'How I Met Your Mother' Season 8, Episode 9: 'Lobster Crawl' Recap

Everyone is at the bar—including Marvin. Lily and Marshall rationalize it that the bar serves food too, so… it’s really more like a restaurant.

Mickey is sick, so they’re out a babysitter. Ted has some freedom, now that his building is built, and volunteers. They hire him immediately.

Robin flirts oddly with Barney, who ignores her. Barney spills ketchup on his tie and tries to resuscitate it. But apparently it doesn’t make it. He folds it and has a mini funeral while Robin giggles over him.

“Oh my God, you are such a good folder. That’s like The Gap good.”

Lily makes Robin go to the bar with her to find out what’s going on with the dumb cheerleader act.

Robin tells her about the kiss between her and Barney, and Lily understands the classic lobster situation—Robin is allergic to lobster, and once she had been told she couldn’t eat it anymore, she went nuts for it. Just like Barney, who got the last word in on their relationship. He “shut the door.” Robin denies it.

Robin sits alone with Barney, getting fake text where everyone else cancels. Robin’s voice of reason kicks in, trying to argue with her. It doesn’t help that Barney just ordered the new lobster special. While she struggles, Barney relates to her the new idea of “bro-bibs.”

Lily and Marshall return home to find that while they were gone, Marvin crawled! Ted took a video—only he had it flipped the wrong way so all they see is him.

“I use it to check my teeth for debris.”

Lily bursts into tears, but Marshall assures her they’ll see it the next time—and Ted yells from the bedroom that he just did it again!

Marshall tells Lily there will be other Marvin firsts. It doesn’t sink in. Lily sits with the camera on her son, who refuses to move. Robin comes in and Marshall hustles the ladies out to go talk.

Robin admits that before she was told she couldn’t have lobster she didn’t want it. But when she gorged herself on it, she got it out of her system and never wanted it again. She needs Barney one more time to get him out of her system.

She implements some plans:

Damsel in distress. She calls him to help carry a heavy new printer to her office. Patrice and Brandi, however, ever helpful, rush in and do it.

Center of attention. Men all over her at the bar. Barney comes in and scolds them for slobbering over his friend—and uses that moment to sell the bro bibs he created, which are bibs made to match a man’s outfit.

The Is that Angelina Jolie: She comes to laser tag. Dressed like Angeline Jolie in “Tomb Raider.” Pretty straight forward on that one.

The Ask For Lily’s Help: Lily tells her about how in college when she wanted to get Marshall’s attention, she would just dance on another girl. Marshall appeared immediately.

Robin brings Brandi to the bar, disappointing Lily, who was prepped. Marshall approves of their dancing, but Barney leaves with Brandi.

Ted buys Marvin his winter clothes. Ted cancels his meeting with a headhunter for next month so he can watch Marvin. Lily and Marshall tell him no and fire him.

They call him up later and apologize, asking him to go to swim class, Bubble Buddies, with them and Marvin. He goes. They explain there that they found his scrapbook of Marvin’s firsts, which reminds them of the book of firsts he started for his project.

Ted admits the project was baby, and he is scared to move on. Ted admits it is hard to let go of his biggest accomplishment. He’s not at the same part of his life as they are. Marshall and Lily rescheduled the meeting with the head hunter and push Ted over to talk to him.

Robin regrets that she didn’t do the play with Lily as Barney comes in to discuss how it ended with Brandi the previous night—he didn’t sleep with her. He left, and he realized that everything he has done since he broke up with Quinn was a way of coping. He has no idea what he is searching for in life, but he will figure it out. He leaves the girls speechless.

Robin feels bad about what she has been doing. She needs to give him space.

She shows up at his door in a raincoat, and drops it. She’s wearing a teddy, however, Patrice is on the couch. Robin screams at her, as per usual. Barney explains that he ran into Patrice when he ended it with Brandi, and she gave him comfort cookies. Patrice and Barney talked all night—and now they’re on a date.

Robin puts her coat back on and flees.

Ted apologizes again for taking so many of Marvin’s firsts, especially meeting Santa, but they reassure him it is water under the bridge.

A few years later: Ted is leaving his baby daughter with Aunt Lily and Uncle Marshall. The moment he leaves they grab her coat and bring her to go meet Santa.