On the season six episode “Bad News,” various numbers can be seen on screen, starting from 50 and seemingly counting down, as if the universe is trying to tell these characters of some impending event that’s beyond their control (and in real-world terms, show co-creator Carter Bays is telling us that not is all as it seems by referencing the aesthetic of Drowning By Numbers). Despite the otherwise insanely comedic tone of this episode, once all the numbers run out, so does the laughter: At Count Zero, Lily tells Marshall that his father had passed away.