I have to say that for two episodes in a row now the creators have succeeded in making us forget Lily is absent (due to Alyson Hannigan's pregnancy) by providing a great Ted-centered story reminiscent of the early days of the series, with the rest of the now diminished gang being reduced to the supporting characters they once used to be. After Ted was reminded of how it feels to be in love again in the last episode, this time he gets one small but significant step closer to meeting "the Mother". How? By standing in the right spot at the right time. The concept is similar to the season 3 finale "Miracles", with flashbacks and nonlinear storytelling, but the realization is even more elaborate. The flashbacks that explain how he got there are more detailed, each one contains one entire sub-plot dedicated to one of the supporting characters. And we only find out what happened to Ted in said right spot at the very end. What a cliffhanger! And no, I'm not going to spoil it.
The sub-plots are noteworthy as well. For the Robin part, they worked Cobie Smulders' pregnancy in as a meta-joke, which is always funny. They did the same in "The Possimpible", when they presented Alyson Hannigan's pregnancy belly as the result of Lily's hot dog eating contest. During Marshall's sub-plot, the fish list stand-up comedy is revisited, and we get an intervention.
But the award for 'best supporting actor' goes once again to Neil Patrick Harris. We've heard a few different stories by now about how Barney became the womanizing sociopath he is. There's Shannon cheating on him with a jackass in a suit, Rhonda giving him (a bit too much) confidence when she sleeps with him, and recently we have met his mother, who used to enjoy her live in a similar way which must have influenced a young Barney more than he realized. Now we learn that he had already sworn to sleep with 200 girls as a kid to come back at a middle school bully. I guess it makes sense that it took not one, but all of these events to shape Barney the way he is now. In this episode, Barney finally fulfills his oath, which raises the question what's next for him. And the final scene contains a hint at the answer.
I like how this episode manages to move the overall plot forward for both Ted and Barney while involving so many classic HIMYM elements: Nonlinear storytelling, flashbacks, old Ted addressing the kids (we actually haven't seen them on-screen for a while), Robin embarrassing herself live on air, the yellow umbrella, interventions, the fish list. Continuity-wise, there are two little minus points though: Ted not wearing his red boots while pitching the idea of a restaurant shaped like a cowboy hat was a missed opportunity. And in "The Bracket", Barney claimed he wouldn't keep a list of the women he's slept with (a scrapbook, it is!) - yet his sub-plot in this episode is all about such a list. Well, maybe he kept track of the total via the scrapbook and created the list on short notice to prepare for the 200th. That would also explain why the list was flawed...
The sub-plots are noteworthy as well. For the Robin part, they worked Cobie Smulders' pregnancy in as a meta-joke, which is always funny. They did the same in "The Possimpible", when they presented Alyson Hannigan's pregnancy belly as the result of Lily's hot dog eating contest. During Marshall's sub-plot, the fish list stand-up comedy is revisited, and we get an intervention.
But the award for 'best supporting actor' goes once again to Neil Patrick Harris. We've heard a few different stories by now about how Barney became the womanizing sociopath he is. There's Shannon cheating on him with a jackass in a suit, Rhonda giving him (a bit too much) confidence when she sleeps with him, and recently we have met his mother, who used to enjoy her live in a similar way which must have influenced a young Barney more than he realized. Now we learn that he had already sworn to sleep with 200 girls as a kid to come back at a middle school bully. I guess it makes sense that it took not one, but all of these events to shape Barney the way he is now. In this episode, Barney finally fulfills his oath, which raises the question what's next for him. And the final scene contains a hint at the answer.
I like how this episode manages to move the overall plot forward for both Ted and Barney while involving so many classic HIMYM elements: Nonlinear storytelling, flashbacks, old Ted addressing the kids (we actually haven't seen them on-screen for a while), Robin embarrassing herself live on air, the yellow umbrella, interventions, the fish list. Continuity-wise, there are two little minus points though: Ted not wearing his red boots while pitching the idea of a restaurant shaped like a cowboy hat was a missed opportunity. And in "The Bracket", Barney claimed he wouldn't keep a list of the women he's slept with (a scrapbook, it is!) - yet his sub-plot in this episode is all about such a list. Well, maybe he kept track of the total via the scrapbook and created the list on short notice to prepare for the 200th. That would also explain why the list was flawed...