"The Goat" is the 17th episode in the third season of the television series ''

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005 to March 31, 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his ...

'' and 61st overall. It originally aired on April 28, 2008.

Plot

The episode begins with the

aftermath Aftermath may refer to: Companies * Aftermath (comics), an imprint of Devil's Due Publishing * Aftermath Entertainment, an American record label founded by Dr. Dre * Aftermath Media, an American multimedia company * Aftermath Services, an Americ ...

of the events of "

Sandcastles in the Sand "Sandcastles in the Sand" is the 16th episode in the third season of the television series ''How I Met Your Mother'' and 60th overall. It originally aired on April 21, 2008. Plot The episode begins with a montage of Robin from her time as Canad ...

Barney Barney may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barney (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Barney (surname), a list of people Film and television * the title character of ''Barney & Friends'', an American live actio ...

and

Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') **Bush-robin **Forest rob ...

are in bed together after having

sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones (ova, oft ...

and they agree to pretend it never happened. However, Barney feels quite awkward and uncomfortable around

Ted TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depa ...

at MacLaren's later in the day. Hoping to find an excuse for his and Robin's actions, Barney seeks out

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

to help him find a

loophole A loophole is an ambiguity or inadequacy in a system, such as a law or security, which can be used to circumvent or otherwise avoid the purpose, implied or explicitly stated, of the system. Originally, the word meant an arrowslit, a narrow verti ...

in the

Bro Code In popular culture, the Bro Code is a friendship etiquette to be followed among men or, more specifically, among members of the Bro (subculture), bro subculture. The term was invented and popularized by Barney Stinson, a character from the televisi ...

, a book listing the rules and

philosophies Philosophical schools of thought and philosophical movements. A Absurdism - Action, philosophy of - Actual idealism - Actualism - Advaita Vedanta - Aesthetic Realism - Aesthetics - African philosophy - Afrocentrism - Agential realism - ...

of Barney's life as a " bro". Allegedly written by Barnabas Stinson in the 18th century, the Bro Code proves to be a very tight document that Ted has followed flawlessly and Barney fails in finding a loophole. When Marshall's nervous behavior reveals to Robin that Barney told him, she warns him never to let Ted find out. That night, when Barney picks up Ted in a limo, he attempts to give Ted an ultimate 30th birthday by flying him to

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, which includes staying at the

Bellagio Bellagio may refer to: * Bellagio, Lombardy, an Italian town * Bellagio (resort), a luxury resort and casino in Las Vegas * Bellagio (Hong Kong), a private housing building * Bellagio declaration, an intellectual copyright resolution * 79271 Bellag ...

, steaks at Boa, and a boxing match between

Floyd Mayweather Floyd may refer to: As a name * Floyd (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Floyd (surname), a list of people and fictional characters Places in the United States * Floyd, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Floyd, Iow ...

and a

grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...

. When Ted asks about the sudden trip, a guilt-ridden Barney then tries to reveal that he slept with Robin, only for Ted to reveal he already knows as Robin told him right after she warned Marshall. Ted then angrily ends his friendship with Barney, and hails a cab to take him home. Meanwhile,

Lily ''Lilium'' () is a genus of Herbaceous plant, herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. They are the true lilies. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in mu ...

rescues a

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

named Missy when Farmer Frank (

Alan Fudge Alan Fudge (February 27, 1944 – October 10, 2011) was an American actor known for his roles in four television programs, ''Man from Atlantis'', ''Eischied'', ''Paper Dolls'' and ''Bodies of Evidence'', along with a recurring role on '' 7th Hea ...

) brings the goat to her

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

class and horrifies her students by going into great detail about what will happen to Missy when she visits the butcher. Lily plans to give the goat away to animal control, but becomes attached to her while waiting for Ted to arrive at his birthday party. Future Ted hints at the destruction the goat would do, only to later realize that he had the story wrong: everything involving the goat actually takes place during his 31st birthday, at which point – Future Ted also reveals – Robin is living in the apartment.

Critical response

Donna Bowman of ''

the A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' graded the episode at A−. She says that the previous episode has potential for more Barney-Robin material, even if the fallout from the episode can affect all the characters. Michelle Zoromski of ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'' gave the episode a 7.7/10 score. TV Critic gave it 27/100 saying that "the attempts at humour and the entire goat sub-plot are pathetic".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goat How I Met Your Mother (season 3) episodes 2008 American television episodes Television episodes about birthdays