(S05E12) After I wrote my gushing preview of this episode, I went back and re-watched it, hoping my first impression was correct. It turned out that it was, but for a very different reason than I thought. The 100th episode of HIMYM didn't have everything that makes the show such fun for its fans: there was no time-shifting, and not a lot of misdirection. It just told two straight-ahead stories that were really funny and gave us confidence in how things are going to play out going forward.

Oh, and it had a song-and-dance number that was fun as hell.

Let's start with Ted. At the end of this episode, we're as close to the mythical Mother as we've ever gotten. And it we got there in quite an interesting way: he dates a woman who's jealous of her "perfect" roommate. Rachel Bilson did a nice job of playing Cindy, making her vulnerable because of this problem, but not crazy. And it seemed at the start that Cindy could be the mother, when Ted had confiscated beers with her in his classroom, but I'm happy that the magical roommate was brought up right away.

Here's what I wonder, though: is the Mother truly becoming mythical, at least as far as the viewers are concerned? Bays and Thomas set her up in this episode to be the coolest chick ever created -- She plays bass in a band! She paints robots playing sports! She makes breakfast food sing! -- and it makes me start to think that meeting her is going to be a letdown. But that's the cynic in me talking. Oh, and just because we met her roomie doesn't mean that we're going to see the Mother anytime soon. I mean, Ted could just get another umbrella, know what I mean? But it was fun to contemplate.

Now on to Barney and his love of suits. I've been complaining for a while that bringing Barn back to his old piggish ways after the whole Robin thing didn't ring true, because we knew he could be a good guy. But, with his desire to conquer the hot bartender -- who just happened to look like the oh-so-leggy Stacy Keibler -- I started believing in Barney the hound once again. His list of the kinds of women he conquered, especially the rhyming section -- was an inspired bit and is my Best Barneyism in a week full of great Barneyisms.

The "Girls vs. Suits" musical number was played well. It didn't dominate the episode; it just played out in Barney's head as he had to figure out whether to bed the bartender or keep the suits. It was a tour-de-force for Neil Patrick Harris, as he reached notes I never thought he could. And it was fun to see the gang dancing around in suits, with the guys surprisingly moving very easily in theirs and the girls looking like they're wearing oversized duds that would make David Byrne jealous.

My favorite part of the video? "I'm gonna stop you right there. It's the suits. Come on, Lily, get your head out of your ass." Oh, and I loved the fact that Barney pulled a Barney and whispered to the suits at the end, "You guys are fine." Guess we won't see Stacy Keibler back anytime soon.

More fun stuff:

• There wasn't much for the rest of the gang, but what they did have was fun: Marshall didn't think the bartender was hotter than Lily, but Lily didn't believe him. I liked that Lily continues to explore all her sexual sides by admitting the bartender popped in her head in bed.
• Gotta love Robin's ego, thinking that she was still the hottest woman in the bar. Then she tested the "circumstantial hotness" theory... and she was right!
• Of course Barney's personal tailor is Tim Gunn. Tim's no actor, but I still really enjoyed seeing Barney cry on his shoulder, mourning his torn suit that gave its buttons for a good cause.
• We can also see Robin getting a little weary of Barney, as she interrupted his "wait for it" pronouncement that he will no longer wear suits.
• "For those... I mean for that... I mean for her..." gets second prize in the Barneyism race this week.

[Watch clips and free episodes of HIMYM at SlashControl.]