How I Met the Season 8 Ending
Dear Carter Bays and Craig Thomas,
Just recently, I had the pleasure of watching the Season 8 ending of your Emmy-nominated show, How I Met Your Mother. After five years of waiting, I -- along with a million other fans -- finally got to meet "the Mother".
Though the finale ended on a high note, the whole season left a lot to be desired, especially from fans who have come to expect a certain degree of quality from a show they supported for so long -- a degree that this season unfortunately failed to deliver. Here's why:
1. The Quinn arc was unnecessary. We already suffered through Nora last season, a character who didn't play a major part in the story. Now, we have Quinn, an equally useless character who did nothing to advance the storyline. It would be better if, after Nora, the season went straight to Robin and Barney's engagement.
2. The jokes were getting old. The reason why viewers hung around for seven seasons (a very long time for any show)is because of the jokes. No doubt, HIMYM has supplied us with a vast array of pop culture gags and ideas -- the Murtah list, the Playbook, Barney's "Legen-wait for it- dary" catchphrase, etc -- that we reference in daily conversations with friends.
Now, the jokes seem trite, tired and trying-hard. There is that impulse to roll one's eyeball out of the eye socket with every corny punchline delivered by the cast. Even Barney is guilty of this. Yes, sweet, hilarious Barney.
Speaking of which...
3. Whatever happened to Ted? Sure, Barney may be the show's breakout character but it is still titled "How I Met Your Mother", not "How Uncle Barney is so Awesome". There is not enough of the Ted-Mother storyline this season. Only six episodes really focused on that aspect of the show. Six. Out of 24.
Sure, Ted may be an idealistic, romantic, lame character from time to time, but he is still the main protagonist.
4. Where is the heart? If jokes are the backbone of the show, then the heart-warming message after every episode is the delicious gooey center. Back then, watching HIMYM either left you in stitches, or teary-eyed. The writers had a direct line to the viewer's heart, touching them with the show's narrative and well-executed plot twists.
But recently, it's as if the show was just coasting along for the entire season, just trying to get it over with and get to the ending. The only episode that really tugged at my heartstrings was the Robots vs. Wrestlers sequel, when Ted had an imaginary scenario where he went to the Mother's apartment to confess his longing for her.
...
At this point, I apologize for being so angst-ridden for the past few paragraphs. Truth be told, I'm really a big fan of the show. I've never missed an episode ever since Season 1.
But it's precisely because of that that I'm here, wasting precious bandwidth to rant. As a fan, it's always saddening to see the deteriorating quality of a show I am fond with. No fan wants to see their show end on a poor note, after investing so much time and energy towards it. And definitely no fan wants to see their favorite characters turn into strangers they barely know. Just look at what happened to Community and Glee.
So please, for the last season of this glorious show, bring us back the HIMYM we loved -- the one that made us laugh and cherish our group of friends more after seeing how tight-knit Lily, Marshall, Ted, Robin and Barney were. Bring us the season we deserve after all these years of supporting the show. And please do it before we completely lose faith in the show.
We've had enough of "waiting for it" -- just get to the legendary ending already.
Just recently, I had the pleasure of watching the Season 8 ending of your Emmy-nominated show, How I Met Your Mother. After five years of waiting, I -- along with a million other fans -- finally got to meet "the Mother".
Though the finale ended on a high note, the whole season left a lot to be desired, especially from fans who have come to expect a certain degree of quality from a show they supported for so long -- a degree that this season unfortunately failed to deliver. Here's why:
1. The Quinn arc was unnecessary. We already suffered through Nora last season, a character who didn't play a major part in the story. Now, we have Quinn, an equally useless character who did nothing to advance the storyline. It would be better if, after Nora, the season went straight to Robin and Barney's engagement.
2. The jokes were getting old. The reason why viewers hung around for seven seasons (a very long time for any show)is because of the jokes. No doubt, HIMYM has supplied us with a vast array of pop culture gags and ideas -- the Murtah list, the Playbook, Barney's "Legen-wait for it- dary" catchphrase, etc -- that we reference in daily conversations with friends.
Now, the jokes seem trite, tired and trying-hard. There is that impulse to roll one's eyeball out of the eye socket with every corny punchline delivered by the cast. Even Barney is guilty of this. Yes, sweet, hilarious Barney.
Speaking of which...
3. Whatever happened to Ted? Sure, Barney may be the show's breakout character but it is still titled "How I Met Your Mother", not "How Uncle Barney is so Awesome". There is not enough of the Ted-Mother storyline this season. Only six episodes really focused on that aspect of the show. Six. Out of 24.
Sure, Ted may be an idealistic, romantic, lame character from time to time, but he is still the main protagonist.
4. Where is the heart? If jokes are the backbone of the show, then the heart-warming message after every episode is the delicious gooey center. Back then, watching HIMYM either left you in stitches, or teary-eyed. The writers had a direct line to the viewer's heart, touching them with the show's narrative and well-executed plot twists.
But recently, it's as if the show was just coasting along for the entire season, just trying to get it over with and get to the ending. The only episode that really tugged at my heartstrings was the Robots vs. Wrestlers sequel, when Ted had an imaginary scenario where he went to the Mother's apartment to confess his longing for her.
...
At this point, I apologize for being so angst-ridden for the past few paragraphs. Truth be told, I'm really a big fan of the show. I've never missed an episode ever since Season 1.
But it's precisely because of that that I'm here, wasting precious bandwidth to rant. As a fan, it's always saddening to see the deteriorating quality of a show I am fond with. No fan wants to see their show end on a poor note, after investing so much time and energy towards it. And definitely no fan wants to see their favorite characters turn into strangers they barely know. Just look at what happened to Community and Glee.
So please, for the last season of this glorious show, bring us back the HIMYM we loved -- the one that made us laugh and cherish our group of friends more after seeing how tight-knit Lily, Marshall, Ted, Robin and Barney were. Bring us the season we deserve after all these years of supporting the show. And please do it before we completely lose faith in the show.
We've had enough of "waiting for it" -- just get to the legendary ending already.