Roza Melkumyan

“Hi, my name is Robin the Robot. What’s yours?” With this conversation, Robin—a cheerful, blue-eyed robot just under 4 feet tall—has been winning the hearts and minds of children across the country since 2020. Despite its sleek and shiny design reminiscent of the beautiful Eve from Pixar’s Wall-E, Robin is not a cartoon character, and it certainly isn’t a toy—though parents have asked if they can buy one.

It’s the third act of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie (2023), and the Kens are embracing their newfound patriarchy, brainwashing the Barbies into being their maids, interrupting Barbie Land’s perfect pink palette with their horse prints and faux minks. Enter Kate McKinnon’s “Weird Barbie,” her puffy pink paint-splattered dress traded in for cargo pants and a bedazzled bomber jacket, and her choppy locks smoothed into a half-buzzed side-swept hairdo.

I made plans to see my friend on a Wednesday — it had been nearly a year since I’d seen her last. She lived in Philadelphia now, which meant all I’d have to do was take an 8-dollar train from my town and I’d be there. Luckily, though, mom happened to be driving into Center City that very day for a work party. Like a child going on a playdate, I hopped into the car and settled into the front seat. I was dropped off at my brother’s apartment, where I waited for my friend to finish her work day.