When Stories Get Real: The Finale of How I Met Your Mother

Massive Spoilers—please watch the finale before reading.

From my random reading of fan responses to the finale of HIMYM on the internet, it’s pretty clear that fans either loved the ending or hated it.  It was a risky move, but I applaud the writers for daring to be so real.  I liked it.  I would’ve liked it more if I ever felt that Ted and Robin were right for each other (which I didn’t), but it came full circle in a very satisfying way.

How I Met Your Mother never shied away from messy.  It was a very funny show and mostly was light hearted, but it had those moments that were real, Lily and Marshel’s break-up, Marshal’s father dying, Robin learning she couldn’t have children, and Ted being left at the altar.  So it shouldn’t be too shocking for the fans when the finale gets a little messy because messy is real.

 I know some audiences are never going to like messy.  They want stories that show them that good concurs evil, that everything has a purpose, and that true love lasts forever.  I don’t blame them because I like these too.  Life is messy enough, and sometimes you need stories to show you how life should be.  But I think sometimes we need those stories that are messy because we also need to understand that our lives are not wrong because they don’t meet those ideals. 

So here are few of the real life lessons that I liked from the finale of How I Met Your Mother.

Robin and Barney’s divorce- Sometimes even when you love someone, you just can’t share a life with them.   So much time was devoted to the romance between Barney and Robin, and I can understand the fans anger that the show had them divorce so quickly.  I think the writers were trying to show that these two really did love each other, but they just couldn’t make it work.  Love is messy like that sometimes.  In some ways, you can’t really choose who you love, and sometimes you love someone who isn’t right for you.  So rarely do we see this idea shown on TV.  I kind of think it needs to be said.

Robin Leaving the Group- This was harder for me to watch than Robin and Barney getting a divorce because the show worked so hard to show how much these people meant to each other.  And seeing Robin pull away from the group was heart-breaking, especially because she didn’t want to.  But it was understandable.  Break-ups are rough, and the let’s just be friends sentiment is hard to pull off in real life.  Robin struggled with this in earlier seasons, and it was clear that this time it was just too much for her.

The Mother- This season spent a lot of time convincing the audience that Tracey was perfect for Ted, and they did a great job.  Kudos to the writers and the actress to bring in a character for such a short period and make her so real and loveable.  She was the love of Ted’s life.  I think that was clear.  A lot of fans were upset because she was so awesome, that she shouldn’t have seemed more right for Ted than Robin.  But I think that was the whole point.  Tracey was better for Ted.  She gave him the stable, deeply-rooted life he wanted, but with his kids grown and his wife gone, Ted was ready for a different life.  We grow and change, and there are times in our life when we need different things.

Robin and Ted- I wished I picked up from the beginning that this was Ted and Robin’s story.  Looking back, it was pretty obvious.  The story began with them meeting, and they kept coming back to each other over and over again over the years.  For some reason, Ted and Robin never quite worked for me, so I had a hard time seeing it.  But thinking back, I can see that this was quite the epic love story, of two people who cared deeply for each other, but just didn’t want the same things in life.  Robin had an amazing career where she traveled the world.  It is hard life to share with someone else, but that was what she wanted.  Ted wanted a family and home.  It was who he was, and even though he may have believed that he could’ve given that dream up for Robin, I don’t think he really could have.  If Robin and Ted had gotten married from the beginning, they would’ve gotten divorced. 

This story to me is about the people you love, and how much they mean to you.  I personally don’t believe in soul mates.  I think that there are a lot of people you could love if you really got to know them.  Some of them work for you and some don’t, but the love is real either way.  Ted loved Tracey, and he had a beautiful life with her.  If she had lived he would’ve loved her and stayed with her and been faithful to her until the end.  But he also loved Robin, and it was kind of beautiful that they finally both reached a place where they could be together.

I thought the final was perfect.  So thank you writers and producers of How I Met Your Mother for giving us a truly legendary show.

So what did you all think of the HIMYM finale?

~MaryAnn

P.S.  For those of you who thought I was going to trade spots with Sheena, April Fools.  Seriously, I felt the urge to write this post after watching the finale, but please come back next week for part 2 of Sheena's epic real life love-story.  Sorry everyone.