i know i'm one of the only people on ilx who watches *how i met your mother* on a regular basis, but did anyone else see the robin sparkles episode? where robin didn't want people to know that she had

I don't think there has been many stories to tell with the other characters though. Marshall's finally got some stability, Lily can't be in the show, Robin did the whole job search and Barney's close to have his big stable lol bromance.

So it's all been on 'got left at the alter, lost his job, started his own company etc.' ted.

Even before that though we got some good ones, like the NY vs. NJ and especially the burger joint hunt (pretty sure that was before?). Overall this season's been way more solid than the last one, which kind of mired aimlessly for a while while they did nothing with Robin or Ted besides have them on generic date episodes.

why is lily gone?

she either has food poisoning or is pregnant

i think she got offended by a joke? that barney told?

The presidents list had some nice touches -- bush appearing twice, clinton at the bottom in particular.

Plus the fish callback was cute.

I didn't like that NY vs NJ episode, personally.

are you from new jersey?

Marshall's speech in the NJ episode was killer

elbows

This thread as a sitcom.

no mother :(

If the mother equals the end of the show, I don't want to meet her, and if the mother means the show can drop that concern and just focus on bringing us good episodes, bring her on. Is anyone really going to cry that the show lacks credibility if we meet the mother now rather than later?

That out of the way, I was kinda disappointed by Barney's tickets subplot. Seemed like potential for awesomeness that wasn't realized.

The only reason I want Ted to find the mother is I am getting annoyed with cloying 'is this where he meets her? oh wait, it has nothing to do with it, just some life lesson bullshit they replaced jokes with'. If he meets the mother, you'd hope the show can stop going around in circles and tell lolstories about their early days together or whatever or ted knowing who she is and trying to get with her etc.

Murder house was lol though.

"the wedding bride!"

xpost ya exactly, why the hell was Ted meeting Stella the most important thing to happen to him in whenever again?

I dunno. I just assumed that she'd lead him to whoever's umbrella it was and hey presto. Instead, umm, we find out he's over her. Which I'm sure they've already done episodes on before.

didn't see this one but it doesn't sound like i missed much

yeah they've done this episode before - the one where they were trying to avoid meeting Stella at that restaurant. that was a great episode too with Robin as a boy and playing ice hockey and Ted's epic anti-Jersey rant).

why the hell was Ted meeting Stella the most important thing to happen to him in whenever again?

Yeah, this made no sense.

He better meet the mother soon, I cannot suspend my disbelief that he hasn't yet lost that yellow umbrella for much longer...

it's prob the slutty pumpkin

at this point kinda hoping those kids were adopted

If they really wait until the show ends before revealing the mother, it would disappointing. I get it - it's just a framing device really, and not worth taking too seriously, since it is being narrated by old Bob Saget to his kids. I don't expect every episode to have some kind of larger meaning, but there should be something to it - why do all these stories start with the introduction of Robin and how this group of friends matters in the long run to meeting the mother and what's up with these mythology elements like the yellow umbrella.

The problem remains... I'm completely down with Lily and Marshall as a sickly sweet, charming, loving couple, and even if Robin and Barney hook up I'm okay with it, since I think their single adventures are wearing kind of thin after four seasons (and really Robin's were usually pretty bad). But Ted still comes off as a whiny self-important douche bag. Poor Ted, not having found true love after 30! Boo-hoo! The rest of your life is so awful too! So yeah, I'm all in favor of him meeting the mother so we don't have to keep dealing with this.

Yeah it'd be better if they just resolve the mother thing to some degree instead of acting like it's Lost or something and people will stop watching if there's no mystery left. But at the same time, revealing the mother would probably (disregarding some weird/stupid plot twist backflips) involve adding whoever that is as a regular cast member. And upsetting the delicate balance of the 5 cast members they've already got, or adding a dead weight love interest that doesn't contribute to the comedy much, would be a lot more problematic than 'screwing up' the mom plot.

There is quite a simple way to sort that- write funny jokes.

i would be totally fine with keeping the mom plot waaay in the background, if they could stick to the lols and ted dating random chicks. not sure if i prefer douchebag ted or sensitive nice guy ted.

i would be mad if they introduced the mother now

i dont think its a given that the mom wouldnt be funny just because whats her face from scrubs was so terrible - i mean i think some of that was by design esp not really fitting w/in the dynamic of the core 5 ~~~~ i think comedies like this need new characters/situations to an extent even something like seinfeld the world expands and u get more episodes about george's parents or w/e its good for the lolz

Most plotlines don't involve the whole group anyway, most of the time they are just given a scene where they go for a beer together, so including a different person into a story that is usually ted&robin or marshall&barney etc. might help to write something different as well. As much as I love the show, I am kind of bored of the rut they seem to have fallen in and a new person could be perfect foil to sorting that out. Although I guess Barney+Robin might do this a bit too.

yeah i guess...i think whats her face from scrubs is good at comedy on scrubs (even if that show's type of comedy is a little different from HIMYM's), but they didn't seem interesting in writing her to be funny, so i guess it was a deliberate choice. lily and (moreso recently) robin do plenty of heavy lifting in the comedy department, so if they ever did add a 3rd girl i think she'd have to be on that same level. i know ppl hate on 2 And A Half Men, but they've had lots of funny one-off guest stars, but then totally fucked up this season by making the recurring season-long love interest one of the most boring zombie-ish actresses to ever guest on the show.

i hope ted is gay

how i became your mother

sarah chalke is excellent on scrubs - they set her up on this show from the start to be boring, a drag, loves NJ, already has a kid and ex-husband, doesn't vibe with the existing group at all. I wonder if she picked this role as a deliberate antithesis to Reid

not sure if i prefer douchebag ted or sensitive nice guy ted

these two are one and the same

maybe i'll vouch for "don't give a fuck" Ted from season 2 and the odd occasional appearance

bro ted is best

^yes

true but there used to be overly earnest, cloyingly sensitive ted and now there is whiney, entitled sensitive ted

sorry, bro ted is the best

sorry, bro that is

fyi best moment was the arrest dev-ish "wedding bride" poster and really anything to do w/ stella's baby daddy

i have no idea what arrest dev-ish means (i mean i know what it means but they invented fake movie gags or something?) but that was definitely my biggest laugh of the episode

The Ocean Walker

wellll obv they didnt "invent" fake movie poster gags - pretty sure that was seinfeld - but the way the joke was constructed and the quick flash to a shot of the poster with v/o instead of just having it as a prop in the background or w/e seemed v. "in the style of" to me

It's true, Arrested Development definitely mastered the fake movie/poster gag, from Les Cousins Dangereux
to "I just want my kids back!"

The Old Man and The Sea > The Young Man and The Sea starring Jude Law > The Young Man on the Beach - A+

I was having some doubt last week about where they were heading with this, but damn if this wasn't a pretty awesome season finale.

Yeah, I thought the whole thing was amazing. Especially the New Pornographers.

Especially the New Pornographers.

Wait, waht?

I was a little sleepy while watching, but weren't they playing TNP near the end of the episode?

I haven't been able to find a copy yet to make sure... am I wrong?