Directed by Pam Fryman
Written by Suzy Mamann-Greenberg & Maria Ferrari
Ted's tag at the end about long-distance relationships sucking is very true, at least in my experiences. I have nothing against the lucky few who were able to make it work, but it's hard to keep a solid foundation of trust when you don't have close access to your loved one. It's also hard to replace being there with your beau, as much fun as romantic phone conversations and sexting can be.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. While it is made clear that Ted and Victoria won't make their time apart work, this isn't the last episode in their story. As a precursor of what's to come, "Cupcake" is strong, and has important moments for everyone, although I don't think it's ultimately an outright classic like the previous few episodes have been.
So far, the women haven't been given as much to do on the show as the guys have, especially not as a group, so seeing Robin and Victoria join Lily as she goes wedding dress shopping was a welcome change. Lily and Robin's friendship has been building for a little while now, expanding from just a necessary transition into girl time when Ted or Marshall's issues were becoming too overwhelming on the show, but I do feel that there is more to their ties by this point.
Robin and Lily are both modern women, albeit in different places- Lily was raised by a second-wave feminist who taught her to not adhere to today's present stereotypes of womanhood, which is a trait Lily took with her into her college days and still maintains years removed; meanwhile, Robin was raised by a traditional masculine-bound father who didn't bother to hide his disappointment in having a girl first, nor did he bother to raise her like a traditional young girl. Similarly, they both still share appreciation for traditionally feminine items, like cute clothing, make-up, and the aspiration to be a princess, without any shame. It seems as if Lily had always kept some traits of girlhood all her life, while Robin had to learn herself that she can enjoy both masculine and feminine favorites, as she's still an admirer of stronger drinks and activities like laser tag and hockey. Lily herself also shares some of Marshall's more guy-friendly interests, but also has her ideas of romanticism.
Or maybe we shouldn't label things like scotch or fashion as masculine or feminine, nor should we chastise anyone for enjoying these things. Robin and Lily sure don't, which makes them great characters, and great friends as a result.
Victoria is harder to crack, since although Ashley Williams helps to make the character as likable as anyone else on the show, she doesn't have her own well-defined interests as of yet. She likes cats (not the musical, mind you), and clearly knows her way around a nice pastry. That's something, right?
Yet she fits pretty well with Robin and Lily, even if Robin is hesitant at first. These are three smart women who seem to casually enjoy each other's time while window shopping. Of course, free cake and champagne doesn't hurt, either. But Victoria functions well in this dynamic, as she's quick-witted enough to follow both Robin's reliance on appeasing Lily, while not being afraid to tell the truth when Lily wants it merely a second later. It sure does seem that Victoria works well under pressure. It's also worth nothing that this subplot wins for the funniest story in the episode, containing a lot of the most fun moments as the three girls go through Lily's options and share equally well-written lines with each other.
One thing that I admire about this episode is how it takes a problem that plagued the previous ep and a good chunk of this one, Robin's petty jealously against Victoria, and fixes it before the second act is over. While Robin's feelings for Ted aren't eradicated, she does seem to realize that the both of them are happy together, and that Robin needs to back off for the sake of them both. Her goading Victoria to go to Germany stops after a little while, when Robin gives her a sincere answer to whether the internship is worth taking. It takes serious growth on Robin's part to put her feelings aside, as well as rightfully removing this one-sided cat fight for Ted's sake.
I need (and want) to talk about Ted and Victoria, but before I do, let's look at Marshall and Barney's story this week. Again, Barney is being given more substantial material, as he is the driving force behind this entire subplot. Marshall wouldn't get a new suit if it wasn't for Barney, nor would he go into debt if it wasn't for him. This is structurally a despicable move on Barney's part, but it isn't a move without merit from him- Barney wants to see Marshall succeed and be able to spend time with his good friend, which is why he pushed for Marshall to take the interview.
Although Barney decided to find a way to make him take the interview by deceit, he also knows that Marshall is historically a person that needs a push to excel. Sometimes, it's Lily's body, other times, it takes financial woes brought on by both himself and Lily to take the initiative. While this job won't qualify as Marshall's dream of becoming an environmental lawyer, it's still a job in his field, which is a step in the right direction no matter. Barney's still in the wrong for being an ass, but his heart is present.
Both of these storylines are strong, but the episode is called "Cupcake" for a reason, after all. This is about the fellowship Victoria is offered, and whether or not their relationship is strong enough to make or break this deal. A strong question that makes for a strong episode.
Although they ultimately do decide on long-distance, Victoria and Ted are hesitant to try it for obvious reasons- distance, loneliness, trust, time. The other thing that keeps them away from considering it at first is Lily and Marshall's previous experiences at it, as Lily took a year abroad in Paris while they were still in college. Marshall didn't trust any men in the country with Lily, which resulted in him scaring away the one friend Lily made there, told to us in a joke that ends up landing as transphobic rather than anything else. Lily and Marshall are only one couple, which is a very small sampling to survey, but Victoria and Ted seem to be fine in taking their experiences so seriously in this debate, considering that their time as a couple has lasted longer than some dog breeds' life expectancies are meant to.
This is why Victoria allows for Ted to consider whether he wants her to go or not, even though I'm personally not crazy on the idea of one person being allowed such a option. Ted takes this position seriously, as his pondering on the right move makes for a palpable moment of clarity over the episode. The romantic whose self-doubt has ruined most of his good chances thus far has finally found someone who might be his great love, allowing the show's concept to find itself. While it would take great strength to initially agree that Victoria would be best off going to Germany, he has every right to doubt if her leaving is for the best.
Thankfully, when Ted decides that he's not crazy on her going, Victoria realizes that his say shouldn't matter, and plans to go through with it. Again, I do believe that Ted has the right to his opinion on whether Victoria is making a good call or not, but at the end of the day, this isn't his opportunity, it's hers. If Victoria thinks her fellowship is the right move for her, she has every right to decide on it. Perhaps if they were together for a longer period of time, or certainly if they were married, Ted's say might make more of a difference, but I'm all with Victoria here.
Although from a first time viewer, it warmed my heart to see them decide on trying long-distance anyway. If that pesky tag didn't exist at the end, I would have hoped for their three years apart to work. But unfortunately, we'll soon see just why this wasn't meant to be. Enjoy it while you can, though.
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