I was challenged to bring more to these posts then just complaining about how horrible the show has become, so instead of just pointing out how trite and cliche having a story line about missing your child's first moments while someone else gets to experience them is, I'm going to try to go a little deeper. I'll probably fail, but at least I'm going to try... right?
One of the biggest problems the writers of HIMYM have written themselves into is the fact most of the characters in the show have become so unlikable. The style of comedy that the show has based itself on, or at least accomplished so well at one point, one where the emotion of the show is as important as the comedy, requires us to like and sympathize with the characters. Once that sympathy is gone, all the power behind the punch is gone and you are left with a shell of the what the show once was. If I don't care for a character or don't sympathize with what they are going through, the joke or the emotional moment gets lost. This has become the biggest problem with every episode that revolves around Robin and Barney. Both are such horrible people that we have very little emotional involvement with them. What made them compelling as a couple is that they were so perfect for each other because they we so awful towards everyone else. Do I feel sorry when one of them has there heart broken? No, because there is such a deep history of them not carrying about how they treat others I could care less about the feeling being returned. I know I'm supposed to feel bad when Robin shows up at Barney's apartment dressed in nothing but a tight negligee and gets rejected, but she was such a horrible person who had such horrible motivations for her actions all episode long that I felt nothing.
There's a long line of likable horrible people in comedy. Seinfeld was a show based on a series of characters that were all horrible people and many consider it the best sitcom ever made. When HIMYM was at it's absolute best Barney was a horrible person that everyone tuned in to watch. But what makes these examples different then where HIMYM is now, is that nobody every rooted for George to get the girl. We fell off the couch laughing when he did something horrible and it came back to burn him, but we were never asked to feel sorry for him. Barney has mistreated women for eight seasons, Robin has been nothing short of horrible, yet we are suddenly supposed to feel sorry for them getting a little bit back. It just doesn't work or ring true.
That's not to say that the characters aren't allowed to grow. There can be repentance for bad behavior, there can be redemption, and if that is where the show is going with these characters, then maybe I'm judging to early, but I can't help but feel that all these moments of late are unearned. Barney has showed more signs of reform then Robin, but neither has reached a point where I'm able to feel sorry for them. It also doesn't help that we know where the story is going, that they are going to get to the point where they are prepared to get married. I mean, knowing that, how can the story line that has Barney on a date with the weird fat girl end well? Where are they going to take that story that helps redeem Barney's behavior?
To end on a somewhat positive note, I did get a couple a laughs out of this episode. Lilly's play off her familiar "son of a beech" catch phrase, "son of me" got a chuckle. And the first Santa visit revenge Lilly and Marshal got on Ted at the end of the episode may have been the best joke we've seen from the show in a season or two. It was an original take on the cliche story line we had to watch for 20 minutes.
15 more pain sessions left!
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