How I Met Your Mother S07E20 – Trilogy Time

How I Met Your Mother S07E20 – Trilogy Time

Ted, Marshall and Barney embark on another "trilogy time," where they get together every three years to watch the "Star Wars" trilogy and envision what their lives will be like in another three years. Meanwhile Barney and Quinn move in together.


The episode begins with a man observing Barney from his window, confused as to why Barney comes out of his apartment at 8:00 pm every night, walks seven paces and smiles. It turns out that Barney does this to pass gas, as he can't to do it in his apartment anymore, now that he and Quinn are living together. Although, Quinn has sold all of her stuff because Barney wants his apartment as it is, she wants to use her own coffee mugs instead of his, which Barney doesn't approve of. He tells her that he has to assert his dominance as a man in his apartment, which results in a fight between them. He finds the gang unsympathetic at his situation, but as he is about to leave Ted's new apartment, Ted stops him for another "Trilogy Time", in which they watch the original Star Wars trilogy.
The tradition started in 2000, when Ted and Marshall were in Wesleyan. They were supposed to study for their economics final, however Ted proposes that they watch the Star Wars trilogy instead. They make a pact to watch it every three years, since according to Marshall, if one didn't watch the trilogy at least once every three years, the dark side wins. Barney is later included in this pact. (Ted and Marshall both get 0's on their economics finals).
With every "Trilogy Time", the guys predict their future for the next three:

• Marshall is sporting a mustache, is successful lawyer, settled in with Lily, with Lily always being pregnant, since he wants a large family.
• Ted is a successful architect, and is with a girl who looks like Robin, has a name starting with R, and is from another country.
• Barney is always with a new girl.

However, the future that Ted and Marshall predict for themselves never turns out to be true.
In 2012, Ted thinks that there is something wrong with him, as he still hasn't settled down with someone. He predicts the future for 2015, in which he is still living alone, while Marshall and Lily are happy with a large family, Robin has married someone else, and Barney is with a new girl. However, Barney doesn't agree with what Ted has predicted for him, saying that for first time in his life, he doesn't want to be with some random girl in three years, and wants to still be with Quinn in the future. He then leaves to apologize to her, by smashing his own mugs, and also tells her that he plans on being with her for a long time. The two later end up passing gas in front of each other.
Meanwhile, Marshall comforts Ted, saying that he has a good feeling about Ted's life in 2015. In a flash forward to 2015, Marshall and Barney set up for another "Trilogy Time." Though Barney complains that Ted is breaking their tradition by bringing a girl, he and Marshall make an exception because Ted really loves the girl, who is revealed to be his infant daughter Penny.