2024
Older Ted and Mother – flashforward and flashback all in one episode. What a lovely treat to hear Ted reminiscing and sharing stories with Mother. However Mother knows all of Ted’s stories. Mother tries to out Ted-Ted, but they both know each other’s stories so well. Mother then drops the LINE OF THE SERIES: “You’re the love of my life pooh bear. I just worry about you; I don’t want you to be the guy who lives in his stories. Life only moves forward.” So much emotion goes between the two of them. So much is unspoken.
2014
The morning of the wedding little sister Katie finally joined in for the pre-wedding fun. The sisters Scherbatsky are destressing with a lively game of indoor hockey. Lily girls up the moment with a lame scrapbook document Barney and Robin’s love. Lily trying to force Robin’s wedding day freak out. Lily then tries to purposefully piss off Robin by suggesting she wear her own wedding dress as a bridesmaid. Just when Lily thinks Robin is immune to a wedding day freak out Robin runs into her mom in the hall (props to the HIMYM crew to get Tracey Ullman to fill Robin’s mom’s shoes). Meanwhile Barney is struggling on choosing a suit. Unsurprisingly all of his suits have a story such as rodeo clowns, magic, escorts, etc. Ted gives Barney a good pep talk and gets Barney to wear his new suit that Tim Gunn made for him for the occasion. The gang all realizes that this is the last time they’d all hang out together since Ted will be leaving for Chicago the next day.
Music Note: The episode closed with Bob Dylan’s “If You See Her, Say Hello” – I look up the lyrics and got extra choked up when I read “and though our separation, it pierced me to the heart. She still lives inside of me, we’ve never been apart.”
Legendary Lines
- Mother: Yeah “Lily” used the word ragamuffin.
- Robin: You just poked the dragon, here comes the bride.
- Ted: Susan Tup. Sue Tup. Suit Up.
- Jed Mosley: Hey that is not a toy you Ragamuffin. That is an authentic flail I won at the Renaissance Fair.
- Jed Mosley: No Can-I-Doesville Babydoll.
- Mother: Of course she showed up. What mother is going to miss her daughter’s wedding?
Moments of Awesomeness
The high five between Mother and Ted for being an “old married couple.”
Ted’s old man hair and Cosby sweater AND the fact that he’s totally pulling it off.
Ted not wanting to give up a $20 dollar bill because the one he has is lucky.
Narshall = John Heder
Barney’s scuba suit theft story.
Callbacks
The Wedding Bride…too!
Swarley
Lingering Questions
- The writers have all but confirmed that mother is sick and seemly going to die. Or is she? My friend Chris is hoping for a surprise twist between 2024-2030.
- Was anybody else hypnotized by Cristin’s watery eyes tonight?
- The episode is called Vesuvius – which is an Italian volcano, named Mount Vesuvius. What are your thoughts on the significance of the name for tonight’s episode?
- SO much purple Ted…seriously. I hope we get an explanation, do you think we will? Maybe even on the DVD…
What was with Ted getting emotional with the mention of a mother not missing the wedding reference? Did I miss something¿ Did Ted’s mom die¿?
It’s hinting that the mother will die, and that’s why Ted is telling the kids the story in the first place
My guess is that Teds mom dies…may be a long shot It’s probably a lot more accurate than the dead mother theory IMHO.
nope, the quote is “What MOTHER would miss their own DAUGHTER’s wedding”…cant be Ted or Ted’s mum who dies.
Why was the episode called “Vesuvius”? Any guesses? Read a good theory about a link to the crossword puzzle Ted did in Episode 9.2 or 9.3.
Would the kids really acted so annoyed and bored with Ted telling story of how he met their dead mother?
Mount Vesuvius was the mountain in Pompeii. Combine that information with all my other comments and you’ll get what they mean by vesuvius
I know what mount vesuvius is ( not was!). But even with the information about the mother ( i and the writer of this recap also got and understood), the link doesn´t make any sense…
fyi btw: Of course it can be teds mum…ted has a little sister….
When he said it, wasn’t he with the mother (his wife, mom of the kids he’s telling the story to) so I kind of think it’s his mom that dies. a few more episodes to go!!!
That’s my guess too since the general reference is to a mother and child… not necessarily just moms and daughters.
I think it’s about Robin’s mum that doesn’t make her daughters wedding.
I think the real reason she couldn’t make Barney and Robin’s wedding was because she was too ill, but Robin didn’t tell her friends that she just told them she couldn’t get a flight (or that’s what her mum told her).
Then at the end of this episode her mum shows up, but maybe she dies before the actual wedding, which would fit in with Ted and the Mother talking about a mother missing her daughters wedding, particularly because they are at the Farhampton Inn at the time.
Bit of a long shot but it all fits?
I hate to say it but I think the Mother (Ted’s wife) does die. It you look back at the end of Season 8 ep. 20 where did gives the speech. He mentions he wishes he has the extra 45 days or seconds with her. Which indicates something will happen to the mother.
Um, the wedding takes place in 2013, not 2014… and the episode is called Vesuvius, why? In ep 2 of this season Ted is doing a crossword and yells out “Vesuvius!… oh wait, that doesn’t fit”. Kind of a read between the lines episode shout out to the fans that the mother is dead theory doesn’t fit. In season 8 when Ted goes and makes that speech to the mother, he is saying it out of desperation, he’s sad, been alone for a long time and everyone else was out planning weddings and being together. He wants those 45 days cause he just wants to meet the woman he is going to spend the rest of his life with already. What’s with everyone wanting doom and gloom. The mother is not dead, Ted is not dead. In an episode where Ted says he uses a sock puppet to teach the kids, in 2030 he does the voice and shows the puppet and his hand…pretty sure a video can’t do that. People need to watch the show before making up theories.