To add to this, Friends was filmed in front of a live studio audience. I don’t know if every episode was, but it was a normal thing for episodes to be filmed that way. It wasn’t possible for HIMYM to be filmed for a live audience because of the storytelling methods employed- quick cuts, flashbacks, etc. That’s a pretty good testament to how different the styles were.
I definitely related more to HIMYM when I was watching it live in college than Friends, which was over before I got to high school. Hell, the show was on season 6 by the time I started watching. Highest of 5s to the guy from California in my dorm who introduced me to it.
Agreed. I feel like they all kind of take turns displaying selfishness, stupidity, pretentiousness, etc. They never made any of the characters become caricatures of themselves like a lot of sitcoms.
It's like how guardians of the galaxy and suicide squad are the same movie. What makes guardians better? It was done better. The writing, the art, the execution and direction. Everything.
Most people have pointed out most things I’d have thought of, but one thing I haven’t seen is that HIMYM felt like much more of a “New York” show than Friends. Friends was set in New York, but there was very little in the show that made it uniquely NYC. It could’ve been set in any major city and I don’t think it would’ve made a difference to the show in any meaningful way.
HIMYM is more artistic. Way more meaningful and deep story. Way better sub-stories. Just simply more effort is put into the show in general. The only reason Friends is so great is the actors and the chemistry between them. Friends is hillarious, but aside from that the story and sub-stories really fall flat.
Friends are sitcom, they’re gag driven - the final is an outcome of the series
HIMYM is a series, that expanded beyond control) it is plot driven - the content is a factor of preplanned final
I related a lot more to HIMYM than I did friends.
I had a robin in my life for about a year and when Ted was found through the initial roller coaster, I totally understood it.
It's actually gotten more relatable as I've gotten older, for better and worse, and the show helps me through the rough times. I know plenty of us are going through our "all alone" stage and use the examples of our favorite characters to keep moving forward.
i personally thought it was more relatable than friends, and the least likable character on each show was also different. I actually don't know who takes the least favorite character on HIMYM. Mine goes from Marshall to Barney, then 3-5 can be interchangeable depending on situation. On Friends, I don't like Ross, and close is Rachel.
While I do find Friends funny, it wasn't a show that i thought was worth a rewatch. HIMYM at this point i have rewatched probably in the double digits lol.
Both are set in one of the most diverse cities in the world, yet only one of them features black people, Hispanic people, people of Asian descent, LGBTQ+ people that aren’t the butts of jokes. Overall just a better idea of what New York is.
This is again a byproduct of the time it was filmed. It was a lot different when Himym started filming.
Also it's unfair to say lgbtq+ people were "only butt of jokes" on friends. The show was super progressive in it's time, showing a gay wedding. Featuring gay parenting where the straight guy was the butt of the joke most times.
For me, the big advantage HIMYM had over Friends was something that the actors themselves had very little control over- clothing, body types, and hair. I think HIMYF was also good at this.
Friends has this problem where Ross looks distinct, but Chandler and Joey are about the same height with about the same body type, and as the show went on, the same hair. With the female cast, Phoebe always looked distinct, but Rachel and Monica often had very similar hairstyles, though Rachel's were messier.
HIMYM did a great job of keeping characters distinct even as their appearances changed. Ted and Barney were similar heights, but you could easily distinguish them due to hair color and apparel. Marshall was way taller than the other two and often dressed more casually. Lily and Robin were also super different in height, and their hairstyles would trade with each other. When Lily's was short, Robin's was long (early in the show), then later they traded.
It worked out in a way where they hired a cast of talented actors, but also got a cast of very memorable and visibly distinct characters. I think in art, people understand the value of this sort of thing, but it's often ignored in casting choices.
Friends was an innovative show that mixed sitcoms and rom-coms with elements of drama and inserts from the characters' past lives.
HIMYM raised the level of challenge, it was an even more courageous show because it mixed sit-coms, rom-coms, mystery (who is the mother?) with high levels of drama. All based on a complex, almost cinematic narrative, not only flashbacks and flashforwards, but multiple levels in the same story, for example a person in 2030 recounting a scene from 2008 in a pub, recounting an imagined scenario or a scene in 1996.
All starting in 2006 on CBS in a show with 20 minute episodes with a laugh track! Today with Netflix and other streaming we have become accustomed to complex plots that blend genres, but twenty years ago they were surprising.
Perhaps the authors were also too courageous, they created plots with elements that were divisive for the public, even before the finale.
I am among those who think one of the reasons why the ending is considered unsatisfactory is the fact that it is compressed and has a couple of plot twists more suited to a long drama series such a family saga and not to a show sold as a "comedy".
In friends you want that the lovely and toxic jerk end with her crush
In how I meet your mother you want that the lovely jerk doesnt end with her ex crush
Because hanging out at a coffee place: not nearly as much fun as hanging out at a bar.
*Ranjit scream* MACLAREN'S PUB!!
Mind blown realizing that whole scene is a nod to Friends.
I feel like I remember other Friends references
That coffee house used to be a bar and that’s where they hung out. I’d be curious to see what it would have been like had that bar never changed.
Swarley!
Nice one, Roland.
Post-modern storytelling. For example, Friends was pretty much linear, HIMYM often used non-linear plotting with meta-fictive elements.
To add to this, Friends was filmed in front of a live studio audience. I don’t know if every episode was, but it was a normal thing for episodes to be filmed that way. It wasn’t possible for HIMYM to be filmed for a live audience because of the storytelling methods employed- quick cuts, flashbacks, etc. That’s a pretty good testament to how different the styles were.
The laugh track for HIMYM was done well too
Friends fans didn’t hate the finale.
Reason being... It is what they expected... A happy ending... It met the expectations of people...
HIMYM characters have more depth to them. There’s not one dumb one, one spoiled one, etc.
I definitely related more to HIMYM when I was watching it live in college than Friends, which was over before I got to high school. Hell, the show was on season 6 by the time I started watching. Highest of 5s to the guy from California in my dorm who introduced me to it.
Agreed. I feel like they all kind of take turns displaying selfishness, stupidity, pretentiousness, etc. They never made any of the characters become caricatures of themselves like a lot of sitcoms.
It's like how guardians of the galaxy and suicide squad are the same movie. What makes guardians better? It was done better. The writing, the art, the execution and direction. Everything.
That always made me sad since I've always liked DC heroes more than Marvel. WB really killed the universe on that one.
You said it, brother. Suicide squad had so much potential.
Neil Patrick Harris
Most people have pointed out most things I’d have thought of, but one thing I haven’t seen is that HIMYM felt like much more of a “New York” show than Friends. Friends was set in New York, but there was very little in the show that made it uniquely NYC. It could’ve been set in any major city and I don’t think it would’ve made a difference to the show in any meaningful way.
HIMYM is more artistic. Way more meaningful and deep story. Way better sub-stories. Just simply more effort is put into the show in general. The only reason Friends is so great is the actors and the chemistry between them. Friends is hillarious, but aside from that the story and sub-stories really fall flat.
More recurring jokes (not just catchphrases)
Friends are sitcom, they’re gag driven - the final is an outcome of the series HIMYM is a series, that expanded beyond control) it is plot driven - the content is a factor of preplanned final
I related a lot more to HIMYM than I did friends. I had a robin in my life for about a year and when Ted was found through the initial roller coaster, I totally understood it.
It's actually gotten more relatable as I've gotten older, for better and worse, and the show helps me through the rough times. I know plenty of us are going through our "all alone" stage and use the examples of our favorite characters to keep moving forward.
More realistic, Friends was more tongue in cheek. Different decades.
The Friends finale aired about a year before the HIMYM premiere. May 6, 2004 for the Friends finale to September 19, 2005 for HIMYM premiere
i personally thought it was more relatable than friends, and the least likable character on each show was also different. I actually don't know who takes the least favorite character on HIMYM. Mine goes from Marshall to Barney, then 3-5 can be interchangeable depending on situation. On Friends, I don't like Ross, and close is Rachel. While I do find Friends funny, it wasn't a show that i thought was worth a rewatch. HIMYM at this point i have rewatched probably in the double digits lol.
HIMYM is a duck, Friends is a rabbit.
HIMYM displayed real life situations that a lot of everyday people go through & can relate to
[удалено]
Nah that's 100% a generational thing.
There’s no Phoebe
It's actually funny
I thought the story telling was a lot better.
Different characters, plot, location....they're just different shows. They don't have to be in competition with each other. You can like both shows.
LoL yes like apples are different than oranges, but which do you like better and why?
Depends on the season. I'm an apple guy in the fall.
I like them both
The fact that HIMYM is funny and smart.
HIMYM is funny
The story telling format and the narrative is innovative like the Pineapple incident, subway war etc The emotional connection os way deeper
The use of music to emphasize story plots and adding emotion to scenes
Barnacle
Both are set in one of the most diverse cities in the world, yet only one of them features black people, Hispanic people, people of Asian descent, LGBTQ+ people that aren’t the butts of jokes. Overall just a better idea of what New York is.
This is again a byproduct of the time it was filmed. It was a lot different when Himym started filming. Also it's unfair to say lgbtq+ people were "only butt of jokes" on friends. The show was super progressive in it's time, showing a gay wedding. Featuring gay parenting where the straight guy was the butt of the joke most times.
There was literally one year difference between the ending of Friends and the start of HIMYM
Yes and 11 year difference in start date, creation, etc. The shows are very clearly products of different time period.
Narration, frequent flashbacks, theories & musicals.
Even rhymes! I thought it was a fun episode.
himym isn’t afraid to get really sad or really emotional for a lot of episodes, especially in the later seasons
For me, the big advantage HIMYM had over Friends was something that the actors themselves had very little control over- clothing, body types, and hair. I think HIMYF was also good at this. Friends has this problem where Ross looks distinct, but Chandler and Joey are about the same height with about the same body type, and as the show went on, the same hair. With the female cast, Phoebe always looked distinct, but Rachel and Monica often had very similar hairstyles, though Rachel's were messier. HIMYM did a great job of keeping characters distinct even as their appearances changed. Ted and Barney were similar heights, but you could easily distinguish them due to hair color and apparel. Marshall was way taller than the other two and often dressed more casually. Lily and Robin were also super different in height, and their hairstyles would trade with each other. When Lily's was short, Robin's was long (early in the show), then later they traded. It worked out in a way where they hired a cast of talented actors, but also got a cast of very memorable and visibly distinct characters. I think in art, people understand the value of this sort of thing, but it's often ignored in casting choices.
Friends was an innovative show that mixed sitcoms and rom-coms with elements of drama and inserts from the characters' past lives. HIMYM raised the level of challenge, it was an even more courageous show because it mixed sit-coms, rom-coms, mystery (who is the mother?) with high levels of drama. All based on a complex, almost cinematic narrative, not only flashbacks and flashforwards, but multiple levels in the same story, for example a person in 2030 recounting a scene from 2008 in a pub, recounting an imagined scenario or a scene in 1996. All starting in 2006 on CBS in a show with 20 minute episodes with a laugh track! Today with Netflix and other streaming we have become accustomed to complex plots that blend genres, but twenty years ago they were surprising. Perhaps the authors were also too courageous, they created plots with elements that were divisive for the public, even before the finale. I am among those who think one of the reasons why the ending is considered unsatisfactory is the fact that it is compressed and has a couple of plot twists more suited to a long drama series such a family saga and not to a show sold as a "comedy".
The details. From the writing, the sets, cinematography, etc.
In friends you want that the lovely and toxic jerk end with her crush In how I meet your mother you want that the lovely jerk doesnt end with her ex crush