@Not that you care, but... Disaster

Disaster adverted
It was the title of the show but can not be said about your post about it. This was a great try with a number of great aspects that you glossed over.

We agree that the Indian Jones opening was good. The laugh was only part of it. This is the announcement that they were going to step out of their writing mold for this show. In a season of safe calls this show was full of risks. Yeah, we all know that Barney tells fanciful stories this is the first time we get to see the story. In typical Barney style, the bases of his story is a movie he loves. Yes, we know Ted ells long stories, but this was done so well. It is a Saturday night at the cottage or Happyland. Someone is trying to tell a story and everyone else takes off on tangents, but the story teller keeps plugging on till the end. Like so many stories told by friends you know where it is going to end, but they are going to tell you it and the interruptions are not goint to stop them.If the interruptions were about kids i will never meet in middle school it would be my life. Any other week I might buy your time line argument but dates float during stories especially when they are told years latter. We have seen that the time between episodes varies and a pregnant friend seems to be pregnant forever. If Marshall was telling the story then order would be correct, but the single guy without a partner would remember the focus on the baby and the sicking sweet  behavior of his perfect couple friends as taking over a large chunk of his life. ted is telling the story and Ted only cares about Ted, the baby is steeling his spot lite and and although he would be over it he would remember it with the bias of a lonly guy not knowing if he would ever find happiness.Speaking of Marshall and Lilly their story wasn't irritating this week  and the bear was funny.

Now to the part you will not want to hear. Kal Penn was on in this show. He has become part of the group, the interaction wasn't forced and his evaluation was the pay off for the ducky tie story. So he gets his first win. The return of the slap bet was the return to normalcy and a place of comfort after exploring the risk of showing Barney's story,  drawing Ted's story though the whole show and giving a pay off laugh to the short timer.

Where you were right is that the Ducky tie should stay on the show and Kal Penn should get off of it. This is the first show we start to see Barny actually sorry for wearing the tie, how can it be over?  Robin and Barney almost kissing good, kissing in the cab was throwing away a moment that had much more potential. The last joke should have been a sign from a story we haven't heard yet. It could have been this season's goat.

Not living until a sign was created to stop your behavior is a great concept. Sailors binging in loose women need to pay in advance.