Often, Barney's ways with women makes him a slimy guy. If Barney weren't so funny, it'd be hard to see the audience love a character who constantly objectifies women in any circumstance. Of the group, Barney is the most peculiar of them, with his corporate job and suits.
"Cleaning House" brings Barney back into the realm of humanity, refining his character and pushing the potential of what his character can do. Cleaning his childhood home, Barney and James (the too dark Wayne Brady compared to James's father) come upon a picture addressed to a man that was never sent. Eventually, James meets his father while Barney, hilariously, believes he's black. The episode comes to an emotional ending with Barney realizing that Loretta fulfilled the role of his father and he really doesn't need to know who his father is. And since Ted doesn't do any forewarning, I think it's safe to say we can close the book in this story.
We see that Barney isn't completely deluded into believing the lies wholesale. To an extent, in the back of his mind, he knows they're false, but there is security in the lies--and when he's in a bar, his behavior, the veneer of a lothario.
OK, so maybe I made a stretch there in the end, but if we're to believe that the wedding in last week's season premiere was, in fact, Barney and Robin's, Barney has to undergo a big shift in behavior, and ditching the safe lies is a start.
"Cleaning House" works great as a character episode and carries a rather powerful (compared to other sitcoms) scene in the end, and Ted and Robin provide some chuckles in the background.
Score: 8.8/10
Monday, September 27, 2010
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