You read that right. Another sequel of the beloved How I Met Your Mother is here. Eight years after we were forced to say goodbye to Ted, Robin, Barney, Marshall and Lily. Now there is a new crew and a new set of storylines in How I Met Your Father. The show premieres today, and the trailer has been out long enough to know this might not live up to the hype of its predecessor. Not that we should be surprised. It’s been true forever that sequels rarely deliver the same magic the original did. Did anyone see Return To Oz? Or was I the only one tortured in my youth with that example of misdirected vision?
So, what can we expect from this new series? Wendy weighs in on what she likes and doesn’t like from the trailer. You can watch the trailer down below and see if you agree.
1. LIKE: Hilary Duff
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 23: Hilary Duff attends D23 Disney+ Showcase at Anaheim Convention Center on August 23, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
I think we can agree that Hilary Duff is just adorable and so loveable. Duff plays the lead character (younger version), Sophie, in this storyline that mimics that of HIMYM. Sophie lives in New York and goes through all the same drama of the NY dating life that Ted Mosby did, but maybe with a little more charisma. Don’t get me wrong, Ted was charming in his own right, but Sophie seems a little more put-together than Ted did. And a little less “I can’t do it on my own”. But, that’s just what we get from the trailer. Maybe the series will prove differently. Either way Duff instantly draws us into the series with her gravitas.
2. DISLIKE: Kim Cattrall
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 07: Kim Cattrall of ‘Filthy Rich’ speaks during the Fox segment of the 2020 Winter TCA Press Tour at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 07, 2020 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
First of all, let me just say I am very sorry for this opinion, if you are a big Kim Cattrall fan. It’s nothing personal about her. Maybe I just haven’t gotten over her not being in the Sex And The City sequel. I don’t know. But, it’s very distracting to have Cattrall in this show. She plays the older version of Sophie, the one telling the story. Basically, she’s the same role Bob Saget played, but we see her face. In HIMYM, we only heard Saget’s voice and saw the face of his children listening. I LOVED that angle because we got to see the kids’ reaction to their father’s endless stories. This was half the fun of those scenes. Having the older Sophie’s face showing just pulls me out of the storyline because we see two different Sophies. Plus, and I’m sure Cattrall hates this, she’s Samantha, not Sophie! Sorry, it’s the truth. I guess it’s the price you pay for nailing a role so fantastically.
Again, maybe the series will prove that Cattrall can be accepted in a new role, but it does seem from the trailer that she’s bringing a little too much Samantha into her character.
3. LIKE: The Timeline is New
How I Met Your Father is set in 2022 New York, which I LOVE. The new series keeps us in the same setting as the old, New York City, which connects us to HIMYM. But it is modern-day 2022, which opens all kinds of doors for commentary on what is going on in the world. The trailer doesn’t mention anything about the pandemic or current politics or anything time-sensitive like that. And hopefully they’ll keep it light and fun (isn’t that why we escape into television in the first place), but it certainly leaves room for a lot of relatable surprises in the writing.
4. DISLIKE: The Jokes Are Old
I can’t completely blame the writers for this one. I mean, if a formula works, don’t deviate too much from it. But the trailer for How I Met Your Father is strangely familiar. Like that deja vu you’re not sure you had. If you’re a fan of the original, you’re probably very familiar with the Naked Man joke. There is reference to that several times in this trailer. Hopefully, the series proves that it isn’t ALL about redoing old jokes, but if it is, let’s hope the writers make excellent use of the perspective change, which brings me to my next point…5. LIKE: Role Reversal
Unlike HIMYM, the lead character of HIMYF is a female. Which is kind of brilliant for many reasons. We get to have the same quirky stories that the lovable Ted Mosby brought us. The same dating disasters. The same brand of friendships. But this time from the female perspective. Which gives the writers a TON of content to rewrite, and the viewers a fun spin on an old favorite.
