'How I Met Your Mother': Neil Patrick Harris as himself

Posted: Thursday, July 19, 2007 6:04 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
Categories: TV

Many viewers complain that this is a dark age for comedy, but "How I Met Your Mother" is a sweet exception to the rule. The heart of the smart and funny show is Neil Patrick Harris as womanizer Barney Stinson. Harris and the show's creators, Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, stopped by press tour for a quick discussion of the show.

HINT, HINT
Wondering who the "Mother" of the title is? The show is going to start dropping more hints, starting with the season premiere. Said Thomas: "Episode one will show that we have not forgotten the title of our show, in a very exciting way." And Bays said that numerous subtle hints have already been dropped in earlier episodes. "Sometimes we plant things intentionally," he said.

BREAKING UP IS NOT THAT HARD TO DO
In the season finale, it was revealed that Ted and Robin had broken up. Don't expect a Ross-Rachel-esque immediate rebound, however. Said Bays: "they've had their relationship. They tried it out. It didn't work. So now the future is wide open." Thomas said friends of his even called him up assuming the two would reunite, even though it was directly stated in the pilot that Robin isn't the "Mother" of the title. "As 'Friends' fans, we didn't want to sort of run that playbook," he said.

ONLINE EXTRAS
The show hopes to use the Web even more this season, allowing viewers to go to the show's site and see racier versions of certain scenes. Said Thomas "It's going to be called 'How it Really Happened.' And you have to go online and search for it. It's going to be the story that the dad couldn't tell his kids. When parents tell their kids a story, obviously some censorship and sanitizing happens. So you'll be able to see the real version of certain scenes all through season three, which we're really excited about."

PLOT PREVIEW
Look for Marshall and Lily to buy a New York apartment this season, and "making every mistake you can possibly make," said Bays. Marshall will also grapple with whether he can pursue his dream of working in environmental law when he has a six-figure law-school debt to pay off. Also, Wayne Brady will return as Barney's gay, black brother, and Bays says Brady "will figure actually into the story of Barney's first love, the woman he lost his virginity to."