‘How I Met Your Mother’ season 8, episode 20 review: Jayma Mays and time travelers

From one standpoint, Monday night’s new episode of “How I Met Your Mother” season 8 was not altogether memorable. Almost the entirety of it took place at MacLaren’s, and there was really nothing in it that we really see as playing a major role in the story as a whole. As a matter of fact, it really felt like some of the characters just decided to get up and dance when there was little else to do.

Of course, this “one standpoint” would be from people who tuned the episode out about a two-thirds of the way through. What started as a pretty pedestrian episode ended up being quite beautiful, and it was all thanks to a stellar fake-out that was the best we’ve seen since the “Scrubs” episode featuring Brendan Fraser’s character dying. As it turns out, Ted was never with his friends at the bar that night, debating with them as to whether or not he was going to attend Robots vs. Wrestlers or date the coat check girl (Jayma Mays) or listen to Robin and Marshall fight over a drink that was named by one of them.

Instead, the twist was that Ted was alone that night, dreaming of what was … and how he had nothing to look forward to. It was a pretty sad ending, but Josh Radnor killed with sincerity when he imagined himself knocking on the Mother’s door, and explaining how he wanted those extra 45 days with her until they ended up actually being together. We did learn a few things about her in the process: she is studying economics, she was dating a man named Louis before Ted, and she lived pretty close to Ted.

On a different note, apparently Marshall and Lily’s kid grows up to be 6’7” tall. Who saw that coming?

What did you think about this episode as a whole? Be sure to share some more of your thoughts below, and you can read some more early scoop about the season finale over at the link here.

Photo: CBS