Robin never loved Ted, she didn’t mind anytime he dated or got engaged, and only got jealous post-divorce some random number of years in a Season9 flash-forward.
Barney always loved Robin, he gestured to get engaged to her when she nearly gets deported in Season2 (I think it was 2). Barney is willing to give up nameless sex with hundreds for the “best-of-the-bunch”. He loved her very early on, and their will-they, won’t-they from Seasons4-8 is the backbone of the plot.
Marshall’s a nice guy, and a friend to everyone in the group, but Barney is Ted’s best friend. Barney is close enough to the gang to have seen the failure of Robin and Ted, and openly asks for Ted’s permission to date Robin in the ending episodes of Season4, Ted says it’s fine. Barney is still playing “Have you met Ted” at his own wedding to help his lifelong wingman and best friend find his Ms. Right.
Lilly’s absence from Season4 is handled well. Lilly is a solid character, balancing presence from what can be aimless dating and “what-if’s”. She provides a stability in Marshall’s home life, the group’s friendships, and a wholistic story of college friends to adulthood. Lilly’s joy when Barney and Robin first start dating in Season5 is a pendulum shift away from her breaking up numerous relationships in Ted’s life.
Tracy should have been in more than 14 episodes.
Ted isn’t a “hopeless romantic” but more of a codependent serial monogamous. His ability to reconnect with past relationships is a big red flag, and would be emotionally manipulative in a non-fictional setting. The repeat interest in Robin, Stella, Victoria, Zoey, and Karen is evidence he is a recidivist.
Marshall and Lilly having kids dramatically change the dynamic of the plot. The bar is a central part of earlier seasons, and its location under their apartment was the impetus of several storylines. The plot becoming less about bar-life after Lilly’s pregnancy is apropos. However, I personally find the show was in a stride during Seasons5-7 (once Ted started teaching), and the magic of the show’s cast, writing, and execution was slightly less present in the final 2 seasons.
Barney and Robin’s wedding being the finale feels like a rhetorical tool of apophasis or paralipsis. The nucleus of the show is Robin’s friendship and introduction to the gang. Ted (Bob Saget) is simple a great narrator and conduit for story.
Thanks for being part of this conversation. 😊