Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Marshall tries to make Lily jealous

Jenkins
How I Met Your Mother, Episode 13

Lily and Marshall's relationship has always been strong. Even when they broke off their engagement in Season 1, Lily moved to and back from San Francisco, and Marshall dated the coffee-shop girl in Season 2, I could never, ever see Lily or Marshall with anyone else. As quirky characters, Lilypad and Marshall work. But their relationship got tested in Episode 13, Jenkins, when Marshall befriends a female co-worker.

(Sorry for the delay in posting; I wasn't able to watch earlier this week due to house/dog/cat-sitting... and no access to CBS).

But, I didn't buy the impetus for the storyline. Just last week when a new hot bartender showed up at McLaren's, Marshall proved to Lily that she was absolutely the only one for him. So, why did Marshall expect Lily to get jealous when he learns that all of Marshall's stories about a new co-worker - in which he never uses he/she pronouns - are about a female named Jenkins?

With Lily's lack of response, Marshall becomes determined to make her jealous, to the point that Lily didn't buy it when Marshall (truthfully) tells her that Jenkins kissed him - WITH tongue! Lily's reaction, I could buy, considering how much she trusts Marshall and how strong their relationship is, but the whole storyline ended up 'meh' for me.

That's not to say that this episode wasn't a total waste. With Lily and Marshall's plot, we gained some new relationship phrases (without the help of Barney, thank you very much). In every relationship, Robin and Ted explain, there's a Reacher and a Settler. As the names imply, the Settler is someone who could do better, while the Reacher won't get any better than who they've landed. Who's who in the pairing of Marshmellow and Lilypad? After a heated debate - with Marshall's screaming turning into a request for split-pea soup - Lily finally concedes that IF they were really to fit this theory, then she'd be the Settler.

While the Marshall/Lily Plot A storyline was lackluster, Plot B provided some laughs. Robin gets a tad-bit full of herself when she learns that Ted's class enjoys watching her crack of dawn show. But why do they tune in? The 'But, um...' drinking game all the college kids play. Every time she says 'but, um' during an interview, everyone takes a shot. Could it be? Does Robin, the woman who aspires to be on national TV, really say 'but, um' THAT often?

Apparently, she does. When Ted and Barney put it to the test, they end up finishing an entire bottle of Grey Goose. Not to mention, Ted's tie ends up around his head.

What did you think of the episode and NPH's directorial debut? Did it bother you that Barney barely had a storyline? (Unless you count him continually making jokes about attempting to sleep with Jenkins. Apparently, that's what Barney has been relegated back to... nothing more than a womanizing player. So much for character development for him).

What'd you think of Robin's lack of professionalism with the 'but, um's and running away an interviewee just to get back at the college kids? And, how much did you love Lily punching out Jenkins at the end? Because I totally did. Share your thoughts below!

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