Tonight’s episode of How I Met Your Mother was the 100th episode. Like any long-running series, the 100th episode is a a hallmark of success and a time for celebration. It establishes the series’ place among television’s elite in terms of sustainability and popularity. The episode begins with our main character, Ted, approaching a quartet [...]

Back in the nineties, there was a big controversy over advertising cigarettes. Apparently, certain tactics were dubbed as “effective.” Almost as if cigarette companies wanted consumers to buy and use their products. The most grievous of these tactics included casting the product in a positive light, showing people enjoying the product, associating it with fun [...]

One thing How I Met Your Mother does particularly well is a round-robin treatment of scenarios. Because the characters are similar enough in nature to be a close-knit circle of friends, yet have starkly different personalities and motivations, any character finding himself in a wacky situation can effectively be swapped out for another, creating a [...]

In the world of How I Met Your Mother, running gags are not just common, they’re an essential element of the show’s humor. So much so, jumping into the show cold during its fifth season guarantees a minimum of three jokes per episode will go unnoticed, or at least underutilized. These jokes include catchphrases (“Legen [...]

Good morning class. Today’s lesson is marketing in the 21st Century. We all know classical marketing strategies, advertisements, branding, promotions, etc. But what are some newer strategies used to market a product? You all watched How I Met Your Mother last night for homework, so let’s use that as an example. I’m seeing some blank [...]

Never underestimate the power of the written word. Words have the power to change the world, inspire people, and influence monumental decisions. It doesn’t matter if it’s an internationally bestselling novel, a Pulitzer Prize-winning poem or a pro-bono television article on an online entertainment magazine. Last week in my review of How I Met Your [...]

Throughout season five of How I Met Your Mother, protagonist and narrator Ted has been resigned mostly to the background. Occasionally plotlines about him and his new career as a professor of architecture come into focus, but by and large season five is all about the new relationship between supporting characters Barney and Robin. Tonight’s [...]