It has been nearly two years since the finale of the popular and
eccentric show, How I Met Your Mother. I know I’m a bit late to the mix about
giving my opinion, but after watching the first episode a few weeks back, I
instantly became hooked and soon I had binge-watched all nine series.
Throughout its run, it blended comedy with realism perfectly. You
laughed in all the right places and felt for each character individually
whenever the show needed you to. The chemistry between each character can rival
that of the Friends (even though nothing has come close to beating Friends in
my opinion, and probably won’t for a very long time to come), but that’s an
article for another time.
The show centred on Ted Mosby and his friends as they led a very
reasonable life in New York. Ted’s mission was to find “the one” so that he can
settle down and start a family, as well as building up his career being an
Architect. His two friends since college, husband and wife, Marshall Ericksen
(Jason Segel) and Lilly Aldrin (Alyson Hannigan). Marshall was pursuing a life
being an environmental lawyer, which Lily was a Kindergarten teacher and
aspiring artist, so it isn’t surprising that when the finale came around, they
had three children and had achieved their life-long goals, and you couldn’t
have been more proud seeing two character’s relationship develop and grow.
Barney Stinson is considered the strangest out of the group, and hence the
reason why fans and critics instantly became strong fans of his. He was the
biggest womanizer ever. He thinks the idea of settling down and getting married
is the wrong thing to do, which is why I was very happy for him when he
eventually did. Robin Scherbatsky is the newest out of the five. She was
introduced when Ted saw her over the way and he had asked her out. Ted, being a
massive romantic, was able to secure a date with Robin, only to blow it when he
blurted out the words ‘I think I’m in love with you,’ which freaked Robin out.
She doesn’t outright disagree with marriage like Barney, but she did put
forward a strong case that she doesn’t want to get married or have kids. The
latter, which is seconded by Barney, which is another factor in why their love
for each other is so strong. So that’s a quick overview of the show.
Each episode kept you engaged and didn’t apologise for not letting
you go, which is fine because you didn’t mind not being able to leave. You had
to know what happened next. Throughout its nine series, it had built up a loyal
fan base that continues to this day, albeit considerably less after the twist
ending. Some people liked it, but the majority of fans and critics alike hated
it. I had to admit that it did come as quite a shock. They spend the entire
last series focusing on one entire weekend. After finally winning her heart,
Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders) and Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris)
were engaged to be married. The ninth season focused ironing out any kinks in
their relationship. After each crease had been filled out, their love for each
other strengthened, and when it had eventually gotten to the wedding, you knew
that they were destined to be together forever. Which is why, during the first
five minutes of the penultimate episode, fans went crazy after they announced
they had divorced because their relationship was strained. Robin’s career meant
that she was travelling a considerable amount, which Barney did struggle to
deal with.
And then the final episode came around, and in less than five
minutes, everyone’s jaws were hitting the ground. It turned out that the Mother
had passed away six years before Ted decided to tell his kids the story of how
they met, and that because the Mother wasn’t hardly in the story, his Kids,
figured out that he was still in love with Robin. The closing moments sees Ted
standing on the curb outside, calling for Robin and in the exact same way he
charmed her in the first episode, brought her the famous blue French horn. And
then the credits rolled and there would never be a new episode of How I Met
Your Mother.
Usually, when it comes to the finales of popular shows, I am able
to come up with a definitive opinion on whether I liked it or not. I loved the
ending to Friends because everyone was beginning a new chapter in their lives
and moving out of the main apartment. Smallville ended with Clark Kent completing
his journey and embracing his destiny, becoming Superman, albeit I would have
liked to have seen more of Clark wearing the suit, but overall, the finale was
incredible, massive and rounded off the Clark’s storyline brilliantly. Monk
ended fantastically, in my opinion, despite many critics saying that it cheated
slightly with the final clue to solve his wife, Trudy’s murder was right there
all along, but again, that’s another article for another time. Three different
shows, three definitive opinions. How I Met Your Mother is an exception. I
cannot decide whether I like it or not. There is so many emotions and events
happening is such a short amount of time, one minute you like it and the next
you don’t, and the next you are back to liking it again.
That’s why I am writing this article. I am going to come up with a
definitive answer once and for all by using a reliable system of listing the
many pros and cons the finale has. That way my thoughts will finally be
organised. If there are more cons and pros, then it will tell me that I dislike
the show, and if there are more pros and cons, well you get the idea.
Let’s start off with the pros.
It’s
realistic: As I said
before, it blends comedy and seriousness brilliantly. The mother passing away
is true to life unpredictable nature. You can spend so much time looking for
what you want, and when you finally found it, it’s taken away from you in the
next breath. The subject matter of divorce is indeed true to life as well. You
can discover that you love each other unconditionally, but after several years,
you slowly fade away from each other. Barney goes back to his ways before he
fell in love with Robin, and after a one-night-stand, he is told that he will
be a father. Upon seeing the baby, he immediately changes. In away, that moment
is beautiful. Marshall and Lily’s marriage, constant and strong throughout, and
only got stronger after each fight, proving that life isn’t all that bad.
The
creators, Carter Bays and Craig Thomas stuck to their guns: It was a risky move what they
did, but they stuck to it nevertheless. Before the series had even begun
filming, they had already envisioned the ending. You could almost say that they
figured out the ending, and worked backwards. I’m going to let you in on a
secret of mine. That’s what I do. When creating a story, it is hard to know
where to begin, so I figure out where and what I would like out of the idea,
save for a few tweaks here and there, and work backwards. That means, when I
begin writing, I have a clear idea where I would like to go so that I don’t
tangent off and ruin it. Throughout the show, there was a subtle clue woven
within: Ted always referred to the mother in the past tense. Yeah, I know that
this reason is more personal to me than just a standard opinion, but I loved
the fact that, they knew exactly where they wanted to go with the characters
that they had created and made sure they got there, no matter what.
Now let’s look at the cons.
All that
character development is gone: Robin didn’t want to get married and/or have kids. Ted did want
both of those things, so you knew that they wouldn’t work together. In one
Episode, when Barney is comforting Robin after a hard day, Robin invites Barney
up to her place, but not for the reason that Barney believes. Robin only wants
to spend time with her friend, and nothing more. After the initial shock of
Barney’s move, Robin asks why he did that, and Barney stated that they were a
perfect fit because they share the same views. Robin is then more surprised
with how much they do have in common more than Barney’s move, but still turns
him down. You can technically treat that as a sign for what is to come. They do
end up together. The entire last series is focused on getting those two
married. After every fight, they grew stronger as a couple.
No matter the show, you have to have character development, and
this show did just that and did it well. They didn’t rush things, they sorted
out everyone’s problems in a good and acceptable way, and everyone was happy at
the end of it. So when the finale came around, they did take so many steps
back. Barney and Robin divorcing meant that all that cleverly woven character
development felt wasted. It’s OK, knowing where you are going to go with the
story, but it did start going down a completely separate route without bringing
it around as smooth as the rest of the show was. Maybe the ending would have
been more accepted if they worked on it a bit more, say another nine years, but
packing all of that in one hour didn’t feel natural at all.
Nine years
loyal: I sat down
and binge-watched all nine series. But before I started to write this article,
I stepped into someone else’s shoes for a minute or two. If I had been watching
the show during its original run, I would have had to wait each week for it to
come around again, and then several months for the new series in September. I
would have fallen in love with the characters, and the closer the ending
approached, the sadder I would be knowing that I would eventually have to say
goodbye. I would have had some idea where the show would go.
One example as to how the show’s ending could have gone to round
off a good show. Robin discovered that she couldn’t have kids. Upon knowing
that, she was heartbroken, despite telling herself and everyone that she didn’t
want kids. If the creators wanted to be unpredictable and surprise everyone,
then Robin would discover that she is actually pregnant, and when Barney and
Robin – after their initial shock – upon seeing the baby for the first time,
fall in love with it and change their beliefs. Ted and Tracy, the mother, would
go on to live happily ever after. It would have been the ended that I would
have wanted if I had been loyal to it throughout its nine years run. But that
didn’t happen, and so people’s hate stems from going in a direction that no one
was expecting. If I were in their shoes, then I would have to agree with them
and say that it was a terrible ending.
The Mother
died: Well, at
least they did introduce her properly instead of only during the last few
moments of the show. Having waited for so long for the Mother to show up only to
find out that she died, that’s a kicker.
***
Conclusion: That’s three-two to the cons. I
have no choice by to say that I dislike the ending. The show itself is
brilliant, but upon knowing the ending, you are always going to know the
ending. Whenever Ted mentions the Mother, you’re always going to know that
she’s dead, and that Ted is using this story as a question to ask his kids if
he could ask out Robin once more. It changes the very dynamic of the show.
Neil Patrick Harris said in an interview on Dave Letterman’s show
that he considered the hate as a compliment “in a weird way, because it means
that they have grown up with these characters and feel like they wanted to go a
certain way, though I think it’s great. But our show really did cross the line
between funny funny really serious, and that was kind of the balance the show
had. And as the show grew up, and as we grew up in the show it ended in a more
adult way and I think it was a nice, reflective, kind of sad, but happy ending
to a long, long story.”
Unfortunately, I will have to disagree with you on that Neil, for
all the same reasons.
Thanks for reading
Antony Hudson
(TonyHadNouns)
My book, Sector 22: Zoey, is now available on Amazon, eBay, and SkyCat Publications' website:
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Ask me anything at:
ahudsonpresents@live.co.uk
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