'HIMYM' Creator Spills on Legendary Episode
A moment 8 seasons in the making finally played out on last night's How I Met Your Mother when Barney finally proposed to Robin in her favorite NYC spot. Sure, we all knew it was coming given the season seven flash-forward that revealed their wedding day, but fans were just as surprised as Robin by how it all played out.
This morning, HIMYM co-creator Carter Bays talked to Vulture about the episode and revealed that not everyone will be as accepting of Barney's bridal duplicity! "We're not blind to the possible ickiness of how Barney went about getting Robin to say yes. And neither are the rest of the characters," Bays told Vulture's Josef Adalian.
"It'll come up that there's two sides of this coin: Was this a big, whimsical romantic gesture, or was it emotional manipulation? Ultimately, I think that's really Barney in a nutshell: loveable amorality." So why did Barney (and HIMYM, for that matter) have to trick Robin into thinking he'd completely moved on and was proposing to Patrice?
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"Given the fact that we've known from the start of the season that they end up getting engaged, we felt like Barney winning Robin had to be wrapped in something big and surprising," Bays said. "And Barney has gone to such great lengths to successfully seduce so many women, it felt like anything less than spectacular would be a disservice to Robin. Also, we liked the idea of a long con. I think the final run of episodes in season four of Breaking Bad was a big influence. We wanted a moment of, "Ohhhhh, that's what's been going on." Just without anyone getting blown up or poisoned."
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So what will the 2013 episodes bring for Barney and Robin? "The next chapter in this story is about Robin deciding if that's really what she wants in a husband, and Barney deciding if he's about more than just magic tricks," Bays reveals.
He also adds that the February 4 episode is all about Robin Sparkles. "That episode will be a big huge giant monster, for a bunch of reasons. Definitely the most astonishing lineup of guest cast we've ever assembled for one show. There's a lot more info to come on that one."
As for Ted, well, Bays reveals that seeing all his friends settle into longterm relationships will reinvigorate his quest for a mate in very unexpected ways (including a flirtation with Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson, who plays "a love interest for Ted, who is wrong for him in a very funny way"). For more on the future of Ted's storyline, click here!