The pilot episode of How I Met Your Father has certainly sparked conversations, and not all for the right reasons. As a follow-up to the beloved How I Met Your Mother, expectations were high, but some choices in the premiere have left viewers scratching their heads. Let’s dive into some of the most talked-about aspects of the pilot and see if How I Met Your Father is off to a rocky start.
One of the most immediately noticeable and debated choices is the portrayal of Sophie in 2050. We see Kim Cattrall as the older Sophie narrating the story to her son, while Hilary Duff plays the younger Sophie in 2022. While the original How I Met Your Mother used voiceover from future Ted (Bob Saget) without showing his older face, How I Met Your Father puts older Sophie front and center.
Kim Cattrall as older Sophie narrating her story in How I Met Your Father pilot episode.
This visual representation raises some questions. Sophie in 2022 is presented as a young woman in her late 20s. Kim Cattrall, portraying Sophie in 2050, is in her 60s. The 28-year gap seems to suggest a more drastic aging process than viewers might expect, even considering the magic of television. It’s a noticeable difference that, as the original reviewer points out, can be distracting. While seeing Kim Cattrall is undoubtedly a treat for fans, the stark contrast in appearance might take some getting used to and could potentially become more pronounced as the series progresses.
Furthermore, the pilot hints at a significant personality shift between young and old Sophie. Young Sophie is portrayed as somewhat naive and clumsy, while the glimpses of older Sophie suggest a more sophisticated and perhaps even a Samantha Jones-esque persona, referencing Cattrall’s iconic role in Sex and the City. This potential transformation raises an intriguing question: is How I Met Your Father actually the story of Sophie’s evolution from an “innocent clumsy ingenue” to a more worldly and assertive woman? This character arc, if intentional, could be a compelling element of the show, but it also departs from the more consistent personality portrayal seen in How I Met Your Mother.
Hilary Duff as young Sophie with her new group of friends in the pilot episode of How I Met Your Father.
Moving on to the characters themselves, pilot episodes often serve as quick introductions, giving us just a taste of who each character is. While Sophie, Jesse, Ian, and Sid seem to have potential, some of the supporting characters in the How I Met Your Father pilot haven’t quite landed as smoothly. Charlie, for instance, is intended to be comedic relief, but his humor might not resonate with all viewers. Ellen’s character, unfortunately, leans into potentially harmful stereotypes, which is a concern in today’s television landscape. Valentina, Sophie’s best friend, is presented as a Gen-Z stereotype, and while some might find her energetic, others might find her portrayal over-the-top. Character development is crucial for a sitcom’s success, and hopefully, these characters will evolve beyond initial stereotypes as the series progresses.
The central mystery of “the father” also takes a different approach in this spin-off. How I Met Your Mother centered on Ted’s long journey to find the mother, creating a sense of romantic anticipation. How I Met Your Father, however, reveals in the pilot that the father is one of the four men Sophie meets in the first episode: Sid, Jesse, Ian, and Charlie.
The four potential fathers introduced in the pilot episode of How I Met Your Father: Sid, Jesse, Ian, and Charlie.
This format has both advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, it allows the show to focus on Sophie’s developing relationships with these potential fathers, giving viewers more time to see chemistry evolve. This addresses a common criticism of How I Met Your Mother, where the audience didn’t get much time with Ted and Tracy together. On the other hand, narrowing down the father to a known group from the outset arguably diminishes the romantic mystery and serendipity that was central to the original series. The idea that the love of your life is already within a small circle of acquaintances is less inherently romantic than the idea of a destined encounter with a stranger, as How I Met Your Mother often suggested.
Finally, the pilot’s reliance on a laugh track is a significant stylistic choice. While laugh track sitcoms were hugely popular in the 2000s with shows like How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, and Two and a Half Men, television comedy has largely shifted towards single-camera, mockumentary-style sitcoms without laugh tracks, such as The Office and Arrested Development. These shows rely on character-based humor and subtle reactions, often considered more sophisticated and realistic by modern audiences. Returning to a laugh track format in 2022 feels somewhat dated. The humor in the How I Met Your Father pilot, as noted by the original reviewer, may not always land effectively, and the laugh track can sometimes feel forced, highlighting jokes that might not be inherently funny on their own.
In conclusion, the How I Met Your Father pilot presents a mixed bag. While it attempts to capture the spirit of the original series, some choices regarding the portrayal of older Sophie, character introductions, the father mystery, and the laugh track format feel somewhat jarring and out of step with current television trends. Whether the show can overcome these initial hurdles and evolve into a worthy successor to How I Met Your Mother remains to be seen.
