The How I Met Your Mother Blog

Tonight’s epsiode allegedly follows Barney as he completes all the tasks from a list Ted created to prove the gang isn’t too old to do them. If that isn’t enough, tonight is the appearance of Danny Glover that Carter Bays confirmed some time ago. Although he noted that Glover would not appear in a traditional way. What does that mean? tune in tonight to find out.

Episode stream and recap are now posted. And it’s a good one.

Despite whether or not you liked the episode, something important happened on HIMYM this week. What we got was a half hour of virtuoso comedy in a “normal sitcom” wrapper. And that’s a good thing.

Think about a musician you love. They start out underground, not too many people know about them, and you cherish the obscurity. Then they do something new, and you’re hooked. Over time, more and more people get on board and you start to worry that what made you fall in love will change. That’s the time they release the mainstream album, the tipping point where they are posed on the brink of super stardom, and you’re terrified. Then you find everything you love is still there. That this album is their master stroke. They’ve taken the magic from when it was you and a dozen other people at a show and packaged it for the masses while retaining the original seduction. And it’s from there they go sublime.

That’s what happened with “Murtaugh” on How I Met Your Mother this week. Seasons past have featured a quirky sitcom that dared to care about its characters and that rewarded its fans for attention to serialized detail. It put characterization above jokes and thus created a world that felt real. This is what made  original fans fall in love. Then Bays and Thomas switch it on us and show that not only can they write an episode in a normal sitcom fashion, but that it’ll be the best “normal” sitcom episode you’ve ever seen.

What made this episode so great? First, we got a new term—Murtaugh List—which will be a common colloquialism by this time next year, believe you me. Second, we got the sensation that only the best TV can give: a desire to be part of a fantasy world. Once all three plot lines in this episode where geared up, the audience wasn’t just laughing with the characters, they were wishing that they were inside the show helping Barney complete his list or coaching along side Marshall. Isn’t that the goal of TV writing? Isn’t that the ultimate audience engagement?

It was more than those two things though. It was the parts that added up to greatness.

What Was Good

The cold open could’ve been a short film. It’s capable of working all by itself. It had conflict, resolution, comedy, drama, and enough pop culture references to make Psych looks like it exists in a bubble.

I’m surprised you guys haven’t brought up that Barney had his own Murtaugh List in season 2: (paraphrasing) “Don’t ask a friend for a ride to the airport, or for a place to crash for the weekend, or to help you move. Call a cab, book a hotel, hire movers, and don’t make your friends watch your crappy plays.”

Robin looked particularly Canadalicious here. She’s also the most charming when she’s having fun and just playing along. Notice how she not only gets into helping Barney complete the list but doesn’t seem to be any worse for the wear at the end. Additionally, how great is it that Robin called Barney when he hurt his ear? That girl doesn’t miss a beat.

Murtaugh List won’t be the only thing from this episode that will enter the general lexicon. I know I’ll be undertaking Gentleman’s Agreements all the time now.

What Was Bad

This episode did stray a tad too far into normal sitcom dialect for me. I didn’t like the Lily’s right/Marshall’s wrong thing. Lily’s hippie crap is just as bad as Marshall’s over-coaching and I’m tired of the “wife’s always right” cliche on television. It was pretty clever that Lily got Marshall on her side using the very tactic she was forbidding him from doing.

As was said in the comments the Canada-is-out-of-touch jokes are starting to show their age. I’m not ready to properly complain yet but it’s teetering on the brink of redundancy.

Favorite Moments

• Great Top Gun reference in the opener. Very nicely executed.
• I love that Barney has all the high scores at the laser tag place.
• “that wasn’t…”
  “CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!”
• It’s amazing that Barney yelled “BAARNEEY AWW-STIINSOON” as he ran out of the room. Awesome Leroy Jenkins reference.
• “That’s not running, that’s falling.”
• Very creative ways to cover up Hannigan’s pregnancy.
• The RoBarn dual voicemail greeting was amazing
• The thrown chair was awesome
• The rave suits were enough to make this episode unforgettable. Barney and Robin were suited up right.
• Ted makes a great old man
• I love that the one thing Barney won’t do is drink warm beer.
• Haven’t seen a good telepathic conversation in awhile.
• “There is a teen wolf on the court. That can’t be legal!”

Closing

If there was ever any doubt that Bays and Thomas weren’t the best comedy writers working today Murtaugh quelled that fear. Carter Bays joked that 30 Rock has the best show on television and I’m not going to argue that it might make me laugh more than HIMYM on occasion but there’s a reason I write about this show and no other. Bays and Thomas craft a hilarious show that is also rich with character, and exists in a world so real you can lose yourself in it. I always thought this show was special, and it’s episodes like this that confirm that suspicion.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!