Brief spoilers for tonight's "How I Met Your Mother" coming up just as soon as I check my lottery numbers..."The Possimpible" -- alternately known as "Barney Stinson: That Guy's Awesome" -- was missing one very obvious, potentially legendary piece: the video resume Barney made for Robin. Because we didn't get to see it, it felt like the episode climaxed -- comedically, anyway -- with the footage of Barney's own video (which you can catch, of course, at the real BarneysVideoResume.com). Everything after that was sort of interesting from a character/relatability standpoint -- we all have things we used to be able to do in our teens or early twenties that we don't want to let go of as we get older -- but I'm surprised they missed such an easy opportunity for additional laughs. Barney's idea of how to sell Robin to TV news organizations would have been at least as funny as his own awesome video.
For that matter, how do you do a subplot about Marshall dancing, and not let Jason Segel shake his groove thing? (Cue the obligatory "Freaks and Geeks" disco clip -- jump ahead to around the 2:30 mark if you just want the dancing without the Nick/Lindsay angst.) The hot dog-eating part of that story gave the show an excuse to work in Alyson Hannigan's baby bump, but why couldn't they let the big man dance?
Couple of other random thoughts:
• Note that Barney keeps taking off his glasses in various shots of the video. No doubt he's studied closely from Alec Baldwin's lessons on being a handsome actor.
• If you freeze-frame Ted's resume after he deletes the "Doctor X" stuff, the last item involves him being a lifeguard, which isn't really applicable to an architecture career, either.
• The bitchy, whispering lottery guys -- "I don't even understand what she's doing" -- were an unexpected highlight.
• I'm too tired to create my own words, ala Barney, but have at it if you must.
What did everybody else think?
44 comments:
I got a kick out of Marshall's resume as well.
Including 'Camper of the Year', and his signature dunk being 'The White Windmill'.
I was SO disappointed that Jason Segel didn't get to dance. I'm still depressed about it, actually. Other than that, an OK episode. Robin's video would've been good, too, but I'm more bummed about the lack of dancing. I kept thinking it was going to come, and then it didn't. Not cool.
Marshall left a prize bit on his resume as well - Camper of the Year, 1990.
They only missed a comedy opportunity for the video resume Barney made for Robin if that's what he really did. Knowing this show, I expect we'll find out the truth is something else entirely in a few weeks or months. Maybe it was just an awesome green screen resume, or maybe Barney had GNB buy her new employer through a North Korean subsidiary.
Or, you know, Barney made a serious video reel for her, but that's not funny at all.
Nothing and Everything is Possimpible.
A good episode. I liked it a lot.
Lifeguard is the sort of responsible thing you leave on a resume for good, i think. it's not exactly some random summer job.
I LOOOVEEDD the return of Ted's Spectacles at the very end. that last scene was perfect.
how does this show do a running gag about marshall's secret dancing without ever letting big boy bust some moves?! and not showing robin's video or tagging it on at the end was a huge tease.
I went to barneysvideoresume.com as soon as they said it. Then when Barney said he was going to make Robin's, I naturally typed in http://www.robinsvideoresume.com, but alas.
However, sometime in the last few hours since the show aired, someone bought the URL and it's active, if only to say that it's parked.
I love the Awesome Song!
Also, did anyone else notice that Barney's video was an obvious parody of Impossible is Nothing, which has also been spoofed by Michael Cera?
It did feel like something was missing, but I laughed a lot anyway.
Also, the whispering bingo guy reminded me of part of Jim Gaffigan's routine.
The whole show is on youtube, and well worth the hour
I want to believe that these writers aren't going to leave us without seeing how Barney got Robin the job. I'm of several minds about it.
First, they'll just create an excuse to show us the video. It'll be great and funny.
Or, Robin will see the video and realize that only someone who loves her could make the greatest video resume ever.
Or, there's no video, and Barney did something insane to get Robin that job. Like, his shadowy company bought the channel.
Or, maybe something that involves that damn goat.
http://mysteriousdrx.com/
Awesome
A clip of the video resume that Barney created for Robin would have been a much funnier tag than the Ted at college flashback.
And no Segel dancing? Or did he himself actually come down with dancer's hip?
But that was a very clever way to use Alyson Hannigan's, er, condition.
I just watched the video on barneysvideoresume.com, and it's not quite what we saw on the show. The song is awesome, though, and includes the line (which I didn't catch on the show, if it was there), "This isn't Barney Stinson singing this song." Gotta love the attention to detail. Also, the website is sponsored by Goliath National Bank, which doesn't really make sense to me in that I don't know why an employer would sponsor an employee's resume, but I'm cool with it.
Two highlights:
-Barney's Video Resume. I don't think I should have laughed so hard at it, but I did.
-Snarky lottery auditions. They were entertaining unlike...
Lowlights:
-Dr X. It was funny and then I understood why it SUCKED. Also, it was a Major Buzzkill (sorry, I had to) for me since I was expecting Robin's resume at the end.
-No dancing. Yes, I wanted to see the man dance also. But NO! It was just a closed door.
A good old fashioned "Meh."
Not particularly memorable episode. And going to commercial with Robin saying she's going to have to move to Canada without undercutting it with a joke felt VERY silly and melodramatic. Everyone in the audience knows damn well that Robin isn't leaving the show. Why try to build it up as a big moment without at least making us laugh?
I was VERY surprised that with Robin having to go back, Barney didn't go with the more obvious way to keep the woman he loves in the country... MARRY HER!
Odd it didn't come up (or did it and I missed it?)
You missed it, Tyroc (you were probably outside yelling OYYYUUUU).
Someone said that she could marry a citizen, then in the background Barney got down on one knee as if to propose. Marshall then said that wouldn't work, it would take more than 7 days to get the paperwork complete, so Barney stood up and nobody saw him.
Wow. The Mysterious Dr. X's rants are amazing.
The best part of the lifeguard resume entry? "Zero fatalities."
I was VERY surprised that with Robin having to go back, Barney didn't go with the more obvious way to keep the woman he loves in the country... MARRY HER!
Odd it didn't come up (or did it and I missed it?)
It came up briefly and was summarily dismissed as "we'd never be able to get the paperwork done in time."
Outside of the Barney video, that little beat with Barney getting ready to propose and then stop when Marshall said the paperwork wouldn't be ready on time, was probably the best part of the show.
This episode was a little like Dr. X, it thought it was much better than it actually was.
Anyone notice Robin's real life baby bump too? Both he's a Lily's were clearly visible in the hot dog scene.
I agree Alan, and almost everybody else, the whole thing was one big missed opportunity (like one of the "quiet" Soprano episodes where nobody gets whacked - all build up).
How in the hell do you not show Robin's resume- at the very least you know Barney combined his existing footage with the new stuff and came up with something pretty awesome.
With this show, I really think it will come back as another episode in the Barney <3's Robin story. At least, I really hope that is what they are doing.
Also, the whispering bingo guy reminded me of part of Jim Gaffigan's routine.
Absolutely.
"I didn't expect him to be this pale."
I really expected there to be more relief around them:
1. Finally showing Alyson's baby bump
2. Doing it in a non-sitcomy, non-"oops, Marshall and I forgot to mention Ted/Barney are about to be uncles" sort of way
I really liked the idea - step away from naturally writing pregnancies into the script and go for camera angles!!!
I always figured Barney never made the video and just pulled some strings of his own. And any video footage Barney made was for uh, his own private enjoyment.
Kind of a "meh" episode, though Barney's lottery game, the lottery guys, the video, and to some degree the heinousness of College Ted weren't bad. And hah for putting in pregnant Alyson Hannigan (though I dunno if I would have had Marshall rub her belly so conspicuously at the end) and the hot dogs that got her in trouble.
Hey since sandwiched mean pot - does pizza mean anything? Marshall and Lilly were eating pizza while listening to Dr. X
I was wondering if mentioning channels 8 and 12 had any connection to RL New York and sure enough it did.
Courtesy of phineastbarnum over at TWOP:
"Okay, increasing my love of this show: Channel 8 lost out on Robin when the guy wouldn't hire her without an audition; in Manhattan, Channel 8 is TBS, which I think was in the running for the HIMYM syndication deal. Who did pick up the show for syndication? Lifetime. What channel is Lifetime in Manhattan? That's right - Channel 12, the station where Robin will be performing her morning talk show duties."
Excellent way to work in Alyson's pregnancy without working it into the storyline.
I agree about no Jason Segel dancing. As we saw on Freaks and Geeks, the guy can bust some moves.
When will Robin become aware of Barney's feelings for her? I suspect a season ending cliffhanger.
I gotta go with other posters and say that the idea of NOT showing Robin's video resume is a set-up to SHOWING it later this season, in order to reveal Barney's true feelings about Robin....there's something in that video that we WILL see when the timing is right (say, around May sweeps and the finale).
And actually using Hannigan's off-screen pregnancy as a funny bit on competitive eating was excellent -- a wink to the crowd that follows those things, but also a joke that worked with the show. I can almost foresee a Barney dream in which he's married to a pregnant Robin coming soon to a HIMYM near you....
(By the way, the "word verification" for posting this was "woonot" -- as in, not a "Woo!" girl....)
During the lottery girl audition scene, did anyone else think Robin was going to start using Barney's method of making the lottery more interesting?
"Seventeen, the age I lost my virginity ..."
During the lottery girl audition scene, did anyone else think Robin was going to start using Barney's method of making the lottery more interesting?
That would have been a good pay-off to the teaser, though I don't know if it would've undercut the comedy of the whispering audition guys.
As for the idea that we'll see the video down the road, that's all fine and dandy... but then they needed to give this episode some kind of big payoff. Instead, it just sort of sputtered to the finish line.
The moment Marshall said "I dance more than you know." I immediately began chanting "Please be a motage. Please be a motage. Please be a motage..." But alas, my dreams were not to be.
This is forever going to brand me as a certain kind of geek, but I also thought that the Barney taking off the glasses thing was a stab at Robert Novak, who used to do that at the end of each of his "Outrages of the Week" on CNN's "The Capital Gang."
How is the show going to work around the pregnancies of Smulders and Hannigan? There's not a lot of well-developed supporting characters to fill in their slots while on maternity leave.
How is the show going to work around the pregnancies of Smulders and Hannigan? There's not a lot of well-developed supporting characters to fill in their slots while on maternity leave.
They shot the season finale ahead of time because they don't if or know when they're going to lose Hannigan for the rest of the season, and they shot a couple of scenes with her that would explain a temporary absence by Lily if she's gone for a bit. Smulders' pregnancy isn't as far along, so they'll just have to work around her changing physique as the season continues.
I'm gonna defend Ted's resume for a sec -- yeah, "Doctor X" is ridiculous, but on the resume, Ted was actually program director for his college radio station. I'd argue that those management skills actually *are* relevant to applying for a job!
BTW, I agree with Doctor X's truth bombs!
NPH is incredible - the hug at the end is so well done. He strokes her hair, and the look on his face is priceless. It makes it very easy to believe that Barney is truly in love with Robin.
I'm in the camp that they'll show us in a later episode how Barney got Robin the job. We'll either see the resume, or they will show us a different way he got her the job.
I will miss Metro News One - I loved the stories they made up for her to report.
Marsha, I'm guessing Robin will have even better, weirder stories to report as a morning show anchor!
I agree this episode felt like a lot of buildup with little comedic payoff. My guess is we may see Robin's video resume at some point (maybe when she starts her job), but there was a whole subplot about Marshall dancing that didn't show Marshall dancing?! Blasphemy! Moments like Barney's expression when he was hugging Robin, the return of Pretentious College Ted, and turning Alyson Hannigan's pregnancy into a speed-eating sight gag redeemed it at least a bit.
I am a fan of College Ted's hair. Along with his spectacles, ALWAYS good for a laugh.
Is it odd to say that, knowing Alyson Hannigan is pregnant, makes watching the staging of a lot of these scenes seem kind of awkward? (Like, she's always sitting down; or she has envelopes spread across where her belly is....)
I guess it's one of those things that takes me out of watching the episode, just a little bit.
C'mon Anonymous,
Pregnancy is a fact of life. Just like employers have to improvise and work around pregnancies and maternity leaves, we should be able to cut some slack and do a little suspension of disbelief regarding a pregnant actress' character.
That's what made the hot dog joke funny. We're all playing along with the tricks they're doing to continue to have Lily not pregnant and then they threw her belly in our face.
--bad dad
Is HIMYM ever gonna have a new episode?
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