Welcome back to part two of OCTV’s mid-year wrap up, where Nicole and SB go over what they’ve been watching all year and take a step back to look at the seasons (or the seasons so far) as a whole. If you missed part one, you can find it here. Gifs are generously rounded up by hockeybychoice, and as always, Nicole’s thoughts are in purple and SB’s are in blue. Enjoy and be sure to comment!
How I Met Your Mother
This show has really impressed me with it’s willingness to go places where most traditional sitcoms would be afraid to go. The most impressive and heartbreaking example of this is last year’s storyline about the death of Marshall’s dad which can still make me tear up if I picture Alyson Hannigan’s cryface and remember Jason Segel’s strained ‘I’m not ready for this’. The whole thing was so well done and they found a fantastic balance of humor and emotion to tell the story over the subsequent weeks. As someone similar in age to the characters, I appreciate the fact that the show will go there and show the funny and human side of all the shit you go through in life around this age.
This year, the drama has been about Robin and her inability to have kids, and how she feels about that considering that she was always the one that said she never wanted them. Again, I can totally relate to this. I’ve never particularly wanted be an Olympic pole vaulter for Team Canada either, but if the option was suddenly taken away from me, I don’t know how I’d feel about it. At this point, I appreciate this show for it’s ability to tell (mostly) good stories each week, and for making me laugh AND cry, and I don’t particularly give a shit HOW he met their goddamn mother. I stopped caring about that a long time ago. But as long as I feel connected to these people and the show is willing to take chances with stories and subject matter, I’ll be watching.
Yeah, you know, I read a lot of professional critcs’ opinions about this show and their increasing rage, and I’m always a little confused, like … REALLY? It’s not that they don’t make valid points, I guess, but I just kind of feel like what they’re getting worked up about isn’t that big a deal, and I pretty much feel like if you’re still watching the show with the actual expectation of Ted finding the mother, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment every week. And I don’t know, it just seems weird to me keep watching a show that’s going to stress you out. But then, I’m not a professional critic, so if I don’t want to watch something … I just don’t.
Anyway, I agree with Nicole that this show has had a lot of really great acting, especially in the least year or two. Those episodes where Marshall’s dad died were excruciating, in a good way. I also got emotional about the Olympic pole vaulter episode, and how about Barney finding his real dad? All awesome.
My only real issues in the past year have been Zoey (how do you actually make Jennifer Morrison, of all people, insufferable?) and Kevin. I’m fine with Ted being single (also, I really don’t know why everyone hates Ted so much … I guess I wouldn’t say he’s my FAVORITE, but he’s fine, and he just serves such a definite purpose within the group–but I digress), but I’m not sure why we’re still keeping Barney and Robin apart at this point. The writers really fucked it up once, and I thought things were getting back on track. I’m okay with a short “choosing Kevin, pregnancy scare” detour, but I hope it’s short. Obviously Lily and Marshall have their happily ever after, and Ted is working on his … is it so unreasonable to give Robin and Barney theirs, when it’s so obviously each other?
But even the prolonged agony of Robin and Barney isn’t enough to keep me away from the show. I really like it–it’s funny, the cast has awesome chemistry, and it’s a nice half hour on a Monday. I’m in for the long haul.
