The How I Met Your Mother Blog

Better watch your step and I hope you aren’t wearing open-toed shoes because TVGuide.com just dropped some info. Britney Spears is now officially set to return to How I Met Your Mother for a May sweeps episode entitled “Everything Must Go”. But wait, there’s more. It’s a spoiler, so proceed at your own risk. Continue reading…

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A lot of you have asked for help finding the outfits worn by the characters on the show. Robin and Lily both dress very well. I too have often liked a graphic tee that Ted wore or a cool polo worn by Marshall. Now we can find not only the clothes from the show but the art and the housewares as well. Check it out: Continue reading…

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Variety posted Robin Sparkles’ song in its entirety. Alas, it’s only an audio file. It’s still freaking legendary though. It really sounds like a top 40 song from the eighties (or mid nineties in Canada.) Click the image above to check it out.

As soon as I can find an mp3 of this I’ll post it here. Likewise for video. Check back to this post over the next few days as I’ll be updating it as new media is available.

For our Canadian readers (I know you’re out there) is it true that the eighties didn’t make it to Canada until ‘93?

Thanks to reader John for the link.

Update #3: The mp3 is now available. Download here.

Update #2: Part of the video is available on MySpace.

Update: Check out the lyrics:

Met you at the mall
Didn’t know how far I would fall
My friends said I was a fool (You’re a fool) (Shut up)
Cause you were older and got kicked out of school (You’re so rad)
Together we were gonna travel the globe
From Alberta to Ontario

But now I’m building
Sandcastles in the sand (sandcastles in the sand)
Thought I could fly when you held my hand (thought I could fly)
(Now) Eternity turns to black and white
It was the greatest week and a half
Of my life

We used to go to the beach
Back when happiness was in my reach (so close)
On our favorite bench
We’d sit and talk and you taught me to French
You’re good at pull-ups and have radical hair
I hate my dad, he’s so unfair (you don’t understand our love)

But now I’m building
Sandcastles in the sand
Thought I could fly when I held your hand (I was wrong)
Eternity turns to black and white
It was the greatest week and a half
Of my life

It’s crazy
No one gets me
Castles wash away
Come back please
I changed my mind
Let’s go all the way
I miss you

Sandcastles in the sand (I miss your hair)
Thought I could fly when I held your hand (I thought you were the one)
Sandcastles wash away (I’m ready, let’s do it)
And all that’s left is some sand the next day (sand the next day)
Sandcastles may be… (I’m on the pill now)
But now all they do is remind me of you (let’s go all the way, you said it’d be OK, I’m sorry)
Sandcastles wash away

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Monday’s episode “The Chain of Screaming” formerly known as “The Simmons Report” centers around Marshall and, much like “I’m Not that Guy”, we get a cool guest star:

Marshall gets shouted down by his boss, “Artillery Arthur” (guest star Bob Odenkirk) - or, as Segel put it, “The wheel of abuse finally lands on Marshall.” The traumatic moment leads to the end of Marshall’s brief career as a high-paid corporate lawyer and sets him back on course to become a do-gooding environmental lawyer.

Segel, whose movie “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” opens April 18, said he’s happy to see his character on track again.

“Marshall has such a pure heart, so I like to see him achieve his goals,” he said. “I’m happy he ends up turning his back on the corporate world. I’m very proud of him.

“And I’m glad we get to see me at work. You get to see Marshall in ’schlubby husband’ mode most of the time. It’s nice to see me in a suit. I’m finally suiting up.”

The entire list of guest stars for the episode:

Ferguson - Jordan Black
Arthur - Bob Odenkirk
Bilson - Bryan Callen
Blauman - Taran Killam
Waiter - Avner Garbi

How will L.A.M.E. be able to afford their new place if Marshall doesn’t have the high paying job? It’ll be interesting to see what Bays and Thomas do with this development.

In that same article we got some cryptic hints at what the future has in store as we move toward the finale which, I hear, will end with a cliff hanger that has “real emotional weight” for the characters:

The overarching story will be that Ted, whose romantic relationship with Robin ended at the end of last season, comes out of his tailspin. In the process, he begins to question why he hangs around with a lothario like Barney.

“Ted had been turning into Barney, so we’re putting him back on track as the nice guy we all fell in love with in the first place,” Bays said. “The second half of the season will move him a little closer to what Marshall and Lily have, but as a result, it will make him question having a Barney in his life. Some big events will put that in motion.”

source

Lothario is a great word. I wish I had more opportunities to use it. What do we think? Will “The Chain of Screaming” be as good as similar episodes about Marshall’s job such as “Life Among the Gorillas” or “I’m Not That Guy”? What type of event is coming up? The hints given so far have felt pretty ominous.

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I really hate copying directly from the source but I don’t have a ton of time so here we go:

The April 21 episode of How I Met Your Mother is turning into a wonderful ’80s flashback. Already marking the return of Robin Sparkles, the outing will feature visits from former teen popstress Tiffany and Growing Pains‘ Alan Thicke, playing Ms. Sparkles’ gal pal and father, respectively, in a newly unearthed video for “Sandcastles in the Sand,” a ballad Robin wrote upon being dumped by her backup-dancer beau (Dawson’s Creek’s James Van Der Beek).

HIMYM co-creators Carter Bays and Craig Thomas wrote and composed “Sandcastles in the Sand” as the B-side of “Let’s Go to the Mall,” using iconic ’80s breakup ballads such as “Foolish Beat” and “Toy Soldiers” as inspiration.

With Michael Gross (Family Ties) having guested as Ted’s pop and Bob Saget (Full House) playing narrator, Thicke represents the third classic ’80s dad to get involved with the CBS sitcom.

source

I think this episode is shaping up to be truly legendary. What do we think?

I leave you with this, which is quite possibly the most insane commercial I’ve seen lately. It’s got Meatloaf and Tiffany selling Go Phones. I love it.

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Spoilers follow, do not read if you’re not into that sort of thing.

Without a new episode this week lets take time to look at what’s coming in the future. Continue reading…

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If you listen to the entire 10 minute song on Tedmosbyisajerk.com there is some backwards dialog at the end. What does it say forwards?

Wendy the waitress is the mother, Wendy the Waitress is the mother, Wendy the Waitress is the mother. Just kidding.

Check it out:

Update: The woman singing this song is Charlene Amoia aka Wendy the Waitress. That makes it even more awesome. If you’re like me and find this song oddly enjoyable, you can download it here.

Want to be Legendary? Digg this story.

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The Internet is all a twitter with the latest How I Met Your Mother casting news:

I must break in with the fabulous news that our old friend Dawson Leery, aka James Van Der Beek, has officially agreed to guest star on How I Met Your Mother’s upcoming “Robin Sparkles” episode. I’m hearing he plays the Canadian pop star’s crush, but I have yet to get confirmation on that little detail. Sounds about right though, no?!
source

Thanks to Ranier and Kathryn for pointing this news out to me.

I always liked Dawson. He was good in the (underrated in my opinion) Rules of Attraction (great book, btw) and really, who didn’t like Dawson’s Creek? It had Katie Holmes (even though she butchered On My Own, I think Jason Segel would agree with me there) and Joshua Jackson. According to several girls in my high school I reminded them of Jackson, which led to less of a Barney-esque windfall then you’d expect. But I digress.

What do you think of this news? I’m just so excited to have another Robin Sparkles episode I’ll take what I can get.

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This Moday’s episode is titled “The Final Four” (or maybe “The Bracket”, depending on where you look) and, much like the super bowl episode last year, uses a current sporting event as its focus. But in classic How I Met Your Mother fashion, basketball teams won’t be the only competitors.

Reader Courtney had this tidbit:

Barney tries to find the mystery woman who’s out to ruin his reputation, by using the NCAA 64 person bracket. An interesting name comes up in the casting info for the episode:

“Anna” Dawn Olivieri.

Thanks to Courtney’s research we know that Dawn first appeared on the show in last season’s episode Ted Mosby, Architect as the girl “Ted” picked up by bragging about “his” job. At the end of the episode Robin and Lily, who think it is a cheating Ted in the apartment with this girl, bust in with the intent to kick her ass. Instead they find Barney tied up in bed and learn he’s used Ted’s name since he’s recently had some bad press on the Internet. In a rush to leave before the girl finishes her shower, Barney leaves a form letter he keeps with him for one night stands. Forgetting Anna’s name he addresses the letter to “resident”. The tag at the end of the episode shows Anna fresh out of the shower reading the letter—in which Barney proclaims to be a ghost who only appears once a year on the date of his death, and that he might one day return provided she keeps her figure—and asking aloud “who’s Barney?”.

The fact that they’ve brought Dawn back is wonderful news. I love how the show makes call backs to not only previous episodes but previous seasons. It’s a real reward for the fans. Who else might we see return from Barney’s past? Are there any other girls we know he’s scorned? Any victims of the lemon law? Could Wendy the Waitress be in the bracket? Tune in Monday to find out.

PS. If Dawn looks familiar to any of you it’s probably because she’s been a model on Deal or No Deal several times.

“The Final Four” (or, “The Bracket”) airs Monday March 3/31 at 8:30 EST on CBS.

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Of the shows that have returned from the strike How I Met Your Mother has continually done well for CBS. This week’s episode was the highest rated yet for the show. From the Hollywood Reporter:

A guest appearance by Britney Spears on Monday gave the CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother” its highest rating ever.

“Mother” spiked to a series high 4.5 preliminary rating among adults 18-49, even as the rest of the CBS comedy lineup fell from last week’s record-setting return to original episodes.

The second week of strong “Mother” ratings (10.6 million, 4.5/12) assures the one-time bubble comedy will be renewed for the fall. “Mother” was the fourth-highest-rated show of the evening, and CBS won the night (averaging 12.5 million, 4.4/11).

It’s not official, but I can’t see CBS canceling a show that’s doing so well. This is great news for us fans. Good work to those of you who wrote letters and signed petitions, but at the end of the day it all comes down to ratings and, lucky for us, the numbers don’t lie.

If you’d told me a year ago that Britney Spears would save How I Met Your Mother I’d have laughed in your face. I guess strange things do happen.

Now, for a bit of talking shop. I’ve heard readers suggest they’d be interested in a weekly ratings section, where we can track the shows stats in real time. Is this something you’d like to see?

Bonus points for the first person to get the reference in the phrasing of that poll question.

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