4x12 Benefits

This one was alright. The comedy is solid, but the "sex as burn ointment for arguments" idea is a little sitcommy, even if the superb editing of the show makes the related jokes land. The problem on rewatch is the same problem I have the first time I watched the show -- I'm just not invested in the Barney-Robin romance. Again, Barney is a cartoon character. That makes the humor land when he's basically a Tex Avery dog whose heart is thumping through his chest every time he hears about something involving Robin, but it also makes his feelings for her seem like infatuation rather for love, and the show seems to proceeding on the assumption that it's the latter which is motivating him.

Mrs. Bloom points out that to some degree, Barney and Robin make sense. Both are emotionally-stunted individuals with daddy issues who find ways to paper over a certain ache inside of them because of their experiences. The problem is that they just occupy such different spaces on the show. Robin is a real, if exaggerated person, and her problems and emotions feel real. Barney is a bro-y Pepe Le Pew, and that makes it hard to take his emotions seriously, especially when they're still presented in a cartoony fashion, and it makes it especially difficult to buy the idea that he and Robin should be together. Ted choosing to end he and Robin's escapade because he can tell Barney has feelings for Robin is a sweet beat to end on, but the central premise of the story is flawed, and it falters on that account.

That said, Mashall's concerns about pooping at work, and the various euphemisms and schemes he comes up with to avoid the stigma of doing so is classic HIMYM, in both exploiting the silliness of a prosaic problem in modern life, and in coming up with a goofy dramatization and solution to it. I could probably have done without the tabloid cover cameos, but otherwise, it was enjoyable to see Marshall squirm and scheme his way out of "reading a magazine."