Valentine's Day is a hard holiday for singles, and it doesn't help when traditionally escapist TV shows air themed Valentine's Day episodes.
Such was the case with last Monday's episode of "How I Met Your Mother," a popular CBS sitcom currently in its sixth season. The episode, "Desperation Day," abounded with cringe-worthy saccharine moments with TV's cutest married couple: Marshall and Lily, played by Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan. In one painfully adorable moment, Lily coped with Marshall's temporary absence by dressing her body pillow in Marshall's football jersey, thus introducing TV's second cutest couple: Lily and Marshpillow.
In addition to showcasing Marshall and Lily's entertaining escapades, the sixth season of "HIMYM" has continued to explore Ted's romantic endeavors, introducing a relationship between Ted (Josh Radnor) and Zoey (Jennifer Morrison). This makes sense, as the show's premise is Ted telling his children the story of how he met their mother, whose identity is a secret to viewers. But while the Ted-Zoey storyline ostensibly advances the show's plot, the development of Zoe and Ted's relationship has been lackluster at best first they hated each other, then they became friends, then they fell in love. I would hope that after building up Ted's quest for six seasons, the writers of the show would not blow the mystery on something so formulaic.
Even the romance-hating Barney let me down last week. He started the episode like his old self, coining the term "Desperation Day" because girls were desperate enough for a sweetheart that they went out with him the day before Valentine's Day. However, Barney's plans were thwarted when he fell for Nora, a woman who saw through his pick-up attempts.
Although it was cute to see a more vulnerable, human side of Barney especially when he ignored a supposed Olympic gymnast in order to explain laser tag to Nora I don't like this change in his love life. Barney is supposed to be the immature, anti-commitment, fun-seeking character who can't be tied down. His ridiculous attempts to pick up women practically make the show. I don't know if his laser tag date with Nora will turn into a serious relationship, but for the sake of the show's humor, I hope it doesn't.
