How I Met Your Mother Review: “How Your Mother Met Me” (Season 9, Episode 16)

Perhaps the reason this episode is such a success is because it recalls the earlier days of the show when everything felt so fresh. It’s reminiscent of when everything a character did felt more like a new trait to learn, rather a deviation from a personality that has already been established. It’s something new where we finally get to see what made a character who she is. We’ve still only seen the character on screen for a couple hours and so much of what the Mother has become should be credited to Milioti.

Her entire performance tonight is stunning, but it almost seems pointless to talk about anything other than the scene where she’s proposed to. Any time anyone leaves during a proposal, things are usually going to get fairly serious, but I had no idea just how hard the Mother’s time to think was going to hit me. It’s even more remarkable when you realize that her sadness is over a character whose voice we’ve never even heard. That’s right, not only do we not see Max, but we don’t even hear him. The only thing we know about him is that he bought her great birthday presents and she thought he was the one. And yet somehow that’s enough. Well, that and Milioti’s tear-lined monologue to the sky. It’s written perfectly, and she somehow finds a way to deliver it in a way that’s even better. Absolutely phenomenal.

I don’t feel uncomfortable at all calling “How Your Mother Met Me” one of the best episodes of How I Met Your Mother. This episode’s strength gives me hope that the actual meeting will live up to a level worthy of nine years of hype. If the creators were able to come up with something this great for the 200th episode, I have little doubt that the final big moment is going to surpass what we saw tonight. I don’t know how they’re going to do it, but I’m definitely excited to see.

Other Random Notes

• St. Patrick’s Day: The holiday of my people… Binge drinkers.
• The naked man always gives you exactly what you need. In this instance, it was well-timed advice. I think we could all use a little naked man in our lives.
• “He would’ve run screaming once he saw my calligraphy set, my coin collection, my chain-mail corset from the Renaissance fair.”
• “Last time I was here I think this bar was called Puzzles.”
• I feel like there’s some strong potential for a series of breakfast foods in a musical. We’ll call it Bagelweiss.
• Is that the record for the number of proposals that haven’t panned out in one show? By my count that’s the sixth.