Nick and Rob are the most recurring antagonists on Brum. They’re a pair of bumbling Big Town Baddies who frequently cause chaos and mayhem when they steal in the Big Town. Over the course of the show, the duo steal cash and highly prized items like trophies and gnomes to sell for a profit. Nick, the taller of the two, is the more dominant out of the pair whereas Rob, the shorter one, is the more dimwitted sidekick.
They are respectively played by Jason Segade and Dan Carey.
Biography[]
Virtually nothing is known about Nick or Rob or the circumstances that facilitated their criminal partnership. All that is known is that the two developed an infamous reputation within the Big Town for their thieving antics. Additionally, from their chosen outfits they seem to be lower to middle class Townspeople who use their assorted criminal endeavours to make money on the side.
Brum and the Pizzeria[]
Nick and Rob are first seen walking near one of the town’s cafe’s before they are ushered in and seated by its owner. The criminals quickly take interest in the waiter’s money belt as it fills with cash. The pair are then given menus causing Rob to lose all interest in the money while Nick hides his face while continuing to stair the booty down. When the waiter gets in range Nick tells Rob to grab it before he is warned off by Brum. Rob tries again as the waiter bends over to take them through the menu before Brum startles the two again. Once Brum and the waiter go inside Nick and Rob pretend to make up their minds and follow them in.
The duo then crawl behind the waiter and at an opportune moment untie the money belt and bolt into the kitchen as Brum and the waiter follow. Sneaking up behind a working pastry-cook, Nick grabs two chef outfits for a disguise. Once the chef leaves, the crooks dressed as cooks hide the money belt in Rob’s toque before they man the station and try to clumsily make pizzas to avoid detection. However, their act comes undone when a piece of dough thrown by Rob accidentally ends up on Nick’s face causing the latter to plaster the former’s face with a pizza base. This causes Rob’s chef hat to fall to the floor revealing the stolen money. Panicked the two skid their way around the kitchen and past the cafe’s owner.
The thieves end up in the dining room where they try to hide behind a cart but end up exposing themselves. The two then bolt on top of the restaurant’s tables causing food to fly everywhere and get cornered by Brum and the waiter behind a window table. The criminals then resort to pelting Brum, the waiter and everyone else with pizzas before dashing to the exit. However, their feet get stuck on a few pizzas which they fling at Brum.
The crooks then skedaddle to an alleyway where they use the piled up rubbish to try and scale a railed platform. However, their lack of climbing skill causes them to get comically stuck despite the lack of height. Brum then captures them in a dumpster after having pushed it underneath them. The money belt safely lands in Brum’s backseat before the dazed crooks emerge covered in trash and rotten food. The waiter arrives and laughs at the soiled thieves while Brum bobs with amusement before he retrieves his money belt. While Nick and Rob try to clean themselves up, Brum wheels them to the front of the cafe as everyone breaks out into applause. Brum then departs while Nick and Rob give him a forlorn wave goodbye.
It’s unclear what happened to Nick and Rob in the episodes leading up to their next appearance. After their humiliation they either left the scene in disgrace or were handed to the authorities and spent some time in jail or agreed to pay a hefty fine.
Brum and the Pizzeria: Book Adaptation[]
The book follows the same basic story as its source material but with following departures.
- In the live action episode, they sneak into the restaurant before taking the money belt. In the book they steal it while they are still outside before racing into the kitchen and knocking a cake into the cafe owner’s face. This bit doesn’t happen until the two dash out of the kitchen when Brum sees through their disguises.
- The two then dress as cooks and pretend to make pizzas as Brum enters the kitchen and honks his horn. Upon hearing it, they run out of the kitchen and straight into the alleyway. The scene in the dining room isn’t depicted.
- The book ends with Brum nabbing the crooks in a dumpster before returning the money.
Brum and the Diamond Dog[]
Nick and Rob are next seen sitting around dressed in dark leather clothes when Brum tries to invite them to see the arrival of a famous celebrity at one of the Big Town Hotel. Remembering their previous humiliation, the crooks ignore him before the supercar leaves. However, their interest is piqued when they see the amount of people following the superhero and start following. The criminals peer from behind the hotel to see the celebrity arrive with her dog and its diamond encrusted collar. Knowing it’s worth a small fortune the pair sneak in after Brum and the bellhop go in after the party.
The thieves pose with the others for a photo and grab the dog when the flash momentarily stuns everyone. They run outside of the hotel’s grounds and Nick tries to pry the collar off only for the dog to snap at them. However, Nick then spies two workmen with hedge shears giving him the idea to cut the collar off and then turn the dog loose. Coming up from behind the bushes Nick then pries the shears from one of the workmen before the pair sneak off with Brum and the bellhop in pursuit. The thieves run across a large oval in the nearby park before stopping behind some trees to snip the collar off and release the dog. Both run out and marvel at the diamonds before running out of sight as Brum and the bellhop catch up.
However, the dog catches their scent and starts following them, allowing Brum and the bellhop to get back on their trail. The criminals run towards and hide behind a small storage shed before the dog, Brum and the bellhop chase them in circles until both try to barricade themselves inside. Unfortunately, they don’t close the door before the dog enters and literally chews them out until it retrieves its collar and leaves Nick and Rob slumped on the flaw unable to escape. The baddies are then dragged back to the hotel by the bellhop where they are apprehended by the celebrity’s private security detail. As Brum leaves Rob gives him a friendly but dopey wave goodbye before Nick angrily smacks his hand down. The two are presumably arrested and spent the remainder of series 3 and months leading up to season 4 in prison.
Brum and the Golf Buggy[]
At some point after their assumed arrest, Nick and Rob escape or are paroled from prison and are next seen hanging around the Big Town Golf Course. From behind a tree the two watch and Brum and the course’s Green Keeper and follow the pair to where the town’s trophies are kept. Agreeing to steal the lot, Nick piles them into Rob’s arms before grabbing the Big Town Silver Swimming Trophy. However, the cabinet holding the prizes falls apart inadvertently alerting Brum to their crime. With every cup except for the Big Town Golf Ball Trophy in their illicit possession, Nick and Rob run for it with Brum on their heels. The crooks hightail it towards a wooded area of the course before jumping for cover in a sand trap. As Brum bears down on them the two flee as the supercar is briefly bogged down in the sand.
Emerging from a line of hedges behind the Visiting Man and his friend, the two commandeer his golf buggy by tossing his gear out and putting the trophies in the back. Both drive off with Nick initially unable to control the buggy as Brum rejoins the chase. Nick then nearly runs over a few pedestrians as they drive up the exit of the golf course and into the Big Town Square. They then zoom past the Big Town Balls and by a cafe causing one customer to accidentally flip their own table over. With Brum still tailing them, Nick drives through a wet patch of pavement to the dismay of the workman. The two then drive in circles around one of the town’s monuments before driving back over the same wet pavement to the workman’s consternation.
Nick then drives towards the town’s bakery where the baker is carrying two cream pies into his shop. Both thieves scream as the baker dives out of the way while accidentally throwing the pies in the criminal’s faces. Wiping the cream off as they go, the two crash through a fence back into the golf course and end up driving in the direction of the Visiting Man as he prepares for another golf shot. Brum deflects the Visiting Man’s shot onto the Big Town Silver Swimming Trophy which soars onto Nick’s head blinding him. Veering out of the control the baddies soon crash into a sand trap as Brum catches all of the stolen trophies. The supercar then leaves Nick and Rob buried within the sand trap.
Off-screen the pair escape to plan for a more successful heist.
Brum and the Kidnapped Garden Gnome[]
Nick and Rob next appear as they drive around the Big Town’s affluent suburbs, stealing a variety of garden gnomes to illegally sell on the market. The two briefly encounter Brum as they smuggle more gnomes into the back of their van and drive off. They are next seen walking by Mr. Brillo’s home where they spy his most prized gnome Gnorman. Initially they try hiding in the bushes next-door only for Brum to warn them off. When the supercar isn’t looking they dart down the driveway of another house and wait for an opportunity to secret the gnome away. Off-screen they steal the gnome when Mr. Brillo goes inside and when Brum is helping a boy carry his things.
They are next seen having set up a stall at the local market to sell their illicit merchandise. However, they don’t notice that Brum, Mr. Brillo, the boy, Granny Slippers and a policewoman on the beat have tracked them down by retracing the path taken by some of the market’s customers. The group arrange an ambush by fanning out around the market from behind the stalls. When Mr. Brillo springs out to attack the baddies, they panic and clumsily try to flee but trip over backwards on some golf balls which Brum knocked into their path. While Granny Slippers holds her umbrella over the baddies to make sure they don’t get away, the boy then ties Nick and Rob’s feet together with a skipping rope. After Brum and the policewoman expose the other gnomes they stole the thieves are then placed under arrest and are taken to prison.
Brum and the Kidnapped Garden Gnome: Book Adaptation[]
The book adaptation of the live action episode contains some drastic departures from its source material.
- Whereas the episode opens with Nick and Rob stealing a couple of gnomes before driving off, the book begins immediately outside of Mr. Brillo’s house.
- In the episode, the two steal Mr. Brillo’s grand gnome off-screen. The episode then follows a detective-like plot where Brum, Mr. Brillo and the police gradually track the baddies down.In the book, they steal the gnome in front of everyone and run down the street straight into the busy market.
- Instead, the book shows Brum racing around the crowded market before spotting Nick and Rob’s stall. Whereas the episode shows Brum and the accompanying characters staging an ambush which they use to trip the robbers up before tying them up, the book shows Brum knocking a bucket of balls into the direction of Nick and Rob causing them to fall straight onto their own stall.
- Brum catches the gnome and returns it to Mr. Brillo at the end. However, the sequence showing the baddies getting arrested is omitted.
Brum and Paint Pandemonium[]
At some point in the months following their arrest they escape from prison and start prowling around the Big Town again. The duo pass the Big Town Artist while he painting portraits. When a stray piece of cash gets caught in the wind, the two race Brum to get it but are beaten by the supercar. Both start inspecting the portraits before noticing the artist’s takings. The thieves then conceal themselves behind a portrait with peepholes which they pick up as a clumsy disguise to get in reach of the money. Rob then grabs the cash and the two bolt for it while still carrying the portrait. The crooks zigzag through the Big Town Balls until they come across the Traffic Policeman. Initially hesitant the two make a run for it upon seeing Brum again, causing the policeman to jump into a close by dumpster.
Nick and Rob then run into the Big Town Art Gallery and start sneaking around. After passing Mr. Brillo they try to pose as an art exhibit but are given away by the painting failing to conceal their shoes. Dropping the portrait they bolt past Mr. Brillo, sending his favourite painting into a spin until it ends upside-down. Taking to the gallery’s back halls, the two try to hide in a room being painted. However, the worker accidentally but comically paints Nick’s face yellow causing Rob to knock a can of yellow paint onto his own head in a fit of laughter. Annoyed Nick removes the can from Rob’s head with its contents spilled all over him before they hear Brum coming. The two try to run but slip and slide in the paint which also causes Brum to lose traction. Nick and Rob dash out of the gallery’s entry and rip through a newly delivered painting before running back the way they came.
The pair knock into the Traffic Policeman and a nearby worker again causing the latter to fall into the dumpster before zigzagging their way back through the town’s balls. Now running back through the side street where the artist is, Brum races ahead and trips them up with his doors. The thieves soar into the air and end up getting collared next to the artist’s portraits while Brum catches the money. Brum then departs leaving Nick and Rob trapped.
Following this humiliation, Nick and Rob do not appear again. Although this technically leaves their fates as inconclusive, it is highly likely that the strung up baddies were arrested for the final time by the Traffic Policeman whom they bumped into earlier. If so, both face an extended prison sentence.
Appearance[]
Over the course of the show, Nick and Rob adorn themselves in similarly styled outfits. In 3 episodes, both wear sports styled clothes (either linen of synthetic) but have contrasting colours. Nick wears a blue and red top while Rob dresses in a yellow top with black sleeves. Both have also worn dark clothes with Nick in a leather jacket and dark jeans and Rob in a dark greyish wool jumper when stealing the diamond dog collar.
Both are roughly shaven with brown hair and medium builds. However, Nick is taller with brown eyes while Rob is slighty overweight with light blue eyes.
Personality[]
Like all Big Town Baddies, Nick and Rob are greedy, covetous and callous. Like The Shadow, both are purely motivated by monetary gain as shown by their continued attempts to either steal money or high valued items or by illegally selling stolen merchandise. The two also take great enjoyment in coveting and stealing what they want as evidenced in all of their appearances. Additionally, both show no concern or remorse for their thefts which cause distress to others. Both have also demonstrated a willingness to resort to violence as evidenced by them indiscriminately throwing pizzas at everyone, causing innocent customers to take cover. Given their enjoyment in doing so, both also possess some sadistic tendencies.
Nick is the more dominant and irritable out of the two, often sporting a surly or sour expression, indicating a choleric disposition. Contrastingly, Rob is the friendlier of the two as shown by him waving Brum goodbye on two occasions despite being foiled. The first is after he and Nick get trapped in a dumpster and after the two are apprehended by the rich lady’s private security detail. Nick even admonishes Rob for doing so in the latter example. Although this would count as a redeeming trait for Rob, it disappears by the time of their final defeat where he and Nick abusively gesture towards a departing Brum. This can be attributed to Rob having had enough of being messily humiliated. Rob is also more absent minded and easily distracted compared to Nick. This is shown by him often looking around aimlessly and by him instantly forgetting about the waiter’s money belt when handed one of the restaurant’s menus. This example also highlights a love of food and a degree of gluttony in Rob which is supported by him being slightly overweight.
Tactics and abilities[]
Similarly to Bubble and Squeak, Nick and Rob are opportunistic crooks who always steal their marks when everyone’s distracted. Two examples are them undoing the waiter’s money belt from behind and them stealing the trophies from the golf course. However, unlike Bubble and Squeak they don’t use misdirection while doing so. Despite this the two did hide behind a painting while stealing the artist’s money. Additionally, the pair did steal directly in front of everyone once and that was when they kidnapped a dog for its diamond collar. The duo even posed with everyone else in the photograph to do so and incriminated themselves before using the flash as a makeshift distraction.
Their tactics on the run frequently prove to be chaotic and end up attracting much more attention than they want. This even includes their efforts to conceal themselves when trying to evade defeat. One example is them opportunistically disguising themselves as chefs after stealing the waiter’s money. Although Nick proves to be inventive in hiding the money belt in Rob’s chef hat, both two screw this plan up by failing to pose as effective chefs. The two make a mess with the food and even get into a mini food fight causing Rob’s chef hat to fall off, exposing the stolen cash. Here the pair also show no foresight as they simply dash into the dining hall and make a scene by bumping into each other and standing on the restaurant booth seating before trying to hide behind a food trolley. The duo also stupidly tries to move it along while staying behind it, thinking that it will hide them from Brum while they move along. The two should’ve slowed their pace and casually waltzed into the dining area before exiting the restaurant. Even after all of their failures they show no improvement in this regard when they steal the artist’s earnings. The two commandeer the largest canvas to hide behind while they use its peep holes to help swipe the money. Even after committing their crime they don’t discard the canvas and instead take it with them despite it drawing a lot of attention to them. Although they try to salvage its use in the Big Town Art Gallery by posing as a painting it doesn’t cover their legs, giving them away.
The pair also use the environment to their advantage. This is shown by them throwing pizzas at Brum and everyone when they are cornered in the cafe. They also repeat this trick by flinging the pizzas stuck to their shoes into Brum’s face. The pair also try to use the layout of an environment to their advantage as seen in the pizza restaurant and art gallery. In these instances they try to use the corridors to confuse and lose Brum. However, their attempts are never successful and comically backfire. The biggest example is when running through the art gallery’s back corridors the two try to duck into a sealed off room being painted. Here neither pay attention to their surroundings which results in Nick’s face getting splashed with paint by the worker and Rob accidentally flipping an entire paint can onto himself. The most effective trick they used was opportunistically stealing a golf buggy, but due to Nick’s reckless and tactless driving they only cause chaos and end up stuck in a sand trap.
Even with premeditation the two are dreadfully incompetent. In “Brum and the Kidnapped Garden Gnome” they drive around an affluent neighbourhood and steal a number of different garden gnomes to sell at the nearby market. Although they impressively manage to steal Mr Brillo’s prized gnome without being seen, their overall plan was still flawed as one of their customers could easily be one of the locals they stole from. Overall while Nick and Rob are the most recurring Big Town Baddies they are among the most incompetent.
The two supplement their tactics with the following skills.
- Disguises: Nick and Rob demonstrate a minimal level of skill with disguises. The two unsuccessfully pose as pizza chefs due to their lack of skill at cooking. The only other time they disguised themselves was with a painting when stealing the artist’s fees.
- Driving skill: Nick is only one who demonstrates any driving skill and is shown to be a reckless and dangerous one at that. He initially struggles to control a golf buggy and causes property damage whilst having several near misses with pedestrians. The latter could be attributed to him being ruthless. Despite this he proves to be a reasonable driver when piloting his own van when he and Rob are stealing garden gnomes.
- Durability: Both have endured a car crash which left them buried in a sand trap and endured being chewed up by a dog in a locked shed.
- Teamwork: Unsurprisingly, the two work well together and are generally able to coordinate with one another. However, as is the case with all Big Town Baddies, this has limits.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- As with all Big Town Baddies, their defeats are highly symbolic.
- The two getting covered in rubbish after falling into a dumpster in “Brum and the Pizzeria” symbolises how Brum has trashed them. It also shows how they are complete trash.
- Them getting chewed out by a dog before being handed over to the rich lady’s security detail in “Brum and the Diamond Dog” is symbolic on the following levels;
- Firstly, the two getting held by their collars by the lady’s private security detail showcases how the thieves have been collared for their crimes
- Secondly, the two getting literally chewed out by the dog they stole symbolises how they’re going to get figuratively chewed out by both the crowd and lady’s security guards or by the courts.
- The two having their faces plastered with cream pies before ending up in a sand trap is symbolic on the following levels;
- Firstly, getting splattered by two cream pies foreshadows how they’re going to get creamed by Brum.
- Secondly, ending up stuck in a sand pit shows how much of a pity they are.
- Nick and Rob falling over on some scattered golf balls symbolises how Brum has tripped them up yet again.
- When their collars get hooked it is symbolic of how Brum has strung and collared the pair of them for the final time.
- The two appear to be a parody of The Two Masked Bank Robbers who, by the time of Nick and Rob’s first appearance, are long incarcerated.
- Nick parodies the tall masked robber as both are taller and thinner and have longer hair than their partners in crime in addition to being the more dominant criminal.
- Rob parodies the shorter masked robber as both are shorter and fatter and have shorter hair than their respective partners in crime. Additionally, both are the more dim-witted individuals out of their respective duos.
- Incidentally, when they steal the trophy collection from the Big Town Golf Course in “Brum and the Golf Buggy” they also nab a cup that is identical to the Big Town Silver Swimming Trophy which was stolen by Big Bad and his 2nd girlfriend 2 episodes earlier in “Brum and the Splash and Grab”. Although it can be argued that these are separate trophies, this is refuted by their exact likeness. Furthermore, the fact that the trophy is perched atop of the cabinet when Nick grabs it can be interpreted as it being a recent addition to the trophy collection after the swimming competition shown in “Brum and the Splash and Grab”. However, there are some notable between these episodes.
- “Brum and the Golf Buggy” depicts two male baddies stealing a collection of trophies while “Brum and the Splash and Grab” shows a male and a female thief stealing a trophy and some medals.
- Furthermore, in the former episode the baddies don’t disguise themselves while the thieves in the latter do.
- The crooks in the former steal a golf buggy while the criminals in the latter steal a speedboat.
- In both episodes, the baddies encounter the Visiting Man. In the former, Nick and Rob steal his golf buggy while in the latter Big Bad and his 2nd girlfriend dash past and cause him to fall into the fountain.
- Finally, despite stealing more trophies Nick and Rob don’t get arrested like Big Bad and his 2nd girlfriend. Instead, they are left stuck in a sand trap. Although justice-wise this seems a bit unfair, it must be noted that Big Bad and his 2nd girlfriend stole highly valued prizes from a children’s swimming competition and sadistically gloated about it before trying to drag Brum into the lake with a speedboat.
- They are the most recurring baddies on Brum with a total of 5 appearances.
- Their names make up an ironic pun because both are known for nicking and robbing things.
- They are the only Big Town Baddies shown to own a car.
- With at least two apparent prison breaks, they are the best escape artists out of the Big Town Baddies.
- This is logically odd as Nick and Rob are somewhat more dimwitted compared to other baddies like The Shadow (Brum) or Big Bad's 2nd Girlfriend.