Directed by Pam Fryman
Written by Chris Harris
One Paragraph Synopsis: Never invite your ex to your wedding. When Stella's sister has her wedding called off about a week before it happens, Ted and Stella end up taking her ceremony, pushing their date way up in advance. They head over to Shutter Island, when Stella discovers that her ex, Tony, refuses to bring Lucy up to the wedding. Ted drives back to New York and ends up convincing Tony to join him and Lucy to the wedding, while Robin heads over from Japan, after just quitting her new job there. As both Tony and Robin appear at the same time, Stella starts to freak out and tells Ted that she doesn't feel comfortable having either of them at their wedding. Ted suggests that they tell their exes that the should go, which Robin takes amicably from Ted. But to prove the point of this lesson, Stella doesn't exactly get a chance to tell Tony. She doesn't, because they end up getting married instead, leaving Ted alone
Ho boy. This is one of the rough ones. Sadly, the ending isn't much of a surprise, but it's still so rough to see Ted's heart broken. "Shelter Island" paints a sad ending for Ted and Stella's relationship, and while the ending result is strong, in truth the story is a little rushed.
Then again, I think this may have been the intent. After all, Ted and Stella weren't together for long when he proposed, and the gang almost threw him an intervention because of this. Robin's speech to Ted, especially, delves into what was wrong here, as she reminds Ted of how visionary he is, and a quick wedding is a disappointing way to end his escapades.
I believe that Bays and Thomas initially wanted Ted and Stella to have a little more time together before the surprise proposal at the end of season 3, but the writer's strike and Chalke's commitment to Scrubs prevented them from doing much more. Thanks to the lighter schedule for the show's eighth season, Chalke was able to appear in the first few episodes of this season, but it's possible that she didn't have more time for another episode or two, which makes Stella's time feel all too brief.
This really is a shame, because I did enjoy Stella's character, and felt that Chalke brought a welcome, challenging sense of wit and heart similar to Ted's, while being less wistful than him, but slightly more than Robin. It's a good mix, one that I was rooting for. But in hindsight, Stella deserved at least one or two more episodes where she is front and center, to further establish her relationship with Ted, rather than to be almost periphery to the story, which ends up happening in too many of these episodes.
Additionally, there is next to no emotion felt for her daughter, Lucy. Her actress does well enough, but she barely does anything at all to justify her existence as more than just a side note. I don't believe she even speaks in the episode beyond shouting "Mommy!" when arriving on Shelter Island, as I think about it. Considering how badly Ted wants to become a father, to see so little time put into his potential stepdaughter is a disappointment.
All of this becomes an apparent issue when Tony arrives, and is attempted to be sold as this big roadblock in between Stella and Ted. The conflict itself is interesting, even effective in some parts, which I'll get to shortly, but the fact that he doesn't appear before this episode is a weird and destructive choice. I understand that Jason Jones had a commitment to The Daily Show, but surely some time could have spent to expand on his character. Besides an obligatory reference to Lucy's father here or there, the character isn't referenced before this point, let alone given the chance to spend time with Stella to show their chemistry. This just isn't a good call creatively.
That said, I buy the conflict. Chalke does a great job of maintaining beaten facial expressions as anything remotely close to Tony is brought up. Her eyes linger as her chin and jaw start to recede, helping to make it clear what she's thinking in repeat viewings. This works as the culmination arrives, with Stella and Tony arriving as one, set to a gorgeous, albeit sad, sunset shot by Fryman. Robin does a good job of making a shocked facial expression, but the image of Stella reuniting with her former love is all that needed to be said.
I believe in the change, as it there have and will always be relationships that weren't meant to be in one place, but probably could and should collide later in life. Compatibility can be weird like this sometimes, but as Stella tells Ted, Tony wasn't ready to make a full commitment when they were together earlier. Whatever had been going on in the years since was enough to fix this, while Ted just couldn't be enough for Stella. This doesn't make him wrong, but merely just not Mr. Right.
This hurts to viewers, as by now, Ted is more than just a character. He has become a way of life, almost like a real friend. His thoughts, his interests, his desires are present to us by now, to the point that we can forgive his idiosyncrasies for the merits of Ted as a person. He isn't my favorite character, but when he sits there and reads Stella's note, I grieve with Ted.
Does this mean that Ted was wrong for inviting his and Stella's exes to their wedding? I don't know, maybe. Whatever happened though, it is clear that Stella and Tony had unfinished business, and what's done is done.
Again, I do think that Robin was right. Ted was rushing in, and he does deserve a bigger ending than a quick wedding. Maybe someday, when he meets the actual mother (who, based on the alternate reality clip here, has got to be a brunette), he'll get it. Stella seemed to only be a roadblock, but an important one. A lesson Ted will never forget, and an experience that, as painful as it seems, was irreplaceable.
The rest of the characters have important parts, although this is almost entirely Ted's episode. I've written about most of Robin's material earlier, but as for her leaving the new job, it really does seem like she made the right decision. That gig did not seem to be any kind of help for her, so I can't really argue or expand on it beyond. It might be a little fast for her to return, but I would leave quickly if I was being made an ass of like that, as well.
Lily and Marshall's material is a little more superfluous, but there's nothing really wrong with that. They both offer good lines, and do help Ted out with their acknowledgement of Lily's bridal rushes, itself a great flashback montage. It's hard to mess up dialogue confusion moments like these, though. And also consider the shock of discovering that Shelter Island is a dry, vegan place. I see real disgust and disappointment in Hannigan and Segel, just as they should be embracing.
Barney, meanwhile, has an actual story here, with his hope to win Robin over during the wedding. This actually works... until he loses his promiscuous streak too soon. As sad as this may seem, it is telling that Barney still isn't quite mature enough to handle anything serious with Robin, nor is he really as ready as he thinks he is. Barney has every right to embrace the single life, as long as that is what he wants. Because you can't get it both ways.
I stand by what I said earlier. "Shelter Island", and the Stella arc in full, has a lot of things that work, but a rushed pacing ultimately prevents it from being much more. There are worse ways the arc could have ended, but we should have had some more time to get here first, especially to give Lucy and Tony a little more life before they're written off. But at least now, Ted is one step closer to finding his own love story, since this was not his. A bittersweet end, which is sometimes the best.
No comments:
Post a Comment