How I Met Your Mother

:

Season 1
  • Network: CBS
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 19, 2005
Season #: 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 25
  3. Negative: 3 out of 25
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Critic Reviews

  1. Orlando Sentinel
    Reviewed by: Hal Boedeker
    100
    Romantic comedies depend on appealing actors, and these five are irresistible.
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Henry Goldblatt
    91
    We never thought we'd laugh out loud with a laugh track again. [23 Sep 2005, p.81]
    All this critic's reviews
  3. San Jose Mercury News/Contra Costa Times
    Reviewed by: Charlie McCollum
    90
    This is a cast that jells immediately, hitting on all cylinders from the very first scene.
    All this critic's reviews
  5. USA Today
    Reviewed by: Robert Bianco
    88
    The script is humorous, though not hilarious, and the show boasts a fine cast that could, with time, jell into a great one.
    All this critic's reviews
  6. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Matthew Gilbert
    80
    Like ''Friends," this is not a big-themed series so much as a bunch of little character jokes and relationship confusions getting batted around by an able cast.
    All this critic's reviews
  7. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Maureen Ryan
    80
    Manages to get the balance of cuddliness and snark just right.
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  8. Cleveland Plain Dealer
    Reviewed by: Mark Dawidziak
    80
    What truly makes the Bays-Thomas collaboration smarter than your average sitcom is the storytelling chances taken by the script.
    All this critic's reviews
  9. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Barry Garron
    80
    "How I Met Your Mother" introduces a level of unpredictability not usually found in comedies.
    All this critic's reviews
  10. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Robert Lloyd
    80
    A considerably above-average Generation Y sitcom that manages to be both sharp and sentimental, like "Seinfeld" with feeling.
    All this critic's reviews
  11. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Storm
    80
    How I Met Your Mother is that rare TV comedy that relies more on character than jokes.
    All this critic's reviews
  12. Detroit Free Press
    Reviewed by: Mike Duffy
    75
    You know you're in the presence of a fresh, original sitcom when you don't even mind the laugh track.
    All this critic's reviews
  13. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: David Hinckley
    75
    The format is unusual, and the ending of the premiere nicely surprising - but the element that pushes this show into the potential hit category is Neil Patrick Harris.
    All this critic's reviews
  14. Newsday
    Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    70
    Could... become a very pleasant surprise.
    All this critic's reviews
  15. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
    Reviewed by: Rob Owen
    70
    Cute but not overly cuddly, there's an authenticity to the relationships in "Mother" that makes it a comedy worth meeting.
  16. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Melanie McFarland
    70
    "How I Met Your Mother" may not break any comedic ground, but it's the sort of comfortable, reliable hitter CBS needs on Monday nights.
  17. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Robert Abele
    70
    Time will tell if viewers take to this quintet as completely as they did [Friends'] Central Perk crew... but it seems as if How I Met Your Mother is the most legitimate knockoff yet of that youthful-urbanite juggernaut.

Awards & Rankings

16
#16 Best TV Season of 2005
4
#4 Most Discussed TV Season of 2005
14
#14 Most Shared TV Season of 2005

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 959 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 841 out of 959
  2. Mixed: 50 out of 959
  3. Negative: 68 out of 959
  1. HR
    Jan 7, 2010
    10
    I had avoided the show, it didn't sound sooo compelling, but after the first episode I was immediately hooked. This show easily tops I had avoided the show, it didn't sound sooo compelling, but after the first episode I was immediately hooked. This show easily tops "Friends", and makes my wife and me laugh out loudly. It's funny, it's versatile, and the acting is totally impressive - because it's convincing. A real gem!… Full Review »
  2. DeanW
    Dec 9, 2009
    0
    This is one of the most UNfunny shows I've ever seen. The acting is terrible, the premise is weak. And on top of all of that, how in the This is one of the most UNfunny shows I've ever seen. The acting is terrible, the premise is weak. And on top of all of that, how in the heck can Doogie Howser be taken seriously as a Womanizer? Get real. The fact that this show is popular is baffling. It would've never survived during the haydays of TV Sitcoms that were actually interesting and funny and had great actors. I give this piece of crap a ZERO, and advise people to go back and watch REAL good shows like Seinfeld, The Cosby Show, and Family Matters. That's how sitcoms are supposed to be done. HIMYM is a joke, but I'm not laughing.… Full Review »
  3. Kevin
    Sep 4, 2006
    0
    Awful. Not funny, poorly acted, boring.
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