I don’t know about you, PopWatchers, but when I tuned into How I Met Your Mother’s 100th episode last night, I expected to get a little song and dance — loved the big “Nothing Suits Me Like a Suit” production number at the end (see video below), especially when Barney told Lily to get her head out of her ass — and a lot of Rachel Bilson adorability. In fact, as the episode got underway, I found myself thinking what a great casting choice she was for Cindy, Ted’s PhD-candidate crush: After cycling through (and rejecting) Ashley Williams, Sarah Chalke, and Cobie Smulders, the HIMYM casting department has got to be scrambling to find someone sufficiently charming to play the inevitable Mom, and O.C. survivor Bilson would have totally done it for me.
As we’ve since learned (SPOILER ALERT, for those concerned that HIMYM might have blown their ending at a random point midway through the fifth season), Bilson is not the mother — but she’s closer than we’ve ever been. In fact, this was, to me, the most jarring episode of any TV show all year! Here we are, wandering innocently along on this journey to find Your Mother, being given a clue here, a clue there…and then suddenly out of nowhere and with no warning they show us her FOOT?
Yes, thanks to last night’s episode, we now know that Ted’s eventual wife is Cindy’s roommate, is taking Econ 305 (the class Ted mistakenly tried to teach on his first day at Columbia), owns a little yellow school bus toy, plays bass in a band, reads TC Boyle, likes the Unicorns, and that all men fall in love with her instead of Cindy. (Poor Cindy.) Also, we saw her FOOT. This was something akin to giving a starving man eyedroppers of sugar water for five years, and then hitting him in the face with a pie. Happily, I like pie.
What did you think about last night’s episode, PopWatchers? Did they sorta bury the lede by focusing so much on the dancing in suits? Or was that just crafty misdirection? And now that we’ve crossed Bilson off the list of potential Moms, who’s left in your fantasy casting pool?
Since the kids are like 14 when Ted is telling the story, doesn’t it mean he doesn’t marry the mother for like another 10 years?
not necessarily- Not everyone has kids right away after getting married.
Sorry to use this, but does anyone remember the St Patricks Day episode where he runs into someone random – and that’s where he found the umbrella. Does anyone still think it’s that RANDOM girl???
Really good episode btw.
I absolutely thought that the first time I saw the episode! There’s no other reason that would have happened. There’s no doubt in my mind it is that girl. I tried to look her up on imdb, because she looked familiar and they wouldn’t pick a real actress to play a random extra like that.
She’s DEFINITELY the mom.
You forgot that we know the mother paints pictures of robots playing sports. Ted’s favorite, I believe, was mentioned to be the volleyball one….
Loved the musical number, and I think after 5 seasons, we deserved to get a glimpse of the mother, even if it was a random appendage.
We also know the mother makes her breakfast foods sign show tunes. Ted particularly loved the English muffin’s performance of Memory.
umm he’s talking to the kids in 2030- if they’re 14, then they were born in 2016…it’s 2010…that’s six years away.
and they don’t have to have the kids immediately after they get married..
Actually, I think his daughter is supposed to be a little older than that — fifteen or sixteen, at least — so they’re kinda running out of time.
During the episode when they talk about how everyone used to be a smoker, Ted says that he has his last cigarette the day his son is born, and if I remember correctly he gives the birth date. I don’t remember what the date was, but I do remember it being that episode.
actually in the smoking ep it syas that marshall stopped smokin the day his son was born and ted stopped three weeks into meetin the mother
that episode was awesme
Amy- Marshall has his last cigarette after his son is born. Ted quits a few weeks after meeting The Mother. But has anyone else noticed they keep shifting the future date? Now it’s 2030, but I’m sure before it was 2029, or 2028. Does anyone know what it was when the show started?
its always been 2030
“Your mother’s rendition of ‘Memory,’ as performed by an English muffin is, to this day, the most hauntingly beautiful thing I have ever heard.”
Laughed so hard.
I don’t think we can go by how old the kids are. I mean, look at Marshall and Lily…they’ve been in a relationship without kids for about 14 years now. It’s HIMYM, not How You Were Conceived.
How You Were Conceived would have to air on pay cable, I think.
@AAR Pilot episode says 2030.
I think I used to love this show, and this season has sucked out all of my enthusiasm for it. TiVO Pass OFF!
Well, it’s your loss. This season has had some of the best episodes of the show. This episode is one of the best, if not the best. I’m surprised no one is mentioning the excellent female bartender story.
Are you kidding? Some of the best? There isn’t a single episode from this season that sticks out in my mind. Ok you like it that’s cool but the BEST episodes of the show?? I almost fell on the floor…
The episode with Robin’s duel citizenship sticks out for me. I love when Barney had to go pick her up in Toronto and then he gets his @ss kicked at Tim Hortons.
Hello! The Playbook anyone?!! That episode was classic!
The suit musical number was fun. But it was WAY out of character for Barney. At one point, he was frolicking. Barney Stinson does not frolic.
But this was his imagination in which, perhaps, he is free to frolic.
Yeh, I know. I just have a hard time believing Barney Stinson imagines in Broadway.
It was an image of his love affair with suits, I’m pretty sure if he were to frollick it would be in tribute to his suits. It was in character.
I dont even watch this show but that was pretty dope! NPH is like a fine wine that is just getting better and better
He’s on my get-out-of-jail-free list.
btw crisp- i have officially added HIMYM on my netflix regardless my utter hatred for anything CBS or laugh-track related
Speaking of the laugh-track…I never even really noticed the laugh track until a few days ago I threw in an old HIMYM season 2 DVD to fall asleep too and that darned laugh track kept jolting me awake. Blech.
It’s not a laugh track…it’s a real audience…they just pump it a bit too loud.
I know this because I actually worked as part of the audience to be recorded for the show. Ended up really liking it as a result. Go fig!
that one time he discovered he wasn’t a father he definitely was doing some fancy frolicking down the street on “Not A Father’s Day.” anything to get to hear NPH sing, I love.
I can see Barney frolic. I really can. He has his moments. In Arriverderci Fierro when he was “driving” and the car ran into that bush he was all but the Barney Stinson we know and love, shrieking in fear as a two foot tall bush attacked the fierro.
He frolics in “Not a Father’s Day.” No music, but definite frolicing down the street.
He did get surprisingly mushy over Robin (at least when he was initially crushing on her) so I would think that his love for suits could definitely be cause some frolicing.
I don’t know… I think if anything could make Barney frolic, it would be his love of suits.
I was so excited for this episode and it was fantastic but it also frustrated me because I am so ready to find out who the Mother is (as long as the show doesn’t end).
How about Mila Kunis as the mother? She’s pretty universally liked, right? And she has a little bit of an edge to her, which I think the mother needs.
Los Angeles ruined it. Carrie Underwood plays his love interest in March and made her debut on the 100th episode with her first ever Foot Shot.
Ugh. Couldn’t they find, you know, an actress??
Don’t you think it would hve been a bit stupid for them to go ahead and just hire an actress for a foot shot? she was probably already there and they used her . . . can’t see her having the time to be in a sitcom! Are you going to be able to tell the difference between her foot and someone different?
“the HIMYM casting department has got to be scrambling to find someone sufficiently charming to play the inevitable Mom”
Why must we assume that the mother is a dream??? Ted is a buffoon, devoid of self-awareness, and completely unbearable to listen to for more than minutes at a time. (Older Ted is no better: who tells their children about the time I had a 3-some?) His wife would have to have several material defects (emotional and physical) in order to be his perfect match.
yes, but the fans will not accept anyone less than a) Sarah Chalke, b) Rachel Bilson, c) Cobie Smulders, etc…
Sarah Chalke is gross.
FLGrl, YOU’RE gross!
you hate Ted, really?
(major disappointment)
…that’s kinda weird. I really can’t think of a TV show I watch where I hate the protagonist. eh.
MSPC has a point. “Perfect” is different from “Perfect for Ted.” Now, I don’t exactly hate Ted, but he actually is my least favorite character.
I think Ted is totally annoying too. Least favorite character
LOVED the musical number — kudos to Allyson Hannigan for her role in TWO musical episodes of non-musical shows. Glad we haven’t “met” the mom yet, keep it up HIMYM!
Especially since she can’t carry a tune! (Oh well, what can you do?)
I vote Amy Adams for the mother – if they can get her to do TV…
I don’t understand the obsession with Amy Adams, meh. I, for one, would be very disappointed if she were to be the mother…
You’re pretty thick if u can’t recognize her talent. Who would u recommend exactly?
I actually agree with you lefty. I’m not a huge AA fan either. Which is different that saying she has no talent. You don’t have to like everyone!!
Amy Adams would be PERFECT!!! She already worked with Alysson on Buffy (in the 5th season I think).
Omg, yes!
She was great on “The Office,” and she’d be a great mother.
This was one of the best episodes this season ! The musical number was just amazing. I first thought Ted would fall in love with the mother while having an actual relationship with Cindy. But I guess the screenwriters wouldn’t do that because it could make the mother an unpleasant character for wrecking Ted & Cindy’s relationship (but that’s definitely what I would have written). Anyway, we finally saw the mother – and no matter if it’s just a foot.