When a television series airs for 9 seasons, it can be difficult to maintain consistency and stay engaging. How I Met Your Mother succeeds in this regard as the show maintains its humor, the chemistry between its main characters, and its overarching story throughout its 9 seasons.
While the show stays consistent, each season also brings something unique to the table that allows it to stand out from other seasons. There is an argument for each and every season to be considered the best in the series. For some seasons it boils down to a standout episode while some seasons excel in terms of character development and certain narrative choices.
Season 1: The Originality
As the seasons progress, it’s easy to forget about the creative premise that launched the show in the first place. In the year 2030, Ted is telling his kids the story of how he met their mother, with them occasionally interrupting him.
Most of the show’s scenes take place in the past, where Ted’s stories and the wonderful chemistry between him and the rest of the gang come alive. The story within a story concept feels particularly fresh and original in the first season, especially with the actors playing Ted’s kids still being young enough to be a consistent part of the show.
Season 2: Lily & Marshall’s Wedding
Lily and Marshall are the “couple goals” of the show. Everything seems to go wrong for the big wedding they planned, but none of it matters as the real wedding turns into an intimate ceremony outside officiated by Barney and with Ted and Robin in attendance.
It is satisfying to finally see Lily and Marshall get married and for Barney, Ted, and Robin to be such an integral part of the experience. Lily and Marshall’s wedding represents their relationship as even when things don’t go according to plan, they find a way to adapt, knowing their love and the support from their friends is all they really need.
Season 3: Backstory
Season 3 helps flesh out and better develop the show’s core relationships in the standout episode “How I Met Everyone Else.” Fans saw the gang meet Robin in the pilot episode, but this episode goes deeper into how Ted met initially met Marshall, Lily, and Robin.
There are some amusing inconsistencies in the ways the characters remember their first meetings, inconsistencies that make them reexamine long-held truths about their relationships. The new information presented thorough the backstory makes the characters and their relationships feel even more authentic.
Season 4: The Gang Takes A Leap Of Faith
How I Met Your Mother emphasizes the importance of taking a leap of faith and pursuing one’s dreams against all odds. The season 4 finale–which is arguably the best episode in season 4–takes this emphasis to heart as the main characters literally leap from the apartment roof and onto a neighboring building.
All of the main characters experienced difficult struggles over the course of the season and are now on the precipice of taking a dramatic next step. The literal leap embodies that and that all things are possible as they all successfully complete the jump.
Season 5: Girls Vs. Suits
Every season of How I Met Your Mother features its fair share of hilarious moments, but season 5 includes what is arguably the funniest moment in the “Girls vs. Suits” episode. When Barney is forced to choose between a woman and his beloved suits, he launches into an epic musical sequence celebrating suits.
Neil Patrick Harris’ musical and comedic talents are in full-force in this over the top and delightful sequence that will forever remain one of the most memorable and funny moments in the entire series.
Season 6: The Father & Son Relationships
Season 6 gets into some emotional territory with its father-son relationships. Marshall’s father unexpectedly passes away, leaving Marshall to grieve over the loss of his lifelong hero and role model. The strength of their father-son relationship continues to resonate long after the passing of Marshall’s father.
Barney finally meets his biological father and is forced to confront some of the complicated emotions he’s internalized ever since he was a child. Although there are some bumps along the way, Barney and his father begin to forge a meaningful relationship, a relationship that is healing for both of them.
Season 7: Barney’s Romantic Relationships Get Serious
Barney develops in fascinating ways in season 7 as his romantic relationships begin to get serious. This is apparent in the season’s first episode which shows Barney getting ready for his own wedding at an unknown point in time. At the end of the season, it’s revealed that Robin is the one he’ll be marrying.
While this indicates that he and Robin will share a serious relationship in the future of the show, his main romantic relationships in season 7 are with Nora and Quinn. He cares deeply for them and even ends up proposing to Quinn. Barney is just as charming, hilarious, and ridiculous as always, but fans also get to see some new and intriguing sides of him in this season.
Season 8: Barney And Robin’s Engagement
After the many ups and downs of their relationship throughout the series, Barney takes things to the next level when he proposes to Robin. With the proposal being the ultimate play in his “playbook,” the proposal unfolds in an entertaining and unexpected fashion.
Barney and Robin’s engagement makes the season strong in plenty of other ways. Their engagement also sets the stage and leads to particularly amusing episodes like “The Bro Mitzvah.” It also leads to the excellent season 8 episode “The Time Travelers” when Ted experiences a rock-bottom moment that challenges his character journey and foreshadows a key piece of the series finale.
Season 9: Getting To Know The Mother
It’s no secret that How I Met Your Mother has a divisive series finale. Regardless of how one feels about the series finale, though, no one can deny the joy of finally getting to know the mother, Tracy McConnell, in season 9.
“How Your Mother Met Me” is a moving and fascinating episode that shows her journey and how her life intersected with Ted’s in small and surprising ways over the years. Through this episode and through meeting Lily, Marshall, Barney, and Robin before she meets Ted, fans get to know and love this quirky and delightful character before she and Ted finally cross paths and fall in love.
