How I Met Your Mother - Recap: Let Her Go
Recap and review of How I Met Your Mother - Season 9 Episode 19 - Vesuvius:
So The Mother is dead then, no? I'm not sure how else to interpret "Vesuvius," an episode that is fairly routine until those final few minutes, in which How I Met Your Mother suggests that the nine-season journey for Ted (Josh Radnor) that culminates in finally meeting The Mother (Cristin Milioti) and having his happy ending will end, instead, in heartbreak. Granted, we can't know for sure until we have more evidence, but it's hard to interpret Ted tearing up upon hearing The Mother's rhetorical question about what kind of mother would miss her own daughter's wedding any other way but to assume she's got some kind of terminal illness. And it's not just that either, but the fact that so much of the episode is centered around both Ted and The Mother having successfully made it to "old married couple" status in 2024, and recounting the fact that they already know one another's stories. Hell, even the theme of the episode seems to imply The Mother isn't long for this world, as it's stated that it's easier to simply enjoy one another's company when things get too intense or real.
Credit: CBS
If this turns out to be the case, then I suppose it makes sense why it's taken Future Ted (Bob Saget) so long to get to the end of his story: he doesn't want to get to the end, because it means saying goodbye to The Mother, an the stories are all he has left. Of course, this then begs the question of why he's just spent nine seasons recounting the extent to which he obsessed over Robin (Cobie Smulders), but not a whole lot Future Ted chooses to leave in makes sense. "Vesuvius" is more interesting for its ending than for anything else that comes before, although it's certainly humorous in its scripting. But this is more about how The Mother doesn't want Ted to become a man who's lost in his stories, frozen in place like the victims of Mount Vesuvius. And in this sense, it's a far more poignant half-hour than most.
Credit: CBS
The episode itself deals with an old story in which Ted, back at the Farhampton Inn with The Mother in 2024, recounts the one story she doesn't actually know (well, at least until she recalls knowing it): the day of Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) and Robin's wedding, in which Robin gets into a fight with Lily (Alyson Hannigan) and Barney wrestles with his indecision over which suit to wear to the wedding. There are some solid laughs here, such as Barney renting out an entire room in the Inn for his suits under the name Susan Topp ("Su Topp," i.e., "Suit Up"). There's also a welcome appearance from Lucy Hale as Robin's sister Katie, who hasn't been seen on the show in over half a decade. The crux of the story is that Lily is annoyed that Robin isn't taking her wedding day seriously, choosing instead to get drunk and watch The Wedding Bride Too (starring Chris Kattan as Ted and Jon Heder as Marshall/Narshall). She's upset because this is the last time they're likely to get to hang out together as a group before everything changes, and it's a sobering realization that Robin recognizes as we reach the conclusion. And she reaches this moment just as her mother (Tracey Ullman) makes a surprise appearance at Farhampton.
Credit: CBS
Of course, Robin isn't the only one getting over cold feet. Barney is initially reticent to pick a suit for the wedding, a comment on his hesitation about his pending nuptials. His doubts are conveyed by his appearance in the mirror while wearing the special suit made for him by Tim Gunn: it looks ludicrously oversized on him. However, once Ted gives him a pep talk about all the great moments at his wedding, such as the first dance, the suit suddenly fits him in the mirror. It's a wonderful moment in a terrific episode for Josh Radnor, not just in terms of communicating Ted's inherent warmth, but also in terms of illustrating his pathos. I honestly don't know that Radnor has had a better moment in this entire series than when he tears up on the spot at the end, upon hearing The Mother declare, "What kind of mother would miss her own daughter's wedding?" It's devastating stuff, in all honesty. Seriously, I can't really think right now, because I've spent the better part of the show's entire run not wanting to believe the theories that the reason Future Ted is telling this whole story is because The Mother is dead or dying in the future. It just seemed like such a dark place to take a sitcom, even one as frequently bittersweet as this. Again, we can't know for certain until the show tells us as much, but it's almost impossible to interpret this any other way. Hopefully it's just a matter of the Mother awaiting results from the doctor, and she'll somehow pull through all this. But the suspense may kill me before we find out. Hopefully, The Mother doesn't follow me to the grave. As for "Vesuvius," it's a touching episode that really sticks in the craw long after the credits, even if the weight of the final moments render the laughs suddenly forgettable. I suppose potential tragedy has a way of drowning out the lightheartedness.