Kids, let me tell you the story of a little show called How I Met Your Mother, a show that I’ve spent a good amount of my life with, a show that I’ve loved and hated and stuck with and almost quit. It began in the fall of 2005, and the journey that it took us on was entertaining, emotional, and downright beautiful. And that, kids, is why I’m disappointed by this finale.
“Love doesn’t make sense! I mean, you can’t logic your way into or out of it. Love is totally nonsensical! But we have to keep doing it, or else..we’re lost, and love is dead and humanity should just pack it in. Because love is the best thing we do..Look, I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s just true. You love Barney, and he loves you.. and that doesn’t have to make sense, to make sense.”
Beautiful.
That’s a word that I don’t throw around a lot, especially given the downward trajectory in quality of this show. However, that is a perfect description of tonight’s momentous 200th episode, one which brings the laughs and the tears and is, for sure, one of my favorite episodes of the series.
How I Met Your Mother has had a shaky final season thus far, but the midseason finale, for the most part, is able to be emotionally resonant and funny all at once.
There are several reasons this episode works; one is the Mother. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Cristin Milioti imbues her character with such charm and relatability that it’s hard to take your eyes off her; she has this endearing quality that permeates the atmosphere of the show and lends itself to the themes of interconnectedness and community. This is very present tonight in her interactions with Marshall, and Segel and Milioti play the scenes beautifully; once again, we see shades of just how well the Mother fits into the narrative and the group of friends, and this time, I like how someone else is giving the advice. I never wanted to see her relegated to solely a wisdom-giver, and I’m glad we’re seeing more organic interactions here.
Speaking of interactions, how about the fact that everyone is back at Farhampton? One of the bad aspects of this season is the show’s insistence on keeping Marshall separated from the rest of the group, and oh man, am I glad to see them all back together again. It’s a very moving reunion scene–Marshall and Lily looking at each other is excellent–that brings various problems to the surface amidst all the love, and it’s a wonderful bookend to the half season.
Yet, if there’s one gripe I have, it’s about the way we arrive at that point. Although I like Rannells, his character is a mere plot device that contrives certain situations for our characters; I guess he’s mildly amusing, but I never warmed up to Darren.
Still, it all circles back around to the Mother, who seems to be the anti-Darren. The show does a nice job with the subtle parallels between her and Ted; for example, she hates confrontation, and it’s nice to see her talking about and revealing more about herself. In fact, many of our other characters do so as well; although the Lily-Robin story is fairly inconsequential, it does allow for some feelings to come bubbling to the surface. With Barney and Ted, the episode conveys how much Barney’s matured, but it also doesn’t skimp on Ted’s loyalty to his friend. All in all, the show is able to sell all these arcs without over-emphasizing them, and this is one of the better episodes of the season.
GRADE: B+
OTHER THOUGHTS:
-I liked the Pause reference.
-The Mother’s band was Superfreakonomics. Nice.
-Now we know the back story behind the bandage on Ted’s hand at the Farhampton station.
-“Ass player wanted?”
-See you next year for the final 11.
Listen-I like creativity as much as the next guy, but when it’s nothing more than a gimmick, it really won’t fly. We’re halfway through the final season, and for the life of me I can’t find a reason, why do we need this episode, when it’s nothing more than bold?
I get that sometimes they need to just let loose and have fun, but the stories themselves do nothing to stun. They should sometimes break free from the confines of serialization, but not when all we get is broad characterization. We don’t need to see Barney or Robin or Ted acting like they used to act; especially after eight damn seasons, that’s a cold, hard fact.
Kudos to the writers, though, it wasn’t an easy task; on the surface, it was entertaining, and I guess that’s all you can really ask. I do like the fact that they poke fun at the theme itself; it helps it feel less gimmicky and not like dust on a shelf. Although really, Marshall? What the hell are you doing? The season may or may not be in decline, but when you decide to walk to Farhampton, it’s quite frankly, asinine. I hate the distance between Marshall and the gang; he needs to be there for the show to go out with a bang. Anyway, this episode is really hard to grade; I’ll just give it a question mark and finish the rhymes I made.
GRADE: ? (GRADE AS A CREATIVE PIECE OF WORK: B, GRADE FOR EFFORT: A, GRADE AS A PIECE OF TELEVISION: C)
OTHER THOUGHTS:
-James Van Der Beek guest stars.
-The actors’ rhyming techniques seem to be out of sync quite a bit, which both adds and detracts from the episode’s improv-esque feel and cohesiveness.
Credit to CBS and How I Met Your Mother for all pictures. I own nothing.
Just a few quick bullets….
-Cristin Milioti once again kills it as the Mother. Sure, it’s a little farfetched that she’d so accurately gauge Barney’s situation, but it’s a fantastic scene that works on so many character levels. Barney really needs this. Someone for once has the confidence not just to approach him and call him out, but to spur him on to look for that stable relationship. She’s in a similar situation here, but she doesn’t need a bunch of transient relationships just to get through the day. The fact that she understands that that is what Barney’s going through, as well as her willingness to listen and help, already makes her a great fit for the group and for Ted.
-I’m happy we get to see the group back at MacLaren’s, in their element. It’s a refreshing change from the plodding pace over at Farhampton.
-The Ted/Robin stuff actually doesn’t really bother me much in this episode. It’s much better handled here than in recent episodes; a major part of that is how inherently depressing Ted’s situation is. The only consolation is that we know he’ll meet the Mother; in fact, the whole storyline with Barney is almost a foreshadowing of what’s to come with Ted.
-If Ted was on Breaking Bad, Heisenberg could’ve been stopped early on…
Walt: I am the one who knocks!
Ted: …no.
Walt: Okay, okay, but if someone else were to knock, try and think of me, okay?
-Cranston is fantastic here, though. He’s channeling Heisenberg a bit; it’s amazing how he can switch between comedic and dramatic sides.
-“You’re waiting for a movie star…is it Clooney? DiCaprio? Zabka? Ryan…Reyn..Phill..Seac…Gosling!”
-It’s enjoyable watching Barney try to pick up the girls using dolphin sounds and unable to use “e”s. CHALLNG ACCPTD.
-Also, the girl waiting for Ryan Gosling (Stephanie Lynn) is insanely gorgeous. I have a thing for redheads.
-Final thought: Having the Mother emulate Ted’s characteristics a bit is a much better and more nuanced way of crafting the her character. Instead of making every moment a Ted-Mother moment or having them be separate all the time, we should see some of Ted’s personality traits in her. Each is essential to the other, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be around each other for us to recognize their compatibility as a couple.
GRADE: B+
Credit to CBS and How I Met Your Mother for all pictures. I own nothing.
Just a few quick thoughts…
-Wow, this season sure is spinning its wheels, isn’t it? They could’ve pulled off this “model the whole season around 3 days” if they only had 10-13 episodes to work with. It’s not a bad decision on the surface, but when you factor in the network TV requirements, then it’s exhausting.
-I would be more fine with the lack of the mother if the rest of the show didn’t just consist of the same plot points and character moments over and over again. Introducing the mother is an opportunity to model everything around her as her own character, because everything prior was modeled around the idea of her. We should be seeing exactly how the characters are growing and reaching the end of their respective stories, as the mother not only kicked everything off, but is bringing everything to an end.
-Barney and Robin’s storyline is very tiresome to get through. The fact that they’re spending half their time before the wedding arguing suggests that they really shouldn’t get married at all, and the show still trying to emphasize their independent natures after eight seasons with the characters reeks of indecision and inorganic tension.
-We also have Marshall and Lily here; my problem with this storyline is that the Marshall and the Lily we know would make a compromise. Marshall wouldn’t be the kind of guy that would rush into a decision without consulting Lily, and Lily isn’t the kind of person that would blow up at her husband for doing so. However, I am very glad Marshall finally told her about the job.
-That’s not to say there aren’t any amusing moments in this episode; the flashbacks are nicely done, and Ted in a mailbox is funny. However, the episode once again gets bogged down by the network requirements, coming across as typical sitcom fodder designed to fill up some space.
GRADE: C
Credit to CBS and How I Met Your Mother for all pictures. I own nothing.
