How I Met Your Mother Recap: Lucky Penny

Title: “Lucky Penny”
Original Airdate: February 12, 2007
GMMR Recapper: Jim Mosby

What a relief! HIMYM is back to the comedic genius that we’ve grown to know and love. I know it’s rather unjust to expect the entire season to live up to the Swarley Barney like goodness from “Slap Bet” earlier this season, or, even the Lemon Law rules of last season, but yea, I’ve been really worried as of late.

There were as many if not more good quality quotes this episode as “Slap Bet.” I hope that the number of viewers increase at least proportionally to “Slap Bet.” I cannot count the number of converts to HIMYM from that episode; I think this episode is destined to help HIMYM just as much.

Without further adieu, “Lucky Penny”:…

That’s it kids, sometimes the smallest and most insignificant thing will set in motion the wheels of destiny in a way we can never, ever comprehend. Ted and Robin make a mad dash for the gate to catch a flight to Chicago. Ted was on his way to Chicago to interview for his dream job. He was being head hunted by a firm to run their NYC office. They were running late because of one thing, or was it many things?

Robin: (Running) That guard was a little bit handsy.
Ted: (Running) That’s funny, she barely touched me.

As they arrived at the gate, the door had been shut and the ticket agent was not going to let them board. The agent called the pilot on the plane and was awaiting an answer on whether or not they would be allowed to board. Of course, the agent was giving them a tough time about not being there an hour before their flight.

Ted: I’m normally responsible, I just had to go to court this morning and get sentenced. Not that I’m a criminal or anything.
Robin: Yea, he just jumped a subway turnstile.
Ticket Agent: You seem to have a lot of problems with the rules of travel

As they were waiting for their answer, the flashbacks and the blame game began. Ted was upset at himself for jumping the turnstile. Robin told him, it’s not his fault; really, it was Swarley’s Barney’s fault.

A few months ago, Marshall broke his toe and could not run in the New York City Marathon as he had been training so hard to do.

Marshall: Yea, it sucks. All that work I put into it training to run the marathon was a total waste.
Barney: Please. Training for a marathon.
Marshall: What?
Barney: You don’t train for a marathon. You just run it.

***

Barney: I could run a marathon any time I wanted to.
Marshall: So, like tomorrow, you could roll out of bed and just run the New York City Marathon.
Barney: Absolutely.
Robin: Barney, we are talking about 42 kilometers.
Ted: Thanks Canada, I’ll take it from here. Barney that’s like 26 miles.

So of course, Swarley Barney has a gambling problem as we’ve learned the last few weeks, and, he takes Marshall’s $50 bet and agrees to run the next day using Marshall’s number.

The next morning, as the race begins, Barney is at the start/finish line and the rest of the gang is in front of Marshall’s computer watching Barney run with the computer tracking chip he has on with the marathon’s website. So far, so good. Barney was making great time and they were all amazed at his overall progress.

Marshall: Wow, he’s already passing the 2nd checkpoint.
Lily: Wow, this tracking thing is amazing. When we get married, you are getting one.

Still, though things looked as if Barney was doing so well, they assumed he was somehow cheating, so, the gang ventured down to part of the course to see if it was really him running. Sure enough, it was. (I loved Lily’s “Yea, you better run” comment as a racer stole her bottle of water)

Several hours later, Barney shows up at the apartment. The Barnacle finished the marathon! Marshall pays up, and informs Barney that he can ride the subway for free that day. That’s how Barney goes home, and, thus ensues the wacky chain of events that caused Ted to miss that flight.

As Barney went to get off of the subway at his stop, and his legs wouldn’t work. They were too exhausted from that 26 mile run. He fell flat on his face, and couldn’t get up. He’s stuck in his seat on the subway. He can’t move! (A typed out recap does no justice to The Barnacle on the subway, you have to see this!) As the subway filled up, pregnant women, old ladies, guys on crutches all start looking at him. Why can’t the guy wearing the NYC Marathon medal get up and let them have his seat? They clearly need it more!

Pregnant woman: Oh come on, you are not even going to give up your seat for him (as she points to a kid on crutches).
Barney: (Looking very embarrassed) Sorry, I can’t.
Little old lady: Douche! (Then she hobbles away looking very disgusted)

Twenty five minutes after that, Ted catches up to Barney’s subway train, and in an effort to save him, jumps the turnstile, and is immediately apprehended by the NYC Transit Police. Nice one Teddy Boy. Ohh, there went poor Barney, on to another round trip on the subway.

Cut back to Robin and Ted at the airport. Robin is blaming Barney for them missing the flight.

Not so fast Ms. Sherbatsky. Barney never would have run the marathon in the first place if Marshall had not broken his toe.

In all of his training, Marshall had Lily reading him tips out of a marathons for dummies type book. Diet tips, training tips, etc.

Lily: (Reading from the book) Chaffing or blisters can occur in a number of different areas including the feet, armpits or even the nipples. Try using some petroleum jelly on the effected areas.

The day before the big race Marshall came back from his run in serious pain. He rubbed the petroleum jelly on his feet, and, well, on his nipples. As he was rubbing it into his nipples, he started to give himself another pep talk in the mirror. Of course, he is telling himself how good he is, rubbing his nipples with petroleum jelly, and in walks Robin. Marshall freaks, slips on the floor due to his lubed up feet, and breaks his toe.

If Robin didn’t surprise Marshall, he doesn’t break his toe, Barney doesn’t run the race, Ted doesn’t jump the turnstile and have a court date, and they make their flight. Robin’s fault. end of story? Not so fast.

Robin blames Lily because the two of them camped outside of a bridal store the night before Marshall broke his toe to get a super discounted dress. Robin and Ted discovered the dress store’s sale while walking through town noticing the girls camping outside the store the night before the big sale.

Robin: Hey, what’s going on? (As she looks at the girls camped out on the sidewalk)
Ted: Looks like they are camping out for something.
Robin: Yea, but for what?
Ted: I don’t know, normally there is a Storm Trooper or Klingon in line to give you some indication.

They told Lily and she insisted they go camp outside for the dresses.

Lily: Oh come on, it’ll be fun.
Barney: I can’t go, I have this thing.
Lily: What thing?
Barney: A penis!

Of course, Lily was very excited about some of the dresses that were available when she and Robin got there.

Lily: Oh wow! … Melissa Sweet, Vera Wang. Oh Robin do you have any idea what you guys stumbled on to here?
Robin: Hehe, you said wang!

Robin was so tired after the long sleepless night outside with Lily (thanks in large part to a car alarm) that she didn’t go back to her apartment in Brooklyn; she just went back to the gang’s apartment to catch a nap. In doing so, she waked in on Marshall greasing up his nipples.

So there we have it, it was Lily’s fault. Again, not so fast. Ted realizes that it may have been his fault. As he was on the subway a few days before Marshall broke his toe, Ted found a penny from 1939. 1939?!?! Wow! To prove to Robin how much it was worth, they took it down to the east side to sell it and promised her dinner with the proceeds. He got a whole $1.50 for it. Or as Ted put it, a 150% gain. Just enough to buy them a few hot dogs for dinner. As they were walking home, hot dogs in hand, they saw the sale at the bridal shop.

Ted missed the flight because he was getting sentenced for jumping the turnstile to save Barney, who ran the marathon because Marshall broke his toe, because Robin surprised Marshall in the bathroom, only because she was too tired to go home after camping out with Lily all night at the bridal shop, that Robin and Ted found on their way home from getting the hot dogs, that they bought with the proceeds of the sale of the penny that Ted found on the subway. There we go. It was Ted’s own fault that he missed the flight to Chicago to interview for his dream job.

The firm hired someone else, and, destiny was on Ted’s side as a few months after they hired that other architect, he was transferred to Chicago. Ted thought he was destined to get that job, he wasn’t! His destiny was to stay in New York. If he didn’t, he never would have met his children’s mother! (Ouch, another cruel reminder that Ted and Robin don’t ultimately end up together. How sad.)

Whoops. To close the episode. We forgot, poor Swarley Barney on the subway. How was he faring on the subway? Not too good. A few thugs stole his ‘finisher’ medal from the marathon, and poor exhausted Swarley Barney was defenseless, and now medal less, dejected, and defeated, left to ride alone on the subway!

Kaboom! You’ve been lawyered by Jim Mosby. Half Jim Halpert, half Ted Mosby. At least that’s how he describes himself. Maybe minus the Halpert good looks he’d be telling the truth. Jim loves feedback, and is a comment whore, so, indulge him if you can.

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