Not many 30-minute television shows have enough momentum going to generate a serious fan base. Sure, you have your die-hard “Friends” and “Seinfeld” fans, but the majority of half-hour sitcoms end up fading out of production quietly after a few years, barely missed. The CBS hit “How I Met Your Mother” is different. Although it lacks the cheesy laugh tracks, HIMYM definitely gives off the classic sitcom vibe, from the studio sets — Ted’s apartment and MacLaren’s Pub, which come up in every episode without fail — to the multiple concurrent plot lines, but it sucks you in in a way different from many other shows. Maybe it’s the ever-present mystery of who, in fact, Ted ends up marrying that keeps us watching. Maybe it’s the way that the main characters seem like they are actually friends in real life — and we secretly really want to be the sixth member of their crew. Or maybe we simply watch because of Neil Patrick Harris. Whatever your reason for watching, chances are that you’ve picked up on some of the pearls of wisdom HIMYM has shed throughout the years. If you haven’t, here are a few:
1. You can get away with saying anything vulgar while wearing a suit. Barney Stinson doesn’t wear those suits as a joke. He wears them so that he can give off the appearance of being a classy gent — anywhere, any time — and so that when he says extremely offensive or just plain douchey things in public, people are less likely to slap him and more likely to think that there must have been some deeper, more symbolic meaning to what he just said. Masking obscenity in sophistication is a skill we all secretly wish we had.
2. When in doubt, pick on Canada. Robin is a cool girl, but she can’t help where she’s from. Her friends will never let it go — it doesn’t help that she was also a famous pop star in the land of maple syrup — and we’ve learned that this is a great conversation starter. Because of their “almost-American” culture, we see it as socially acceptable to bash on Canadians in any situation. Even those of us who stand very strongly against prejudice in any form can’t help chuckling when “But you’re Canadian” is used as a response to almost anything Robin says.
3. Grown men don’t actually grow up. The script for this show could be read by 12-year-old boys in a show about ____, and it would make sense. Well, maybe if you took out the recurring sex jokes. Our point is that the jokes that Ted, Marshall and Barney tell each other and the weird games and rules that define their relationship are in no way “mature.” It’s actually refreshing to watch vocationally successful characters (Ted is an architect, Marshall’s a lawyer, Barney’s a …? No one really knows what he does) absolutely not act their age. While we know adults don’t actually walk around work in their underwear, it’s nice to think that in a few years, we won’t be taking ourselves too seriously.
4. People actually do meet their future partners in college. While Marshall and Lily may make us sick at times with their cutesy behavior, it’s obvious that they are absolutely perfect for each other. If they met on their dorm room floor and worked it out, what’s stopping you from finding the love of your life brushing his teeth in the bathroom down the Clark Kerr halls? Right … so we’re not guaranteeing that it’s going to happen. Just that it’s a possibility.
If you want more “How I Met Your Mother” (don’t we all), check out this website dedicated to the show. And comment below with your favorite HIMYM moment!
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