Not the best sitcom ever, but Jason Segal and Neil Patrick Harris really bring it.
I’ve been spending these post summer-show-finale/pre fall-show-premieres catching up on the shows that I don’t regularly watch during the year. My latest is How I Met Your Mother. I’m really not much of a sitcom watcher, but this is a funny show.
It’s not as funny as 30 Rock or as clever as The Office, or as offbeat as My Name is Earl. In fact, this is a very traditional, multi-camera, couch-in-the-middle-of-the-living room sitcom. But despite that, it’s still pretty awesome. That’s right, awesome. Clearly I’ve been spending a lot of time with Marshall and the gang. And note that it’s Jason Segal AKA Marshall, that I quote, because he is really the funnybone of this show. Everyone loves Neil Patrick Harris as Barney, and yes, he’s funny, but he seems to be in a totally different show from everyone else. It’s a funny show, but it’s a different show. Alyson Hannigan as Lily is reliably funny, but face it, she’s not that deep an actress. Cobie Smulders is likeable as Robin, but she really isn’t that great an actress either. (Although I’m thrilled to note that she has a normal woman’s body as opposed to being stick thin.) Josh Radnor is Ted. And really that’s about all I can say. I found him terribly annoying in the first couple of episodes – that guy who stalks you who smells of desperation. Ick.
This show will never be appointment television for me, but sitcoms rarely are. Still, it’s funny, the characters grow on you (even Ted) and while I have no idea who “your mother” is, I think Barney and Robin end up together.
