Little Minnesota
| "Little Minnesota" | |
|---|---|
| How I Met Your Mother episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 4 Episode 11 |
| Directed by | Pamela Fryman |
| Written by | Chuck Tatham |
| Production code | 4ALH12 |
| Original air date | December 15, 2008 |
| Guest appearance | |
| |
"Little Minnesota" is the 11th episode in the fourth season of the television series How I Met Your Mother and 75th overall. It originally aired on December 15, 2008, on CBS, and was written by Chuck Tatham and directed by Pamela Fryman.
The episode follows two parallel storylines: Robin's homesickness for Canada leads Marshall to take her to a Minnesota-themed bar, where she ultimately must confront her feelings about living in New York; meanwhile, Ted struggles to accept that his younger sister Heather (Erin Cahill) has matured, while also trying to keep her away from Barney. The episode received generally positive reviews from critics.
Plot
[edit]When Robin grows homesick for Canada, Marshall takes her to the Walleye Saloon, a Minnesota-themed bar he frequents when he misses home. Robin fits in so well that she begins passing herself off as a local from Bemidji, Minnesota, angering Marshall when she appropriates his personal stories and beats his high score on a bar video game. He eventually outs her as Canadian, prompting Robin to deliver an emotional speech about missing home. Marshall apologizes and, to help ease her homesickness, takes her to a Canadian-themed bar, the Hoser Hut, where the night ends with a karaoke rendition of Robin's teenage pop hit "Let's Go to the Mall".
Meanwhile, Ted's younger sister Heather (Erin Cahill) visits New York with plans to move there and work in finance, asking Ted to co-sign her apartment lease. Ted, who considers Heather irresponsible, has also spent years keeping her away from Barney, fearing Barney would pursue her. After Lily accidentally tips Barney off, Barney confronts Ted about the lack of trust. To force Ted to recognize that she has grown up, Heather and Barney stage a fake sexual encounter and ensure Lily witnesses it, knowing she will tell Ted. The scheme works: Ted eventually apologizes to Heather and co-signs her lease.
Critical response
[edit]![[icon]](/proxy/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (December 2015) |
Donna Bowman of The A.V. Club rated the episode with a grade B−.[1]
Michelle Zoromski of IGN gave the episode 9.8 out of 10, describing Barney's performance as a highlight of the episode.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Bowman, Donna (December 15, 2008). "How I Met Your Mother: Little Minnesota". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on January 23, 2009. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ Zoromski, Michelle (December 16, 2008). "How I Met Your Mother: "Little Minnesota" Review: An awesome Christmas gift". IGN.com. Retrieved March 22, 2010.