1. A different type of episode…In celebration of their 200th episode (or because they’re running out of ideas), the creators of HIMYM decided to do things a little differently this week. The episode flashes to many different years, from 2005 to the present, telling the past eight seasons from the point of view of The Mother. They’ve even changed the title sequence to pictures of the mother’s life (including some of now–lesbian roommate Cindy).
2. The Naked Man strikes again…Turns out, the Naked Man was The Mother’s instructor at orchestra camp (can this man get any creepier). He tries his signature move on The Mother, but she has some self–respect, so he fails. The statistics don’t lie—it really does work two out of every three times.
3. The Mother has a sad backstory…Although most of this episode is stuff we have already seen but are now seeing in a new way, there is one major thing that we learn. The Mother, on her 21st birthday (which happened to be the same day as the first episode ever), lost her boyfriend, Max, who was the love of her life. She is heartbroken and firmly believes that everyone only gets one true love in life, and Max was hers. She doesn’t date much, except for Lewis, her boyfriend at the time when she heads to the Farhampton Inn. He proposes, and in one of the most emotional scenes in HIMYM history, she asks Max for permission. In the end, she turns him down. Luckily, we know she’s about to meet Ted, so everything will be right in her world soon enough.
4. But she sings…She moves into the Farhampton Inn and sits on her balcony singing a beautiful rendition of “La Vie En Rose.” This was a sneaky way for the producers to incorporate Cristin Milioti’s Tony–nominated musical talents. Ted is listening from the next room over and the moment is sweet.
5. Congratulations to anyone who has been paying attention…The best part about this episode is that it rewards the viewers who have been dedicated to this show for all nine seasons—and who have really been paying attention. The yellow umbrella, Cindy’s apartment, Ted’s first day as a professor, the crazy Saint Patty’s Day party—all of it was in this episode, and for the first time this season, things actually made sense and fit together in the clever way that had us all fall in love with HIMYM in the first place. We’ve come a long way since the rhyming episode.Check out our other HIMYM recaps!
"Unpause" (Aired on 01.20.2014)
