‘How I Met Your Mother’ reaction: Tracey Ullman’s surprise cameo

Were you surprised about Monday night’s “How I Met Your Mother” episode? If you were, we certainly cannot blame you. “Vesuvius” was one of the crazier installments thanks to mostly one shocker at the very end: Seeing Tracey Ullman in a role that was never previously announced.

So how did the show pull off this reveal of the actress as Robin’s mother? We mentioned it in the review just how big of a surprise this moment was, and we feel like one of the big reasons for this was simply thanks to the sort of top-secret nature of many shows during their final seasons. Scripts are under more of a lock and key, and there has been such work put into the show that the last thing anyone wants to do is have it be completely ruined for longtime fans.

Ullman is of course a TV and comedy legend, and her show really can take some of the creation for the arrival of “The Simpsons” on TV. so in some ways, having her play Robin’s mom was both perfect for the show and completely unexpected. It still is not entirely clear just how much of this character we will see over the coming weeks, but hopefully there are going to be at least a few opportunities to get to know her better, and just what her relationship with Robin is like. Unfortunately, there’s not that much time left: The “How I Met Your Mother” series finale airs on CBS a little later this months.

What did you think about this casting, and are you shocked that CBS somehow managed to keep this casting under wraps for as long as they did? Share below! Also, sign up now if you’ve got an interest in some more news and updates from our CarterMatt Newsletter.

Photo: CBS