After years of what felt like a collection of stale broadcast TV sitcoms, I was introduced to How I Met Your Mother. While I’ve never been a big fan of any particular sitcom, this show got me excited about the genre for the first time ever. I was introduced to it by my sister, who brought a borrowed copy of the third season on DVD home with her from college. I ended up watching a few episodes and was very pleasantly surprised by How I Met Your Mother — it was absolutely hilarious. While I always thought that sitcoms were just full of overly used jokes and cardboard characters, How I Met Your Mother was not only funny and fresh, but felt like it had more depth than the typical sitcom. I was hooked.
How I Met Your Mother has a unique storytelling style that continues into season four. The overarching story is being told by an older Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) to his children. The series consists of a series of flashbacks from Ted's 20s and 30s about the lives of himself and his friends living in New York City and, ultimately, how he met his future wife. This frame may seem complex, especially if you haven't tuned in from the beginning, but it's done in a breezy, comfortable manner that feels natural and doesn't confuse viewers. I felt like it was a story that my father could have been telling me because sometimes there are flashbacks within the overarching flashback and scenes and timing are not perfectly linear, which is more like how a person would share memories — as they are triggered by something else, rather than chronologically.
In season four, the gang continues to mature as they enter their 30s. Ted successfully proposes to Stella (Sarah Chalke), but is left at the altar. Ted fights to come to terms with it, and later reenters the dating scene after becoming roommates with ex-girlfriend Robin (Cobie Smulders). Ted is later laid off from his job, and he decides to begin his own architecture firm. Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) struggles with growing feelings for Robin. While Barney continues his usual womanizing ways, tension grows between him and Robin as Barney's feelings start to come out. Meanwhile, Marshall (Jason Segel) and Lily (Alyson Hannigan) move into their new apartment and struggle with whether or not they're ready to have children. Each character's world changes throughout the series, building up for more antics in season five.
Article comments