When New Girl first begins its journey, the show is about how a woman adapts to life in a loft with three guys she meets through an ad on the internet. The group becomes a family over the course of the series, but within that family, there are a lot of opportunities for romantic entanglements, and a lot of storylines focused on the love lives of the characters.
With Jess as the titular New Girl, it's only fair that a lot of the romantic storylines in the series revolve around her - and her best friend Cece. When Cece makes an effort to have a good, stable relationship early in the show, it's with Robby, who appears to be the opposite of every guy she's been with up until that point. Strangely enough, Jess also dates him in season six. Which pairing is actually better?
Jess: They're Both Musically Inclined
Jess has a lot of personality traits deemed "quirky" by some and "annoying" by others. One of those is her tendency to make up songs on the spot. She loves music so much that she uses it to teach in her classrooms, get under the skin of her friends, and crush karaoke.
Music is something she and Robby actually bond over. He enjoys her singing anything and everything. Robby also happens to play a few musical instruments, take his guitar on camping trips, and even plays on a Santana album. It's a shame the audience never gets to see their karaoke night that they tell the others about at the loft.
Cece: He Puts Her First
After Schmidt and Cece go their separate ways, Cece tries to find herself a good guy. As season two begins, she's got a new guy in her life, and Robby is someone Schmidt is genuinely confused by.
After Robby's first appearance, however, it's evident that Cece has someone who puts her needs before his own. She's used to someone like Kyle, who doesn't think about how his decisions affect her, or Schmidt, who tends to be selfish when making plans with her. With Robby, outings are all about Cece. They hang out with her friends, and when Cece is ready to go, they leave. He makes sure she's never the one who is uncomfortable.
Jess: They Both Want To Be Comfortable Single First
Jess and Robby don't have the best luck in relationships. Robby decides that it's important to be comfortable being single and creates a group dedicated to singles spending time together without any pressure to date. When Jess joins, the two become close.
Like Robby, Jess decides she needs to be comfortable alone. She has a hard time with that at the beginning of the series, having ended a relationship with Spencer, then repeatedly trying to have "no strings attached" relationships with other people that just don't work. By the time season six rolls around and she and Robby become friends, they're on the same page about being self-sufficient.
Cece: He Believes She's A Good Person
When Robby dates Cece, he surprises her when he asserts that her ex Schmidt just needs to find a "nice" woman like he did with Cece. Cece, who has done plenty of bad things and made plenty of mistakes, doesn't think of herself as "nice."
Neither does Schmidt, which leads to Cece to come back to him in the middle of the night. When she and Schmidt agree that they're not nice people, and he's ready for her to cheat on Robby with him, Cece realizes that she wants to be better. Robby's faith in her makes Cece have a little more faith in herself, and she doesn't go through with it.
Jess: They Share A Tendency To Go Off The Beaten Path
As Jess and Robby grow closer, they discover that they have a lot more in common than they thought. While neither of them really like to take big chances in relationships, preferring safety and sure things, that's not true with smaller decisions.
Jess and Robby like to pick what would be the strange option for others. That might mean a homemade ninja turtle costume for an adult, or literally choosing to go off the beaten path on a hike. While that hike eventually turns out to be one of the worst dates ever for them, their tendency to choose the less popular option does actually make them well suited while they're together.
Cece: He Makes An Effort To Get Along With Her Ex
One thing standing in the way of any of Cece's relationships is that her friend group includes Schmidt. Schmidt is one of her most vocal exes, not afraid to tell her boyfriends exactly what he thinks of them - and the fact that they don't deserve Cece.
Robby, however, takes all of that in stride. He doesn't really have a problem with Schmidt, and in fact, understands where Schmidt is coming from. Robby and Schmidt get along well enough that they agree to try to be friends for Cece's sake. It might be the only time Schmidt actually attempts to get along with Cece's current boyfriend as he either avoids or sabotages the others.
Jess: She Constantly Learns New Things About Him
When Cece and Robby are dating, it doesn't really seem like either the audience or Cece learns much about him. That changes when Jess starts spending time with him.
Jess finds herself constantly surprised as she learns about all of the things Robby's done in his life, like recording a track for Santana, saving someone's life, and having connections to enough famous musicians to call in favors. It makes the relationship a bit more exciting for Jess and she discovers how much she likes about Robby - and the areas where they have their differences.
Cece: They're Not Cousins
Jess and Robby make an unfortunate discovery on their final date: their similarities might actually be the result of genetics. After comparing notes about family members and reunions, they discover that they're actually third cousins.
The entire idea really grosses the two of them out since they had no idea there was even a possibility of being related. Cece and Robbie, on the other hand, don't have to worry about that since Cece and Jess's family, as she once points out to a boyfriend's aunt, aren't "blood-related."
Neither: Cece And Jess Are Still Hung Up On Exes
Robby is in an unfortunate position when he dates these women in that they're never going to settle down with him. When Cece enters her relationship with Robby, she's still angry at Schmidt for the way he treated her in the first season, and she dates Robby because he's the anti-Schmidt, despite still wanting to be with her ex.
Jess, for her part, isn't entirely aware that she's still hung up on Nick, though it definitely becomes more apparent. She throws herself into single life so aggressively that the audience knows something is going on under the surface. When she first starts seeing Robby, she laments that the spark just isn't there, and that spark is what drew her to Nick after she and Russell went their separate ways. Robby was never going to find a happy ending with either woman. Cece and Jess even end up marrying Schmidt and Nick, respectively.
Both: Robby Is Genuinely Nice To Them
New Girl really showcases that all of their main characters show their affection in immature ways. One of those is teasing. Cece and Schmidt might complement one another often, but they also pick at one another and aren't shy about calling out their faults. Nick and Jess genuinely drive one another crazy. Despite doing sweet things for one another, they also insult each other to the point that they really hurt themselves. That's not how Robby operates in a relationship.
Robby might not be getting any awards for making the biggest romantic gestures in the show, but he's actually a nice guy, ready to make compromises in a relationship and figure out just what his partner wants. He communicates openly and doesn't intentionally insult them. Robby might just be too nice for Cece and Jess.