How I Met Your Mother

How I Met Your Mother (often abbreviated as HIMYM) is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS and was directed by Pamela Fryman. The series, which ran from 2005 to 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his group of friends in New York City's Manhattan. As a framing device, Ted, in the year 2030, recounts to his son, Luke and daughter, Penny, the events from 2005 to 2013 that led him to meet their mother. How I Met Your Mother is a joint production by Bays & Thomas Productions and 20th Century Fox Television and syndicated by 20th Television (now Disney-ABC Domestic Television).

Why It Rocks

 * 1) The idea of a married father named Ted Mosby telling his children a story on how he met their mother may sound simple on paper, but it has an entertaining execution, and many well-written stories.
 * 2) Brilliant acting from Josh Radnor to Neil Patrick Harris.
 * 3) Likable and realistic characters:
 * 4) * Ted is a struggling architect who just wants to find the love of his life.
 * 5) * Marshall is a hard-working lawyer who wants to provide support for his wife.
 * 6) * Robin is a Canadian who wants to fit into the city of New York.
 * 7) * Barney is a childish and cocky womanizer that gives good advice to Ted when finding a girl.
 * 8) * Lily is a loving wife for Marshall, and wants to do art.
 * 9) ** It also included likable side characters too, Ranjit, Mickey, Marvin, or Victoria.
 * 10) Great songs, with being the series' theme song Hey beautiful by The Solids, Barney's Awesome Song, The Funeral by Band of Horses, and many others.
 * 11) Memorable dialogue and moments, including Barney's "This is gonna be legend... wait for it... dary, legendary!" (as well as his countless creative high-fives), Marshall's slap bet, Ted's "Oh my God that sucks! I'm gonna do push-ups in the kitchen! TANTRUM!", Robin's, "Shut up!", and Lily's "You son of a bitch!/itch-bay!"
 * 12) For a comedy show like How I Met Your Mother, it isn't afraid to use themes like LGBT life.
 * 13) Many emotional moments; from Marvin's (Marshall's father) funeral, Robin finding out that she won't be having children anytime soon, Ted being heartbroken after being left at the altar, Barney sacrificing his love for Robin in the episode "Benefits", etc.
 * 14) Good morals, that being, "If two exes become friends with benefits, someone always gets hurt.", or "Knowing when to move on, and it's called growing up."
 * 15) It also tackles real-life relationships, since not everyone can be with someone they want to end up with or get happy endings, and life won't exactly give you the same way you thought it would turn out to be.
 * 16) Guest stars Ralph Macchio and William Zabka from The Karate Kid franchise made cameos.
 * 17) Josh Radnor is from Ohio like his character (Ted Mosby) while Cobie Smulders is a Canadian from British Columbia like her character (Robin Scherbatsky).

Bad Qualities

 * 1) Not for the easy prudes.
 * 2) As entertaining as it gets, the pacing can feel slow or formulaic at times, even when Ted isn't talking about himself meeting another woman in his story.
 * 3) There are characters who can either be unlikable, annoying, tiring, or just plain hypocritical, such as Karen (Ted's first girlfriend), Sandy Rivers, Scooter (Lily's ex-boyfriend), Jeannette, and Scott.
 * 4) * Stella, Ted's ex-fiancé made a point about why he shouldn't bring an ex (Both Robin and Tony) to their wedding, but came back to him after leaving Ted at the altar, making her a complete hypocrite.
 * 5) * While likable, Ted can sometimes act the opposite, and also an idiotic jerk.
 * 6) ** The same goes for Lily as well, since she's the reason why Ted has lost so many girlfriends in the past because she thinks "they're not right for him.", simplifying the fact that she's just as manipulative, if not, more so than Barney.
 * 7) Some bad or mediocre episodes such as "Bedtime Stories", "Mom and Dad", "The Burning Beekeeper", and "Last Forever" (series finale).
 * 8) *Speaking of the episode "Last Forever", it was a terrible way to end the show.

Trivia

 * Actress Cobie Smulders (Robin Scherbatski) had played as Agent Maria Hill in the mh:greatestmovies:Marvel Cinematic Universe.
 * A spin-off called, "How I Met Your Father", is set to release on January 18, 2022 exclusively on Hulu. It was never picked up by any networks after the infamous series finale "Last Forever" aired. It is widely known as one of the worst series finales ever made and ruined the show's reputation as well as the career of the show's crew.
 * Known for its unique structure, humor, and incorporation of dramatic elements, How I Met Your Mother was popular throughout its run. The show initially received positive reviews upon release, but reception became more mixed as the seasons went on.