TVSquad

(S03E20) Wow, talk about a jam-packed episode. We saw major character development, flashbacks upon flashbacks, some issues resolved and others completely thrown into chaos, and a whole lot of funny talk of miracles.

Oh, and we saw Sarah Chalke, as Carter Bays told me last week. That was just cherry on the sundae, though.

Since so much stuff happened, let's just get to it after the jump, OK?

I'll admit right off the top that this episode didn't exactly break the needle on the funny meter; it was only OK in that regard. But the emotion we saw in this episode more than makes up for that. From the reactions and slow running of Ted's friends when they get the call that he's been in an accident to the "breakup" of Ted and Stella and how he tries to get her back post-accident, to Barney's reaction to his bro's injury, there was enough mistiness to fill three episodes. And that doesn't even count Barney and Ted making up, immediately followed by Barn's loving sideways look at Robin as he was lying there in full-body traction as Marshall and Lily speculate that "boob suits" flashed in his head as the bus hit him.

Let's examine that for a second. Barney's expressed actual feelings before, but it was mainly towards his "bros," and not anyone of the opposite sex. But that's why we like Barney; he's just grounded enough emotionally to not make him look like a total cartoon. But I'm not sure if I want to see Barney pining away for Robin during season four. Because, we know he's going to try to cover it with his Stinson-esque ways, but it's not going to be the same. But I guess it's time for Barn to grow up with the rest of the gang.

Ted asking Stella to marry him was probably the least surprising thing to happen in this episode. Why? Because we know Ted's capable of supreme mush, and being t-boned in a cab is only going to make him mushier. The little sidetrack that happened with the whole "we're good" thing wasn't anything more than a bump, something anyone who's watched HIMYM would know by now. Ted's a determined guy, and when he sets his mind to it, he tends to get what he wants. Just ask Robin. Anyway, I'm still not convinced that Stella is the Mother, but at least the proposal means we're going to see more of Chalke next year. And, since most of Scrubs' ABC season will likely be done by the end of the summer, we may see more of Chalke next season than we initially thought.

Ok, so on to the funny stuff: Miracles! The Miracle story was very Marshall-tastic, wasn't it? I'm trying to decide whether I like the "Pencil in Barney's nose" miracle (Barney: "Am I dead?") better than the "Stoner Customs agent played by Doug Benson" miracle. I think I might have to go with the Doug Benson one, given how much I like the guy and how close that character is to Doug's personality; I mean, the guy just did a Super Size Me parody called Super High Me, for crissakes. Anyway, the miracle that was most significant was the kindegarten class / small hats with lice miracle. It connects back to how the principals at the Big Evil Corporate Law Firm got snagged by the SEC two weeks after the little critters stopped Marshall from getting his job back. Where was John Cho in the scene where everyone got arrested, though?

More fun stuff:

• Robin's cynicism about miracles was sneakily funny, especially the story about how her dog Sir Scratchuan became a turtle via a miraculous surgery whose name I couldn't even begin to reproduce. How long did she believe that was true? "Longer than I'm proud of."
• Best Barneyism: Barney in traction telling the horrific tale about being cut out of his "beautiful suit" by the paramedics. Second place: "There's one bone downstairs that ain't broken." Third: The date-time continuum, only because it took me a second to wrap my head around that one.
  
• Ironic that Barn got injured a whole lot worse than Ted did (i.e. not at all). One question, though, if Korean "friends" didn't understand what he said, then are they really from North Korea? One of them was in a military uniform! Maybe they're conning the poor guy.
• Geek alert from TV Squad boss Keith: "I do wonder if that Guitar Hero guitar Marshall was wearing was one that's supposed to come with the new version of the game (not GH4 but something else). I say that because it's Aerosmith-themed." Anyone?
• I have to try using Lily's happy tone with my nieces and nephew the next time I have to say something that's not so nice. "Uncle Joel has a splitting headache now, kids! Please stop screaming!" (Sorry, Rich, just going for a joke... they're all little angels)
• "I have lice! The little bastards gave me lice!" So much for sweet, understanding Marshall. Nice job by Jason Segel, by the way; he did a nice job of silently conveying how uncomfortable the itching must have been.
• Robin: "I love Bruce Springsteen! He's the American Bryan Adams." Wow. About five million of my fellow New Jerseyans are crying right now.

Ok, that's more than enough for now. You folks can fill in anything I missed. So, you folks looking forward to season four after watching this episode? Let me know in the comments.