Episode 21 - Twin Beds
4 May 2010
Review
Synopsis: Robin considers moving in with Don and Barney suddenly wants her back. Ted tries to convince Barney not to try and ends up drunkenly missing her too. Don is uncomfortable with Robin spending so much time with her ex-boyfriends and so Robin says goodbye to the group for a while and moves in with him. Lily and Marshall try separate beds and love them so much that they keep them.
The Good: I liked both these stories. Almost everyone can relate to the discomfort of sharing a bed and so the twin beds idea played out like a nice traditional B plot. You knew Lily and Marshall would go back to normal by episodes end but they had a little fun exploring the idea.
Where as Robin actually made a believable and sensible decision. It would be extremely weird for Don to learn that Robin had been with Barney and Ted and they all still hung out together. Equally plausibly both of them might miss Robin once she suddenly looked like leaving their lives permanently. Their immature drunken reaction to this situation would in reality have made Don even more uncomfortable. So Robin did what made sense, she moved in with Don and cut herself off from the group for a while.
The closeness of the group of friends is one of those things you have to take for granted as a viewer. But by writing Don's reaction to that situation in an authentic way it actually made his relationship with Robin seem more real. No mean feat considering this is the first time we have ever seen them as an actual couple. The writing cleverly made Ted and Barney look very childish in order to contrast Don as the adult.
The Bad: The attempts at humour never got going. Barney was unreasonably exaggerated at times. His attempts to look tough by eating spicy food lacked any subtlety. Marshall was too rude to Lily several times which makes little sense considering how he usually dotes on her.
I suppose Ted gave in a little too easily to the memory of Robin. I'm glad they had him get drunk to cover for the fact that by now he is over her and has seen her date loads of other men. It was a disadvantage to have Don's first appearance as Robin's boyfriend be the episode where they moved in together. We don't really know him yet and so this lost some impact as a result.
Comic Highlight: Don asks Ted "Do you think it's weird that Robin is still friends with Barney?" To which Ted replies "I think it's weird that we're all still friends with Barney."
How I rate your episode: When the show does straight plots straight they can do them well. This wasn't great but it felt believable, Robin has grown up and wants a grown up relationship. I doubt she will be away from the group for long but I thought it was nice to address an obvious issue with her choice of friends.
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