I'm disappointed, HIMYM

When I saw the synopsis of "Weekend at Barney's" sometime last week, I was weary about the fact that The Playbook still exists. I gave the writers the benefit of the doubt; maybe it was a copy that Barney made for Ted a long time ago, so technically Barney doesn't have a Playbook. Or it was a fake Playbook. Or anything! I just thought Barney burning the Playbook during "The Final Page" was such a big deal; it's one of the biggest reasons why I believe Barney was ready for Robin. The Playbook being back cheapens that moment, in my opinion.

And then I found out that it was actually true; Barney has another Playbook –– the *real* one. I was incredibly disappointed. But hey, let's wait, maybe there's an explanation. Nope! When Robin confronted Barney about it, all he said was basically that he is a liar, and that their relationship happened because of lies. Barney did say that because it's all lies, they would both know that when he says he loves her, it's not a lie. I'm not quite clear on the logic of that, but Robin bought it.

I just don't like what the writers have done with their relationship. I've always thought that these two belong together, and I'm glad that they are, but they should be ... awesomer. Throughout the show, we've seen Barney be romantic and sweet and genuine in his relationships, which is one of the reasons why I hate the fact that the explanation was just "I'm all lies." I know that they weren't the best at relationships, and that they had to grow, significantly, before they were ready for each other. But it feels like the writers tend to gloss over the important issues/moments and turn them into inane jokes instead. Robin had put Barney through some rough stuff (the staying with Kevin comes to mind), and now it almost feels like that never happened. Robin's inability to have children is never brought up again; I still don't know if she discussed it with Barney.

Come on! I want Barney and Robin to be awesome together! But not just ignore all the important issues between them. This is a pretty sweet/cute moment of the two from last night's episode:

And the whole unhooking Robin's bra thing was pretty funny too. I want more of those from them, but also take the other things more seriously.

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So, there are people on Reddit who think that the whole Playbook thing was Barney's plan. I refuse to call it a play here because "The Robin" was Barney's last ever play. Robin mentioned that him burning the Playbook was when she realized he was someone she could marry; Barney said if he could burn it again he would; a new Playbook suddenly appeared; ended up burned. I want to believe, but I still don't like how Barney talked his way out.

And there's also a mention that Barney's monologue (about the lies and the Playbook) is a metaphor in that he pulled out all the tricks under his sleeves, showing that he had nothing to hide from Robin. That's sweet, but again, I'm not convinced.

I really want some good Barney-Robin scenes in the next few episodes or I don't know how much I'd believe their marriage. :( I've been rooting for this couple for years, don't make me lose my interest in them!