The past two episodes of How I Met Your Mother, Bad News and Last Word, were such a change of pace for the show they deserve comment. Of course there are spoilers ahead.
Obviously Bad News dealt with the events leading up to the death of Marshall’s father, and Last Words revolved around the funeral. Certainly heavy material for a sitcom. Which makes it dangerous ground to tread since the writers can’t rely on their usual joke a minute formulation.
Of the two I think Bad News was the better episode. It did an effective job at hiding the “punchline,” but if you did notice the numbers counting down through the episode — and I didn’t until very close to the end — you knew something was about to happen. And the understated, plaintive way Marshall reacted to the news was heart-breaking. It also featured the very well-done side story of Barney’s doppelgänger.
Last Words, on the other hand, started out clunky and did not feel nearly as complete. Both Barney an Ted’s plotline, and the jerk replacement priest felt badly out of place, and just vanished in the last act with no real payoff. That being said, the third act where Marshall did hear his father’s last words to him was handled with a deft touch. It was a showy acting scene that the cast made feel human, even if some points were telegraphed. I won’t lie it got a little dusty in my room during that scene. The other facet of the episode I enjoyed was that the strength of the group’s friendship was plainly on display. It’s a shame the show’s creative team did not have the time to properly excise elements they clearly did not think were working. If the nutshot and priest storylines could’ve been fully replaced Last Words would have been one of the best episodes in the show’s history.
I know some people online were upset at the show for choosing to “go serious.” I disagree with that criticism because How I Met Your Mother has never been a 100% silly show. They’ve had plenty of heavy episodes over the year, from Lily and Marshall’s break-up to Ted being left at the alter. They’ve handle anything as serious as the death of a father, but this is a show about twenty-somethings growing up, and this is one of the mileposts in a person’s life. All in all the writer’s of How I Met Your Mother took a tricky subject and handled it with aplomb. I’m looking forward to see where they go from here. Onwards to the Mother!