The Analysis of the Final Plot Twist in How I Met Your Mother

Michael Bennett
UWRT 1103 - 019
10/21/2014

Introduction
Ted and his best friends are sitting in an average pub when he turns around and catches a
glimpse of the woman he will love for the rest of his life, Robin. After finally gaining the
courage to ask Robin on a date, Ted confesses his love and ruins the relationship. Although the
two do not work out, they become best friends and move on with their lives but Ted never loses
the feelings he had for her. The years pass and Ted fails at many more relationships but his
friend, Barney, falls in love with Robin and they successfully get married at their second try at a
relationship. They truly love each other but both their lives interfere (Robin is too involved in her
job) and eventually break them apart after three years. Ted, after his dream woman dies from an
illness, had never lost the feelings he first had for Robin and asks his kids if it would be okay to
marry Robin.
Throughout the series of How I Met Your Mother, the relationships between the
characters play a huge role in the storyline of the series. The strange relationships between the
characters in the group are caused by the differences in each characters personality. Each
personality is vastly different when compared to the other members of the group. This is a key
part in the progression of the characters in the series along with how the story is told. The use of
the frame narrative also plays a part in how the story progresses. Because the frame narrative
jumps to certain events in the overall plot, like a person would normally tell a story, certain parts
of the plot are revealed and will shape how the series progresses. An example of this is when
parts of Barney and Robins wedding are seen a season before it actually happens in season nine.
Using the psychology of the characters and the method of storytelling in How I Met Your
Mother, this paper explores some key features of the successful sitcom How I Met Your Mother:
psychology of the characters and the use of the frame narrative. More specifically, this paper will

examine the complicated relationship between Ted, Robin, and Barney and influence on the final
show plot twist.
Before exploring the body of literature, it is important to see potential bias in my opinion
of the series and story line. I personally have seen every episode multiple times from the start of
the show in 2005 and I admire every character except for Robin. Because she has Ted on her
hook, she toys him along as a fallback to support her when her relationships do not turn out
well. I view the series as a failed transformation of each character because each character reverts
back to who they were at the beginning of the first season. However, it is my own interest to see
how the psychology of each character produces the plot twist at the end of the series.
Review of Relevant Literature
Storytelling is a huge part of how any story progresses. It either gives a show randomness
or a sense of what is going to happen next by jumping around to different scenes. How I Met
Your Mother uses a frame narrative which jumps around like a normal person would tell a
story. Collins interview with Craig Thomas, a co-creator of the show, states We didn't set out
to find weird structural ways to tell stories; its just of how we naturally write! This type of
writing also plays into how people still watched the show even though there were still some
rough times as reflected on by Holmes. She also reflects on how the mother is not important and
how the story progresses to something different and thats what the events in the frame narrative
support, not so much the meeting and uniting with the mother. Examples of this frame narrative
can be seen in the observations from Bennett.
Psychology of characters plays into the relationships that form, especially between
Barney, Robin, and Ted. Because the characters previous stated are involved in the plot have a

very strange relationship, the psychology and observations on the relationships can give key
insight on how the relationship is built and could predict the final plot twist. Chen states that
each character in the group has a different psychology based on the OCEAN scale but Ted and
Robin have a similar trend but at different levels which make them get along so well. Barney, on
the other hand, is completely opposite of Robin and has a strong case of narcissism. These
factors could play out into the relationship at the time when Barney and Robin were together and
at the final plot twist. The relationships that stem from the psychology are also as complex as
each persons psychological scores. Holmes states that Ted sticks to his values through
everything and doesnt change them throughout the series. Even though this factor plays into the
plot twist, all the others make drastic changes in their personality. Both Mandel and Rosenberg
agree that both Robin and Barney matured and realized that their old lives were not great and
changed over the nine seasons but completely reverted back to their original characters in the
first season. These relationship factors play into the complex relationships that occur throughout
the series.
Entering the Conversation
Relationships play a huge role in everyday life. The many different relationship cause
emotions to be felt by the people in and around the actors involved in the relationship; some of
which are happy but others can be gloomy or sad based on the type of relationship, whether it is
lustful, loving, friendly, or emotional. These relationships define what occurs in the show and
how the overall flow of the episode and series progresses along with how the series is told. In the
series How I Met Your Mother, the use of the frame narrative to tell the story to Teds children
of how he met their mother defines the events that take place before hand. Story telling involves
jumping around in the general flow of the story because of details that are remembered

throughout the telling of the story. The two factors of the relationships and the why the story is
told defines the flow and plot of the series in How I Met Your Mother
There are many very successful shows that revolve around the character relationships like
in CBSs NCIS where the tight knit team of crime solving division of the Navy takes on scum
bags 7un and rely on each other to say alive during dangerous situations. Other shows include
NBCs Cheers the friendly community that practically lives in a bar that reflects on everyday
life that is solely based on the relationships of the regulars that frequent the bar. America has
fallen for these relationships because they make us feel happy and set a goal for the relationships
we want to have in our own life. The relationships are the hook in each series that makes the
viewers keep watching through the good and bad episodes. But the relationships between key
characters also contribute to how the show progresses throughout the series based on the type of
relationships between the key characters.
Story telling plays a vital role in the plot development of each series. Depending if a story
is being recounted or a general story line is progressing normally through time with the watcher,
will define the ending of the series. If the story line is being recounted or jumps around to parts
of the story line in shows or movies like How I Met Your Mother or a classic Robert De Niro
move like Pulp Fiction or Reservoir Dogs, the entire plot is completely defined before the
first minute of the show or movie begins. Because the show or movies story line is set, the
show can jump around to different parts like a person is telling a story like it does in one of the
movies or How I Met Your Mother. Even if the story line is not set for the entire series or
movie, there are still some things that will predict some things in a later time in the show or
movie. For example, In NCIS, Ziva David was romantically involved with Michael Rivikin, a
Mossad officer in an earlier episode of a season. Later that season, Tony Dinozzo, Zivas partner,

killed Rivikin in self defense because he was involved in a crime that was seen in another
episode. All the build up from the murder that Rivikin committed to his death could easily have
been foreseen because of the features of the plot line. Storytelling and the story line of a show or
movie play as insight into key events that occur in a show whether the whole story line is known
or unknown.
In How I Met Your Mother, the use of the storytelling and the relationship between
Barney, Robin, and Ted could have predicted the final plot twist in the last season. From the first
episode of the first season, Ted has been utterly in love with Robin since the moment he laid
eyes on her. For all nine seasons of the show, Ted has done everything he could to do whatever
Robin wanted and needed. Ted was Robins constant in her life and that would never change.
This has been true for all the show and is clearly seen in the plot throughout all nine seasons. Ted
loved Robin so much he let her marry one of his best friends because he respected how they felt
for each other. Until Ted met his dream wife, Ted never loved anyone more in his life. As Ted
began his relationship with Tracy, his love surpassed his love for Robin but Teds love for Robin
never diminished. After Tracey died, Ted still had this love and that is why he was able to ask
Robin on a date after all that time. All of the nine seasons have been focused around the
relationship of Ted and Robin. Most of the commentary from the narrator, Ted in the year 2030,
is how he felt about Robin and all the pain he went through as she tried new things in her life
with other people. From this focus,
The relationship between Robin and Barney is complicated but was necessary for the
final plot twist to occur. Robins relationship has been very complicated. According to the

psychology tests on Barney and Robin1, they are complete opposites in their personalities but
somehow they were drawn to each other two separate times. The first time that Barney and
Robin tried to be in a relationship, they failed miserably. Robin seemed like she aged 20 years
and Barney seemed liked he gained 100 pounds by the end of their relationship. A few years
after they broke up, seeing each other get extremely serious with other people, with proposals in
each Barneys and Robins relationships, Barney and Robin saw how much they wanted each
other and would eventually get married in the last season. The divorce of these two would finally
break the attraction for Robin and lead her to Ted, the only constant in her life for nine seasons.
The relationship with Barney and Robin helped clarify that Ted was the only constant in Robins
life and that they should be together.
The use of the frame narrative plays the role of tying everything together in the series and
especially the last season. Because the series jumps around to different events that happen, a
trend of how the series is playing out can be seen with the series, especially the last season. The
last season is the story of Barney and Robins wedding. Within the story, Ted meets his wife and
the short story of her is told within the wedding story because that is where they meet. The last
season progresses and the audience can see that Barney and Robin are clearly not going to work
but somehow are getting married. As this thought lingers, in the second to last episode, an
expected divorce occurs between Robin and Barney and the audience learns that Teds wife has
an illness and is seen in a hospital. These two drastic plot changes, set up from the entire series
being devoted to Ted and Robin and their complex relationship, open the door for the final plot
twist. The very end of the last episode, Ted asks his kids to see if they would be alright with him
asking their aunt Robin on a date. The entire frame narrative sets up the ending through the idea
1

Leonard Chen, How I Met Your Mother, Personalitywise, Last Modified February 4, 2013,
Accessed September 23, 2014

that Ted is in love with Robin and always will, and the drastic changes that happen in the last
season.
Conclusion
The show How I Met Your Mother uses a frame narrative to tell the story of how Ted
met his kids mother. The plot twist at the end, Ted asking his kids if it would be okay with them
if he dated their Aunt Robin, utilized the frame narrative and the relationships of the characters,
especially Ted, Robin, and Barney, to allow the drastic plot ending that occurred in the season
finale. The story uses the frame narrative which tells the story in a way a normal person would
(jumps around to different sections of time as the storyteller remembers details). This with the
psychology and relationship between Ted, Robin, and Barney define the final plot twist. The
major factors from each are the frame narrative foreshadows the plot twist by jumping to scenes
around the ending and that Ted has always been in love with Robin while Barney was just not
the right fit for her. The connection of these two aspects predicted the final episode. Because of
the events and history of characters, the overall, general plot was able to be predicted from the
two major factors of the way the story is told and the relationships between the characters. This
is important because this case is not limited to this one show. From any other show, the basic
relationships, psychology, and how the story is told will lead to the conclusion of the series or
ending of any show or movie. From the core of each character stems predictability. This coupled
with general psychology of the basic person, e.g. co-dependency, narcissism, and reverting to
ones old self, can lead to an accurate prediction of the ending of any story with a plot and
characters. If this appears in every story with a plot, how can each storys plot be predicted and
are there any acceptations?

Works Cited
Alyssa Rosenberg, How the How I Met Your Mother finale betrayed the series ideals, The
Washington Post, March 31, 2014, Accessed October 7, 2014,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2014/03/31/how-the-how-i-met-yourmother-finale-betrayed-the-series-ideals/.
Bethany Mandel, How (I Was in Love With Your Stepmom Long Before) I Met Your Mother,
The Federalist, April 1, 2014, Accessed October 7, 2014,
http://thefederalist.com/2014/04/01/how-i-was-in-love-with-your-stepmom-long-beforei-met-your-mother/.
Jeremy Clyman, How I Met Your Mother: Curing Narcissism, Last Modified October 15, 2009,
Accessed September 23, 2014, http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/reeltherapy/200910/how-i-met-your-mother-curing-narcissism.
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Scott Collins, How I Met Your Mother' finale: Producer reveals storytelling secrets, Los
Angeles Times, April 1, 2014, Accessed September 23, 2014,
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-how-i-met-your-motherproducer-reveals-storytelling-secrets-20140331-story.html.
Linda Holmes, How I Met Your Mother: The Optimism Of Inevitability, Last Modified
December 6, 2011, Accessed September 23, 2014,
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/12/06/143195693/how-i-met-your-motherthe- optimism-of-inevitability.
--. How I Met Absolutely No One: The Loneliest Defender of Ted Mosby, Last Modified
August 16, 2010, Accessed October 7, 2014,
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2010/08/16/129229163/how-i-met-absolutely-noone-the-loneliest-defender-of-ted-mosby.
Michael Bennett, Observation Analysis: CBSs How I Met Your Mother (major assignment,
University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 2014), 1-12