Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: B+ | 364 USERS: B+ YOU GRADE IT How I Met Your Mother
By Cindy McLennan | Season 2 | Episode 6 | Aired on 2012.11.04
The Mysterious Stranger introduces himself as Neal Cassidy. Contrary to what you may have read online, Cassidy is the character's last name (as we'll later see) but yes, it's still a shout-out to Kerouac's bud, Neal Cassady. Neal is ridiculously flirtatious with Emma, given she just stole the car in which he was napping. When she fails to look where she's going, Emma blows through a stop sign. It's not long before a cop pulls her over. Neal tells her to take the screwdriver out of the ignition and replaces it with the keys. When the cop asks for Emma's license and registration, Neal tells him he's just teaching his girlfriend to drive a stick. I am not going with the obvious pun, because the show already has. After a little sexist commiseration about women drivers, the cop lets Emma off with a warning, even though she never produced a driver's license. Once he's gone, Emma figures out Neal's angle. The VW Bug isn't his either. She's just stolen a stolen car. Talk about meet cute. This is so sweet, I'd better brush and floss once it's over.
Enchanted Present. Mulan, Snow and Aurora argue over who should accompany Hook up the beanstalk. Yes, Aurora. Why couldn't they have found her some more suitable clothes in the ruins of Snow's castle? Seriously, it's not even like we get to see her pretty gown, because it's covered by that ugly wrap. We all know Emma's going to be the one to go with Hook, and she is, once she plays the Henry card to Snow.
When Emma asks Mulan if she's got any good anti-giant weapons in her bag, the warrior pulls her aside and gives her a bag of sleeping powder, made from poppies. Alone with Mulan, Emma asks if her sword is strong enough to cut through the beanstalk. Why? Because there needs to be some element of tension for the members of Team Princess who'll remain on the ground. If Emma's not back in ten hours, she wants Mulan to cut down the stalk and find another way for Snow to return to Storybrooke. Contrivance Fairy: "You're welcome."
With a "Tick-tock," Hook reminds Emma they need to get a move on. He's in constant flirt mode, which is fun to watch, but there are only so many ways to mention it without becoming repetitive, so from here on out, I'll only note when he's not flirting. He slaps the cuff on Emma's wrist and asks her to return his hook. When Emma says she's not going to take her eyes off him, Hook says, "I would despair if you did." Twink. Commercial.