Getting Slightly Closer To Meeting Your Mother

How I Met Your Mother's season 6 opener was a nice start to a season that PROMISED to be more like season 1 (with more concrete steps closer to finding the mom), but it's definitely nothing like season 1. Robin's a dirty slob who yet again has to prove her hotness to herself (and to Barney). Barney remains obnoxiously unchanged and carelessly witcivious. These were the worst two things about last season, and they're still very present. As far as Ted's story goes, I'm not sure why this is such a necessary part of the how-i-met-your-mother myth. YET AGAIN, I DID NOT MEET YOUR MOTHER. THIS TIME HER ROOMMATE WAS A LESBIAN. It's a season opener! They can afford to go a little crazy and, I don't know, show the mother's other ankle or something. I take it Ted's not meeting the mother this season. I hope to Marshall I'm wrong.

It was interesting to see an aspect of young marriage that's not totally obvious: in-laws getting too comfortable inserting themselves into their kids' business. Against all odds, Marshall and Lily's marriage foibles continue to entertain me, and I attribute it all to Marshall. He's such a goof troop, it's hard not to identify with him on sight.

So I'm pretty sure I heard Bob Saget say that it wasn't his wedding day at the beginning of this episode. It was, however, the day he met the mother. And it was a wedding. So I guess it's Barney and Robin's wedding, since they're both complete tragic figures now that they've wrecked each other, and the only way to redeem either of them is to make them forget all their woes together. Not that Barney has woes.

I liked this season opener, but I have to admit that I'm feeling slightly let down at the lack of actual mother-presence. Season 1 was great for several reasons, but possibly the most wonderful thing about it was the urgent, excited feeling of accompanying Ted on his direct path towards The Mother. You never knew when she was about to turn up! You never knew when that yellow umbrella would pop out of nowhere and kick off the rest of Ted's life! Maybe it was asking too much, but I really would have loved to get that feeling again this season. Instead, I saw Ted sad in the rain on someone else's wedding day and barely heard anything about meeting the mother, and it all made me feel pretty blue.

But it's NEVER too late to turn all that around. Maybe next week will be the day Ted sees the mother's wrist or ponytail. You never know!