How I Met Your Mother - Recap: The Parent Trap

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So Barney gets Robin (Cobie Smulders) an autographed photo of her hero, Wayne Gretzky, and gives it to Ted for safekeeping. But when Ted comes out of the shower, he finds that his inkwell has spilled all over the photo, effectively ruining the prized possession. Not content to write it off as an accident, Ted becomes Detective Mosby, launching into a Poirot-style investigation into who could possibly have had motive to ruin the photo. Meanwhile, Barney launches a hare-brained scheme to reunite his mother, Loretta (Frances Conroy), with his biological father, Jerry (John Lithgow), by stranding them together in an elevator. Of course, complications arrive with the presence of James (Wayne Brady) and his father, who ends up hooking up with Loretta, to Barney's extreme consternation.

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Both these storylines are fairly straightforward, but what makes them worthwhile are the extended comedic bits thrown in the middle. For the Barney/James storyline, there's a musical sequence which reimagines the brotherly rivalry and the "Parent Trap"-type scenario as an episode of "Leave It to Beaver," complete with black-and-white filter and hokey outfits. It's a wonderfully absurd bit to drop into the middle of the episode, as is Barney's attempts at getting Jerry and Loretta together: he traps them in the elevator then lowers down a catered dinner with wine and champagne, and an iPod playing a soul version of "Bang Bang Bangity Bang". As much as it is about Barney's zany scheme, this storyline is more about his desperation to reclaim some semblance of the boyhood he lost by not having two parents in his life, failing to realize that this isn't something he actually needs in his life right now, and even if it were, it's not like he doesn't have both his mom and his dad in his life. It's a poignant bit of business, particularly once Barney resigns himself to James's father and Loretta getting together, showing that he's maturing with each passing day, if begrudgingly so. It's as touching as it is funny.

Equally funny is Ted's investigation into the Gretzky photo sabotage, as his list of suspects includes Robin's shifty cousin, Lily, and Karate Kid star William Zabka. His attempts at playing detective are amusing in and of themselves, but it's elevated to a completely different level once it becomes clear that this was an act of "ZABKA-TAGE" (a realization that is soundtracked to "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys, in one of the best musical cues in ages -- it even comes complete with a title graphic for "Zabka-tage"). As Zabka explains, he saw an opportunity to change his life around once Ted was entrusted with the Gretzky photo. Due to his typecasting as a villain in the 80s and early 90s, Zabka was seen as a genuinely bad guy by audiences across America -- all of whom would toss popcorn his way and harass him any time he went into public. Even his own mother boos him when he calls to tell her the good news that Barney had temporarily made him the best man (once she learns this, she enthusiastically tells him he can "come to Thanksgiving dinner this year"). Zabka felt that by becoming a hero in Barney's eyes, he could finally find some measure of peace and escape from being constantly seen as a bad guy. Ted takes pity on the actor and decides to take the fall for ruining the picture, and even gives Zabka credit for finding a replacement photo for Robin. It's a sweet, if silly, little storyline that makes the episode much better for what it is.

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Lastly, there's the story in which Marshall (Jason Segel) learns why Daphne (Sherri Shepherd) is so salty all the time. Her daughter apparently hates her for failing to make it to her extracurricular activities, in this case a model UN debate. Daphne explains that children tend to sanctify the parent who actually shows up. It's why the daughter's father is her hero, and not Daphne. Daphne realizes she'll be late to the UN debate on time, and gets a stern talking-to from her daughter, who just tells her not to come. But Marshall shows empathy for Daphne, and decides to race her to the meeting so she can make it in time to see her daughter give her speech. It's a rote storyline, but it's kind of beautiful in that simplicity. Jason Segel and Sherri Shepherd haven't been given a lot to do this season so far, but what little they've been given has been well-done on their end. I was genuinely surprised by how effective their storyline was, even though it wasn't terribly funny (although I can't imagine anything they could have done would have matched the other two storylines this week for sheer comedic value). It's to the point where I wouldn't mind these two actually getting more to do in the coming weeks.

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"Mom and Dad" is an episode that relies more on comedy than its serialized storytelling, but I loved it all the same. How I Met Your Mother continues to have a surprisingly winning final season, which I wouldn't have expected, given the "wedding weekend" conceit of the season's narrative. I'm glad to be proven wrong.