‘How I Met Your Mother’ Season 9, Episode 21 Recap: Ted Goes on His First Date with Mother

Monday’s episode of “How I Met Your Mother” was a move forward for Ted in the dating department, as he refrained from histrionics on his first date with the mother.

The episode begins at 8 pm on Wednesday, three days after the wedding and Ted is taking the mother on their first date to Pedro McKinnon, a Scottish-Mexican fusion place.

But things do not go according to plan, as the loud music drives them out of the restaurant, and the mother sees her ex on the way. This prompts them to cut the date short and Ted offers to walk her back to the apartment.

“Eight years earlier, I probably would have given some embarrassing speech, confessed my love and scared her off because somehow, I just knew this was all going to work out,” the future Ted tells his kids about his first date with their mother.

And luckily for Ted, the mother calls him back and asks him to continue the story about Gary Blauman that Ted was narrating before their date came to an abrupt end.

Blauman used to work with Barney and Marshall at GNB and when he unexpectedly arrives at Robin and Barney’s wedding, several people recounts why they either hate or love Blauman.

Ted hates Blauman because he once hampered Ted’s attempts to pick up a girl and Barney's hatred is based on the fact that Blauman ate his French fries once.

But Lily is on Blauman’s side as he prevented her from getting a Sugar Ray-themed tattoo on her shoulder when she broke up with Marshall. “Gary Blauman saved you from a lifetime of having to look at Sugar Ray every time we do it on your birthday,” Lily tells Marshall in the episode.

Camp Blauman also includes Billy Zabka, who noted that Blauman loved his poem.

But the shocker was delivered by James, who said that it was with Blauman who cheated on his husband. “Because of Gary Blauman, everything that matters to me is gone,” James says.

While the odds were not in Blauman’s favor, he was adamant to attend the wedding and said it was an important occasion to miss.

“You will be shocked, kids, when you discover how easy it is in life to part ways with people forever. That’s why when you find someone you want to keep around, you do something about it,” the future Ted tells his kids.

At the end of the story, the mother, too, realises that Ted was a keeper because she kisses him.

The episode ended with Ted getting his kids up-to-date of what’s happening in the lives of some of his friends from the past.

Ranjit - The former limo driver now owns a limo company after some of his investments paid off.

Carl - The barman is still very much part of MacLaren’s, and he now has his son to give him a helping hand at the bar

Billy Zabka - Zabka found fame as a poet

Scooter - Lily’s former boyfriend married her doppelganger, the stripper

Zoey - Ted’s former girlfriend is still fighting for good causes.