(S03E02) May I rant for a second?I don't know if you've been to New York lately, but if you go, the one thing you'll notice is that most of the people there aren't native New Yorkers. They're from all over the country; they've decided to move to the city to chase their dreams or just get the experience of living there. After about a year, most of them feel they've been hardened by the experience, thinking they're "real New Yorkers" because they got the privilege of crowding on the subways and paying $2500 for a studio. With that badge of honor, they feel they get to make fun of all the "Bridge & Tunnel" people who, even though they've lived in the area all their lives, have the good sense to live in a place where drinks are less than $15 a pop.
Ok, rant over. But a lot of that was going through my mind as Ted yelled at the "sorta New Yorkers" who dared tell him they lived in West Orange. The Jerseyan in me was laughing, but he wasn't happy, either.
I will admit, though, that the line "I've done a lot to get laid, but I will not go to New Jersey!" was the best line of the night. It just bugs me that, after all the respect my home state has gotten in the entertainment world lately, Bays and Thomas would not only have two bubbleheaded Tater Skinz lovin' girls come from New Jersey, but write Ted's sanctimonious speech on top of everything else. Anyway, we New Jerseyans are known for our senses of humor -- and an appreciation for a good tater skin -- so I can let it pass. And, no, West Orange isn't anywhere near the West Village (though they do serve great Italian hot dogs there).
Barney's scheme to snare women for him and Ted by having them pretend they were tourists was solid, if not original; George Costanza did the same thing in order to hit on a pretty real estate agent on Seinfeld. But I liked the fact that both his and Ted's accents drifted in and out, and Ted gave expert opinions about bad neighborhoods in the South Bronx, and the two Tater Skinz girls never even noticed. After seeing how dippy those girls were, I could see how they thought McLaren's was a "lame" bar. There's no irritating dance beat or massive bouncer with a black "STAFF" t-shirt, so to them it's lame. Of course, to everyone who might be a HIMYM fan, McLaren's is just like their favorite neighborhood spot.
Remember, we're entering the era of "Wild Ted," so, while you'd think Barney would come up with the term "Thank God we're alive sex," Mr. Mosby was actually the one who coined the phrase. But Barney did utter a number of good lines tonight, including this one, which is the Best Barneyism of the week: "We are on the cusp of moving from out-of-towners to in-their-pantsers!"
Just like last week, we got juuuust enough of Enrique Iglesias as Gael to not make him a distraction. Vacation Robin vs. Post-Vacation Robin was a matchup I wanted to see more of, especially in that dream Robin had near the end of the episode. We know how uptight the gun-totin', Scotch-drinkin' Robin was, so we knew that the crunchy, braided-haired Vacation Robin didn't stand a chance. But it was funny to see Gael try to replicate his "experience the food" hand feeding with a fistful of spaghetti. Did the goofiness go too far when Gael invited the random travelers to stay indefinitely? Probably. But at least the act nudged Robin back to the alpha-male woman we grew to love. Who else could say "pee it up!" and sound sincere while doing it?
More fun:
- Does using big words around foreigners really fool them? At least we got to hear the phrase "It's going to come back and masticate you on the gluteals."
- The plot with the best purely funny moments was the Marshall / Lily "death folder" story: Marshall suspecting Ted in any future suspicious demise, Lily's ultra-minimal instructional letter, Marshall comparing the depths of their love to a Scottish loch (he loves Nessie, remember)... all of it good.
- The best part of that plot was the flash-forward to 2029. No, I didn't think Lily was dead; it made sense that curiosity eventually got the better of Bald Marshall. But it was still funny, especially when she asks if he still wants her to put in the dirty Polaroids she promised to throw in 22 years earlier. "Not now," he says, immediately regretting it. Nice to see mushy Marshall and Lily become just as crusty as every other long-married couple out there.
- Robin's reaction to the versions of herself going all the way in her dream: "She may be sandy, but that chick knows what I like." And when she said there was sand "everywhere," I wonder what she meant...
- Second best Barneyism is the "Best if banged by" sticker he describes is on every vacation-born relationship.
- And a good Lily line, as she's looking at pictures of the nude Argentinian beach: "It's a Where's Waldo of exposed genitalia, only you can see everything!"
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-02-2007 @ 12:15AM
T W said...
Notice the framed newspaper article behind Marshall? NY Lawyer Captures Nessie... Cracked me up...
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10-02-2007 @ 1:36AM
BStu said...
Ha! I didn't notice that, TW, but on looking back it seems like it might be an HD gag as you could proably piece together what the thing said on a regular TV but would easily read it with HD.
I liked the episode, especially all the character moments and stuff, like Ted's subtle laughter during Barney's "best if banged by" rant and the closing scene with Barney bonding with Scherbatsky. Though I did notice that Ted's NYC defensiveness came from a native Ohioan.
http://ymiab.blogspot.com
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10-02-2007 @ 2:11AM
Sparky said...
Love this show. But.
put the group together in the teaser.
Seperate them into teams. three different stories....
Is this friends?
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10-02-2007 @ 8:14AM
KMF said...
This was a great episode! My favourite part had to be future Marshall and Lily. I didn't see the framed Nessie article, but the reception on my tv is sucky. But that's so Marshall!
And as for Ted's rant, it did came back and masticate him on his gluteals, as he'd ticked off the Newark born and bred cop who could have taken him and Barney home.
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10-02-2007 @ 10:00AM
Porchland said...
Two episodes in, I think the show is off to a rocky start.
By breaking up Ted and Robin and putting Ted with Barney the first two episodes, the producers have made Robin peripheral. She's just not engaging enough to pull off solo storylines the way Barney has done in the past. Robin has seemed almost unnecessary in these first two episodes.
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10-02-2007 @ 10:03AM
lindsay said...
Ted's speech was clearly making fun of New Yorkers who say stuff like that, not people who live in New Jersey. Could people who don't live in New York be less likely to understand satire? JK, mostly!
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10-02-2007 @ 10:44AM
Chris W said...
Haha Joel, I knew they'd take some jabs at Jersey sooner rather than later. Craig and Carter make sure to have a cluster of "we're from New York" jokes every few episodes, like talking about specific subway lines or neighborhoods. But to be fair, it's common knowledge that New Jersey is an inferior state and the only reason the Sopranos did well is because they shot in Queens a lot. Hah! I kid, I kid. :)
But you do have a point about his attitude. It's ironic that Ted would be such a dick about Jersey considering he didn't even grow up in NY. But he's always been a snob about certain things. Think about the brooding/smart look he was going for in college.
I love Marshall and Lily in the future. Barney and Robin bonding was good too; maybe they'll go bro-ing again in the future. And speaking with big words to fool Gael: priceless! "Are we talking about baseball?"
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10-02-2007 @ 11:17AM
eric f. said...
I am so glad that enrique iglesias will not be on anymore. I couldn't stand his character. Otherwise, a consistently hilarious show.
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10-02-2007 @ 11:31AM
justelise said...
Now that Ted and Robin aren't together anymore, it'd be great if they wrote her off the show. The only thing I ever found interesting about her is her relationship with Ted. Time for him to move on and they can make room for a more interesting mate for Ted.
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10-02-2007 @ 11:37AM
spg28 said...
This show has been the only show that has continuously made me laugh over the past few years and I find myself at times speaking only in Barneyisms....
I didn't think it was possible to love it anymore than I already do, but I was born and raised in West Orange and when I heard my hometown being referenced last night it officially solidified this show as being the BEST. SHOW. EVER. I heart HIMYM!!!
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10-02-2007 @ 12:27PM
froggirl said...
The using big words was hilarious. My hubby and I do that in front of our kids sometimes.
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10-02-2007 @ 12:52PM
r.r.r. said...
i thought this episode wasn't funny until the middle of it. the whole death letter part was hysterical and robin coming off of a pot muffin was even better. ted exploding at the end of the date was awesome.
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10-02-2007 @ 3:35PM
Justin said...
The episode was just so-so. Mildy funny but not the best. Full recap:
http://www.have-you-met-ted.com
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10-02-2007 @ 4:14PM
Ryan said...
Well first of all, they're NOT going to write Robin off since Ted has referred to her as "Aunt Robin" in the past meaning they continue being good friends way into the future.
Plus as much as her relationship with Ted was a main part of the show, she has a much better chemistry with Barney. I wish they would bro it up again. And she IS Robin Sparkles. Just for that alone she should get a Hollywood freakin' Star.
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10-02-2007 @ 6:44PM
keepitreal said...
i hope/think robin ends up marrying barney in the end...but...as for ryan's comment about her not being written off the show, i think its very possible. at any point she can disappear to the list of countries older ted tells his kids about at the end of season 2.
right now im iffy as to whether or not i like robin in the show right now. as mentioned in the reviews, when they arent all together the show lacks. robin is a source of this problem. maybe it all changes now that gael is gone but if not, she should go back to canada...or somewhere else.
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10-03-2007 @ 6:08PM
fred said...
Robin can't leave, she's part of the gang now. Plus, she's so cute, too.
I thought this was a pretty good episode, liked a lot of it, and nothing I really disliked.
Another line, amongst the few I really liked :
"I've been thinking, about our fight. I’m really really, surprised you haven't apologized to me yet."
http://88.191.26.34/i_watch_tv/2007/10/03/how-i-met-your-mother-were-not-from-here/
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10-04-2007 @ 5:27PM
nattyff said...
Love the show!! but these episode...not so much. Let me be clear, all the robin-enrique part was verrrrrrrryyyyyy boring, the rest.... great!!!
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