There are Thanksgiving sitcom episodes, then there are How I Met Your Mom, Thanksgiving episodes, which must be in a category all on their very own. Created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays, How I Met Your Mom tells a reverse story of how a father met the mom of his youngsters. The collection ran 9 seasons between 2005 and 2014 with an amazingly proficient ensemble solid, and amongst their 208 episodes, there have been a myriad of enjoyable vacation romps, essentially the most enjoyable being had on the most important consuming day of the yr, Turkey Day.
Whether or not it’s slaps, wild winter sports activities, an intense case of FOMO, or actually bizarre board video games, How I Met Your Mom was a sitcom that all the time discovered a option to make this vacation a hilarious, particular one. In a way, the IMDb scores do not do these episodes’ justice, as all of the Thanksgiving episodes are robust and reallty carry the comedy. The scores do, nevertheless, make it simple to find out the very best amongst all 5 of the How I Met Your Mom Thanksgiving episodes (“Slapsgiving 3: Slappointment in Slapmarra” shouldn’t be included, because it does not truly contain Thanksgiving).
5 “The Rebound Woman” (Season 7, Episode 11)
IMDb Score: 7.8
‘The Rebound GIrl” was the Thanksgiving episode of the collection, and though it’s, technically, the bottom rated on IMDb, it nonetheless had that How I Met Your Mom allure that made this sitcom such a pleasure to observe. On this episode, Marshall (Jason Segel) and Lily (Alyson Hannigan) resolve to host their huge dinner on the home that Lily’s grandparents gave them whereas considering whether or not they wish to transfer there or not. In the meantime, Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) and Ted (Josh Radnor) are each in an emotional spiral and rapidly resolve they need to undertake a child collectively.
Whereas it was a very good episode total, make no mistake that “The Rebound Woman” is certainly the weakest of all of the Thanksgiving episodes, and can also be the one one of many 5 that does not present the viewers the precise meal. It is the least targeted on the vacation, and as a substitute zeros in on the characters’ tales. Ted and Barney, pondering it is a good suggestion to undertake a child, follows their sample of arising with wild concepts, like shopping for a bar or beginning a band.
Ted ultimately involves his senses after Barney exhibits up with an precise child, who we study later belongs to his brother James (Wayne Brady). Then there’s Lily and Marshall, who’re prepared to actually begin their lives, as Lily is pregnant and this superb home within the suburbs has fallen into their laps. Nonetheless, Robin (Cobie Smulders) does not need them to maneuver, and we study on the very finish that the attainable purpose for her appearing this manner is that she believes she’s pregnant. And based mostly on occasions that passed off within the previous episodes, they need the viewers to consider it could be Barney’s.
4 “Slapsgiving 2: Revenge Of The Slap” (Season 5, Episode 9)
IMDb Score: 7.8
Season 5 was a terrific season total, however it was additionally the season that was starting to point out some slippage by way of high quality. Fortunately, it did not lengthen to the season’s Thanksgiving episode, “Slapsgiving 2: Revenge Of the Slap), which sees Slapsgiving return, and with it comes some household drama as Lily’s deadbeat dad, Mickey, exhibits up for dinner with out her understanding. In the meantime, Marshall has determined to reward certainly one of his slaps to both Ted or Robin, however they have to resolve who would be the one to slap Barney throughout his face this time.
The third Thanksgiving episode brings with it the fourth slap, in addition to the introduction of Lily’s father, Mickey, performed by the all the time humorous Chris Elliott. We study that three years previous to this, Lily formally reduce her father out of her life, dubbing him lifeless to her. Followers by no means bought to see this, nevertheless, though it could have occurred someday in 2006, when the present was already operating.
Mickey is a failed board recreation designer, who’s all the time attempting to make it huge together with his subsequent recreation, which is strictly what created the wedge between him and Lily. After which there’s the slap. Ted and Robin do fairly a little bit of arguing about this, however in the long run, simply as Marshall had deliberate, the slap brings everybody collectively, and Marshall will get to dish out his fourth slap to Barney.
3 “Stomach Full Of Turkey” (Season 1, Episode 9)
IMDb Score: 7.9
“Stomach Full Of Turkey” is particular inside the How I Met Your Mom universe because it’s the primary Thanksgiving episode of the collection, and established the pattern that might grow to be a mainstay within the sitcom. Right here, a not too long ago engaged Marshall and Lily resolve to spend the vacation in Minnesota with Marshall’s household, and Ted & Robin hunt down some charity work. Nothing seems as deliberate for any of them, nevertheless, as Lily is freaking out about the opportunity of being pregnant and shifting to St. Cloud, and Ted & Robin uncover Barney working at an area soup kitchen. This can be a unbelievable season one episode, stuffed with memorable moments, notably whereas on the Eriksen’s home.
The picture of the well-known Eriksen household Seven-Layer Salad, full with gummy bears, Funyuns, and sixteen cups of mayonnaise, is one which each intrigues and disgusts on the identical time. We additionally get to see a softer, extra harmless facet to Barney, even when it is only a ruse. And on the finish, followers get somewhat tease for the mom, as Ted meets a dancer named Tracy at a strip membership, and jokingly claims she’s the mom. Nonetheless, for those who know the collection, Tracy is the precise title of the mom of Ted’s children, making this the very first mom tease of the present.
2 “Slapsgiving” (Season 3, Episode 9)
IMDb Score: 8.9
Whereas being the second Thanksgiving episode of the collection, “Slapsgiving” additionally performs a way more important position inside the total story as it is the third within the “Slap Wager Saga.” On this episode, Lily decides she desires to have a full Thanksgiving dinner with the complete gang for the very first time, nevertheless, Marshall has different plans as he has dubbed this yr as Slapsgiving, and is intent on doling out his third slap to Barney on this very day. Additionally, Ted and Robin are nonetheless struggling to deal with their latest break-up, which is made even worse when she brings a man over for dinner.
The lead-up to this episode actually begins on the very finish of the season three premiere, “Wait For It,” the place Marshall sends Barney a hyperlink to the web site slapcountdown.com, which is counting down the time till the following slap. The countdown comes again in a significant method and is used as a type of psychological torture on Barney. This episode additionally helps to restore the injury executed by Ted and Robin’s break-up by permitting them to lastly transfer ahead as associates. The episode ends with among the best slaps in the complete collection as Marshall hits Barney so exhausting he falls by means of a small finish desk, adopted by Marshall sitting down on the piano to play him a tune he wrote about slapping him. Solely this present may do a whole episode about slaps, and make it hilarious from start-to-finish. It is lovely, and why it is among the many greatest Thanksgiving sitcom episodes not simply from this present, however total.
1 “Blitzgiving” (Season 6, Episode 10)
IMDb Score: 9.0
We will make a daring declare proper right here, proper now: Even with its excessive IMDb ranking, that is, by far, the very best How I Met Your Mom Thanksgiving episode, interval. On this episode, after going dwelling early one night time, the “Curse of the Blitz” is handed on to Ted, turning him into the personification of FOMO (concern of lacking out). Due to this, Ted misses out on an epic night time with the gang, in addition to the previous Blitz (Jorge Garcia), and Ted’s nemesis, Zoey (Jennifer Morrison). However then, after getting a bit too cocky for his personal good, Barney inadvertently turns into the Blitz himself.
“Blitzgiving” is the very best Thanksgiving episode of How I Met Your Mom for thus many causes. We lastly get to see Ted and Zoey on good phrases. Ted makes a turturkeykey (a small turkey shoved inside a bigger turkey), there are some unbelievable one-liners (“The Gentleman!” & “Aw, Man!” to call a pair), and it is all the time good to see Barney made the idiot. That is a type of episodes the place there’s a lot happening, it is virtually dizzying, however it’s the chaos that makes it so entertaining. And with the present Misplaced ending simply six months previous to this episode, it was nice seeing Jorge Garcia and listening to him make references to the present, like blurting out the notorious quantity sequence (4-8-15-16-23-42) and saying how he was caught on that island for thus lengthy (in reference to being the Blitz for all these years). Very good writing throughout.
