Murtaugh (How I Met Your Mother)

"Murtaugh"
How I Met Your Mother episode
Episode no.	Season 4 Episode 19
Directed by	Pamela Fryman
Written by	Joe Kelly
Original air date	March 30, 2009
Guest actors
Danny Glover (Roger Murtaugh, archive footage) Robert Wisdom (McCracken)

"Murtaugh" is the 19th episode in the fourth season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 83rd overall. It originally aired on March 30, 2009.

Plot

The episode begins with Barney recalling the events of the previous night to the rest of the gang, in which he was banned from laser tag by the game's owner for being too rough. He then reveals plans to break into the laser tag arena and throw toilet paper everywhere. Ted brushes it off, informing Barney that he is too old for laser tag. Ted then reveals the "Murtaugh List", a record of things he believes he has become too old to do anymore. Barney accepts Ted's revealing of the list as a challenge, and makes a bet with him that he can perform every item on the list within the following 24 hours. If he wins, Ted must accompany him in covering the laser tag arena with toilet paper. If he cannot, he will spend three hours listening to Ted talk about architecture, an idea so horrible even the thought of it causes him to twitch involuntarily, thus introducing the "gentleman's agreement".

Meanwhile, Marshall has taken on the role of coaching Lily's kindergarten's basketball team. He is extremely aggressive in training the children, doing such things as forcing them to run and throwing basketballs at them when they do not conform to his standards. A flashback shows his father relentlessly training Marshall, yelling at him aggressively. Lily is shocked by this, as her usual training tactics involve playing a guitar and allowing the children to do whatever they like.

Barney continues to try to perform every action on the Murtaugh List, contracting an ear infection and back injuries in the process, from self-ear-piercing and sleeping on a futon, respectively. During a conversation with Robin, Ted reveals that he would prefer being older to being younger. Upon hearing this, Robin and Barney make Ted his own list of things he would do when he was older. Another bet is made between him and Barney to see who can complete their respective lists first, and Ted proposes to double the length of his architecture lecture if Barney loses.

Lily grows tired of Marshall's hyper-competitive coaching and tells him off, forcing him to go easier on the children. During the game, they lose without scoring a single point, but Marshall realizes the value in playing for fun and makes up with Lily.

After being drugged at a rave, Barney is finally forced to accept the reality that he is growing older and gives Ted the victory. Having re-watched the complete Lethal Weapon series, Ted realizes that Murtaugh still did the things he claimed he was too old for, deciding that he has more to live for than waiting to grow older, calls off the bet, rips up the Murtaugh list and accompanies Barney in covering the laser tag arena with toilet paper. Ted, Robin, and Barney are discovered by the laser tag arena owner, who pretends to be accepting of the situation and lifts Barney's ban before going to call the police about the toilet paper.

Production

Marshall and Lily have a telepathic or "psychic conversation" because they know each other so well they can communicate without speaking. The reason for this is that Alyson Hannigan had laryngitis and could not talk.

Critical response

The AV Club rated the episode giving it a B grade.

Michelle Zoromski of IGN gave the episode 9 out of 10.

Cindy McLennan of Television Without Pity rated the episode with a grade A−.

External links

• "Murtaugh" at IMDb
• "Murtaugh" at TV.com