World's Greatest Couple
| "World's Greatest Couple" | |
|---|---|
| How I Met Your Mother episode | |
| Episode no. |
Season 2 Episode 5 |
| Directed by | Pamela Fryman |
| Written by | Brenda Hsueh |
| Production code | 2ALH05 |
| Original air date | October 16, 2006 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
|
Valerie Azlynn (Dawn) | |
"World's Greatest Couple" is the fifth episode in the second season of the television series How I Met Your Mother. It originally aired on October 16, 2006.
Plot
The episode starts with Barney and Lily in a bed, shocked to see each other. Future Ted starts narrating the events that led to that particular moment. Ted and Robin go to Lily's new apartment to bring her a housewarming gift, and they see that the apartment is very small and in poor condition. To top that, she is having to share it with a raccoon. One night, when Lily is preparing to sleep, part of a wall of her apartment comes off when she pulls her bed down from the wall.
Meanwhile, Marshall, who is having a hard time coping with being single, starts hanging out with his friend Brad (Joe Manganiello), who is also recently single. Ted and Robin start making fun of him and point out that they are behaving like a couple in a relationship. Marshall initially ignores them, but later while dining with Brad, he becomes embarrassed after seeing how Brad is treating him. When Ted and Robin learn that Brad has invited him to a wedding in Vermont, they ridicule him again.
Lily decides to live temporarily with one of her friends, but Ted cannot let her live with him, since Marshall is living with him now. Robin cannot let her in either, since Lily is allergic to dogs. They ask Barney to let Lily live with him, and Barney refuses outright. Ted succeeds in sneaking Lily in Barney's apartment by giving her a spare key. After some initial reluctance, he agrees to let Lily stay for two days, as long as she doesn't try to change anything.
Meanwhile, Marshall goes to meet Brad again. However, when he sees Brad waiting (presumably for him)—with flowers in his hand, he calls Ted for help. Ted and Robin laugh at the situation again and Marshall reluctantly goes to meet Brad. Just then, Brad's ex comes out and Brad tells him that they got back together last night. On learning that the flowers were for Brad's ex, Marshall turns back, somewhat hurt.
Here, Barney gives Lily a tour of his apartment, which is full of things to deter women from thinking of him as boyfriend material: a king-size bed with a full-size blanket but just one pillow, a toilet seat which will not remain down, and professionally-lit bookshelves of porn. However, when his ploys do not act on his latest conquest, Lily's timely entrance causes the woman to think that Barney is married to her. Barney lets Lily stay in return for scaring off his one-night stands by pretending to be his wife.
Lily agrees and Barney even lets her decorate his apartment to make it more becoming of a couple. Later, Barney plans to go out, but instead spends the night watching TV with Lily on his bed. The opening scene is played again and it is revealed that Barney and Lily are screaming because they think they had sex last night. Lily realizes that they didn't have sex, but instead dozed off while watching the TV.
However, instead of placating Barney, this explanation makes him angry at Lily, since he considers such a night as a sign of being in a monogamous relationship. Barney tells her to leave, and they begin to have a heated argument. Later, it is shown that Lily is back in her old apartment, which she has refurbished with the furniture she had got for Barney. Some time later, while walking on the street, Ted and Marshall run into Brad. Ted and Marshall greet him frostily, as one might an ex, before walking on.