Season 7, Episode 20
There are sometimes when I don’t really have a lot to say
about How I Met Your Mother, times
which are usually brought on by frustration with whatever the show decided to
do on a particular week. This is one of those times.
I don’t particularly hate the conceit of this episode,
which see the guys reliving all of their past disappointments through the lens
of their triennial marathoning of the original Star Wars trilogy. (In true, classic sitcom style, this is an event
that we’ve never heard mention of before, and are only slightly more likely to
hear about again, but let’s just let the little things slide for now, shall
we?) The show has often focused on the road that these characters are taking as
they hit the classic markers of adulthood, and the disappointment that they
feel which they have trouble reaching those checkpoints, so there’s nothing
wrong with turning a whole episode over to exploring that idea.
The problem comes from just how much of the episode is
turned over to these flashbacks, and how quickly that grew old and brought the
episode to a screeching halt. It’s a joke that’s so one note that there’s
really not a life to it: every three years (2003, 2006, 2009, 2012), the guys
get together to watch the films, reflect on how they failed to meet the
expectations of their past selves, and then make outrageous plans for the
future. There are funny jokes within each of these fantasies, and I like how
the show is willing to have them change and evolve with the characters state of
minds, and even have callbacks between them. However, like so many of those
flashbacks episodes that Everybody Loves
Raymond did, so many of the laughs are supposed to come from what we know
in the future versus what the character fail to realize in the past. It’s a
tactic that I guess is supposed to be touching in theory, but in practice
becomes depressing and unfunny very quickly.
Admittedly, the show cuts this elongated flashback out
about 17 minutes into its 30 minute running time, and I have to admit that the
show picks up a bit – but just by a bit. The episode seems like it’s going to
go in the direction of Ted’s budding depression at the realization of how many
times he’s fallen short of dreams. It’s the sort of stealth reveal, since the
flashbacks had relied so heavily on Marshall’s disappointment, that it’s a
moment that actually lands. However, after one more hypothetical sequence
(bringing the total to four), the show quickly shift focus back to Barney, even
though by this point you’ve probably forgotten that the episode opened up with
a focus on him. Barney realizing that he wanted Quinn to stay with him, mugs
and all, was somewhat sweet, but it was a sweetness diminished by the lowbrow
fart jokes and the knowledge that Quinn won’t be around forever.
And that’s where the episode ends, with so little having
changed. Yes, Barney is now fully committed to being in a serious relationship,
but it feels like the show took an overly complicated route to get there. It
was a route that involved Ted and Marshall, yet didn’t have anything
significant actually happen to them, and also in the process managed to
relegate Robin and Lilly to the sidelines. This was an episode that began and
ended with Barney, yet I have a hard time saying that this was a Barney-centric
episode, given how much screen time the other guys got. It was an episode that
made a lot of motions toward character development, yet ultimately went
nowhere.
But hey, at least we know that Ted’s daughter is born
sometime late 2014 or early 2015. So the end is in sight, and that has to count
for something. Right?
Quotes and Other Thoughts:
“Isn’t that right honey?...Oh, that’s right, I’m alone.”
“If you’re not trilogy-ing it at least once every three
years, the Dark Side wins.”
“Guys, you remember my girlfriend who was a virgin until
we met?”
“‘Satisfaction’?” “‘Hot Cross Buns.’”
“A baby in a trucker hat. That’s awesome.”
“Guess what? I’m pregnant with baby number five.” “Baby
number four isn’t even out.” “I’m just that good.”
“And just know this: Han shot first.”
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