On Everybody Loves Raymond, Ray and Robert Barone may be loving brothers, but they still do terrible things to each other throughout the sitcom.
Hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond focuses on the loud and larger-than-life antics within the close-knit Barone family, and one of the series’ central relationships is also one of its most fractured. Brothers Ray and Robert Barone have been at odds with each other ever since childhood.
Robert is always jealous of the attention and acclaim younger brother Raymond receives from their mother and in his career, while Raymond is always annoyed by Robert’s disposition and behaviors. No matter how much these two may love each other at the end of the day, Ray and Robert routinely treat each other terribly throughout the series’ run.
Ray: The Failed Hall Of Fame Trip
Ever since they were children, Robert idolized former Mets player Art Shamsky, so much so that he even named his dog after him. When the opportunity arose to meet Shamsky and other Mets players, at a National Baseball Hall of Fame event, Robert and Ray jumped at the chance.
But thanks to Ray’s arrogance in assuming he would be able to get past protocol due to his credentials as a sportswriter, Robert missed out on the chance to meet his childhood hero.
Robert: Creepy Behavior Toward Debra
It’s a running joke throughout the entire series — that’s never funny or leads to any sort of payoff — that Robert appears openly interested in Debra, if not outright obsessed with her.
Making matters worse, he clearly flaunts his obsessive interest in Debra, including his frankly disturbing recall of minor facts and events about her life. Robert flaunts his Debra knowledge in front of Ray’s face basically every chance he gets, especially if it makes his brother look like a bad husband as a result.
Ray: Letting Robert Take The Fall For His Party
Ray Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond Pants on Fire
The episode “Pants on Fire” is one that offers an unconventional look at the relationship between Ray and Robert, particularly through the lens of their mother favoritism. Flashbacks in this episode reveal that Ray once threw a raucous party in high school that involved drinking.
Appalled, Marie begins to shun her always favored Raymond, instead doting on the long-neglected Robert. But by episode’s end, Marie shifts her love back to Raymond, as Ray lets Robert take the fall for their bad youthful behavior.
Robert: Telling Ray He Doesn’t Love Marie
Robert Barone and Ray Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond Golf For It
Many of Ray and Robert’s greatest conflicts focus on their relationship with their mother and the contrasting ways she treats them. The episode “Golf for It” finds the two of them fighting for most of the episode, even eventually physically , as they discuss their parents’ future living situation.
It’s during this heated confrontation that Robert makes a bold, incredibly cruel claim: Marie may love Raymond more, but Robert loves Marie more than Raymond ever has or will. It wounds Ray immediately, and only makes their conflict all the more ugly.
Ray: Taking Credit For Robert’s Gift
Everybody-Loves-Raymond-Robert-Christmas-Gift-Cropped
Robert’s obsession with Debra rears its ugly head in one particular Christmas-themed episode, and yet at the end of the day, it’s Raymond who’s biggest jerk. After Debra complains that Ray never puts any real thought into the gifts he gives her, Ray goes ahead and proves that she’s entirely right.
When he’s incapable of thinking of any gifts better than a space heater or pajamas, Ray gets a fantastic gift idea from Robert — a first edition copy of her favorite book, To Kill a Mockingbird — and runs away with the credit until Robert intervenes.
Robert: Pretending He’s Ray”Raybert” is one of the series’ stranger episodes, and one in which neither Raymond nor Robert comes out looking particularly good. But it’s arguably Robert who is at the most fault here.
After meeting a woman who assumes he is Ray Barone, Robert pretends that he is his brother, well into dating the woman. Ray is then forced to pretend he is Robert, which makes for some hilarious but incredibly stupid back-and-forth insults between both brothers as they attempt to bolster and attack each other’s reputations in equal measure.
Ray: Canceling Plans, Which Led To Robert’s Injury
On more than one occasion, Ray expresses irritation at having to spend time with his brother, particularly given Robert’s less-than-cheerful demeanor and many peculiarities. But in the episode “Robert’s Rodeo,” Ray
‘s selfish choice to cancel plans for no reason has dire consequences.
After Ray lies to get out of hanging out with Robert, Robert takes an extra shift at work and winds up being gored by a runaway bull, which lands him in the hospital with a serious injury.
Robert: Taking Advantage Of Ray’s Generosity
Ray Barone and Robert Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond Robert Needs Money
Robert is a character defined by his morose disposition and inability to get ahead of his younger brother in any way he tries. “Robert Needs Money” finds Robert down on his luck in the financial department, and Ray decides to offer his brother a loan of $1,000.
But rather than put his money to use in meaningful financial ways, Robert immediately books a trip to Las Vegas, looking the gift horse in the mouth and failing to see the selfishness of his behavior.
Ray: Telling Robert He Has No Life
Ray Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond Say Uncle
Ray Barone is hardly the best dad in the world. But in the episode “Say Uncle,” he proves himself to be quite the terrible brother, too.
Jealous of Robert’s spending quality time with his children, whom Ray believes prefer Robert to him as a result, he tries to put on the act of being a devoted father who wants to play with his children and takes them to the petting zoo. This ultimately leads to Ray lashing out at Robert, telling him that he’s jealous of Ray’s life because he doesn’t have one of his own and should get one.
Robert: Losing Ray’s Wedding Ring
Robert Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond Ray’s Ring
In what might be one of the silliest premises for an episode of the series, “Ray’s Ring,” Robert winds up causing Raymond a whole lot of trouble by doing something incredibly stupid. After seeing Ray spinning his wedding ring, Robert decides to do so when Ray leaves the room.
Of course, the ring winds up flying across the room and getting lost in a heating vent. To no avail, Ray and Robert try to rescue the ring, and when Ray returns home, it all leads to an incredible amount of conflict between him and Debra, all due to Robert’s stupid mistake.
