How I Met Your Mother still holds a special place in the hearts of many fans - even though the finale will be remembered as one of the most controversial sitcom finales of the decade.
Aside from that, it’s worth remembering why it was such a fun show in the first place: because, well, it was hilarious. The first season saw them test out several ideas before eventually diving headfirst into a whole host of different storylines, and today, we want to try and pick out ten moments that really got us giggling.
Suit Up
“Ted Mosby, suit up!”.
Two words that would become part of the How I Met Your Mother verbiage forevermore. It served as one of the pillars behind the relationship of Barney and Ted, and it also gave us a pretty early idea of what we can expect from Barney moving forward.
Barney always wanted Ted to come to the bar looking sharp and wearing a suit, and whenever it didn’t happen (which was often) you could see the pain in his eyes.
Neil Patrick Harris is an absolute treasure, and that’s a theme that you’ll see running throughout this entire piece.
The Sword Fight
Ah, The Duel.
It was such a silly concept but it allowed us to take a peek behind the curtain of Ted and Marshall’s friendship and what they meant to one another.
They went way back and their friendship continued long into the night on the show, and there was simply no way of disputing their chemistry. The two men wanted to try and decide who got the apartment when Marshall and Lily got married, and as opposed to a normal way of settling the score, they opted to go toe to toe in a sword fight - which they clearly wound up enjoying.
Licking The Liberty Bell
Barney wanted a legendary night out in Philly and a legendary night out in Philly is what he got. From going into a basement for a beer to actually flying over there in the first place to discovering the girls they went after go out with two members of the Philadelphia Eagles, it was an evening full of varied emotions.
The highlight of it all came when the duo licked the Liberty Bell - an act that was clearly at the forefront of Barney’s mind throughout.
Barney’s Cousin
The nightclub episode.
The music as incredibly loud, Barney’s grinding gameplan was in full flow, and it was a rare moment in which he wasn’t wearing a suit. While the hope was for Ted to get together with a girl, the focus quickly shifted as the evening went on.
Despite Barney’s intention of hooking up with the girl he spent all night dancing with, it was soon revealed that it was, in fact, his cousin. He pleaded with Ted not to inform the rest of the gang before racing away into the night, hoping to forget it ever happened.
Mary The Paralegal
Ted was still upset about how things went down with Robin, and as a result, Barney introduced him to Mary - however, he told Ted that Mary was a prostitute when in reality, she was legitimately a paralegal, which is what she initially claimed to be.
The moment when they’re about to go into her room, only for Ted to restrain himself because of what he was led to believe, serves as the big reveal.
It was yet another chance for Ted to seize an opportunity, but for another bizarre reason, he was unable to do it.
The Three Parties
Ted wanted to impress Robin, Marshall had an important piece of work to complete, and Barney was just happy to be there.
Ted wound up holding three parties in a row so that he could try and get Robin into a romantic type of setting, which had mixed results to say the least.
Marshall’s reaction to the anarchy was the best part of it all as he went from being convinced to hold the party, to enjoying it, to stressing out as he attempts to come to terms with a world where he’s a more mature version of himself.
Get Psyched Mix
When “You give love a bad name” rings out, thousands of How I Met Your Mother fans immediately rejoice.
In this entry, Ted wanted to make New Year’s Eve a complete success, but he wasn’t quite able to do so. They wanted to go to all five parties they’d scheduled and as a result, a whole lot of things started to go wrong.
Despite not getting his moment with Robin until after the ball had dropped, Barney kept the momentum rolling all night long with the mix - especially when Marshall was able to retrieve it after it was stolen.
The Cockamouse
The cockamouse was some kind of half cockroach, half mouse hybrid that terrorized Marshall and Lily’s apartment. The masses didn’t really believe that it existed, and after their masterful drawings of the beast, the ‘belief factor’ continued to decrease.
That was until it returned, with Robin witnessing the cockamouse’s antics first-hand. Marshall’s over-the-top reactions make the scene what it is as he attempts to fling it out the window, only to realize that the cockamouse can actually fly. As opposed to burning the house down out of sheer fear, he simply shut the window on the monstrosity once and for all.
Sneaking Into Prom
Lily and Marshall wanted a certain band to play at their wedding - but in order to give them the green light they had to see them perform their song live, and that was only going to be possible if they went to one of their gigs: with the only available offering being a high school prom.
The best moment came when Barney attempted to break into the prom through a variety of different ways, including wearing a turtle costume, closely followed by Marshall getting into a fight with what equates to a grown child.
What About The Pineapple?!
When Ted woke up with a pineapple by his side there were quite a few unanswered questions - but as the episode went on, we gradually got some answers.
Not about the pineapple, of course, but about how Ted got so drunk and who he wound up sleeping with: Trudy. However, the highlight came when Marshall couldn’t hold in his desire to ask the question: “Dammit Trudy, what about the pineapple?!”.
Fans will always say that the comedic timing of the show is what had a lot of people coming back, and that’s a trait which Marshall embodies.
