"False Positive" is the 12th episode of the sixth season of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

sitcom A sitcom, a Portmanteau, portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troup ...

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 ...

'', and the 124th episode overall. It aired on December 13, 2010. It features guest star

Alex Trebek George Alexander Trebek (; July 22, 1940 – November 8, 2020) was a Canadian-American game show host and television personality. He is best known for hosting the syndicated general knowledge quiz game show '' Jeopardy!'' for 37 seaso ...

Plot

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 Depart ...

is outside a

movie theater A movie theater (American English), cinema (British English), or cinema hall (Indian English), also known as a movie house, picture house, the movies, the pictures, picture theater, the silver screen, the big screen, or simply theater is a ...

showing ''

It's a Wonderful Life ''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American Christmas fantasy drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story and booklet '' The Greatest Gift'', which Philip Van Doren Stern self-published in 1943 and is in turn loo ...

'', waiting for the rest of the gang and carrying a

gingerbread house Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses. Gingerbread foods vary, ranging from a moist loaf cake to forms nearly as crisp as ...

as their

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

-themed movie snack.

Future Ted Theodore Evelyn Mosby is a fictional character and the protagonist in the American sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother'', portrayed by Josh Radnor. He serves as the show's narrator from the future, voiced by Bob Saget, as he tells his children the ...

backtracks to two days before, when

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 ...

and

Lily ''Lilium'' () is a genus of 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 much of the world. M ...

eagerly await the results of her latest

pregnancy test A pregnancy test is used to determine whether a female is pregnant or not. The two primary methods are testing for the female pregnancy hormone (human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)) in blood or urine using a pregnancy test kit, and scanning with u ...

. The test is positive and they excitedly tell Ted,

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 ac ...

, 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 ...

the news, but the doctor later says it is a false alarm and Future Ted tells the story of what happened during the past two days. Prior to the test, Ted and Punchy begin talking about Punchy's wedding. After hanging up, Ted argues with Robin about his ability to be an effective

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony and performs the first speech at the wedding. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be s ...

, especially in the event that Punchy gets

cold feet Cold feet is a phrase that refers to a person not going through with an action, particularly one which requires long term commitment, due to fear, uncertainty, and doubt. A person is said to be "getting cold feet" when, after previously committin ...

. Robin reveals that she

audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece ...

ed as a "currency rotation specialist" (coin-flip

bimbo Bimbo is slang for a conventionally attractive, sexualized, naive, and unintelligent woman. The term was originally used in the United States as early as 1919 for an unintelligent or brutish man. As of the early 21st century, the "stereotypi ...

) in the

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or demonstrative and are typically directed by a host, ...

''Million Dollar Heads or Tails'', hosted by

. Ted

rebuke In English law and the canon law of the Church of England, a rebuke is a censure on a member of the clergy. (Google Books) It is the least severe censure available against clergy of the Church of England, less severe than a monition. A rebuke can ...

s her for bailing on her

New Year's Resolution A New Year's resolution is a tradition, most common in the Western World but also found in the Eastern World, in which a person resolves to continue good practices, change an undesired trait or behavior, accomplish a personal goal, or otherwise im ...

to be working for the World Wide News network by the end of the year. Robin admits that she applied for the network, but only an associate

researcher Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness t ...

position is available. When Marshall and Lily break the news of the pregnancy, Robin becomes aware of how her own life is stalling, and resolves to take the research position, but when they reveal the false positive, she changes her mind once more, deciding that she is content to be a "coin-flip bimbo". Barney, meanwhile, has received an end-of-year

bonus Bonus commonly means: * Bonus, a Commonwealth term for a distribution of profits to a with-profits insurance policy * Bonus payment, an extra payment received as a reward for doing one's job well or as an incentive Bonus may also refer to: Place ...

, which he intends to spend on luxuries for himself, including a suit with diamond

pinstripe Pinstripes are a pattern of very thin stripes of any color running in parallel. The pattern is often found in fashion. The pinstripe is often compared to the similar chalk stripe. Pinstripes are very thin, often in width, and are created with ...

s. When he hears about the pregnancy, he realizes how unfulfilled his

selfishness Selfishness is being concerned excessively or exclusively, for oneself or one's own advantage, pleasure, or welfare, regardless of others. Selfishness is the opposite of altruism or selflessness; and has also been contrasted (as by C. S. Lewis) ...

has left him, and decides to spend the money helping others. After buying the patrons of MacLaren's designer clothes, toys and

condom A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of inte ...

s, and taking them to a

strip club A strip club is a venue where strippers provide adult entertainment, predominantly in the form of striptease or other erotic or exotic dances. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, and can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style. Am ...

, Barney goes to see Sam Gibbs, his brother's father and a minister, to make a donation to his church. He begins to write a check for $10,000 when he gets the news about the false positive, and adds a decimal point to turn it into $100, returning to his selfish ways and, indeed, buying his diamond-striped suit. Immediately after they discover and announce the

pregnancy Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ...

test's results, Marshall and Lily secretly begin to panic about how unprepared they are to raise a child, and scramble to complete pre-delivery remodelling of their apartment in one night. After an argument about playing music for the child, the couple see the doctor, who tells them Lily is not pregnant. Marshall and Lily meet up with the rest of the gang outside the theater and admit that they are relieved about the false positive. Since they are not ready for kids, they are considering getting a dog for now. When Robin and Barney agree with them, Ted angrily smashes the gingerbread house and orders everybody to reconsider their decisions, forcing Marshall and Lily to go straight back home to try to conceive, yelling to the "criminals of New York" about Barney's suit, effectively making him a walking target for theft, and ordering Robin to take the research job. When Punchy calls him, suffering the predicted cold feet, Ted angrily orders him to get married, solving that problem as well. After everyone leaves, he decides to watch ''It's a Wonderful Life'' alone. In the end, Marshall and Lily continue trying to conceive, Barney returns the diamond suit, makes his intended cash donation to the ministry and also donates suits for jobless people to wear to interviews, and Robin begins her first day at World Wide News. Back at the apartment, Robin thanks Ted for his fit of rage and he accepts her offer to be the best man if she ever marries anyone else.

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 cr ...

'' gave the episode an A− rating. Robert Canning 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 dist ...

gave the episode a rating of 9.5 out of 10. DeAnn Welker of

Television Without Pity Television Without Pity (often abbreviated TWoP) was a website that provided detailed recaps of select television dramas, situation comedies and reality TV shows along with discussion forums. These recaps were written with sarcastic criticism and ...

graded the episode an A.

References

External links

* {{How I Met Your Mother episodes, 6 2010 American television episodes American Christmas television episodes How I Met Your Mother (season 6) episodes Pregnancy-themed television episodes