Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday! This week, I’m continuing my coverage of How I Met Your Mother (2005-2014, CBS), which is currently available on DVD and streaming.

How I Met Your Mother stars JOSH RADNOR as Ted Mosby, JASON SEGEL as Marshall Eriksen, COBIE SMULDERS as Robin Scherbatsky, NEIL PATRICK HARRIS as Barney Stinson, and ALYSON HANNIGAN as Lily Aldrin.

Season Two is the series’ most naturally exciting collection in terms of situation-reflective storytelling, even as the actual stories being told don’t have much to do with the high-concept premise. That is, this is the year — the only year — where Ted is coupled with Robin, his pilot-posited love interest who nevertheless is known to NOT be the mother of his future kids and therefore NOT the stated focus of the series. This means all his character’s romantic plots in Two feature someone who’s not, and doesn’t bring him closer to, Mother’s claimed raison d’être. (And since we know there’s an important woman in Ted’s life beyond Robin, our emotional investment in them as a couple is always limited.) However, Mother knows now how to invoke its situation outside of just story — honing in instead on the way stories are told, via the high concept’s narrator framework. In addition to gags related to this biased or unreliable perspective (e.g., Future Ted’s use of euphemisms), the series breaks from totally linear chronology for a more fragmented intra-episode form, with jumps around in time — through not-necessarily-sequential drops of information, and smaller stories inside larger stories — that all help reiterate the tangential, overly detailed manner in which someone like Ted might indeed recount a long-form narrative. This direct play to the high concept reinforces the situation, emphasizing the most unique aspect of the entire series — and with a sense of newness that Mother is still blessed to possess in Two… As for the stories, again, they’re not really about Ted’s mother pursuit. But many are about romantic relationships, and that’s a thematically appropriate subject for this type of sitcom, especially compared to, say, workplace plots that don’t involve these leads in personal relation. Oh, and speaking of these leads, they’re also in good shape — they remain basically distinct opposite each other in the clear ensemble construct, while enjoying continued and more personalized refinement through repeated usage. Accordingly, this suggests a rising knowingness of character that, coupled with a maintained novelty of premise, typically signals a peak era. This again proves to be correct here. Second only to the more literally ideal Season Three (stay tuned!), I’d say this is How I Met Your Mother at its best.

 

01) Episode 25: “Brunch” (Aired: 10/02/06)

Ted and his friends have brunch with his visiting parents.

Written by Stephen Lloyd | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Meeting a regular’s parents is always character-revealing because it naturally fills in backstory and adds nuance to our understanding. But more than that, this entry — in which Ted’s parents (Michael Gross and Cristine Rose) visit and he learns that they’re getting a divorce — is most exciting due to its intentionally fragmented form, as the narrator (Future Ted) breaks the tale of this brunch date down in chunks, going back and forth in the timeline for an approach that reflects how he might tell someone this story. And this reflects the high-concept premise — of a man recounting to his kids, in long form, how he met their mother — but in a micro manner, with the storytelling devices employed here emphasizing the overarching device that contextualizes the entire series. This makes for a fine example of what Mother is able to do in this peak era specifically — freshly playing to its situation via the still-novel way its individual episodes are structured, through a quirky “telling” by this increasingly defined main character.

02) Episode 26: “Ted Mosby, Architect” (Aired: 10/09/06)

Robin trails Ted after a fight, thinking that he’s cheating on her.

Written by Kristin Newman | Directed by Pamela Fryman

One of my favorite half hours of the season, this outing also plays with structure, as the narrator deliberately teases and/or saves information for later in order to build dramatic suspense (and/or enhance comedy). That’s the narrative benefit this series enjoys because of its high concept — meaning, it can be more heavy-handed and intrusive with its plotting under the auspices of it all coming from a biased character “recounting” events to his kids. This renders such storytelling a symbol of the premise, and accordingly, even stories inside an overarching story can be indicative of this design — like this installment about Robin tracking Ted, thinking that he’s cheating on her by flaunting his career as an architect. It mirrors the style that someone might use to engage a listener, saving a reveal, or a punchline, for its most comedically or dramatically convenient time. In this case, we learn alongside Robin that Barney was pretending to be Ted. So, by the way it’s told — not what actually happens — this is the kind of sample that Mother’s situation uniquely permits, making this a legitimate display of situation comedy.

03) Episode 27: “World’s Greatest Couple” (Aired: 10/16/06)

Lily moves in with Barney while Marshall spends too much time with his friend Brad.

Written by Brenda Hsueh | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Thanks to its high-concept premise and the structure that invites, Mother is a fundamentally idea-driven series, and its best attributes tend to revolve around ideas rather than characters. Therefore, a lot of its best episodes are considered as such because they have good ideas — like this one, which plays with the joke that two separate pairs are behaving like romantic couples, even though they aren’t. The first is Marshall and his recurring pal Brad (Joe Manganiello) — both guys are currently single and find themselves in an arrangement where Marshall feels like Brad is substituting him for his ex. That’s amusing as a logline — regardless of character. But the second pair actually is more character-based, for it’s Lily and Barney, as Lily temporarily moves in with Barney, and the contrast between her “settled” nature and his innate refusal to settle — the basic distinction between them within the ensemble — creates comic tension, particularly when he finds himself acting like one half of a stable couple with her, paralleling the Marshall/Brad subplot while enhancing this idea-driven story with specific character value.

04) Episode 29: “Swarley” (Aired: 11/06/06)

Marshall is warned that his date has crazy eyes, while Lily is upset that he’s moving on.

Written by Greg Malins | Directed by Pamela Fryman

As noted last week, I think the temporary breakup of Marshall and Lily feels like schmuck bait — their reunion always seems inevitable given the position they play within the low-concept design. So, this forced drama to create a cliffhanger and brief arc isn’t among this series’ most sincere ideas. However, I do think, if there’s anything good to be said, it further confirms their rightness for each other, and thus ultimately validates their depictions in the overall ensemble construct. In terms of this installment, it’s very “singles in the city” — a compelling blend of Seinfeld and Friends, with the latter evoked by Lily’s broad and somewhat slapsticky reaction to Marshall’s dating, which leads to their reconciliation and the resumption of the happy rom-com ethos that both series share. As for Seinfeld, the whole gag of a girl having “Crazy Eyes” — a specific social phenomenon that’s granted a unique label and then bandied about as part of the characters’ regular lexicon — is something indicative of Seinfeld, which, like Mother, enjoyed taking details, or trivia, and heightening them in comic story. Additionally, both Seinfeld and Friends are also felt in the Barney subplot, as the show spoofs Friends via a coffee shop scene, and then creates a Seinfeld-ian gag in “Swarley” — the absurd name a barista wrote on Barney’s cup. Oh, and speaking of classic ensembles, the half hour concludes with a Cheers joke, cementing this excursion as a total homage to the hangout subgenre that Mother’s low-concept setup embraces. (Note: the writer credited with this script, Greg Malins, was a Friends alum!)

05) Episode 31: “Slap Bet” (Aired: 11/20/06)

The group learns that Robin used to be a teen pop star in Canada.

Written by Kourtney Kang | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Widely considered to be among How I Met Your Mother’s premier showings for the many choice, series-defining gags it establishes, “Slap Bet” is indeed my selection for this year’s MVE (Most Valuable Episode). For starters, it’s one of the most formative for character, providing Robin with her most individualized exploration yet, as we learn the biggest and most important part of her backstory: she was once a teen pop star in Canada. That’s an amusingly idea-driven notion predicated, frankly, on the single joke of her campy music video, which we get to see in full. But the joke is well-supported narratively, via the fake-out of Robin’s initial lie, pretending her secret is a previous marriage — a more traditional rom-com “backstory” that this script has fun making a decoy, with the pop star twist reflecting how this series consciously times information for comedic gain. And, of course, this is not only common now thanks to Mother’s maximization of its high-concept premise and the biased narrator, but also encouraged as a symbol of them — rendering this another example of how Season Two is supreme at using the way its stories are told to address the show’s situation. Meanwhile, the “slap bet” between Marshall and Barney — and all its corresponding rules — also begins here, enabling many future references that play beautifully into Mother’s premise-ordained penchant for callbacks and running gags, reinforcing an additional aspect of the show’s identity. This “slap bet,” specifically, is both a named idea-led joke typical of this trivia-focused series and a device that’s set up to enable many future payoffs — just like every story thread with a foretold endpoint — whenever the show wants to reiterate its foundational continuity. Such continuity speaks to the long-form plot being told, and by proxy, the high concept hanging over the entire series… As such, this is a stellar display of what Mother can do within its micro storytelling to enhance and corroborate what it does in its macro, and that’s precisely what the show is most skilled at offering as a matter of situation-satisfaction here in Season Two, in particular… regardless of how much “mother-meeting” is teased within the actual stories. Accordingly, this is the seminal sample of this seminal year.

06) Episode 37: “Lucky Penny” (Aired: 02/12/07)

Ted recalls a series of events that led to him missing an important flight.

Written by Jamie Rhonheimer | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Yet another exhibit of Mother’s situation-revealing use of narrative, this outing tells a specific story within the overall story that Ted is telling his kids, moving around in time to draw a chain of events between him missing an important business flight to Chicago and his discovery of a lucky penny all the way back in the season’s second entry. That’s a terrific bit of continuity that serves as an early example of what this show will try to master more often, particularly in its last few years, as it zeroes in on the wedding day where Ted finally meets the premised subject of the entire series, the mother of his future children. But I digress… In the meantime, this smart excursion, with its non-traditional and thus situation-affirming storytelling, is something that feels unique to this show, and I enjoy highlighting it as a result — it’s the kind of thing only this show could do, making it a satisfying one-off that’s wisely indicative of the whole. (Plus, Future Ted also mentions The Mother here — a relatively rare occurrence in Two.)

07) Episode 38: “Stuff” (Aired: 02/19/07)

Ted and Robin argue about objects that they’ve kept from their past relationships.

Written by Kourtney Kang | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Admittedly, this looks like something I could see on, say, Friends, and of all the selections on this list, “Stuff” is probably the one that’s the least uniquely How I Met Your Mother, especially in terms of its storytelling. But I feature it here because it’s funnier than most, with a subplot where Barney is overly honest with Lily about her experimental off-Broadway play, and then deliberately attempts to make a point to her by staging a terrible show of his own. Now, this is definitely idea-driven humor that I think has more to do with the notion itself than their actual characters, but it reinforces the bonds of friendship within the group, which helps maintain the hangout structure. And it’s paired well with a rom-com story for Ted and Robin, where they’re both bothered by mementos that they’ve kept from past relationships — a fairly familiar and unoriginal conflict that nevertheless deals with old romances and the continuity that humans keep with them, which feels thematically apropos for Mother and its premise, beyond even the simple fact that this is a romantic comedy centered around Ted (and, right now, Ted/Robin).

08) Episode 42: “Showdown” (Aired: 04/30/07)

Barney goes on The Price Is Right to meet Bob Barker, whom he believes is his father.

Written by Gloria Calderon Kellett | Directed by Pamela Fryman

Another popular outing, this important showing for Barney — the show’s most comedically distinct regular and therefore the one most primed to uniquely color story in the absence of heavier, more premise-related narrative trappings — is not affiliated to the high concept or, more broadly, the romantic pursuits that implicitly address the situation for Ted. What’s more, the telling itself is not particularly novel or reflective of the deviations in form enabled by the show’s established narrator. No, this is individually an example of How I Met Your Mother because it’s individual to Barney, whom we learn is under the delusional belief that his biological father is Bob Barker. This sets up a reliable sitcom set piece where Barney goes on a game show — Barker’s The Price Is Right — but only for the intention of confronting his potential dad. That’s an inherently comic idea that accentuates Barney’s wide-eyed mythologizing of a difficult part of his past, and it further endears him to the audience… all in, again, an amusing package that’s hinged on the ridiculousness of the prospect. So, it’s a good character show. Meanwhile, I also appreciate some of the “details” in this episode — like the flash-forwards to Marshall and Lily’s forthcoming wedding, which remind us of Mother’s special storytelling capabilities.

09) Episode 43: “Something Borrowed” (Aired: 05/07/07)

Many things seem to go wrong on Marshall and Lily’s wedding day.

Written by Greg Malins | Directed by Pamela Fryman

This is Marshall and Lily’s wedding — a type of big event that’s common fodder for sitcoms, especially rom-coms, and isn’t exactly spectacular relative to the rest of the genre. That is, we’ve seen “the disastrous wedding day” a lot of times before, and this doesn’t come close to sitting among the best of this subcategory. Heck, this series has a much more chaotic wedding coming up — one it spends four whole seasons teasing! However, this is a fast-paced and funny show in its own right that also reiterates the tight bonds between the regulars in their hangout ensemble, with a sweetness that speaks to the more sensitive, emotional (Friends-ian) side of the series, thematically fitting its overarching premise. Additionally, this installment is even more affable in the context of the entire run, for the simplicity of Marshall/Lily’s wedding will prove to be more desirable compared to the too-drawn-out (and ultimately counterintuitive) antics of Barney/Robin’s… But let’s not get ahead of ourselves — we’re still a ways away from that. For the time being, this is a memorable rom-com sample of a memorable rom-com series.

10) Episode 44: “Something Blue” (Aired: 05/14/07)

Ted and Robin are unable to hide a major recent development in their relationship.

Written by Carter Bays & Craig Thomas | Directed by Pamela Fryman

If not for the obvious necessity of picking the uber-formative “Slap Bet” as my MVE, I would have most likely selected this outing, the climax of Mother’s smart sophomore season. It’s got another story within a story — as Barney overhears a conversation between Ted and Robin at Marshall and Lily’s wedding reception and realizes there’s something they’re not telling him. This sparks flashbacks that fill out the rest — structured acutely for the pay-off reveal that Ted and Robin have split (and been split for weeks). Obviously, this is a big rom-com development that we expect to occur at major pivot points in a sitcom season. But it’s simultaneously minimized and accentuated by its placement within this unique narrative format that, as we’ve consistently seen in Season Two, is used by the series to reinforce its high-concept premise, evidencing the ultimate benefit of having an unreliable narrator who can provide details of his choosing when or where he sees fit. Accordingly, this is a most sublime example of How I Met Your Mother, taking a clichéd, traditional sitcom happening — the breakup of its central couple — and keeping it exceedingly fresh through the help of its precise situation, and specifically, the high concept that encourages this complicated but exciting storytelling. Oh, yes, the series will continue to more aggressively play with how it tells its stories in the years to come, and some of those stories will actually become more directly relevant to Ted’s mother pursuit (now that Ted/Robin have separated), but never again is all of this as novel or interesting as here, when this gimmicky-yet-clever modus operandi feels more self-reflective than dramatically contrived.

 

Other notable episodes that merit mention include: “Bachelor Party,” a laugh-filled and fairly typical “singles in the city” entry with funny ideas at both Marshall and Lily’s respective bachelor(ette) parties. I’ll also take this space to cite “Monday Night Football,” which has an amusing throughline of the regulars each trying not to get spoiled about the results of the previous night’s Super Bowl, “Arrivederci, Fiero,” which has an appealing flashback-heavy structure as the group recalls specific memories related to Marshall’s old car, and “Moving Day,” a decent relationship-based rom-com outing that would probably be more effective it didn’t look like schmuck bait, teasing a change in the status quo that’s rescinded before half hour’s end. Lastly, I’ll just note that “How Lily Stole Christmas” and “First Time In New York” both have fun gags that stem from the way Future Ted chooses to tell the story — a nice reflection of this series’ situation in otherwise more ordinary offerings.

 

*** The MVE Award for the Best Episode from Season Two of How I Met Your Mother goes to…

“Slap Bet”

 

 

Come back next week for Season Three! And stay tuned tomorrow for a new Wildcard!