The Fight
Comments0| “The Fight” | ||
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| First aired: December 8, 2008 | ||
| Director: Pamela Fryman | ||
| Writer: Theresa Mulligan Rosenthal | ||
| Barney's Blog | ||
MacLaren's bartender Doug gets into a fight and draws Barney and Ted (but not Marshall) in. Robin thinks fighting is hot.
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Recap
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When MacLaren's bartender Doug Martin catches the gang not sitting in their normal booth, he gets pretty angry. Loyal to his regulars, Doug provokes a fight with the guys sitting in the booth and asks Ted, Barney and Marshall to back him up. Marshall says there is nothing noble about fighting; he has gotten into plenty of fights with his brothers. Ted and Barney mock Marshall's playful horseplay in his family. Ted decides he has never been in a fight heads out, Barney in tow. Barney sees it a chance to impress Robin. However, they find that Doug has dispatched the three men on his own.
Doug doesn't realize that Ted and Barney didn't help him. Barney convinces Ted to keep quiet about the two of them missing the fight and even punches Ted and then himself in the face to cover up their non-involvement. Doug offers everyone but Marshall free drinks and excitedly tells everyone how Ted and Barney had his back. They revel in the attention, especially Barney who is particularly interested in the affections of Robin who is very impressed.
Meanwhile, Marshall maintains that he has taken the high road, but Ted, Barney and Robin mock him for being unmanly. That night in bed, Lily confirms that Marshall did the right thing and asks him to come give a talk to her class about not fighting. However, even Lily's students mock him for not fighting.
Back in the bar, Ted and Barney regale the story of the fight to a couple of girls. However, seeing a few guys sitting in the booth again, they find they may have to start a second fight. Fortunately, the two guys have heard of the two: they are there to serve them a summons. The guys they "beat up" are suing for assault.
Ted and Barney immediately go to consult their lawyer: Marshall. Marshall exaggerates the punishment for such an offense and they admit that Doug was the only one involved in the fight. Marshall takes great pleasure in telling Robin about how Barney was leading them on. Later, Marshall tells the gang about how he convinced the guys they "beat up" to drop the charges by explaining how unmanly Ted and Barney really are. However, this means that Doug now knows that Ted and Barney "threw him under a bus".
Out in the alley behind the bar, Doug confronts Barney and Ted. Barney runs away in fear. Marshall points out it was obvious that Ted didn't help in the fight. Doug understands that it was just him in the fight but is hurt that Ted and Barney didn't have his back. He insults Ted by saying, "no wonder your fiancée left you." Ted punches him.
Having never been in a fight before, Ted didn't realize how much he would hurt his hand by punching Doug in the face. Doug punches Ted right back and knocks him out. Ted has learned his lesson. He would later explain to both his own kids and Lily's class about he learned that one should never get in a fight.
Of course, Ted leaves out part of the story: After punching out Ted, Doug was himself punched out—by Marshall. Turns out that Marshall did a little more than roughhouse with his brothers. Their fights were bloody and violent including smashing furniture and throwing hot chocolate in each other's faces. Future Ted suggests that his kids never get on Marshall's bad side.
ContinuityEdit
- In Best Prom Ever, while Ted is helping Marshall stuff envelopes for his and Lily's wedding, Marshall promises Ted he would have his back if he got in a fight.
- In a flashback to Ted's college years, Ted and Marshall are again seen "eating a sandwich", the show's term for smoking marijuana. This is first shown in How I Met Everyone Else.
- Several scenes from the show's history (including the Pilot, Miracles and I Heart NJ) are recreated with Doug in the background to show that he, as Future Ted says, was always around.
- In the Thanksgiving scene set 3-5 years later at the Eriksen dinner table, Marshall's father is nowhere to be seen, and Marshall's toast doesn't mention him, foreshadowing the events of Bad News.
- The Eriksen Family seven-layer salad (that Lily was seen working on in Belly Full of Turkey) can be seen in the depiction of Thanksgiving at the Eriksens.
- In the scene where Ted asks if Marshall told the guys suing them that he was "part of one of the premiere mediæval chamber groups in the little Ivies," he pronounces "mediæval" in the unusual way that led to his intervention in Intervention.
GalleryEdit
- Main article: The Fight (gallery)
- For a listing of all images on the wiki tagged as being from this episode, see Category:The Fight images.
Memorable QuotesEdit
| Robin: | There are plenty of legitimate reasons to get in a fight. It might not be pretty, but in certain situations you gotta do what you gotta do. |
| Ted: | Right, I forgot, she thinks fighting is sexy. |
| Robin: | No, I do not... a lot! Look, I come from a culture of hockey players. If a guy can throw down it's somewhat, way hot. And scars? Hello! If a guy's got a scar, he's got a Robin, and if he's missing teeth, I'm missing my pants! |
| Robin: | Marshall looks good, has he lost weight? |
| Lily: | Bitch don't even... |
- —Robin turns to Lily after the fight
| Marshall: | You know what, Doug, I will gladly pay. And you know why? Cause that's what grown-ups do! They pay for their drinks and they don't get into fights. You know what I was doing while you guys were out there being immature? I tell you what I was doing- |
| Barney: | -your nails? |
| Marshall: | Hahaha, no. I was doing- |
| Ted: | -a relationship-quiz in this month's Cosmo? |
| Marshall: | NO, I was doing- |
| Barney: | -Your best not to cry when Big came back for Carrie at the end of the Sex and the City movie? |
- —The guys taunt Marshall for not talking part in the fight
| Lily: | Okay, okay, okay, stop fighting! |
| Kid 1: | Why? |
| Lily: | Because it's stupid and juvenile. |
| Kid 2: | We're six; we are stupid and juvenile! |
- —Lily breaks up a fight between two of her kindergarten children
| Doug: | Look. I always got your back. All I ask in return is you got mine. But you know what? You don't. You can't be counted on... No wonder your fiancee left you... |
Ted: What are you doing?
'Barney': What I should have done a long time ago!
Ted: What?
Barney: I don't know! I just punched myself in the eye! I dont even know what I'm saying!
Barney making it look like he and Ted have been a fight.
Notes and TriviaEdit
Goofs and ErrorsEdit
- In the episode Sweet Taste of Liberty, Marshall is afraid of getting into a fight with a man who seems to be hitting on Lily because he has never been in a fight before. However, in this episode he continually tells the gang that he's been in plenty of fights before (with his brothers).
- In Cupcake Marshall, when talking about Lily's french friend, says that he's "not much of a fighter, but I knew I could take this little dude."
- When recounting his prior physical encounters, Ted claims he's been hit once, in No Tomorrow. However, in We're Not From Here, he was robbed and, while the robbing was not shown, afterwards when talking to the police he had a black eye, and in Return of the Shirt, Natalie attacked him with her Krav Maga skills.
Allusions and Outside ReferencesEdit
- Before going out into the alley to fight, Ted says "It's clobberin' time," referencing the catch phrase of comic book character The Thing from The Fantastic Four.
- The scene where Marshall is actively brawling with his brothers (especially the angle of his punching shot) is reminiscent of the brawling scenes from the movie Fight Club. It is also discussed in the Eriksen's Fight Club featurette in the Season 4 DVD set. Similarly Barney punching himself and then Ted is reminiscent of the main character's first fight with Tyler in 'Fight Club'.
- Barney uses the names of sitcoms that focused on African-Americans from the 1970s and 1980s to fake a conversation, specifically using Good Times, Gimme a Break!, What's Happening!!, Diff'rent Strokes and What's Happening Now!!.
- At the end of the episode Marshall uses a lightsaber to carve the turkey, referencing Star Wars.
- Marshall makes fun of Barney for getting a mani-pedi "once a month", to which Barney makes a correction replying, "Weekly, Wolverine. Some of us care." Wolverine is one of the superheroes in the Marvel Comics series X-Men, and one of Wolverine's most distinguishable characteristics is his retractable claws.
MusicEdit
- Murder Train by the Foreskins (previously heard in Sandcastles in the Sand).
- This Man He Weeps Tonight - Dave Davies of The Kinks
Other NotesEdit
- The German episode title is "Weicheier", meaning "Sissies". The French episode title is "Le combat des Braves", meaning "Battle of the Brave".
- International Airdates: Australia: March 9, 2009 on Channel 7; Germany: January 2, 2010 on ProSieben; United Kingdom: February 11, 2010 on E4.
GuestsEdit
- Will Sasso - Doug Martin
- Charlene Amoia - Wendy the Waitress
- Davis Cleveland - Andy
- Ethan Dizon - Ben
- Ned Rolsma - Marcus Eriksen
- Robert Michael Ryan - Marvin Eriksen Jr.
- Sarah Campbell - Esmerelda
- Courtney Ray Geigle - Guy #1
- Andy Hoff - Guy #2
- Kate Mansi - Amanda
ReceptionEdit
Donna Bowman of the The AV Club rated the episode B+. [1]
Michelle Zoromski of IGN rated the episode 8.2 out of 10. [2]
Television Without Pity gave the episode a rating A. [3]
References Edit
External linksEdit
- The Fight at the Internet Movie Database
- The Fight at TV.com
- The Fight at the English Wikipedia
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