SPOILERS BELOW
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| Image from fanpop.com |
The BIGGEST frustration: Bays and Thomas (the show's creators) tied the story in a nice circular, clean bow. As a loyal fan/viewer this was completely disappointing. I depended on these five people to have just as messy a life as reality. I've wept and had life experiences timed almost perfectly (thought not on purpose) as these characters. Don't get me wrong, I loved seeing the Blue French Horn; I really did, but I would have preferred seeing the funeral of this mother we waited to meet. I would have liked more than 6 seconds to mourn this character I waited to meet with abated breath. I think in some ways, seeing that; having Robin be there for support and seeing a new/different/same spark would have been more appropriate.
I can't decide if this ending was brilliant or stubborn. I say stubborn instead of horrible because this was apparently always Bays and Thomas' end game. They shot the kids telling their dad (Ted Mosby) to ask out "Aunt Robin" when they shot the pilot--close to 10 years ago. I think had the show ended after 1-4 seasons this "end game" wouldn't have been so infuriating for fans. We wouldn't have spent the better part of a decade being beaten over the head by the fact that Robin wasn't the Mother and i.e. NOT the love of Ted's life. That I think is the most irritating. When you're told you can't have something, of course you still want it; but you grow and start wanting something more real. The creators teased us with reality and then laughed in our face.
The slightly less BIG frustration:
We spent a whole F*$%^#@ season building up to a wedding/marriage that ends after 3 years (18 F*$%^#@ minutes into the hour finale)!!! Look guys and gals, I never really bought into Robin and Barney as a couple; but I went with it. That weekend that lasted months to the audience had some good moments, but REALLY?!? I honestly think had that weekend not been stretched, if we would have gotten more episodes with the mother instead of a finale with neck breaking turns and moments that could have (and should have) been full episodes--the fans wouldn't have been so disgruntled. I know I would have been less disgruntled at least.
I was disappointed by several other things about the finale, but I'm not one of those people who feel that I wasted nine years by watching and investing in this show. This show in a lot of ways was more instrumental to me than Friends--I know, sacrilege to a lot of people; but still true. The MacLaren's Gang were closer to my age. I experienced parts of life with them. Lily announced her first pregnancies within a month after finding out that the hubs and I were pregnant with our first. This increased the hubs jokes of "you're so Lily," and also caused me to get worried looks and lectures when I ate Cheetos while pregnant. That's just one example.
The other examples would take a novel to list and who has the time for that? So while I didn't like most parts of the finale, I still have to thanks Bays, Thomas, Radnor, Segel, Smulders, Harris, and Hannigan (the main reason I tuned in to begin with). The memories--laughter and inconsolable crying--are a part of my early adulthood, and helped me through some big moments. You'll be missed, even if you didn't end in the same ideal fashion but instead ended in the exact same place.
PS--Sorry for the boring layout. It will be updated the first Monday of May.
