31/5/14
I mentioned some of the ways in which HIMYM has acquired personal meaning for me when writing about its seventh season last year:
When I started watching HIMYM ... it resonated - there was, and is, a dual, related appeal in its depiction of this certain time of life, in being able to both identify with it and enjoy what is, given its framing premise (ie the title!), the promise of a happy ending, however inevitably digressively arrived at. ... And in terms of (relevant) autobiographical note, the show actually did play some part in shaping my ideas of modern romance at the time ...
Out in the ether, it's all over now - season 9 is done, and so's the show...in the more real sense, for me, it's still on hold, suspended with the final shot reveal of the mother at the end of season 8. But I thought it would be nice to watch the whole lot through again, in anticipation of that final season and ending.
(Also from the first time through: 1-5, 6.)
So, season 1. A lot of markers for what's to come are laid down here, and those five characters - Ted, Robin, Barney, Lily, Marshall - are satisfyingly recognisable from the get-go, as are (with the benefit of still-incomplete hindsight) the elements in their personalities, relationships and back-stories that will drive a lot of what comes over the next several years.
It starts in 2005; Ted turns 28 during the season, making him I guess about five or six years older than me; at this point, while he's of course already hopelessly romantic, single-ness is his default setting. The long-running saga with Robin kicks off and undergoes plenty of turns even during this first season (I don't have a Robin in my life, but that doesn't mean I don't empathise with the pang of the situation); and then there's sentimental favourite Victoria, who deserves better than to just be collateral damage to that particular mess. And - we get Ted's list of requirements for 'the one'...including that she play bass.
3/6/14
Season 1 ended with Ted and Robin getting together and Lily leaving Marshall for San Francisco; the arc of season 2 is basically the playing out and reversal of those two strands, finishing with Ted and Robin's split, unveiled (ha ha) at Lily and Marshall's wedding. And, in between, we get more colouring in of Barney's history as well as evidence of his redeeming qualities.
10/6/14
And then in season 3 we meet Stella; indeed, the season ends on Ted's proposal. I guess, given the foreshadowing that the show's already thrown in by this point, that the writers already knew at least the outlines of how that was going to end; also during this season, if it wasn't already strongly enough implied previously, it's made explicit that Robin isn't going to be the mother - and there's more on the slow-burn lead-up to her and Barney.
Also striking over the course of season 3 are several elements that I've noticed on previous watches: the (large) extent to which its logic is fundamentally reassuring in the way that it moves inevitably - if peregrinatorily - towards happy endings for all concerned (important not only because we of course come to care for the characters, but also because we - okay, I - identify with them, so that if things end well for them, well, so should they for us! Reinforced not only by the very title of the show and its framing narratorial device but also by the occasional flash-forward showing the characters several years on and still fundamentally themselves); the close attention to, and signposting of, specific dates and times ("in the spring of 2008..." etc); and the playing with narrative, story-telling and perspective (which is, of course, inherent in the structure and conceit of the show as a whole).
16/6/14
The Stella arc that plays out over season 4 highlights many of the show's strengths. There's the wedding episode early in the season - a set piece that gets the balance right between amusing and serious (zanier and more colourful than real life, though only just - and also emotionally poignant, not least through Ted and Robin's exchanges), it also advances the overall story and our understanding of all the main characters and their relationships with each other. There's the nuanced treatment of adult relationships and feelings where the heart is involved, in all of its ambiguity and confusion. There's the unabashed romantic-ness - Stella leaves Ted at the altar because of happenstance, because their rush to marriage had been at least in part from being in love with the idea of each other and happily ever after rather than being entirely about the person themselves ... but also because Tony is 'the one'.
And there's the kindness of its worldview and fundamental optimism - given how much the show positions us to identify with Ted, Stella could easily have ended up an unsympathetic character, and the episode showing how Ted intends to confront her at her home and the choice he actually makes could have exacerbated that. But instead, to round out her story, the show has them later run into each other on the street, leading to their lovely, quiet conversation, side by side in the car - "she's getting here as fast as she can, Ted" ... and the narration reassures us that this, too, is a link in the chain that will finally lead to Ted meeting the one for him.
Meanwhile, Barney and Robin, Marshall and Lily - the different parts of their lives (and of Ted's, beyond his romantic quest - architect career taking more of a centre stage) all continue to be filled in...with a decent quota of laughs scattered throughout too.
25/6/14
Season 5: Barney and Robin get together and then break up; Lily and Marshall keep moving forward; Ted continues his romantic and professional journey (feelings for Robin still simmering); the Maggie episode ('The Window') feels like a small gift, giving us a sweetly romantic capsule 'girl and boy next door' that intersects with the main story and serves as a reminder of the many beyond it.
29/6/14
Maybe part of the reason why it feels like things don't move forward that much during season 6 is the way that it's bookended - in its first episode we learn that Ted will meet the mother at a wedding, and in its last we see that the wedding is Barney's.
In between, Zoey and the Captain enter Ted's life and while both Zoey and her storyline veer ever so slightly towards the cartoonish, that tendency is offset by the real feeling and emotion that the show's able to elicit from the episode where she and Ted get together, as well as (to a lesser extent) their later breakup - the former sequenced to arrive very close to Marshall's father's death, which also packs an emotional punch. (One of the less obvious, but important, elements of the show is that it's a solid ensemble cast, all of whom can hold their own when required to deliver important and believable moments.)
There's also Barney and his father, and his first attempt at Nora - both important parts of his growing up. And then, in that same final episode, he runs into her again, ending on a hopeful note...on which two things: first, the show does rely quite a bit on coincidental crossings of paths to bring or re-bring characters together (another example in this season is Cindy's reappearance - her roommate will later prove to be the mother), which I don't have any difficulty in assimilating into the imagined city of NYC that I carry around even independently of HIMYM; and second, it's a real old finale of a closing episode, from Barney and Nora (and Robin's expression in the background), to Lily's pregnancy, the closing of the Zoey arc and the (related) metaphor as the Arcadian comes down so that Ted can create something new.
3/7/14
Music isn't generally particularly a feature of this show - a well placed burst of Regina Spektor's "Better" and another of Radiohead's "(Nice Dream)" in earlier seasons notwithstanding - but there is one standout use in season 7 and, appropriately, it's via foreshadowing, in the episode early in the season where the key riff appears and recurs throughout before the Kinks' "Victoria" finally bursts into full voice late in the ep as the character herself reappears.
What follows is another season continuing the developments of the sixth - including Barney's growing maturity and his and Robin's deeper feelings for each other (both evidenced in the way things end with Nora as well as how Robin supports him in getting together with Quinn) and the birth of Lily and Marshall's child - and as I noticed on first watch through, closing off several of what would otherwise be loose ends in Ted's story.
There's also a bit of playing with the format, most notably Robin talking to her future 'children' - a good example of the pathos that the show is able to extract from its recurring device of showing events before revealing that they're only being imagined by a character...which also aligns with the show's focus on the importance of the perspective from which stories are told.
... and then a flurry at the end, with Barney and Quinn getting engaged, and then Victoria's re-reappearance, and the further reveal that the bride at Barney's wedding, signalled in season 6, is Robin.
9/7/14
It's also worth mentioning how very relatable these characters are. A large part of the show's appeal - and this is obviously implicit in what I've been thinking and saying about the extent to which it's resonated and to which I've identified with its situations and characters - is in how recognisable its characters' personalities and lifestyles are, and how referable to my own and those of people I know, yes idealised of course, but that's part of the effect.
By season 8 (as an aside, music seems to be relatively more prominently and better used throughout this season, starting with "The Funeral" crashing through the closing stages of its opening episode), much growing up has been done by all, and by and large it's seemed organic and through experience as much as reflection - ie much the way it works in real life. There's a definite sense of things being wrapped up - even Jayma Mays' coat check girl, from right back in season 1, is brought back to be taken off the table (along, more substantially, with Victoria) ... and by season's end we know what the mother looks like, and have a fair idea about where things are going to land with the other four main characters. So the question really becomes: will the final season be worth the wait, after eight years' worth of build-up? With the frankly surprising extent to which I've found myself invested in this show, it turns out to be a large question, with lots of layers.
I mentioned some of the ways in which HIMYM has acquired personal meaning for me when writing about its seventh season last year:
When I started watching HIMYM ... it resonated - there was, and is, a dual, related appeal in its depiction of this certain time of life, in being able to both identify with it and enjoy what is, given its framing premise (ie the title!), the promise of a happy ending, however inevitably digressively arrived at. ... And in terms of (relevant) autobiographical note, the show actually did play some part in shaping my ideas of modern romance at the time ...
Out in the ether, it's all over now - season 9 is done, and so's the show...in the more real sense, for me, it's still on hold, suspended with the final shot reveal of the mother at the end of season 8. But I thought it would be nice to watch the whole lot through again, in anticipation of that final season and ending.
(Also from the first time through: 1-5, 6.)
So, season 1. A lot of markers for what's to come are laid down here, and those five characters - Ted, Robin, Barney, Lily, Marshall - are satisfyingly recognisable from the get-go, as are (with the benefit of still-incomplete hindsight) the elements in their personalities, relationships and back-stories that will drive a lot of what comes over the next several years.
It starts in 2005; Ted turns 28 during the season, making him I guess about five or six years older than me; at this point, while he's of course already hopelessly romantic, single-ness is his default setting. The long-running saga with Robin kicks off and undergoes plenty of turns even during this first season (I don't have a Robin in my life, but that doesn't mean I don't empathise with the pang of the situation); and then there's sentimental favourite Victoria, who deserves better than to just be collateral damage to that particular mess. And - we get Ted's list of requirements for 'the one'...including that she play bass.
3/6/14
Season 1 ended with Ted and Robin getting together and Lily leaving Marshall for San Francisco; the arc of season 2 is basically the playing out and reversal of those two strands, finishing with Ted and Robin's split, unveiled (ha ha) at Lily and Marshall's wedding. And, in between, we get more colouring in of Barney's history as well as evidence of his redeeming qualities.
10/6/14
And then in season 3 we meet Stella; indeed, the season ends on Ted's proposal. I guess, given the foreshadowing that the show's already thrown in by this point, that the writers already knew at least the outlines of how that was going to end; also during this season, if it wasn't already strongly enough implied previously, it's made explicit that Robin isn't going to be the mother - and there's more on the slow-burn lead-up to her and Barney.
Also striking over the course of season 3 are several elements that I've noticed on previous watches: the (large) extent to which its logic is fundamentally reassuring in the way that it moves inevitably - if peregrinatorily - towards happy endings for all concerned (important not only because we of course come to care for the characters, but also because we - okay, I - identify with them, so that if things end well for them, well, so should they for us! Reinforced not only by the very title of the show and its framing narratorial device but also by the occasional flash-forward showing the characters several years on and still fundamentally themselves); the close attention to, and signposting of, specific dates and times ("in the spring of 2008..." etc); and the playing with narrative, story-telling and perspective (which is, of course, inherent in the structure and conceit of the show as a whole).
16/6/14
The Stella arc that plays out over season 4 highlights many of the show's strengths. There's the wedding episode early in the season - a set piece that gets the balance right between amusing and serious (zanier and more colourful than real life, though only just - and also emotionally poignant, not least through Ted and Robin's exchanges), it also advances the overall story and our understanding of all the main characters and their relationships with each other. There's the nuanced treatment of adult relationships and feelings where the heart is involved, in all of its ambiguity and confusion. There's the unabashed romantic-ness - Stella leaves Ted at the altar because of happenstance, because their rush to marriage had been at least in part from being in love with the idea of each other and happily ever after rather than being entirely about the person themselves ... but also because Tony is 'the one'.
And there's the kindness of its worldview and fundamental optimism - given how much the show positions us to identify with Ted, Stella could easily have ended up an unsympathetic character, and the episode showing how Ted intends to confront her at her home and the choice he actually makes could have exacerbated that. But instead, to round out her story, the show has them later run into each other on the street, leading to their lovely, quiet conversation, side by side in the car - "she's getting here as fast as she can, Ted" ... and the narration reassures us that this, too, is a link in the chain that will finally lead to Ted meeting the one for him.
Meanwhile, Barney and Robin, Marshall and Lily - the different parts of their lives (and of Ted's, beyond his romantic quest - architect career taking more of a centre stage) all continue to be filled in...with a decent quota of laughs scattered throughout too.
25/6/14
Season 5: Barney and Robin get together and then break up; Lily and Marshall keep moving forward; Ted continues his romantic and professional journey (feelings for Robin still simmering); the Maggie episode ('The Window') feels like a small gift, giving us a sweetly romantic capsule 'girl and boy next door' that intersects with the main story and serves as a reminder of the many beyond it.
29/6/14
Maybe part of the reason why it feels like things don't move forward that much during season 6 is the way that it's bookended - in its first episode we learn that Ted will meet the mother at a wedding, and in its last we see that the wedding is Barney's.
In between, Zoey and the Captain enter Ted's life and while both Zoey and her storyline veer ever so slightly towards the cartoonish, that tendency is offset by the real feeling and emotion that the show's able to elicit from the episode where she and Ted get together, as well as (to a lesser extent) their later breakup - the former sequenced to arrive very close to Marshall's father's death, which also packs an emotional punch. (One of the less obvious, but important, elements of the show is that it's a solid ensemble cast, all of whom can hold their own when required to deliver important and believable moments.)
There's also Barney and his father, and his first attempt at Nora - both important parts of his growing up. And then, in that same final episode, he runs into her again, ending on a hopeful note...on which two things: first, the show does rely quite a bit on coincidental crossings of paths to bring or re-bring characters together (another example in this season is Cindy's reappearance - her roommate will later prove to be the mother), which I don't have any difficulty in assimilating into the imagined city of NYC that I carry around even independently of HIMYM; and second, it's a real old finale of a closing episode, from Barney and Nora (and Robin's expression in the background), to Lily's pregnancy, the closing of the Zoey arc and the (related) metaphor as the Arcadian comes down so that Ted can create something new.
3/7/14
Music isn't generally particularly a feature of this show - a well placed burst of Regina Spektor's "Better" and another of Radiohead's "(Nice Dream)" in earlier seasons notwithstanding - but there is one standout use in season 7 and, appropriately, it's via foreshadowing, in the episode early in the season where the key riff appears and recurs throughout before the Kinks' "Victoria" finally bursts into full voice late in the ep as the character herself reappears.
What follows is another season continuing the developments of the sixth - including Barney's growing maturity and his and Robin's deeper feelings for each other (both evidenced in the way things end with Nora as well as how Robin supports him in getting together with Quinn) and the birth of Lily and Marshall's child - and as I noticed on first watch through, closing off several of what would otherwise be loose ends in Ted's story.
There's also a bit of playing with the format, most notably Robin talking to her future 'children' - a good example of the pathos that the show is able to extract from its recurring device of showing events before revealing that they're only being imagined by a character...which also aligns with the show's focus on the importance of the perspective from which stories are told.
... and then a flurry at the end, with Barney and Quinn getting engaged, and then Victoria's re-reappearance, and the further reveal that the bride at Barney's wedding, signalled in season 6, is Robin.
9/7/14
It's also worth mentioning how very relatable these characters are. A large part of the show's appeal - and this is obviously implicit in what I've been thinking and saying about the extent to which it's resonated and to which I've identified with its situations and characters - is in how recognisable its characters' personalities and lifestyles are, and how referable to my own and those of people I know, yes idealised of course, but that's part of the effect.
By season 8 (as an aside, music seems to be relatively more prominently and better used throughout this season, starting with "The Funeral" crashing through the closing stages of its opening episode), much growing up has been done by all, and by and large it's seemed organic and through experience as much as reflection - ie much the way it works in real life. There's a definite sense of things being wrapped up - even Jayma Mays' coat check girl, from right back in season 1, is brought back to be taken off the table (along, more substantially, with Victoria) ... and by season's end we know what the mother looks like, and have a fair idea about where things are going to land with the other four main characters. So the question really becomes: will the final season be worth the wait, after eight years' worth of build-up? With the frankly surprising extent to which I've found myself invested in this show, it turns out to be a large question, with lots of layers.
