Oh Neil Patrick Harris. How I love you. How everyone loves you! However. Not only was last night’s episode of How I Met Your Mother very upsetting (we can talk in the comments, fellow viewers) there was also a whole lot of “Barney eats! Barney gets fat! NPH puts on a fat suit!” humor. (Also it was weird, because in that fat suit NPH looks just like Jiminy Glick.)

The weight gain was presented in the show as not very true-to-life; Ted had a line to the effect that “Barney and Robin only ‘let themselves go’ a little bit, but we saw them like this…” so it was deliberately exaggerated for comic effect. I hate the phrase “let themselves go” a lot, and I didn’t find the scenes of Barney eating or all the jokes about all his food intake all that funny.

Not that the fat suit upset me all that much, especially in relation to the truly upsetting developments, but as I’ve said before, I consider it a cliche way to get cheap laughs. Are fat suits done yet?

When I saw this sketch, I wavered between, “come on, it’s Jon Stewart, you’re taking this way too seriously” and unease, which Tanteterri articulated well:

What do you do when one of your heroes disappoints you so deeply?

Last night on the Daily Show, after a hiatus, they started out with fat jokes. With Jon Stewart in a fat suit. How droll. Not. A whole sketch about how Jon apparently became hugely fat by eating cheese steak sandwiches and milkshakes at the Jersey Shore while he was on vacation.

I love Jon Stewart. I love the Daily Show. And it is so disappointing to see this kind of bigotry portrayed on a show that is my main source of news.

Actually, in his moment of Zen, Jon was shown dancing around in his fat suit, looking like he was having the time of his life – and I liked those joyous images. But of course, they had to end with Jon doing exercises asking “is it gone yet” after each push up. Grrrr.

I don’t know how Jon can’t see the connection between his actions and the quote played later in connection with health reform where someone complained about their tax dollars going to help people who were killing themselves. I may be wrong, but I took this to be an attack on fat people – and that somehow we are unworthy of health coverage.

I did post on the Daily Show forum with my complaint, and I was happy to see, I was not the first person to complain about the fat jokes.

I hate these kinds of quandaries of conscience. The Daily Show is usually excellent. I really don’t want to boycott it. But I don’t want to support this kind of behavior either.

For those of you who missed it, here’s the video. I’d love to know what you think, and if you plan to write in and complain about a smart guy resorting to dumb humor.

I was wondering if there were styles of bathing suits that looked good on fat people. Also, if any of them have sleeves or anything like that. I want to be able to cover my upper arms, tummy, hips, back, and thighs. Does anyone know any specialty stores or websites?

Sleeves! Oh honey, no. Here are some of the answers:

I know its tempting to cover up when you’re larger and not confident about your body, but only cover up in moderation. If you cover EVERYthing on your body it will only draw more attention to those areas. Instead you need a suit that doesn’t cover up but that diverts the eye to your body parts that you like.

http://www.wholesomewear.com has very modest styles of suits. They have sleeves and some have culottes or longer skirts. It sounds like you want something very modest, but not very tight… these may work for you! Still, when I go to the beach, I see lots of big gals in bikinis, and I wish I had a fraction of their self-confidence!!!

Seriously, check out the “slimming swimwear” from that Wholesome Wear site! Oh my god. I’m sorry, but even Nicki from Big Love wouldn’t wear this stuff into their backyard polygamy pool.

More answers:

sweetie its okay to show your arms just wear a one piece bathing suit with a skirt cover up. It’ll be cute…. show some confidence gurl you’ll look HOT! Have fun where ever your going.

sounds like you want a wet suit.

Not being a believer in the “bathing suit with a skirt” thing, I tend to go for boy-cut shorts and halters. But I recently got this suit by Land’s End and think it looks very cute. But it is also very spendy! I bought it back in those halcyon days when I had something called “a job.”

What about you? Are you pro- or anti- the bathing suit skirt concept? Are you headed to to the beach, a pool, or a hot tub this summer? Where did you buy your suit? And what style of bathing garment “suits” you!? (HAHAHA! A PUN! And while I’m at it, please note that I put this in the category of “Fat Suits.” I can’t help myself.)

The Daily Mail wanted to know what it was like to send a “fattie” to fashion week. So, did they hire an overweight reporter to go to fashion week and write an article? Of course not! They put a thin reporter in a very weird fat suit and horrible clothes. And guess what? She learned some stuff. In slightly patronizing style. (Bracketed text mine.)

The effect, though, is very soft and sexy. There are no rolls of wobbly flesh: [God forbid!] my stomach is gently rounded and my magnificent bosom [Thank god for those of us with nice breasts; at least we have that to fall back on.] looks like something you’d want to rest your head on and fall asleep in for 100 years. [Yeah, I feel so sexy when people take naps on me.]

My bottom is big but pert, and, beneath my clothes, looks like two puppies fighting under a blanket. [How is this a compliment? I mean, I've heard this before. But don't get it.] As someone who has been a size 10-12 most of my adult life, being a size 22 is a shock. I practise smiling at my reflection. The big girl beams back.

I feel like a completely different person — one who says, ‘Yeah, I’m big, so what? Accept me as I am.’ [Don fat suit! Find your inner fat acceptance advocate!] I want to streak up and down the street shouting, ‘Look at me!’

I satisfy my exhibitionist urge by taking ‘naked’ pictures of myself and sending them to my friends. The girls mostly think it’s a hoot, [Ha ha! She's fat!] while the boys are rather taken with my newfound curves. [In a fake fat suit? I seriously doubt that.]

Jezebel tears the article apart nicely.

She donned a strange, ill-fitting fat suit which leads one to wonder whether some of the looks she got from fashionistas might have arisen from the fact that she had a tiny head and neck emerging from a completely different body. Then too, as one of the Mail’s commenters indignantly remarked, “I am not convinced she was being stared at not because she was fat but because she was so hideously dressed!!! Just because she was fat did not mean she could not have chosen something more stylish. Even fat people try to dress nicely and co-ordinated when they go out.”

Well, the method reporter apparently felt the need to swathe herself in raspberry, lime and leopard. (And it should be mentioned that when Faithfull notices the similarly full-figured comedienne Dawn French at the shows, she’s not facing the same kind of ostracism- celebrity can’t hurt, but neither does a to-scale head.)

This reporter seems to mean well, but comes across as condescending and misguided. Why not just send a real fat chick and see what happens? Is there someone out there who is fat and not tacky and has been to fashion week and can tell us the real story… anyone?

Thanks to Nonk for the link!

Murphy’s “Norbit,” released amid a film-honors season that earned Murphy an Academy Awards nomination for “Dreamgirls” last year, received eight Razzie nominations, five of them for Murphy alone, more than anyone has ever gotten in a single year.

Besides worst picture, “Norbit” had nominations for Murphy as worst actor in the title role, supporting actress as Norbit’s beefy wife, supporting actor as an Asian man and worst screen couple for Norbit opposite either of Murphy’s other characters. Murphy also shared a screenplay nomination for co-writing “Norbit.”

“We decided that each of his characters was so offensive that he deserved individual nominations,” said Razzies founder John Wilson.

God, that’s funny. And yet Norbit was nominated for an Oscar for best makeup, while Hairspray was totally shut out. Oh my god, I feel ill. Are you aware that there are people in the world who actually love Norbit? What the…. what?!

First of all, there’s a Santa in Scotland who is refusing to wear a fat suit because he thinks Santa encourages children to be obese. Which… COME THE FUCK ON. We’ve had a fat Santa long before we’ve had an “obesity crisis.” Santa is a character. Santa is not a role model for children. What kid thinks, “I want to grow up and be fat so I can be Santa!” I’ll give you a hint: none. What a stupid overreaction, honestly.

In further fat suit developments, John Travolta recieved a Golden Globe nomination for playing Edna Turnblad in, what else, a fat suit. Down With Pants does not approve.

Travolta didn’t understand the character and at his insistence, he turned Edna into a woman that isn’t that far off looks-wise from some bigger women that all of us know. Other than the horrible job they did with the eyes of the fat suit, Travolta was never ugly nor frumpy nor that terribly big. And he played her as a wide-eyed, naive, practically retarded woman that looks on in amazement and wonder as she gets dragged along with Tracey.

It’s an interesting analysis, although I don’t agree fully. I do see Travolta’s Edna as frumpy at the beginning of the movie; I find Edna’s transformation touching, which is in part due to Travolta’s performance; and I also see what Travolta was going for in his attempt to make Edna “real” as opposed to what might be seen as a one-joke caricature.

The performance still bothers me a little (especially the odd accent) but I’ve made my peace with it because I do love the movie. Do I think Travolta should win, or have even been nominated? Well, no. He was a weak spot in a good movie. Plus, at this point, Tom Wilkinson should win for Michael Clayton (although I have not seen any of the other nominated performances). But I digress.

Anyway, in a response to our post yesterday about ol’ Squintyface, I have to say that Fatly Yours really put a finger on something that I have never been able to articulate.

It’s the same effect as the fat suit – it’s “funny” to see a skinny star (Courteney Cox, Gwyneth Paltrow, “Weird Al” Yankovic) in a fat suit, because it makes them look unnatural and strange all of a sudden. The problem is that it also makes fatness look unnatural and strange and laughable.

I think this is so brilliant and right on. Anyway, I am also starting to think we need a Fat Suit category at BFD, given how much it has come up lately. Criminy.

Why do you have to be such a douchebag, Ben Stiller? Stop tainting my love for Zoolander and your episode of Extras. Or maybe I should blame the Farrelly brothers, since they wrote the thing. Wait a minute, they also wrote that “love letter to fat people” called Shallow Hal. AHA! Now do you believe me, Shallow Hall defenders? I knew that wasn’t a love letter to fat people! I knew it!

But you know what the really great news is? According to this list of movies featuring fat suits (I am amazed this list exists, by the way), Hairspray has made more money than Norbit. Now if that doesn’t put the “good” in “feel-good Friday,” I don’t know what will!

The super slim fashion icon, who recently moved to the States, will shock viewers by turning up at a top notch wedding in a fat suit – having pigged out on fatty American food. “Everybody at the wedding will be expecting skinny beautiful Posh to show up,” said an insider at the ABC network. “But they’ll be horrified to see she’s piled on the pounds because of major comfort eating and American junk food.”

This makes me really fucking angry, and do you know why? In the not-too-distant past, it came to light that Posh was considered “thinspiration” for anorexic girls. I don’t blame Posh for being thin, and it’s not her fault that the pro-ana movement co-opted her in this manner. But she has a responsibility to think about the image she projects. Showing up in a fat suit just sends the message that if she gained weight, it would be both horrifying and hilarious. I mean, just look at the quote above. She’s not “beautiful” anymore because she’s fat. How does this do anything but reinforce the “thinspiration” phenomenon?

I don’t want to jump to judgment before the show airs, I really don’t. And I don’t know how fat the fat suit is going to be or how it’s even going to be dealt with. Maybe I’ll be eating my words and telling everyone how hilarious and positive the episode turned out to be. But somehow I’m failing to come up with the plotline that would provoke that kind of reaction. Anyone?

A couple more reactions. From Buzz Sugar:

I, for one, feel like she’s the perfect level of kitsch for the show and can’t wait to see her cameo.

And from Bite Size:

Just how big is this fat suit gonna be? To make her normal size would require a fat suit. Never mind supersized.

How about you guys? Especially the Ugly Betty watchers among you. What do you think?