Ms. Taco Is Still Clueless About The 'Mother'

*Disclaimer: This post will contain spoilers for season 6 of How I Met Your Mother*

“She’s on her way, Ted. And she’s getting here as fast as she can.”

As I sat down to write my thoughts on season 6 of How I Met Your Mother (which I recently watched for the first time on DVD) 'As Fast As She Can' from season 4 happened to be showing on TV, where Stella uttered the above quote to Ted. It seemed kind of apropos to start this post with that quote since, as the show has just begun it’s 7^th (who knew it would make it this long?!) season, we still know very little about the mother aside from: she owns a yellow umbrella, she took Economics 101, and Ted went on one date with her roommate. Not much to go on and it’s crazy to think that most of Mother’s viewers , unlike myself who devoured seasons 1-6 on DVD in a matter of months, have invested six plus years into learning the mysterious mother’s identity.

Appropriately enough, this kind of speaks to the main point I wanted to make regarding season 6 and the series as a whole. Despite the ‘I’ in the title and the voiceover by Future Ted, this really is an ensemble show with every principal character being fleshed out to the fullest extent. And, more than learning the mother’s identity, that is what keeps me tuning in season after season.  So, I wanted to take a look at where these characters are as we enter season 7 because I think ‘The Leap’ they all took at the end of season 4 means more now than ever.

TED:

With Stella leaving Ted at the altar in season 4, season 5 showed us a Ted that I’ve heard some fans were not happy with. But, I thought our hopeless romantic deserved a break considering everything that he had been through. In season 6, Ted is back in the game, but remains a changed man. Based on some of the reviews I read of season 6, it doesn't seem like there was many a fan who got swept up in the Ted/Zoey romance. I don’t think I hated her to the extent that many fans did, but she definitely would not have been my first pick for Mr. Mosby. The old Ted would have been caught up in the moment, despite all the things wrong about it, but Ted is finally at a place where he can realize (with a little help from his friends) that if it’s not right, it’s best to take a step back and re-evaluate. With him putting Zoey behind him and moving forward with designing his building, Ted continues to evolve and move one step closer to finding the Future Mother.

LILY AND MARSHALL:

With so many shows playing musical chairs with couples, it’s great to watch these two continue to grow together and prove that a television couple can stay together and still be engaging. As they met and conquered some of life’s more difficult major events (the death of a parent, trouble getting pregnant), their relationship is stronger than ever. I have complete faith in this show to successfully bring a baby into the mix. It will change things, but what is this show about if not watching these characters change in positive ways?

ROBIN:

Robin continues to be on a bit of a romantic roller coaster. She began the season fresh off her break up with Don and ended it newly interested in a potentially unavailable Barney.  In my How I Met Your Mother utopia, Robin is happily with Barney, but I have to say that I truly have no idea what the show has in store for her. I do think there is still a chance for her and Barney, but I also can see the show having other plans for her considering the hint that it was not the end between her and the guy she met at the department store and later at the bar. That being said, I really just want Robin to be happy. She’s my favorite character (probably because she reminds me of myself a bit) so it would be nice to see her find her happy medium soon, whatever that may be.  Also, of note, it was nice to see the show take a look at the Robin/Lily friendship in relation to Lily’s impending pregnancy and Robin’s abandonment issues.  Both characters had legitimate concerns and it was good to see them work it out as the awesome friends that they are.

BARNEY:

This season managed to show us the softer side of Barney without sacrificing the core of who Barney is and also brought us perhaps the biggest shock of the series: Barney gets married! Now, if you are anything like me, you are biting your nails anxiously awaiting the revelation not of who the mother is, but who Barney’s bride is. The show has set it up nicely. If Nora was a tad bit unlikable, it would be easy to be fully invested in a Barney/Robin pairing. But, she’s not the least bit unlikable and Barney seems to have completely fallen for her. Most of my excitement about the new season revolves around how this storyline plays out as I’m assuming we’ll have an answer about his bride by season’s end.

As for the mother this season, well, she’s still on her way guys, and she’s getting here as fast as she can. But, I love watching these characters keep on maturing, so, I for one am okay with that.