Miracles (How I Met Your Mother)

Plot

Ted is having trouble getting a cab, but when he finally gets one, the cab is hit by a car speeding through an intersection. The entire gang, except Barney, rush to the hospital and are relieved to find that he is not seriously injured. Ted reveals that he and Stella had gotten into a fight after she invited him to her sister's wedding in six months and he broke up with her. When the accident occurred, Ted had seen all the things that he loved, allowing him to re-examine his relationship with Stella and realizing that he wants her back. Stella arrives in the hospital and reveals she has forgiven Ted. However, when she learns Ted thought they had broken up while she thought they had gotten into a small fight, Stella becomes upset and explicitly breaks up with him.

Lily calls Barney to tell him about Ted's accident, but he hangs up before she can tell him that Ted is fine, seemingly not caring. However, it is revealed Barney skips an important business meeting and when he misses a cab, Barney begins running to the hospital. He ends up getting hit by a bus driving the wrong way near the hospital, but survives, even though he has broken nearly all the bones in his body. Touched that Barney was so concerned about him, Ted and Barney finally reconcile, and with Marshall, declare that they're bros. Marshall and Lily joke about what Barney must have seen when he was hit by the bus, but don't notice that he is looking at Robin as they mention seeing all the things that he loves.

Meanwhile, Marshall attributes Ted and Barney surviving their respective accidents as miracles, a notion Robin laughs aside, since she does not believe in miracles. Marshall begins to relate a series of anecdotes where he believed a miracle had occurred. The stories involve a pencil falling from the ceiling and bouncing into Barney's nose, Marshall successfully smuggling drugs from Amsterdam to the United States due to the customs officer changing shifts, and Marshall losing his job because of head lice he had gotten from Lily's kindergarten class shortly before Marshall's boss was arrested. Robin dismisses all of Marshall's perceived miracles and reveals why she does not believe in them. When she was a child and her dog was dying, her parents and the veterinarian supposedly saved her dog with a special operation. Marshall declares it to be a miracle until Robin reveals that they told her a major side-effect of the operation was that her dog "turned into" a turtle.

After the nurse tells Ted he can leave, he rushes out to meet Stella, who is at Kiddy Fun Land with her daughter. He gives Stella a small orange kangaroo stuffed animal. Ted tells her he's ready to give her what she needs, and that's why he spent ten minutes at the claw machine trying to get a fake diamond ring, but he could only get an orange kangaroo. Stella is confused why he would need a diamond ring, and Ted proposes to her.

Production

In an interview for Television Without Pity series co-creator Craig Thomas said he always knew he wanted to end a season on a proposal if the show was successful.

Critical response

Donna Bowman of The A.V. Club rated the episode A−. Omar of Television Without Pity rated the episode with a grade B+. IGN gave the episode 8.5 out of 10.