortly after that, Marshall uses his law-school access to search a legal records database. He tells Ted that there is no record of a marriage license for Robin in Canada, but she has had several parking tickets. Ted, after asking Robin a bunch of questions, gets her to tell him that she's not really married, but not why she's afraid of malls. Marshall also tells Lily of his findings, and Lily, as the slap bet commissioner, informs Barney and allows him to slap Marshall three times (one slap because Marshall lied, and two for being prematurely slapped).

Barney then reveals that a man in Malaysia has found a video with Robin in it, and it will be posted on MySpace shortly. He refers to her as "Robin Sparkles", to which she is surprised and questions him as to where he heard that name. Ted is no longer interested in finding out Robin's secret, but Robin later insists that it is time for the secret to be revealed. Barney plays the opening part of the video, in which Robin (dressed as a schoolgirl) seductively pleads a teacher not to give her detention. Barney, for the sake of Robin's dignity, pauses the video and says that he has proved his point, and then slaps Marshall. Robin asks Barney why he slapped Marshall, and Barney tells her about the bet and that he thought that Robin had done porn earlier in her life. Robin plays the video, saying it was not porn. It turns out to be a stereotypically 80's music video where a young Robin (referred to as Robin Sparkles) sings "Let's Go To the Mall", Robin's minor hit in Canada as a teenage pop star.

Lily points out to Barney that he did not win the slap bet. Lily then gives Marshall the right to slap Barney either ten times immediately in succession or five times available to Marshall for all of eternity, pending Barney's preference. Barney chooses the five slaps, which Ted refers to as a "horrible call", because Barney must now live in constant fear of being slapped. Robin tells Ted that she is actually glad Ted knows her secret now. They kiss and Marshall slaps Barney, proclaiming, "That's one". They all continue to enjoy the video, and Marshall menaces Barney.

Continuity

Recurring Elements

Cultural references

Barney's blog

Production

Critical response

References

External links