Karma (How I Met Your Mother)

"Karma" is the 18th episode of the seventh season of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother, and the 154th episode overall. It aired on February 27, 2012.^[1][2]

Plot

Barney decides to pursue Quinn, even after discovering she works as a stripper named Karma. Barney tries to ask her out on a second date, and although she appears interested, she continually avoids answering and only wishes to hang out at the strip club; she always claims her boss is watching, and requests more money to make it appear like she’s working. When Ted hears about this, he realizes she is just playing Barney. When Barney sees Quinn behaving much the same towards another client, he realizes Ted was right, and apologizes to Quinn and leaves the club. Later, Barney runs into Quinn one morning buying coffee and chides her for playing him, but she tells him off for failing to recognize her even though she worked at the Lusty Leopard for a year. When she mentions a number of things that Barney mentioned to her, he accepts her offer to sit down for coffee, suggesting she is actually interested in him.

Robin has moved in with Lily and Marshall for a while, but becomes annoyed at their mundane lifestyle. When she attempts to flee one night, Lily and Marshall catch her. They admit they find the suburbs boring, but believe it is best for their upcoming child. Robin tells them that if they are unhappy with where they live, that will not make it the best place for their child. Robin finally moves out to stay with a colleague.

Since Robin had moved out, Ted has attempted to take his mind off her by using her empty room for various hobbies such as smoking meats, woodworking and pottery, none of which he does well in. Robin goes to meet Ted later, and helps him realize that some things shouldn’t be forced and that one should instead just move on. A few days later, Lily and Marshall receive a message from Ted to come hang out in the city, and the two eagerly rush off. When arriving at Ted’s apartment, they find the place empty and a note from Ted. Ted never took their names off the lease, and he has decided to move out for good as he needs a change. He gives the apartment to Marshall and Lily and has decided that Robin's old room should be used for their baby.

Critical response

The AV Club's Katherine Miller graded the episode at B. She commended the show for dealing with common complaints about the show this season, giving more time to tertiary characters and making a significant change to the living arrangements.^[3]

Ethan Alter of Television Without Pity gave the episode a B−.^[4]

IGN gave the episode 7 out of 10.^[5]

Chris O'Hara of TV Fanatic gave the episode a score of 4.0 out of 5.^[6]

References

External links

• "Karma" at the Internet Movie Database