How I Met Your Mother: “Sandcastles in the Sand” Recap

HIMYM_Sandcastles

The Beek is back! But more on that in a minute. This week’s episode begins with the gang admiring Robin’s breasts, which, we find out, have been reinforced with tape, cotton balls and half of a Nerf football because an old friend from Canada is coming to visit. “Ooh, someone you went to DeGrassi with?” asks Barney. No, it’s Robin’s first boyfriend, Simon, (played by, you guessed it, James Van Der Beek of Dawson’s Creek fame) whom she dated for a whole summer (which, in Canada, is basically the last week in July). He smelled liked Drakkar, he could ollie on a skateboard, and he had an amazing collection of Hard Rock Cafe t-shirts.

The gang gets a long string of Canadian-related double entendres out of their system:

Did he take your maple leaf?

Sounds to me like he gave you your first O Canada face.

Did he break up with you and tell you that he’s just not Inuit?

Something with fur trapping …

Did you ride his zamboni?

Then Robin shares the story of how Simon broke her heart. After a performance by Simon’s band, The Foreskins — who were just four or five shows away from being Crash Test Dummies big — he let Robin load all the band’s gear onto his van, then dumped her for Louise Marsh. Why? Because Louise’s parents got a pool. And all Robin could do was stammer on about how great pools are and how she only had a sprinkler.

Now, years later, Simon comes back the clear loser in the breakup. He’s fat, balding, living with his parents and working at a water park. It’s obvious to everyone that Robin is better off with out him — everyone, that is, except Robin. She’s suffering from something Marshall likes to call Revertigo (which everyone else likes to call by its actual name, associative regression). When she sees Simon, she acts like the girl she was when they were together — which means she does stupid things, like taking him back and playing his band’s song, “Murder Train” on the news during the Puppy Corner segment.

We find out that Robin isn’t the only one who suffers from Revertigo. Lily regresses when she’s around her old high-school friend Michelle, and so does Ted when his friend Punchy is around. We also find out that there’s a second Robin Sparkles video — costarring Simon — which Barney vows to track down at all costs.

After Simon breaks up with Robin yet again … in the same van … for the same girl (this time Louise Marsh’s parents put in a jacuzzi), Barney finds Robin crying in her beer at McLaren’s. Showing the sensitive side of himself that we see only sparingly, Barney tells Robin how awesome she really is and Robin decides to reward his kindness by asking him up to her place — to watch the elusive “Sandcastles in the Sand” video. After watching the video several times, Barney and Robin make out, which would be surprising if johnnysweeptheleg hadn’t called it so long ago. What will the ramifications be? How will Ted feel about this, assuming he finds out? Are Barney and Robin now dating? We’ll have to wait to find out. But one thing’s for sure, things just got very interesting.

Other Highlights: Simon describing how he saves lives by sending kids down a waterslide.

Best Barneyism: “I want her around all the time. I’d even consider not trying to sleep with her, if that’s what it takes. … Guys, I’ve decided to seduce Michelle.” — Barney, after seeing the effect Michelle has on Lily

Photo: Randy Tepper/CBS ©2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.

3 Comments

  1. As much as I want to see where this whole Robin/Barney thing goes, I’m afraid it could potentially ruin the series. Dating exclusively could suck the awesomeness right out of Barney.

  2. At first I was shocked but then not so much. The truth is I am comfortable with Robin and Barney together. Their characters are better suited for each other. I don’t think Ted will be pleased at first when he finds out – and he will. But Ted and Robin found a way to be friends. Interesting to see how the Robin/Barney storyline unfolds.

  3. Other good Barneyisms:
    – “Tell me more. Tell me more. Like, did he have a car?”
    – “Finish Him!” (in his Mortal Kombat voice)

    I was happy to see my Robin/Barney prediction come to fruition, finally. The signs have been there since Season 1.

    They both enjoy laser tag, fine cigars, and scotch … and have done so together. Barney sure loves to torture Robin a little too much, like a schoolboy who teases the girls he likes most. And Robin dating Ted was more of a departure for her, rather than norm. If you notice, her history with guys such as her minor interest in her former co-anchor, as well as the sports guy, and even in Simon last night … Barney is more along the lines with the kind of guy Robin goes for.

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