I was not here for that first prank Barney pulled except for the puppies. DO THEY STILL HAVE THE PUPPIES? WHERE ARE THEY? DID THEY AT LEAST KEEP ONE? I NEED TO KNOW.
Barney's surprise for Robin was the best and the sweetest. Aww at Robin being the best thing to come out of Canada. Hee at Alan Thicke. Love him.
Also loved Ted being angry at Marshall on Lily's behalf. And hee at Lily still being unable to keep a secret.
I'm getting sick of describing these episodes as "okay" or "decent," but this one was also just decent in my book. But it had more of the flavor of older episodes with the flashbacks and Canada jokes, which put it higher on my list than others this season.
Loved the puppies in the beginning and still loving the Ted/Lily interactions. Very nice to see him get angry on her behalf and show the friendship there outside of interactions with Marshall.
The Canada thing at the end was also just okay for me. Nice enough, but frankly Barney was annoying the living hell out of me before the reveal and the gesture couldn't quite make up for it lol. Plus, I feel like they're hitting the same notes with the "surprises," as oxymoronic as that seems.
Best episode and best ending ever I loved it so much. Barney is perfect, BR is perfect, they will have a perfect marriage and a happy life because the only thing that matters is Robin's happiness. Beautiful!
Loved the guest stars and the callbacks this season is full of those it's great.
I liked it ... halfway through I thought another lesson for Barney may be but I am happy that he pulled off a surprise. Good one. Just missed Marshall in the sweet mix of things.. It would have been great if he had made it ...
I don't know where I fall here. While it was a nice surprise that Barney's dick-ish behavior was all a ruse, the surprise that he had pulled a prank on Robin wasn't anywhere as good as Robin's on Barney and felt more of the writers hammering home Robin/Barney are perfect for each other... which we've been through dozens of times before. I like Barney/Robin together, I'm glad they're getting married, but I'm really getting sick of it all with the wedding and the whole "oh they actually do fit together well, please believe us writers."
Other than that, not a whole lot happened. Callback to Lily's inability to keep a secret was nice, but every time I see McLaren's, I am reminded of why this season just feels so wrong. There's a few cute moments here and there, but truly, they're killing the legacy of the show with this last season. And it pains me to say because it was once one of the best, smartest, most well thought out comedies.
All spot on points. I mean, we're at the wedding here...I think they've hit home enough times with that exact same Robin/Barney dynamic. At this point, you either already like them or throwing a bit more of the same in there isn't going to change your opinion much.
But I totally agree, watching reruns just constantly reminds me just how pale this season is in comparison. The last half of the season would have to be ridiculously spectacular for the season to even remotely stand a chance against the first 6 or 7 seasons.
A fair point of view, and a well detailed explanation of your feelings towards the show and towards the ill view fans have had of this season. You are absolutely entitled to your opinion, as are the rest of the fans of the show.
For me, and possibly for other fans, I feel that this final season is not allowing the final characters to get a proper goodbye. We're getting weak, barely funny stories week after week with little to no character development, sometimes even the character regresses for the sake of the story. And that's sad. It shouldn't be that way, especially in the final season!
I'd say the biggest problem people have with the show (at least those who have a problem with the show right now) is not that it's very centered on Barney/Robin, nor the lack of the Mother. It really comes down to the decision to make the entire season the wedding. Making a comedy have an entire season cover the span of a couple days (not including flashbacks) hindered the writers immensely. All for the sake of delaying when Ted meets the Mother.
I'd say that people are upset because we've spent 8 years investing in these characters and this story, we've laughed, we've cried, we've loved. We care what happens to them. And after 8 years, we wanted to get to know the Mother. We wanted to meet her, we wanted to find out why she's so special. Sure the journey to meeting her is nice and is special in its own right, but it doesn't feel complete without getting to know the Mother. Having just tidbits and little cameos is nice, but it isn't anywhere near as satisfying as it should be after having invested so much time into the show.
To me, it should've been like 3-4 episodes max of Barney/Robin's wedding (in fact it should've been the ending of last season) then the rest of the season we would've gotten to know the Mother along with Ted. That would've been nice. We would've gotten to know her and understand why she's so special. We would've fallen in love with her just as Ted did. And all the stories that preceded it would've been well worth the wait.
Instead we have a haphazard season, full of episodes that barely get chuckles, lose character development for the sake of the weak stories, rehashing the same damn Ted can't get over Robin story, and losing the whole charm of the show. I mean the show has pretty much become: "How I Met Your Aunt Robin and Couldn't Get Over Her for 8 Years Until I Settled For Your Mother." The writers are trying, I can't deny that. But in my mind, and the minds of many other fans, they're failing. The heart and charm of the show is gone. We can blame the fact that they've been separated this whole time (Marshall), that they're not at McLaren's outside of flashbacks, that the characters feel like shells of their former selves.
You can agree or disagree with me, that is of course your choice, and that is perfectly fine. I just wanted to try and offer a different point of view to show you where some of us are coming from.
I agree, they're just rehashing the same things over and over again to the point that I'm starting to not care about them at all. Which is sad because I used to love all these characters. Hell even Season 8 was better than this season... and that's saying something.
Definitely a valid point of view with strong arguments. I do agree with you on many of the points you make, as I sometimes do look at the final season the same way as you've described above (particularly after another filler episode). The comment I made above was written after reading some hateful comments on the show on Facebook and I just wanted to offer my opinion of the overall series, and my overall opinion of the season 9 so far in order to defend the series/writers a bit.
Season 9 for me has quite some really unnecessary scenes/episodes in them and some points of annoyance in characters (especially Barney), I won't deny this. However there are also some really good ones in it in my opinion and I'm just a person that is focusing on the good and is happy with what we got in those, which might make my overall opinion a bit biased. I was also relieved to have a change in scenery and move away from the structure and the story lines that season 8 brought us. I believe season 9 so far could have been better, but I'm still enjoying the comedy with the running jokes like Ring bear, thank you Linus etc.. it does make me chuckle.
All in all I see where you're coming from and do agree to some degree. The fact that you build arguments with criticism is definitely appreciated. I dislike it when people bluntly demand or state that the show should just stop being aired and such.
First, I just want to thank you. Sometimes it is difficult to get someone to actually defend and justify their beliefs and opinions on a show or a character, so to have you actually explain it all out thoughtfully is a welcome change.
And I understand your side too. There have been some funny moments, particularly the running gags of the season and the callbacks to funny gags from earlier seasons. Perhaps people have their expectations to high, perhaps I did as well.
Maybe the discrepancy comes from what the show is capable of providing versus what it has been putting out this season. If you look at the caliber of the first 3-4 seasons, it was top-notch. And while subsequent seasons may have been funny and great in their own right, they have slowly dwindled. I don't think the show deserves the outright hate, since like you said, it does still have some good comedy in it. But I understand people's impulse to think so, unfortunately. And I understand your impulse to defend and be optimistic about the show, you are better than I and many other fans for that.
NOTE: Name-calling, personal attacks, spamming, excessive self-promotion, condescending pomposity, general assiness, racism, sexism, any-other-ism, homophobia, acrophobia, and destructive (versus constructive) criticism will get you BANNED from the party.
I was not here for that first prank Barney pulled except for the puppies. DO THEY STILL HAVE THE PUPPIES? WHERE ARE THEY? DID THEY AT LEAST KEEP ONE? I NEED TO KNOW.
ReplyDeleteBarney's surprise for Robin was the best and the sweetest. Aww at Robin being the best thing to come out of Canada. Hee at Alan Thicke. Love him.
Also loved Ted being angry at Marshall on Lily's behalf. And hee at Lily still being unable to keep a secret.
Great episode!
I was getting annoyed by how childish Barney is being, but then it all made sense. Aww.
ReplyDeleteI'm getting sick of describing these episodes as "okay" or "decent," but this one was also just decent in my book. But it had more of the flavor of older episodes with the flashbacks and Canada jokes, which put it higher on my list than others this season.
ReplyDeleteLoved the puppies in the beginning and still loving the Ted/Lily interactions. Very nice to see him get angry on her behalf and show the friendship there outside of interactions with Marshall.
The Canada thing at the end was also just okay for me. Nice enough, but frankly Barney was annoying the living hell out of me before the reveal and the gesture couldn't quite make up for it lol. Plus, I feel like they're hitting the same notes with the "surprises," as oxymoronic as that seems.
Best episode and best ending ever I loved it so much. Barney is perfect, BR is perfect, they will have a perfect marriage and a happy life because the only thing that matters is Robin's happiness. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteLoved the guest stars and the callbacks this season is full of those it's great.
I liked it ... halfway through I thought another lesson for Barney may be but I am happy that he pulled off a surprise. Good one. Just missed Marshall in the sweet mix of things.. It would have been great if he had made it ...
ReplyDeleteAs Craig Thomas teased, it really had a great ending! Loved this episode.
ReplyDeletePfff... Another Barney/Robin episode... Meh! There were some good laughs, but at this point it gets kind of boring and repetitive!
ReplyDeleteI don't know where I fall here. While it was a nice surprise that Barney's dick-ish behavior was all a ruse, the surprise that he had pulled a prank on Robin wasn't anywhere as good as Robin's on Barney and felt more of the writers hammering home Robin/Barney are perfect for each other... which we've been through dozens of times before. I like Barney/Robin together, I'm glad they're getting married, but I'm really getting sick of it all with the wedding and the whole "oh they actually do fit together well, please believe us writers."
ReplyDeleteOther than that, not a whole lot happened. Callback to Lily's inability to keep a secret was nice, but every time I see McLaren's, I am reminded of why this season just feels so wrong. There's a few cute moments here and there, but truly, they're killing the legacy of the show with this last season. And it pains me to say because it was once one of the best, smartest, most well thought out comedies.
All spot on points. I mean, we're at the wedding here...I think they've hit home enough times with that exact same Robin/Barney dynamic. At this point, you either already like them or throwing a bit more of the same in there isn't going to change your opinion much.
ReplyDeleteBut I totally agree, watching reruns just constantly reminds me just how pale this season is in comparison. The last half of the season would have to be ridiculously spectacular for the season to even remotely stand a chance against the first 6 or 7 seasons.
A fair point of view, and a well detailed explanation of your feelings towards the show and towards the ill view fans have had of this season. You are absolutely entitled to your opinion, as are the rest of the fans of the show.
ReplyDeleteFor me, and possibly for other fans, I feel that this final season is not allowing the final characters to get a proper goodbye. We're getting weak, barely funny stories week after week with little to no character development, sometimes even the character regresses for the sake of the story. And that's sad. It shouldn't be that way, especially in the final season!
I'd say the biggest problem people have with the show (at least those who have a problem with the show right now) is not that it's very centered on Barney/Robin, nor the lack of the Mother. It really comes down to the decision to make the entire season the wedding. Making a comedy have an entire season cover the span of a couple days (not including flashbacks) hindered the writers immensely. All for the sake of delaying when Ted meets the Mother.
I'd say that people are upset because we've spent 8 years investing in these characters and this story, we've laughed, we've cried, we've loved. We care what happens to them. And after 8 years, we wanted to get to know the Mother. We wanted to meet her, we wanted to find out why she's so special. Sure the journey to meeting her is nice and is special in its own right, but it doesn't feel complete without getting to know the Mother. Having just tidbits and little cameos is nice, but it isn't anywhere near as satisfying as it should be after having invested so much time into the show.
To me, it should've been like 3-4 episodes max of Barney/Robin's wedding (in fact it should've been the ending of last season) then the rest of the season we would've gotten to know the Mother along with Ted. That would've been nice. We would've gotten to know her and understand why she's so special. We would've fallen in love with her just as Ted did. And all the stories that preceded it would've been well worth the wait.
Instead we have a haphazard season, full of episodes that barely get chuckles, lose character development for the sake of the weak stories, rehashing the same damn Ted can't get over Robin story, and losing the whole charm of the show. I mean the show has pretty much become: "How I Met Your Aunt Robin and Couldn't Get Over Her for 8 Years Until I Settled For Your Mother." The writers are trying, I can't deny that. But in my mind, and the minds of many other fans, they're failing. The heart and charm of the show is gone. We can blame the fact that they've been separated this whole time (Marshall), that they're not at McLaren's outside of flashbacks, that the characters feel like shells of their former selves.
You can agree or disagree with me, that is of course your choice, and that is perfectly fine. I just wanted to try and offer a different point of view to show you where some of us are coming from.
I agree, they're just rehashing the same things over and over again to the point that I'm starting to not care about them at all. Which is sad because I used to love all these characters. Hell even Season 8 was better than this season... and that's saying something.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely a valid point of view with strong arguments. I do agree with you on many of the points you make, as I sometimes do look at the final season the same way as you've described above (particularly after another filler episode). The comment I made above was written after reading some hateful comments on the show on Facebook and I just wanted to offer my opinion of the overall series, and my overall opinion of the season 9 so far in order to defend the series/writers a bit.
ReplyDeleteSeason 9 for me has quite some really unnecessary scenes/episodes in them and some points of annoyance in characters (especially Barney), I won't deny this. However there are also some really good ones in it in my opinion and I'm just a person that is focusing on the good and is happy with what we got in those, which might make my overall opinion a bit biased. I was also relieved to have a change in scenery and move away from the structure and the story lines that season 8 brought us. I believe season 9 so far could have been better, but I'm still enjoying the comedy with the running jokes like Ring bear, thank you Linus etc.. it does make me chuckle.
All in all I see where you're coming from and do agree to some degree. The fact that you build arguments with criticism is definitely appreciated. I dislike it when people bluntly demand or state that the show should just stop being aired and such.
First, I just want to thank you. Sometimes it is difficult to get someone to actually defend and justify their beliefs and opinions on a show or a character, so to have you actually explain it all out thoughtfully is a welcome change.
ReplyDeleteAnd I understand your side too. There have been some funny moments, particularly the running gags of the season and the callbacks to funny gags from earlier seasons. Perhaps people have their expectations to high, perhaps I did as well.
Maybe the discrepancy comes from what the show is capable of providing versus what it has been putting out this season. If you look at the caliber of the first 3-4 seasons, it was top-notch. And while subsequent seasons may have been funny and great in their own right, they have slowly dwindled. I don't think the show deserves the outright hate, since like you said, it does still have some good comedy in it. But I understand people's impulse to think so, unfortunately. And I understand your impulse to defend and be optimistic about the show, you are better than I and many other fans for that.