Barney finally meets the father who abandoned him and must come to terms with the fact that his dad is just a boring old suburban father. The gang begins pointing out each other's flaws.
This episode provides examples of:
- Armor-Piercing Question: "If you were going to be some lame suburban dad, why couldn't you have been that for me?!"
- Calling the Old Man Out: After learning his half-brother is named Jerome Jr., Barney finally snaps and demands to know why his father left him.
- Compressed Vice: Most of the gang's flaws have never been previously mentioned, and are never mentioned again, such as Lily's inability to throw and Marshall's inability to swallow pills.
- Downer Ending: Barney's last interaction with his father before "Hopeless":Jerry: If you ever feel like you're ready, I'd love nothing more than to be a part of your life.
Barney: ...Bye. - Easily Forgiven: Subverted. When Barney tells the gang about his evening with Jerry, he acts like he's completely forgiven him for walking out on him. However, it turns out that Barney lied about how it went and still resents Jerry, causing him to yell at Jerry and storm off.
- Hidden Depths: Barney seems to not want anything to do with Jerry just because he's not "cool" like he wanted him to be, but it turns out that he's angry at Jerry for only getting his life together after abandoning him.
- Parents as People: Jerry did walk out on Barney when he was young, but now has mellowed down and is genuinely remorseful for leaving him.
- Rejected Apology: Jerry attempts to make amends for abandoning Barney, but Barney refuses to accept his apologies and just walks away from him.
- Wham Line: Combined with a What the Hell, Hero? and Armor-Piercing Question, which explains the real reason Barney is so mad at Jerry."If you were going to be some lame suburban dad, why couldn't you have been that for me?!"
