“This was fate, I needed to see you one more time.” – Victoria
“The Ducky Tie” is an example of How I Met Your Mother simultaneously is at its comedic best and its sappy, romantic worst.
It’s really an interesting contrast. How I Met Your Mother has, over time, sort of become two shows at once. The first show (the one that I really like) is a light, fun sitcom about a group of friends hanging out, breaking balls, and shooting the shit. The other show (the one I can hardly stand) is a love story with a barely palatable drip (Ted) at its center. The contrast between these two “shows within a show” was so stark in “The Ducky Tie” that it seemed almost as if it was intentional.
“The Ducky Tie” gets its name from a hideously ugly piece of neckwear. Marshall (Jason Segel) wears the tie out to dinner with gang at Shinjitsu, a “hibachi grill with a vaudeville twist”. At dinner, the conversation oscillates between two topics: Lily’s (Alyson Hannigan) voluptuous new “pregnancy boobs” and Ted’s (Josh Radnor) run-in with his ex, Victoria (Ashley Williams).
Here’s what you need to know about Victoria: She and Ted broke up because he cheated on her with Robin (Cobie Smulders). They bump into each other at some kind of gala event which Ted is attending with Robin. Things get awkward when Victoria points out how weird it is that Robin, Ted and Barney all hang out together despite the way their relationships ended. Ted thinks it fate that he ran into Victoria, but has his hopes dashed when he finds out she is going to get married to some German guy named Klaus. Before the two say their final goodbyes, Ted gets in a couple of truly barfworthy lines. For example: “I’m happy if you’re happy. But dammit, what if?” Yeeeccchhh. The take away from Ted’s whole experience with Victoria is the realization that it isn’t normal to remain friends with your ex-girlfriend.
That was the lame half of the episode. The good — really good, even — half of the episode revolves around a bet between Barney (Neil Patrick Harris), Marshall and Lily. During dinner at Shinjitsu, Barney can’t hold back his contempt for the table-side chef’s grilling shtick. He bets Marshall that he can replicate all of the goofy hibachi maneuvers. If he can, he gets to squeeze Lily’s pregnancy boobs. If he fails, he must wear Marshall’s ducky tie for an entire year.
Eventually, it becomes clear that Barney has been hustling Lily and Marshall, he’s been setting them up for the long con. He’s a master of the grill and completes all of the standard moves with ease; the only one left is the old shrimp in the pocket trick. Desperate to spare her breasts the indignity of Barney’s fingers, Lily pulls out a desperate distraction. As Barney flips the shrimp into the air, she flashes him and causes him to miss his pocket.
But in the end, everyone’s a winner. Barney finally gets a glimpse of Lily’s rack and Marshall has the pleasure of watching his friend sport a hideous tie for 365 days in a row.
Some stats and info about How I Met Your Mother, “The Ducky Tie”
TV SHOW – How I Met Your Mother
SEASON/EPISODE – Season 7, Episode 3
AIRED ON – September 26th, 2011
NETWORK/STREAMING SERVICE – CBS
GENRE – Comedy, Relationship Shows
CREATED BY – Charter Bays, Craig Thomas
CAST – Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan, Cristin Milioti
This review originally appeared on TV Geek Army.