Episode 9 - The Naked Man
13 January 2009
Review
Synopsis: Ted comes home to find a naked man in his apartment. His name is Mitch and this is his move when he is on a date which isn’t going well. It works and he sleeps with Robin. Barney is impressed and decides to try it. Marshall is appalled and calls Robin a slut, claiming love is the only reason to have sex. Meanwhile Ted decides to join Barney in trying the naked man but they have very different experiences.
The Good: With its focus on the theory and practise of dating, How I Met Your Mother does occasionally come up with really clever or interesting concepts and ideas. This is one of them. The “Naked Man” is an idea just plausible enough that it will provoke great interest, amusement and thought amongst its target (youthful) demographic. The strongest part of the idea is the way it stirs the imagination about what is possible and how you would react in that situation, either as the stripped or the surprised. The writers also put in place certain factors which make it that bit more believable that it could succeed. Robin has never claimed to be chaste and in her unemployed and not-in-her-own-home state, one can accept that she might have had sex. Similarly Ted’s date Vicky references a former hook-up to add plausibility that she might sleep with Ted on the first date. Finally the writers cover the expected response when Barney suffers the indignity of being yelled at and thrown out.
The “Naked Man” story also brings a singular focus to the episode and manages to feed into the ongoing stories nicely. Lily is able to reflect on the limitations of sleeping with only one guy, Barney is able to talk about his feelings for Robin and Ted begins to move on from Stella. Marshall’s character is well presented when he calls Robin a slut. It’s a pretty harsh accusation but he explains his feelings well and it makes sense for someone who has been with the same girl since college to adopt that attitude.
Yet another reference to the goat (see 317 for example) helps build anticipation for that episode.
The Bad: Just the usual list of complaints:
There is no way Ted would tell his kids that story. Nor would they want to hear it.
The huge exaggerations aren’t funny they just undermine the reality being presented: this week we have Robin in a face-off with guns and two burglars and Barney supposedly having held his breath for eight minutes under water. Add to that Marshall calling Robin a slut under his breath. That was a step too far and made him look pretty rude.
The writing lacks much subtlety as well as realism. Mitch says to Ted “I’m not smart, funny or handsome.” Later he tells Robin “I’m broke, I sweat when I eat” and so on. People who genuinely feel they have nothing to offer don’t lay it on the line in such a self-assured manner. You know insecure people and they don’t talk like this. Yes it is shorthand because this is a television show. Yes the writers don’t want to waste time on Mitch making him seem more real but this is so on-the-nose that when you think about it, it seems incredibly fake. That is a problem when the idea of the “Naked Man” works because you can actually imagine it working.
I’m not sure the 50 reasons to have sex is an argument against Marshall’s claim of love. After all you could chose to have sex for any number of reasons but only with someone you love. That’s a minor quibble. As usual the writers try to squeeze humour out of lists, not just the sex reasons but then Ted and Barney discussing poses. Because in real life people barely ever make lists like that the jokes just fall flat. They don’t sound like things the characters would say, they sound like the writers trying to get their stand-up comedy material onto prime time television.
Comic Highlight: The gang rushes upstairs either to witness Robin throwing Mitch out or for fear that she might shoot him. They see the signal that she is having sex because she has placed “Mr Wang’s” takeout menu on the door handle. The gang are shocked to see that the “Naked Man” worked on Robin while Marshall exclaims “Mr Wang’s is back in business!?”
How I rate your episode: A clever concept and a tight focus bring a positive result. No break through here but a nice reminder of the capability of the show for thought provoking ideas.
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