I thought the show was going downhill lately, but the past two episode have been amazing. Sad, but amazing. Last nights was a mixture of every emotion. Laughter, sadness, etc.It was definitely a great episode with a lot of heart and meaning. Caught myself getting teary-eyed several times. Sent out a great message that I am sure a lot of people needed to receive.I thought the show dealt with the death of Marshall's father in a very touching manner. We should all think about our words and imagine that they are our last ones.to all the people who say this episode sucks, you need to realize that this series is one of the best the most absorbing television series that's come out in years.It's a comedy but it's also about the lives of these people. And the writers wanted to show them go through life as we all do, with the loss of people we love.cant wait to meet barneys's "uncle jerry"
6 Reviews
Last Words (#6.14)
ComedyFan201026 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
We go to Marshall dad's funeral and this episode combines the sad and the funny in a but different way than the previous one. Here through the whole episode we laugh and yet have moments where the heart just breaks.
Having Marshall remember the last words of his dad was actually pretty funny, and yet the struggle he went through before listening to his dad's answering machine was heart breaking. And so well performed. By all of them. Jason Segel mainly of course, but everyone of them managed to show well a friend who tries the best to help Marshall to make it through difficult time and yet feel at loss sometimes. And the final words he got were indeed great.
Having Marshall remember the last words of his dad was actually pretty funny, and yet the struggle he went through before listening to his dad's answering machine was heart breaking. And so well performed. By all of them. Jason Segel mainly of course, but everyone of them managed to show well a friend who tries the best to help Marshall to make it through difficult time and yet feel at loss sometimes. And the final words he got were indeed great.
Another Tearjerker Of An Episode
slightlymad2227 January 2015
Anothersad episode of "How I Met Your Mother" with this one dealing with the funeral, after the heartbreaking death of Marshall's beloved Dad in the last episode.
Plot In A Paragraph; All the gang head to Minnesota for Marvin Ericsson's funeral. Everybody wants to be there for Marahall and all believe they know their role. Marshall meanwhile is struggling with his Dad's last words to him, which were to rent "Crocodile Dundee 3".
Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan again knock it out of the park. They are fantastic. I'm surprised Ted didn't take Zoe with him to the funeral (following on from the joke in the episode 'Say Cheese') but since I don't care for the character, I don't miss her!!
Plot In A Paragraph; All the gang head to Minnesota for Marvin Ericsson's funeral. Everybody wants to be there for Marahall and all believe they know their role. Marshall meanwhile is struggling with his Dad's last words to him, which were to rent "Crocodile Dundee 3".
Jason Segel and Alyson Hannigan again knock it out of the park. They are fantastic. I'm surprised Ted didn't take Zoe with him to the funeral (following on from the joke in the episode 'Say Cheese') but since I don't care for the character, I don't miss her!!
Crack
bevo-1367815 June 2020
Many find it an absorbing experience, I find it a bitterly disappointing one
SLionsCricketreviews22 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Sitcoms rarely deal with the deaths of important characters, or characters that are important to key characters. "The Last Words" focuses around the death and funeral of Marshall's dad, and what should have been a fairly quiet and reflective episode, is instead one that is tonally inconsistent and jarring.
I wanted "The Last Words" to be quiet, to put the viewer in Marshall's shoes - to have him deal with this death and in the process, to have him grow up. There is one episode in a specific television show - one of my favourites - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" where a key character deals with a world changing death. That episode is like none other in that show, and took that show to new heights as far as quality was concerned. Of course, Alyson Hannigan is the connection to that episode, which is "The Body".
I find in this episode, almost all attempts at humour to not work. Any piece of humour at the funeral is stilted, because such an occasion does that warrant humour. Of course, the special guest star appearance by Danny Strong (also another "Buffy" connection) works, because his character is written as the stereotypical high school bully. When Ted and Barney are looking at videos of people getting hit in the groin, it is sheer awful. The writers lack the control to create an episode that is really special, without having to inject its dumb humour.
Some of the flashback scenes work, and some of the moments where the gang contemplate what their dads' final words would be is well done. It does move the plot forward in one other aspect, that is Barney is ready to meet his father. The idea in this episode is one pivotal to life. A final word is overrated, as it does not convey the love a father shares for a child over a lifetime. A last word can really be what you want it to be, as Marshall so rightly chooses by the end of this episode. That moment at the memorial service was well done, but I have to say, I am disappointed by Jason Segel's lack of scope as far as dramatic acting is concerned. Alyson Hannigan, in a role that required less, was far better.
"The Last Words" is wildly inconsistent. At times, a contemplative experience, and at other times, filled with trite humour, this episode unfortunately falls into the 'less than good' category of the show. It is fair to say that the episode was a misfire, at least personally, and it feels very much like many other HIMYM episodes.
I wanted "The Last Words" to be quiet, to put the viewer in Marshall's shoes - to have him deal with this death and in the process, to have him grow up. There is one episode in a specific television show - one of my favourites - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" where a key character deals with a world changing death. That episode is like none other in that show, and took that show to new heights as far as quality was concerned. Of course, Alyson Hannigan is the connection to that episode, which is "The Body".
I find in this episode, almost all attempts at humour to not work. Any piece of humour at the funeral is stilted, because such an occasion does that warrant humour. Of course, the special guest star appearance by Danny Strong (also another "Buffy" connection) works, because his character is written as the stereotypical high school bully. When Ted and Barney are looking at videos of people getting hit in the groin, it is sheer awful. The writers lack the control to create an episode that is really special, without having to inject its dumb humour.
Some of the flashback scenes work, and some of the moments where the gang contemplate what their dads' final words would be is well done. It does move the plot forward in one other aspect, that is Barney is ready to meet his father. The idea in this episode is one pivotal to life. A final word is overrated, as it does not convey the love a father shares for a child over a lifetime. A last word can really be what you want it to be, as Marshall so rightly chooses by the end of this episode. That moment at the memorial service was well done, but I have to say, I am disappointed by Jason Segel's lack of scope as far as dramatic acting is concerned. Alyson Hannigan, in a role that required less, was far better.
"The Last Words" is wildly inconsistent. At times, a contemplative experience, and at other times, filled with trite humour, this episode unfortunately falls into the 'less than good' category of the show. It is fair to say that the episode was a misfire, at least personally, and it feels very much like many other HIMYM episodes.
It just doesn't work
puzgolac23 May 2022
There are two things that never turn out to be good in any series.
First is the overarching plot line or mystery or similar, that spans many seasons or the entirety of a show. Every show that tries to do that inevitably loses its way after some time and you are left with a confusing mess that the writers (sometimes) try to fix by slapping retcons like band aids on a severed limb.
Second is the sudden change of tone or style of a show. Be it for an episode, or longer.
Sadly, this show does both of these things, and, as expected, fails both times.
The whole ongoing theme of "this is your mother, no wait it isn't; this is how i met her, no wait it isn't; this is what lead to us meeting, but actually it will happen sometime in the future" got old during season 2. And in this and the previous episode, the writers, for some reason, decided to jam the death of Marshall's father down viewers' throats.
The problem is that this show is not a serious drama, never was, and obviously the writers are not skillful enough to pull that off. Therefore, the whole deep and serious tone feels fake and hollow and is just an attempt to score some cheap "feelz" from the viewers by trying to appeal to an automatic reaction - someone's father died, so you should feel sad; also, we write about sad stuff, so it means that it is deep and meaningful writing. Another problem is that, despite attempts to make it look that way, Marshall's supposedly strong connection to his father was never truly established nor present. And finally, the whole change of tone is so sudden that it just feels awkward and out of place. Yes, such sudden bad things do happen in real life, but here it was just done poorly. Also, anybody trying to argue that this show is an accurate representation of real life is fighting a battle that just can't be won.
The whole "we're going serious" thing was a failed experiment. Hopefully they won't try that again.
First is the overarching plot line or mystery or similar, that spans many seasons or the entirety of a show. Every show that tries to do that inevitably loses its way after some time and you are left with a confusing mess that the writers (sometimes) try to fix by slapping retcons like band aids on a severed limb.
Second is the sudden change of tone or style of a show. Be it for an episode, or longer.
Sadly, this show does both of these things, and, as expected, fails both times.
The whole ongoing theme of "this is your mother, no wait it isn't; this is how i met her, no wait it isn't; this is what lead to us meeting, but actually it will happen sometime in the future" got old during season 2. And in this and the previous episode, the writers, for some reason, decided to jam the death of Marshall's father down viewers' throats.
The problem is that this show is not a serious drama, never was, and obviously the writers are not skillful enough to pull that off. Therefore, the whole deep and serious tone feels fake and hollow and is just an attempt to score some cheap "feelz" from the viewers by trying to appeal to an automatic reaction - someone's father died, so you should feel sad; also, we write about sad stuff, so it means that it is deep and meaningful writing. Another problem is that, despite attempts to make it look that way, Marshall's supposedly strong connection to his father was never truly established nor present. And finally, the whole change of tone is so sudden that it just feels awkward and out of place. Yes, such sudden bad things do happen in real life, but here it was just done poorly. Also, anybody trying to argue that this show is an accurate representation of real life is fighting a battle that just can't be won.
The whole "we're going serious" thing was a failed experiment. Hopefully they won't try that again.
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