Well, friends it is that time; the last passion blog of the year! I want to thank you all for reading and I want to end this blog on a high note with my favorite show of all time, How I Met your Mother. This show has been around for so long (9 seasons in fact) that I am sure most of you know the general gist of it. It is about five friends and their lives in the beautiful city of New York.

Once again this show is really driven by the awesome way the characters. The characters on HIMYM are so relatable and three-dimensional. Whenever I watch the show with my friends we always like to see which character matches with our personalities the best. I thought I would do what I did for the characters of New Girl and break down some of the characters that make this show so great.

First up there is Ted Mosby, the architect looking desperately for love, but who has so much trouble finding it mostly because he picks terrible women. He is eccentric and can be pretty annoying at times, but everything he does is all the in the name of trying to find the love of his life. Even though he has dated plenty of women, his heart usually takes him back to Robin, which is unfortunate because she is one of his best friends.

Makes sense to now talk about the one and only Robin Scherbatsky. She is a Canadian, ex-teen pop star, whiskey-drinking, cigar-smoking, gun loving goof. Like Ted, Robin is also terrible at relationships and has gone through plenty of bad guys. She is a news anchor, which has gotten her into all kinds of bizarre situations like falling down into horse poop or having to do a broadcast with a monkey. It’s funny because whenever my friends and I compare ourselves to these characters, whoever gets compared to Robin always gets a little angry. Personally, I don’t understand why. I think Robin is awesome, but you’ll have to see for yourself.

Then there is my personal favorite, Marshall Erickson. Marshall and Ted were roommates in college and have lived together ever since. In college he also met the love of his life, Lily Aldrin. When they got an apartment in New York, Lily also moved in with them and it was somehow worked out really well. Marshall and Lily are goals. They are my favorite couple because they have been through so much together and they are both so comfortable around each other its great. Can’t talk about Marshall without talking about Lily so I figured I’d just lump them together. Lily is schoolteacher, but her passion has always been painting, though she is not really good at it. She is a feisty red head and cannot keep a secret to save her life.

Last but certainly not least, Barney Stinson. Even if you have never watched an episode of How I Met your Mother, you have absolutely heard a Barney Stinson quote at some point in your life. Whether it be “legend-wait for it and I hope you’re not lactose intolerant because the second half of that word is-dary!” or “when I’m sad I stop being sad and be awesome instead. True story”, I guarantee you have encountered one of these. Barney is a ladies man, which is funny because he is played by Neil Patrick Harris who is openly gay (and has possibly the most adorable family ever).

Real talk: for those of you that have seen the ending, the true ending not the alternative ending, I want to know what you thought about it. Every person I have ever talked to about the last episode has told me that they hated it and were so disappointed. I too was incredibly saddened by the ending of this amazing show, until I watched the alternate ending, which I have decided, is the only real ending and the other one does not exist.

Fun Fact: Not about the show, but I am in love with Neil Patrick Harris so here is a picture of his adorable fam.

This week I wanted to write about a show that I have only recently gotten into because my friend is basically obsessed with it. The one, the only, the controversial South Park! This show is absolutely hilarious though I can see why it is not for everyone because it can be an acquired taste. They do not hold back in discussing serious issues but in a funny and satirical way. I have not watched that many episodes yet but the ones that I have watched have been hilarious. It can also be super offensive at times though, but that comes with the territory.

South Park is about five boys in elementary school (a fact that is very shocking when hearing all the things that they say) and the various situations that they get themselves into. The show has been running since 1997 so they have made episodes about pretty much everything. Since the humor comes from satire a lot of the episodes pertain to what is happening in the world during those particular times. What I love so much about South Park is that they are not afraid to make fun of anyone and anything. No one is safe from being the butt of a South Park joke. Heck even Penn State basically had an episode after the whole Sandusky scandal. For those of you that are curious that episode is called “The Poor Kid” and it is really funny even as a proud Penn Stater.

Another good thing about the show, for us college kids in particular, is that it is another show that does not have a running plot. You can watch any episode that you think is funny and you do not have to have any previous context to understand to enjoy it. There have been episodes like like “Crème Fraiche” about the consequences of getting addicted to the Food Network channel. Or “Christian Rock Hard” about one of the boys, Carman, writing Christian rock songs by replacing the words of popular love songs to Jesus. Those are just some of my favorites, there are so many more that are all really funny. However, for those of you that prefer that kind of thing and actually having a story line, the writers of the show made their last season (Season 19) have a plot. That season has done very well and I thoroughly enjoyed it so this show really has whatever you are in the mood for. The season is all about political correctness and safe spaces and how they can become a bad thing when taken to the extreme.

Fun Fact: The writers of the show have killed off one of the boys, Kenny, 103 times since the show has started. For those that do not know it is running joke on the show that they kill Kenny and the kids yell back “Oh my god, they killed Kenny!”. Its also one of the only times that I have come across where they break the fourth wall. They have gotten very creative with how they kill him also, which is both terrible and funny.