Monday, July 28, 2014

When shit on How I Met Your Mother got real

Posted by Katina at 8:23 PM

*This is about the finale. If you're like me and have been delayed in watching it, don't read this.*

Before I left on my overseas trip I had been frantically trying to watch the second half of the final season of How I Met Your Mother. I was keeping up with the States, then fell a bit behind.

I left, and was then reminded multiple times while away, that I had failed to get the final double episode under my belt. It killed me. And others too, who so badly wanted to discuss the ending...

I made it one of my weekend's priorities to finish this chapter of modern television. I've been back more than a week and am yet to turn on my actual TV, but got on the web for this. And WOW. I know I'm behind everyone else here, but I need to have my two cents because this is one of my favourite shows and I'm upset it's over.


Not one to really pick out the way something is heading, I didn't see this coming at all. I hadn't read rumours about the Mother - Tracy - dying, and I've been watching the last few seasons sporadically thanks to my persistence in dealing with the airing on Australian free-to-air television (that won't be happening again...).

What got me the most stumped from this is just how quickly the news of Barney and Robin's divorce was announced, and then not really discussed. And you didn't even have the time to digest it before 50 other things were flung at you to deal with. Like fans were quick to point out, it stumps you because you'd just watched a whole season revolving around their wedding day. For nothing.

One of the simpler memes to arise from the finale.
Then there's the actual ending. For the show was not really about how Ted met his kids' mother at all, but his love for Robin - which really, we all thought had been properly shut down some time ago with her constant rejections.

My idea was that the whole premise would end when he said 'and that kids, is how I met your mother'. But it kept going and I think therein lies the problem. I get that people die and you have to move on, but I don't know that this would really happen. If it does for some people fine, but these two grew apart in those years so why would Ted still be pining for her? Because the love of his life died so he can go for her now they're old and alone? You'd think them getting together in the end would be a marriage of companionship as opposed to love (certainly from Robin's side). 

Reactions as collected by the Sydney Morning Herald give a pretty good picture of what viewers thought. Other blogs also described disappointment and sadness at the ending. I'm still not really sure how I feel about it. But I'll be honest and say that there were good parts to it. Namely Barney's reaction to meeting his daughter, which was probably a little cheesy in reference to previous use of his words but also quite touching.


Having slept on it, I've realised just how much the show grew up. Yes, that final episode was rushed, but there was a life past nights at MacLaren's Pub for all of them. It was a little difficult to watch. When so much revolves around something, like season nine with the wedding, and then its whole ideal is shattered, it's a metaphor for the way some things really go in life. In a way shit got real more than ever before.

I can't say I'm totally happy with the ending, but I see its merit. It was good television for the fact most didn't see the twists coming - something becoming harder and harder to achieve these days. And that's what satisfies its creators at least. It should satisfy us, but I'm calling it to say this will divide people for a really long time.

Now that I'm happy to talk about it, I want to see what people think about this with it not being so fresh. Please comment and let me know what you thought!

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