I thought Robin and Marshall spent time together at their hometown pubs? Did I miss something? I actually found this part of the episode the more interesting.
8 Reviews
Explain this to me
jjdunberg-16 March 2020
You can't beat Ted in a dress!
i-am-so-original7 December 2010
Flashforwards on this show are fantastic, granted that they usually end up with a disappointing conclusion (see: the goat). In this flashforward, Ted shows up in a green dress, proudly declaring something to Barney. While it could end up disappointing, this one seems promising.
But back to the show! The Mermaid Theory presents us with three stories. The A story belongs to Ted and the Captain and Ted worries about being killed by him, the B story has Barney and Lily arguing, and the C story focuses on Robin and Marshall testing out the proclaimed titular Mermaid Theory.
The A story, featuring Ted and the Captain, was funny, if a little predictable and been there, done that. The entire story focuses on Ted worrying if the Captain is going to kill him over Zoey, and a majority of the plot focuses on Ted's worried face. It was fun to see Ted so scared, but the show could have done much more with much less; it got a little tiring after a while. The story ended with a nice moment between Ted and Zoey, having a clock begin to count down, implying that sooner or later, Ted will begin to show feelings for Zoey if he doesn't already.
The B story, Barney and Lily's, was frankly a mess. I realize that the purpose was to show how Ted's fading memory results in a messy narrative, and it was a fun thing to experiment with, but the end result was nothing but a confusing mess. First Barney was upset, then we find out it was actually Lily that was upset, then Barney is making beer bottles float in the air, then we find out it was Lily that was upset and she's pregnant. It was a mess of a story, and while it was intentional, it just turned out to be a little confusing.
The C story was interesting. Robin and Marshall are having troubles with conversation, and while it completely lacks continuity, it was a fun little subplot. This is where the Mermaid Theory was truly put to the test, and we find out Marshall is acting so weird because he thinks he will eventually find Robin attractive (but who doesn't?). Seeing Robin in a manatee costume was hilarious, and the ending was kind of cute.
The theme of breaking past barriers was played out in this episode, what with Ted discovering The Captain is not a bad guy and Marshall discovering he will never have feelings for Robin. It was a neat little episode, but some confusing narration by Ted really hurt it from being a classic.
But back to the show! The Mermaid Theory presents us with three stories. The A story belongs to Ted and the Captain and Ted worries about being killed by him, the B story has Barney and Lily arguing, and the C story focuses on Robin and Marshall testing out the proclaimed titular Mermaid Theory.
The A story, featuring Ted and the Captain, was funny, if a little predictable and been there, done that. The entire story focuses on Ted worrying if the Captain is going to kill him over Zoey, and a majority of the plot focuses on Ted's worried face. It was fun to see Ted so scared, but the show could have done much more with much less; it got a little tiring after a while. The story ended with a nice moment between Ted and Zoey, having a clock begin to count down, implying that sooner or later, Ted will begin to show feelings for Zoey if he doesn't already.
The B story, Barney and Lily's, was frankly a mess. I realize that the purpose was to show how Ted's fading memory results in a messy narrative, and it was a fun thing to experiment with, but the end result was nothing but a confusing mess. First Barney was upset, then we find out it was actually Lily that was upset, then Barney is making beer bottles float in the air, then we find out it was Lily that was upset and she's pregnant. It was a mess of a story, and while it was intentional, it just turned out to be a little confusing.
The C story was interesting. Robin and Marshall are having troubles with conversation, and while it completely lacks continuity, it was a fun little subplot. This is where the Mermaid Theory was truly put to the test, and we find out Marshall is acting so weird because he thinks he will eventually find Robin attractive (but who doesn't?). Seeing Robin in a manatee costume was hilarious, and the ending was kind of cute.
The theme of breaking past barriers was played out in this episode, what with Ted discovering The Captain is not a bad guy and Marshall discovering he will never have feelings for Robin. It was a neat little episode, but some confusing narration by Ted really hurt it from being a classic.
The Mermaid Theory (#6.11)
ComedyFan201026 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
This episode has all the stories around the mermaid theory. It is on how when you are alone with a woman even if she is very ugly one day she will turn into a woman. It was pretty funny how it happened with Marshall's secretary and even funner when we see this implemented with him and Robin.
The story of Barney and Lily is also great. Because it kind of plays around with possibilities before really telling us what was happening and it also shows a little glimpse into the future where as we see Ted will have to wear a dress at some point.
Kyle MacLachlan is back as Captain and the story about his creepiness was a blast. Have I ever thought that he indeed plans to kill Ted? No, never. But it was all the small moments, playing with his eyes and what he was saying that brought the fun.
The story of Barney and Lily is also great. Because it kind of plays around with possibilities before really telling us what was happening and it also shows a little glimpse into the future where as we see Ted will have to wear a dress at some point.
Kyle MacLachlan is back as Captain and the story about his creepiness was a blast. Have I ever thought that he indeed plans to kill Ted? No, never. But it was all the small moments, playing with his eyes and what he was saying that brought the fun.
Whisky
bevo-1367815 June 2020
Flawed Premise to the Marshall/Robin Storyline
almar51523 August 2016
The premise of Marshall and Robin not hanging out is bunk. In multiple episodes across several seasons the have hung out alone: Robin took him to the firing range in season 2, Marshall took her to Little Minnesota and the Hoser Hut, and Robin drove Marshall to the airport in Three Days of Snow. This invalidates their entire storyline and the associated theory. The other story lines aren't nearly good enough to pull up the slack from the goose egg of this one. The first and last scenes have solid jokes, but they only highlight the lack of good jokes the rest of the episode.
**Bob Saget narrates throughout the episode a lot, so I don't understand the other reviews
**Bob Saget narrates throughout the episode a lot, so I don't understand the other reviews
Rather generic, bar for one good plot point
SLionsCricketreviews22 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
As of now, HIMYM shows no signs of really advancing with the stories of each of the characters, and as such, the plots are becoming drab and repetitive. Zoey is quite a disastrously uninteresting and infuriating incarnation to Ted's 'skanks' that it was far too obvious at this point where this plot will go.
This episode is more focused on the psychological repercussions for Ted as he begins to get closer with Zoey. The Captain is a somewhat entertaining character in this episode, played very well by Kyle MacLachlan. As one of the above users has mentioned, the 'less is more' decision would have paid off as better, as it is far too obvious from the first moment that The Captain would not try to kill Ted. As such, it becomes a bit slow after a while and I imagine, does not calculate to high in terms of re-watchability.
Future Ted, from 2030, has thus far been a plot device. A very obvious one at that, but Bob Saget as the voice has been terrific, showing tremendous ability to inject some humour in his very limited voice- time in episodes. At last the show tries something new, which is it gives Future Ted as much of a plot as it gives any of the other characters: he forgets a part of the story. HIMYM is a fairly ridiculous show, partly because of the setting: a grown Ted reciting his life story to his kids. How he remembers everything is obviously stupid, and this episode, acknowledges it to a fairly effective degree. Unfortunately, as many others have said, the voice acting is disappointing because it does not seem to be Bob Saget in his usual role. That said, the story works very well, as a means of showing glimpses of what is to come.
The Marshall and Robin story does not work all that well. It starts off as decent, after a very awkward start to their dinner, but things just get less interesting as it goes on. The titular element of the story, The Mermaid Theory, is actually not that interesting, and even the extraordinary Neil Patrick Harris cannot really do much about it.
This episode is okay, but it does provide some excellent 2030 Ted moments. The Captain, whilst entertaining, could have been a subdued presence in this episode, as far as screen time is concerned, to make for a more effective and enjoyable story. "The Mermaid Theory" still is not that great, and HIMYM crawls along at its typical snail pace.
This episode is more focused on the psychological repercussions for Ted as he begins to get closer with Zoey. The Captain is a somewhat entertaining character in this episode, played very well by Kyle MacLachlan. As one of the above users has mentioned, the 'less is more' decision would have paid off as better, as it is far too obvious from the first moment that The Captain would not try to kill Ted. As such, it becomes a bit slow after a while and I imagine, does not calculate to high in terms of re-watchability.
Future Ted, from 2030, has thus far been a plot device. A very obvious one at that, but Bob Saget as the voice has been terrific, showing tremendous ability to inject some humour in his very limited voice- time in episodes. At last the show tries something new, which is it gives Future Ted as much of a plot as it gives any of the other characters: he forgets a part of the story. HIMYM is a fairly ridiculous show, partly because of the setting: a grown Ted reciting his life story to his kids. How he remembers everything is obviously stupid, and this episode, acknowledges it to a fairly effective degree. Unfortunately, as many others have said, the voice acting is disappointing because it does not seem to be Bob Saget in his usual role. That said, the story works very well, as a means of showing glimpses of what is to come.
The Marshall and Robin story does not work all that well. It starts off as decent, after a very awkward start to their dinner, but things just get less interesting as it goes on. The titular element of the story, The Mermaid Theory, is actually not that interesting, and even the extraordinary Neil Patrick Harris cannot really do much about it.
This episode is okay, but it does provide some excellent 2030 Ted moments. The Captain, whilst entertaining, could have been a subdued presence in this episode, as far as screen time is concerned, to make for a more effective and enjoyable story. "The Mermaid Theory" still is not that great, and HIMYM crawls along at its typical snail pace.
I miss Bob Saget's voice
tothlaw6 December 2010
The Mermaid Effect was a good episode, except that I am really used to Bob Saget's voice as Ted in the future. Please bring Saget back. This episode in particular had a lot of future Ted, and it was very obvious there had been a change. Thinking back on things I miss, I find that I miss the end of episode Bro-Code references you find in syndication. It is helpful to use the index and references. They make the episode relevant to those people believe that the Bro-Code is made of the Bros, for the Bros, and by the Bros. One other thing I missed in this last episode, the final tail before the credits. Why, because I was too busy writing this Bring Back Bro Bob review.
Where Was Bob Saget??
slightlymad2226 January 2015
Bob Saget didn't do the voice over for this episode, and as a result this episode feels disjointed.
Plot In A Paragtaph: Ted feels awkward hanging about with Zoe, so he tries to befriend her husband "The Captain", who invites him to go for a moonlit ride on his boat, meanwhile Robin and Marshall try to spend some time alone together, while Barney and Lilly fall out.
Normally any episode that features the brilliant Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson front and centre, automatically raises the quality of the episode. Sadly this is not the case here, as his storyline is very silly.
I'm disappointed Zoe keeps coming back, and the show is obviously leading towards her being a love interest for Ted. I didn't think I'd dislike a love interest for Ted, as much as I disliked Stella. But Zoe is ridiculously annoying. Nobody for me has topped Victoria (the delightful Ashley Williams) from season 1.
Plot In A Paragtaph: Ted feels awkward hanging about with Zoe, so he tries to befriend her husband "The Captain", who invites him to go for a moonlit ride on his boat, meanwhile Robin and Marshall try to spend some time alone together, while Barney and Lilly fall out.
Normally any episode that features the brilliant Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson front and centre, automatically raises the quality of the episode. Sadly this is not the case here, as his storyline is very silly.
I'm disappointed Zoe keeps coming back, and the show is obviously leading towards her being a love interest for Ted. I didn't think I'd dislike a love interest for Ted, as much as I disliked Stella. But Zoe is ridiculously annoying. Nobody for me has topped Victoria (the delightful Ashley Williams) from season 1.
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