How I Met Your Mother - 7 Episode 12: Symphony of Illumination

There is an endless discussion about the role of sitcom episodes within a season. Many say it is unacceptable that a comedy does not provoke loud guffaws throughout his twenty minutes of viewing. And in most cases, this theory is indeed correct. However, there are episodes that need to leave aside the humor at times, to explore their characters solidly, without the need to create jokes at every turn undermine that goal. How I Met Your Mother is a show that relies primarily on its characters and the relationships between them. Precisely for this reason, it would be impossible to avoid episodes like Symphony of Illumination,
a most notable example of this excellent seventh season.

Starting just after the end of The Rebound Girl, the episode highlighted the reactions of Robin and Barney the disturbing news that the first was pregnant, but still not sure of that. Promising not to reveal the secret to anyone, the two go to the office of Dr. Sonya and discover that they have a baby. Worse, Robin then gets the news that can ever have a son. Not to provoke uncomfortable in her friends, she prefers not to reveal the fact to anyone, but can not hide chateamento with the situation.

It is interesting that HIMYM has adopted a differentiated structure this season. First, with episodes like The Stinson Missile Crisis and Tick Tick Tick ... where the series has changed its narrative as needed. But the most daring enterprise of the season happens this Symphony of Illumination. Abandoning their once common structure, the episode uses a Future Robin to tell her story, giving the "new" character a narrative function performed flawlessly (I'll get to it later). It confirms the thesis that, if previous years are mainly devoted to Barney and Marshall, is now Robin's turn to receive the affection of the script.
And it is undeniable that the character has grown impressively, gaining an importance that she was not in the first year.

Much of this focus is due to her relationship with Barney, who earns more mysterious air. With his wedding looming, it is natural that the viewer begins to look not only the bride but also the reasons that lead to this event. And HIMYM can play in an exceptional manner with the expectations of his audience, leading them to believe things that are not (or were, since it is a flashback) real. This is where Robin Future fulfills its function, starting the episode with the certainty that she was indeed pregnant, causing a feeling of strangeness to display the news otherwise, and establishing a moment of self-reflection for the character by revealing the absence of boys.

Therefore, the final minutes of the episode in which Robin did not have problems communicating with the fact of never being able to build a family, while his actions reveal just the opposite, they build an interesting picture for the character, which becomes an increasingly strong character and of great relevance to the show precisely because of those moments dedicated to her. Moreover, the outcome of the short arc of her pregnancy shows a consistency monstrous Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, who seem to have total control over his narrative and avoid creating moments that the viewer can call incoherent. So it is fair to say that if the writing duo has not planned the whole story, they know exactly what they are doing when they take certain decision.