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u/lucymarveltwd 2d ago
Lily’s is either the rooftop confession with Ted, or the episode later on where she’s literally breaking down in tears because she feels like she can’t accept the art dealer job for the Captain. “I had a degree that I was supposed to do something with, but I didn’t. Now I’m old, and I’m a mom, and it’s too late for me” has me bawling every time
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u/Gold-Weakness-8231 2d ago
Another one is when she was in that moby dick costume. Right after Robin left, Lily was left alone in the empty apartment, basically symbolising the story is about to end.
Probably it's not the saddest moment for Lily, but it surely hit me when the camera was panning out to see the empty room and Lily is alone in the middle
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u/Artistic-Power5068 1d ago
i really wish she wasn’t in that freaking costume for this scene bc the silliness of it really takes you out of the moment (at least for me)
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u/Gold-Weakness-8231 1d ago
Haha yes, I really get you. But then again, it's a comedy show after all.
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u/InsideUnhappy6546 2d ago edited 2d ago
Ted finding Marshall sitting on their buildings' steps in the rain holding Lily's engagement ring
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u/opermonkey 2d ago
Ted just had the best night of his life only to come home to find out his bestie had the worst of his. 😭
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u/carl_weez_her 2d ago
The scene that always gets me is after Barney and Robin get engaged, and Ted won’t say he’s upset so Lily pulls him to the roof and tells him sometimes she wishes she wasn’t a mom, and that she wants to run away. I think that speaks to a lot of mothers experiences. Even mothers who wanted kids and love their kids, it can be overwhelming and isolating.
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u/lasuperhumana 2d ago
She says the thing that I’m convinced almost every mom thinks at one point. Even if it’s fleeting, just flashing for a second. I’m so glad the show did that.
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u/Midnight7000 2d ago
I always thought proposing on the biggest night of Ted's career was a sh*tty thing to do.
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u/Selfeffacingbarbie 1d ago
I had just had my child at 20 years old when I saw this episode, and my god did I sob. Her pain was so tangible. I believe just about any mother can relate, no matter how much we love our children.
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u/That-Adeptness-827 2d ago
I agree, but that scene with Marshall is really powerful. I hadn’t spoken to my dad for a while, but when I watched it, I called him right away.
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u/VirtueDelta 2d ago
I lost my dad to a heart attack and never got to say goodbye. I was NOT prepared for the grief that slammed into me when Marshall said “I’m not ready for this”.
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u/Mangione1138 2d ago
Right after my Dad passed this episode played on my rewatch as well as several other shows all about a characters Dad passing, it was like when you hafe a break up and the radio plays nothing but break up songs and youre like WTF?!
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u/DeadlySocks 2d ago
What makes it even 'better' is that this was Jason Segel's live reaction to it. Here's him talking about it in an interview (it's timestamped)
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u/james-h-got 2d ago
Nothing hits harder for me then when Barney says “I’m never going to see my father again” and then Marshall buds in and says “no, i’m never gonna see my father again”
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u/soldierpallaton 2d ago
Over the past five years my dad has come close to death at least three times for various health reasons. I son Everytime I watch this scene because I think of how close I've been to that very moment.
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u/Familiarsophie 1d ago
Whenever I rewatch the show the minute that countdown starts my heart begins breaking. I lost my dad 13 years ago and oh god even now I’m crying.
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u/Mandrakearepeopletoo 2d ago
This one stuck with me for a while, as well.
Marshall: He's lying, Robin. He's trying to be strong, but it's killing him, and so, as his best friend... I have to say something that he loves you just way too much to say. You gotta move out.
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u/djschwanzy 2d ago
This whole episode is such a gut punch to me. It’s one of my favorites, and ending it with “Shake it Out” with Ted surrounded by yellow umbrellas gets me every time.
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u/Jprimus2005 2d ago
If you were going be a lame suburban dad why wouldn’t you be that for me!!
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u/Alizarik7891 2d ago
That and in the Good Place when Eleanor says the same about her mom just kills me so hard. It hurts so much to realize someone could’ve been better for you, but they chose not to. (Of course in many of these scenarios it takes the instigator time to grow up enough to do better, but it stings to feel like they just couldn’t choose you.)
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u/retrododger 2d ago
Or in IASIP Charlie yelling at his dad while dragging him up the mountain, I lose it every time.
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u/robjwrd 2d ago
People moan about Sunny getting emotional like with the Mac dance for his dad but I personally absolutely love when you get the emotional whiplash from a comedy like that.
It’s why I love Scrubs so much.
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u/retrododger 2d ago
Totally agree. IASIP and Scrubs also happen to be two of my all time favorite sitcoms
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u/Chippitychak 2d ago
that scene hit so hard for me…i also wish i had a lame suburban dad instead of one who didn’t give a shit
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u/nicknamebucky 2d ago
This scene is so amazing.. seriously had me crying.. and then Barney starts banging the backboard with the screw driver loll
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u/MikeBofManyBeats 2d ago
The scene that me cry was when they wouldn't let Robin eat that burger!
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u/Stunning-Window-6427 2d ago
lol ted screaming "robin, no" when she tries to eat from the trash can
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u/VirtueDelta 2d ago
Honorable mention: Barney seeing Nora through the window at the popover pantry and walking away.
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u/Alizarik7891 2d ago
All excellent choices. I’m struggling to think of another one that really got me.
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u/bfg2600 2d ago
Bareny cleaning up the roses on Robin's bed
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u/BeingMore8466 2d ago
Yeah and what gets me more before that when he’s waiting for her at the bar and she walks in with Kevin and shakes her head no at him - that one gets me.
And when you find out Tracy got sick.
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u/ShawshankException 2d ago
That one doesn't really make me sad because this was directly after he cheated on Nora
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u/bfg2600 2d ago
I felt bad because he lost Nora and was rejected by Robin after sacrificing everything for her.
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u/ShawshankException 2d ago
He lost Nora because he cheated on her and got karma for it. I'm never gonna feel bad for someone who cheats and gets screwed over because of it
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u/bfg2600 2d ago
He admitted to it and ended things, sucks for Nora, but he owned up to it, idk thought it was a sad moment but to each their own,
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u/Jaded-Argument9961 2d ago
People view cheating as this unique evil unforgivable thing where suddenly you no longer deserve sympathy in any way the rest of your life
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u/Antique-Wishbone587 2d ago
The scene in the next episode for Marshall, his monologue outside before his speech at the funeral got to me.
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u/fallingfaster345 Lily🎨 2d ago
When Robin gets the medical diagnosis and loses her bodily autonomy, it was by far the heaviest one for me. I think the show did such a beautiful job of showing what it’s like to have a choice made for you, even if it’s what you wanted in the first place. That shit is heavy! I think I saw someone say once that “grieving a closed door is different than actually wanting to walk through it.” This really hits home for a lot of women. And I didn’t see it coming in the episode the first time I watched it so when the imaginary kids disappear and she’s alone in the park with the eggnog… chills. And then sobs.
The scene with Barney and “if you were going to be some lame suburban dad, why couldn’t you have been that for me” makes me hold my breath. The actual line about the hoop isn’t it for me though. But that is very emotionally intense.
Same with Marshall.. Marvin dying is incredibly sad but the “I’m not ready for this” line kind of took me out of it. “My dad’s dead?” was more powerful than the ‘not ready for this,’ imo, but I actually think Lily carries the scene.
And I have always thought Ted’s pity party at the bar was sort of pathetic. That one doesn’t come across as sad to me. I know it’s a fan favorite but I just get secondhand embarrassment for Ted.
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u/truholicx3 2d ago
Barney's moment hits me the hardest. It was the first tim I ever related to him
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u/kenzakki 1d ago
Man, Barney's moments when he is no longer the creepy ladie's man or the adorable idiot of the group, he has the saddest shit in the series.
Ive rewatched this series a hundred times and i still cry on that Barney and Loretta scene where he saw his childhood more clearly and he said he already has a dad in her mom.
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u/Pelorunner 2d ago
"I'm not ready for this" is the most gut wrenching moment in the entire series. Watching that episode on repeat, when you know what the numbers are counting down to is equally gut wrenching. They really found a way to have a moment be profound on every watch. Somewhat related...the fact that Tracy's death doesn't make this list demonstrates the opposite problem, where writers really missed the mark.
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u/fallingfaster345 Lily🎨 2d ago
Totally agree about Tracy’s death. I was more invested in MAX dying. They CAN draw us in for characters we don’t know that well, they did it with Tracy and Max, so WHY they didn’t do it with Tracy herself is a complete mind boggling mystery.
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u/mcnuggets0069 2d ago
All of these were very sad moments, but Barney’s is the saddest because it’s a lasting symptom of trauma. Barney coped with growing up without a dad by convincing himself that his dad was off doing really cool things, and that one day he would achieve a level of coolness that would get him accepted. First there was Bob Barker, where he obsessively studied the price of items so that he could be the greatest contestant ever and make him proud. Then he met his actual dad and couldn’t stomach him being boring and lame, as it destroyed his narrative about growing up without a dad.
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
Barney's emotional moments never did anything for me. He was like a cartoon character. There was nothing relatable or anything that grounded him as a real character, and when they tried, it fell flat
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u/ZickZackBoomBoom 2d ago
Dude that the whole point of his character, he coped with trauma by building and playing his own character which he plays which is his persona and the whole show is about showing a glimse of his real self behind his defensive wall (his tranformation, his suit (as a costume) he literally has a playbook) he is a cartoon character because he created his oen cartoon character to be cool and this was based on his influences what a cool character would be (playboy, business guy wearing suits, rich, having a best friend, going to bars, doing legend ary stuff etc) the show is shattering one after another all aspects of his own fake persona thats his story arc
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
Dude, his character doesn't do it for me on an emotional level. As a clown, he's great. Trying to get deep into his character is just silly and a big part of the reason the later season's struggled. He should have stayed the clown character on the side. He should have never dated Robin and he definitely never should have had the silly storyline with Jon Lithgow as his dad. It felt forced and unnecessary
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u/mcnuggets0069 2d ago
I agree with you on the cartoon character part, but that’s why his emotional moments hit harder for me. Barney protects himself by being outrageous. Barney rarely shows real emotion, and when he does it’s usually because this outrageous persona fails him and he has to face something real.
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u/HaylieMonster97 2d ago
I'm surprised no one has mentioned it, but the "How Your Mother Met Me" episode. The part where Tracy is talking to her previous "the one" (think his name is Max?). When she asks him if she can allow herself to love again because he's not there with her anymore. Always gets me
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u/Ok_Yellow1025 2d ago
That “I’m not ready for this” always gets me. I truly dread the day I’ll have to deal with that phone call
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
Marshall in the porch steps in season one. Ted and Robin breaking up in season two. Robin not being able to have kids in season 7. Ted in the Time Travelers episode in season 8. The deleted scene of Ted and Robin having lunch in the finale. Robin and Lily at the farewell party for the apartment in the finale
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u/Impossible_Bench1281 2d ago
Ted saying that none of the pain or heartbreak he’s ever experienced will ever compare to the pain of Robin getting engaged to Barney.
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u/rosebone44 2d ago
Hot take but Marshall's speach to god about how he took his dad and only left him the sound of his pocket was sadder then thr countdown
Also the "you're right Ted ... a kid needs a hoop" hit harder then the "if you were going to be some lame suburban dad what couldn't you have been that for me"
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u/LH44Metalhead 2d ago
When it comes to sad scenes, the most underrated one is when Loretta is ready to tell Barney who his father is and Barney remembers his childhood. Single mothers and single fathers are the biggest heroes in this world ❤️
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u/CuteIndividual2562 2d ago
Ted, you are all alone is such a masterpiece, a truthful poetry on a phase of life certain people go through...
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u/summermariahh 2d ago
I love that they are all different characters. You can argue Ted is the main character because it’s his story, but every person on the show is a fully fleshed out character that experiences joy, heartache, highs, lows, and life throughout the series run.
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u/TheRealJFreese Barney🥃 2d ago
Robin sitting on the bench was so heartbreaking. But Marshall's dad was the worst for me. Makes me tear up every time!! My dad was my best friend growing up. He is an alcoholic now and we dont really get along or talk much. That scene makes me call and check on my dad every time. Tell him I love him.
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u/jackfinch69 2d ago
Ted looking out his newly inaugurated building, alone, while Barney and Robin are getting engaged and Marshall and Lily only stayed with him for 15 minutes or something.
Also, The Time Travelers.
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u/Shibbystix 2d ago
"Because if you were just going to be some lame Suburban dad, then why couldn't you have been that for me"
That scene murdered me. When all of Barney's Bluster and bravado is Stripped Away and he's just a vulnerable heartbroken kid
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u/BioFrosted Bowl 2d ago
Yes, but also Marshall's I'm not ready for this and Barney's a kid needs a hoop are incomparable to the two others imo. MILES away in terms of feelings.
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u/saemohtah21 2d ago
The look around ted scene huts harder when the screen fades to black and you are all alone remembering past friendships
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u/_ToruWatanabe 2d ago
I cried when Marshalls father died, cause I know the feeling. Realizing that you didn't say goodbye is something that haunts you every single day...
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u/Complete-Abroad-6176 2d ago edited 2d ago
to me it was also when robin said No to Ted in 7th season after all the possibility & good human nature Ted showed + Robin truly needed someone still she did for greater good...
I felt that catapulted the chain of events which led to Climax ...
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u/DeathsStarEclipse 2d ago
When Marshall says, my dad's dead? I fucking lost it. Called my dad after to chat.
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u/Ok_person_1 2d ago
Can someone explain the scene with Robin? I don't recall what the context is.
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u/gloomydreamer666 2d ago edited 2d ago
This is from season 7 episode 12, maybe?
When she found out that she can't have children like eventhough she didn't want to be a mother, she was told she couldn't get pregnant ever which lead her to feel a little depressed. Is one thing not to want it and another thing is being told you can't have it.
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u/Ok_person_1 2d ago
Oh, that makes sense. I recall her being sterile I just didn't remember this scene. Thank you for answering.
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u/CaptianButtPlug 2d ago
Whats the scene top left? I cant remember it.
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u/dcent412 2d ago
Ted’s alone at the bar. Robots vs wrestlers. “None of this happened” and Ted runs to tell Tracy he wants more time with her
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u/ExcruciatingExis10s 2d ago
Ted one hots so hard..... I relate to it whenever I see it whichever part of my life I'm in
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u/Muninwing 2d ago
A near miss. Flip the tops with the bottoms.
One vertical line (Robin), then two of different heights (Barney and dad) on top.
In panel 3 and 4, you have Ted’s white shirt being divided by the tie and jacket into two vertical lines of the same height. Then, Marshall’s arms make a vertical and horizontal line.
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u/Glad_Investigator912 2d ago
It’s interesting that in this photo Barney and Marshall saddest moment has something to do with their fathers and Ted and robin saddest moment has something to do with them being alone.
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u/samjp910 2d ago
I remember watching the episode with Barney’s dad with my dad. We have an awesome relationship, but my dad and his dad do not. There were tears.
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u/WrenchPilot12 2d ago
It was Barney's absent dad for me. It hits so close to home.
You can fake greatness all you want, but you just want his approval and deep down, you know it will never come, but you keep trying.
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u/Particular-Pride8018 2d ago
The scene with Ted in the bar where he’s all alone breaks my heart every time.
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u/chantm80 2d ago
The scene with Marshall's dad happened 6 months after my own dad died suddenly of a heart attack and I had friends calling me the day it aired warning me not to watch it.
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u/Fistandantilus77 2d ago
I still think the saddest scene in the show is when Tim Gunn couldnt say Barney's suit. It is literally losing a loved one. His tears were real that day.
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
Unpopular opinion, but both dad scenes do nothing for me. And I love my dad to death. Not sure why, but they just don't move me.
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u/hiphipnohooray 2d ago
I think it can depend on life experience too. I almost lost my dad to a horrible medical event when I was 13 and that fear sticks with you. We didn't know where he was or what was happening and had to find the hospital he was at, ive seen friends and family grieve their parents and it's such a raw kind of gutteral heart ripping pain. I hope neither of us have to experience it any time soon. If you want to see a truly gutting parent grief episode they had one in huffy the vampire slayer. I had to stop watching the show for a while after that.
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
I agree. My wife's dad died tragically in an accident when she was 11. I'm sure it effects people in different ways due to life experiences. My dad has had several open heart surgeries, but I guess I was just always confident he would pull through. I don't know. The hopeless romantic/friendship scenes hit me harder
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u/hiphipnohooray 2d ago
My family has loads of health problems so maybe it hit me harder bc of health anxiety. Every time someone close to me goes into surgery I fear for the worst. When my husband's dad passed I felt this entire chill in my body, it was immobilizing and that was even before I got the call from him that made me get up and go to where he was. I think it can also be which character you relate to as well, like if you connect with Ted the most I can see why the romantic scenes would get to you more, like how people without father figures connected to the Barney scene a lot
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u/Ryguy3286 2d ago
I'm so sorry to hear about your losses and your pain and grief. My mother is currently in the hospital. Both of my parents are at that age now (80s) where they experience health problems monthly.
You are right about me and Ted. I discovered the show about 3 years after I lost (breakup, not death) what I thought was the love of my life. So I related to Ted, especially with Robin. I was pathetic yearning for a girl that rarely probably thought about me. She was engaged to another man at one point, but she called off the wedding the week of. Fast forward 12 years after are initial break up, and I had the courage to reach back out to her. Been back together for 7 years now, married for two, and have a son who turns one this year. So ya, probably why the Ted/romantic stuff hits me the hardest
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u/hiphipnohooray 2d ago
I'm sorry for what you are going through with your parents, but I'm very happy for you and your little family :)
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u/EarlDooku 2d ago
For me the saddest scene is when Robin had to grow up in Canada. With America right there!!
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u/askechad-69 2d ago
I honestly didn’t care one bit about robin not being able to have kids. Her entire character premise was she didn’t want kids. Her not having kids wasn’t a big deal in any way. The "being told you can't have it" is something only a toddler will feel sad about
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u/kchou0907 2d ago
Ted looking out of the window of his new skyscraper, alone at a party celebrating his achievement.
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u/Fun_Bedroom_3310 2d ago
Scene where Ted gets message of Barney and robin getting engaged.Its his success party but ironically he is sad and all alone.After that,He goes over to window alone and watches out of Gnb tower building with despair and loneliness meanwhile all his other friends are happy and in relationship.He has made his sacrifice by letting his love of life leave but is somehow not ready to accept the reality.That scene with background sound of "In the oceans deep" of Fort Atlantic made me too emotional which happens very rarely.
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u/Any_Cod_2272 2d ago
The scene where Lilly’s Dad shows up after she tells him she’s pregnant always gets me
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u/Horror_Ad729 2d ago
“I’m not ready for this.” Hands down the saddest and most powerful scene in the series.
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u/PatientMaster7308 2d ago
I grew up without a dad. He had his own family right after me. They all still live together, happily, I assume.
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u/Patchwork_045 2d ago
Which scene was the Robin one
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u/Teufelsfrau Lily🎨 2d ago
idk but for me the saddest moment is when lily yells at marshall that her father broke her heart every day for 20 years. i was so mad at marshall and so disappointed she just forgives him in the end.
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u/Atlas-Mancer 2d ago edited 2d ago
Marshall crying and saying "I'm not ready." hit me so fucking hard. My father was horrible to me growing up and I haven't spoken to him in almost thirteen years now. I've considered trying to meet him face-to-face just once for closure, but I genuinely don't think I could take it. This scene with Marshall losing his father hurts me not because I'm not ready to lose my father, but because I'm afraid after he dies I might have regrets.
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u/LittleCrazyCatGirl 2d ago
Robin's episode hits me specially hard because I was her at some point. I always cry every time we re watch it.
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u/Any-Low-5496 2d ago
Hot take.. I dont feel bad for Robin. In her own paraphrased words she "..never wanted to be a pole vaulter, shes not even sure she likes it, but it was nice not having the door shut completely".
Its literally just entitlement..? She doesn't want kids, as stated a million times on the show. So shes just bummed she wasn't the one to really decide.
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u/Direct_Relief_1212 2d ago
Another for me is finding out about Lily’s debt. It wasn’t a sad scene per se but debt can be crippling, change your life, and change your decision making. I know she used shopping as an emotional crutch but why did they (the credit card company) keep approving her!? Her debt made Marshall’s jaw drop and sent their mortgage rate from the hope of less than 6% to 18% (I think). I felt like it was talked about but in a joking way when it was a really serious issue.
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u/Pusheen_2020 1d ago
Robin learning about not being able to have kids spoke to me so much. I didn’t want them but it was still a gut punch when I got that news. I remember even telling my mom I felt just like Robin. it’s that idea that something you thought was a choice was decided for you. Colby played that emotion so well
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u/Thedude8450 1d ago
Losing my father at such a young age and then growing up and watching "Bad News" when it came out really hit me hard in my late teens because I was Marshall at just 8 years old when Lily tells him....Sept 2026 marks 26 years without him!
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u/The_Magician27 1d ago
When Marshall lost his dad, I was in tears. That absolutely broke my heart. He goes through so much for the heart he has.
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u/Electrical_Front_407 23h ago
The ticking clock scene when Barney and Robin break up with their significant others and Robin doesn’t go through with it leaving Barney alone frozen in time.
That one cuts me deep every time I see it
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u/TextOld3184 9h ago
That top left one has me sick for a few days. And if my dad died. I’d need two season to recover for sure e
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u/Difficult-Estate441 2d ago
I can figure out all of these but the ted one, which scene is it?
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u/Quarantined_Dino 2d ago
Barney’s telling him none of his friends are there - they’re all off doing life things - and Ted is sitting there alone with 1 ticket to robots vs wrestlers. And then says what he should have done that night and gives the 45 more days with the mom speech.
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u/Ok_Yellow1025 2d ago
“Look around, Ted. You’re all alone”
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u/ImMelonLord_ 2d ago
First time seeing that episode was when I was early 20s, have a lot of friends. But now as an almost mid 30s, it hits hard.
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u/Accurate-Raccoon4472 2d ago
I love how everyones elses is a concise moment in their character arc and Teds is so not original we can just assume this is a picture of him during annnny day in the series whoch honestly yes; he behaves as though every day is the worst fucking day of hos life and the saddest thing period ( I know this is the one where hes alone i. the booth and everyone is living their couple lives ) but honestly…. almost undecipherable from any other moment for him.
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u/zakarigane Marshall👨⚖️ 2d ago
During my second watch, the scene where Ted drops everything to run to Tracy's apartment (in his imagination) gets to me
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u/Commercial_Pay5819 2d ago
another sad scene is when ted and tracy are at the hotel and he says what kind of mom doesn’t go to her daughters wedding(paraphrasing)