The Wedding Bride
"The Wedding Bride" |
---|
"The Wedding Bride" is the 23rd episode of the fifth season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother and is the 111th episode overall. It originally aired on May 17, 2010. Guest stars include Judy Greer, Jason Lewis, Malin Akerman, and Chris Kattan.[2]
Plot
Ted discusses with his children how everyone in their thirties tends to have "baggage," which then manifests itself in Ted's mind when he discovers it. He talks about dating a girl named Royce who seems to have no baggage, despite several false starts in his apartment. The gang discuss their own baggage; even Marshall has baggage - he is just too nice and trusting. Ted then sees a new movie called The Wedding Bride with Royce and discovers it is based on his relationship with Stella and was written by Tony, the man Stella left him for, and his character, "Jed Mosely," is portrayed in a negative light (and one of the actors is even heard to call him "Ted Mosby" at the end of the film). He points out several of the aspects which were initially romantic, but twisted so that he comes off as a jerk. Royce also helps him realize that he has his own baggage: being dumped at the altar. His friends also tell him that he should tell Royce the truth, but Ted believes he can ignore it despite the movie becoming the 5th highest grossing movie. Ted becomes angry and upset as the movie goes on to become a hit, and when Royce's friends talk about going to see the film again he finally snaps and walks out on her.
Marshall ultimately helps him cope with it, reminding Ted that he is fundamentally a nice guy. Ted rushes to the cinema where Royce is again watching the film and admits the film was based on his being left at the altar. He kisses Royce in front of the screen displaying a kiss scene from The Wedding Bride and takes her back to his apartment for pancakes. Royce then reveals her "baggage" - left at the altar three times, has a gambling addiction, and shares a bed with her brother. Ted then asks her to leave.
![]() | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. |
Music
Features music from Love Actually by Craig Armstrong (mostly used in the movie The Wedding Bride).
Continuity
- The fictional movie The Wedding Bride is first mentioned in the Season 4 episode "As Fast As She Can." The website and theatrical poster for the said movie was also displayed in the episode.
- The character Jed Mosely is shown wearing red cowboy boots, the same as Ted owns.[3][4]
- The movie version of Stella (Malin Akerman) is seen in an arcade which resembles Kiddie Fun Land. In "Miracles," Ted proposes to the real Stella in an arcade.
- The movie version of Stella could be seen wearing the same dress that the real Stella wore in "Shelter Island."
- In the trailer, Jed Mosely is said to be "such a douchebag." This refers to his real-life counterpart, Ted, who was on several occasions called a "douche" himself, such as in "Mosbius Designs" and "Robots Versus Wrestlers."
- In the episode "The Best Burger in New York," Marshall states, "I don't know how to break dance and win the begrudging respect of a street gang." and in this episode Robin describes him stopping to breakdance.
- Both Robin and Ted display their habit of saluting phrases that sound like military ranks (such as "Major Baggage"), as seen in "Slapsgiving."
- Lily uses the phrase "Run Tell That." Barney uses the same phrase in "Definitions."
- The episode flashbacks to Ted's proposal in "Miracles" of Season 3, Ted's two-minute date with Stella in "Ten Sessions" of Season 3, Ted and Stella kissing on the couch in "Do I Know You?," Ted fetching Tony and her daughter, Ted finding Stella's farewell note in his room on the wedding day, and Tony and Stella together on the barge all from "Shelter Island" of Season 4.
- The notion of a person having a "but..." was previously discussed in "Little Boys."
- Barney has always had an issue with women in their 30s. This was shown previously in "Little Boys" and "Zoo or False."
- "The Stinsons" introduced the fact that Barney sees films' intended antagonists as protagonists, as he does here in saying that The Wedding Bride got everything right about Stella's relationship with Ted, both the intended antagonist and his best friend.
- While with Royce and her friends, Jed Mosley's similarities with Ted surfaced, including the butterfly tattoo from "Wait For It" of Season 3, the Red Cowboy Boots from "Everything Must Go" of Season 3, Ted over-pronouncing "encyclopedia" in "Intervention" of Season 4, and Ted's battle with the goat from "The Leap."
- This is not the first time that a member of the group unintentionally helped robbers ransack an apartment. Barney and Robin had helped several people "move out" of their apartment as part of completing the Murtaugh list.[5]
- "Baby Doll" was previously used by Barney in "Girls Versus Suits" -- i.e., "Drop the act, baby doll! Daddy's home!"
- Future Ted censures a dirty word used by Barney by using "Kiss" instead. He's done this for his children in "How Lily Stole Christmas" with the word "Grinch," and in "Murtaugh" with the word "Stuff."
- The episode also reveals Tony's last name, Grafanello, which has never been mentioned since his debut in Season 4.
- Towards the end, several of the women in the background are carrying baggage that say "Slept With Barney."
Cultural references
- "Run Tell That" could be a phrase from the fourth verse of the second chapter of the book of Zechariah in the Bible.[citation needed]
- Barney alludes to Sesame Street and the character Big Bird, by describing a place where Marshall's overt geniality is normal as a street where a giant yellow bird lives.
- Ted mentions Adolf Hitler during the bar scene with Royce and her friends.
- According to Robin, North Korean leader Kim Jong-il ranked The Wedding Bride as his second favorite movie.
- Instead of seeing The Wedding Bride, Marshall states that he wanted to watch James Cameron's Avatar again.
- Marshall said that he thought that the movie Spaceballs was about him.
- The "baggages" in the background include being a fan of the Chicago Cubs and believing that Elvis Presley is still alive.
Baggage Tags
- "Cubs Fan"
- "Former Reality Star"
- "Parents Divorced"
- "Slept with Barney"
- "Dad Forgot Me At Gas Station"
- "5 Gay Ex-Boyfriends"
- "Was Breast-Fed Until Age 6"
- "Mom Still Does Laundry"
- "Slept with Barney (again)"
- "Slept with Barney (yet again)"
- "Elvis is Alive"
- "Addicted to Plastic Surgery"
- "Still Thinks His Ska Band is Going to Take Off"
- "Cheating on Cult With Other Cult"
- "Loves Cats More than People"
- "Tri-Polar"
- "Turned On By Fire"
- "Still Likes Oasis"
- "Pacific Islander Fetish"
- "Only Dates Guys in a Band"
- "Abducted By Aliens"
- "Quietly Racist"
- "Kleptomaniac"
Critical response
Donna Bowman of The A.V. Club rated the episode grade B-. [6]
Amanda Sloane Murray of IGN.com gave the episode a grade of 9.3. She stated that the concept of a romantic comedy within a romantic comedy was a challenge for the writers, given the task of creating a fictional movie for the episode and casting actors who have themselves played characters in romantic comedies. [7]
![]() | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. |
References
- ^ http://www.spoilertv.com/2010/04/how-i-met-your-mother-episode-523.html
- ^ http://www.tv.com/how-i-met-your-mother-the-wedding-bride-cast!/webnews/59548.html
- ^ Everything Must Go
- ^ The Three Days Rule
- ^ "Murtaugh" of Season 4
- ^ Donna Bowman (2010-05-17). "How I Met Your Mother "The Wedding Bride"". The AV Club. The Onion. Retrieved 2010-05-18. Rating B-
- ^ Amanda Sloane Murray (2010-05-18). "How I Met Your Mother "The Wedding Bride" Review". IGN.com. Retrieved 2010-05-19.
External links
- Official "The Wedding Bride" website
- How I Met Your Mother - The Wedding Bride on YouTube
- The Wedding Bride Promotional Photos at SpoilerTV.com