How I Met Your Mother – “Cleaning House” – Review

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Here we go again.  I can tell already that the writers of HIMYM are setting up another season of cute yet pointless episodes that will take this plot nowhere. So frustrating!

This week’s episode starts off with Barney all in a tizzy of these things we call emotions (most of which he denies the existence of), because his mother is selling his childhood home.  Somehow, though, he convinces the whole gang to head up to Staten Island for the weekend to help pack up the house.  Barney’s gay black brother James (played by Wayne Brady) shows up to help with the packing, which leads to a flashback episode wherein James shares with the gang all the lies Barney’s mom told them as children.  Lies that Barney still believes, while James has long since rejected them as lies and accepted the truth.  For instance, when Barney asked who his father was he was told it was Bob Barker.  This led to great episode a couple of seasons ago, where Barney appeared on The Price is Right in order to meet his dad.  James, it turns out, does get to meet his father, and Barney latches on to him as well even though he’s black.  Well, finally, the lies come out, and Barney starts to realize the truth:  that he had a great mom and a great dad all along, and their name was Loretta.  Awwwww. And scene.

I did not care for this episode very much.  The show is a comedy, and everyone has their funny moments, but Barney has been the long-standing comic relief above everyone else.  It’s nice to delve deeper into his psyche, but not so deep.  The writers are attempting to make a real person out of the caricature that is Barney Stinson, which just takes away from his legendary awesomeness.  The only side story in this episode was a very few mentions of Robin hooking Ted up with the makeup girl at her morning news show.  She apparently oversold both Ted to the girl and the girl to Ted.   At the end of the episode the girl was dismissed without ever having appeared in the first place. 

So, like I said, here we go again.  I anticipate at least 2 more episodes of this sort of plot stalling banality before we get back to the story.  I know they have to drag it out, but the line has to be drawn some time. Right?