Today's Entertainment

More love and marriage on 'How I Met Your Mother' By Kate O'Hare © Zap2it Boy meets girl; boy marries girl; boy and girl have a boy and girl; boy tells his boy and girl how he met his girl. In a nutshell, that's the premise of the CBS com- edy "How I Met Your Moth- er," which ends after nine seasons with a one-hour series finale on Monday, March 31. If all goes as fans hope, by the time the last credits roll, New York architect Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) will at long last lock eyes — and who knows, maybe even lips — with "The Girl With the Yellow Umbrella" (Cristin Milioti), his future wife and the "Mother" of the title. Also, retired playboy Barney Stinson (Neil Pat- rick Harris) will have ex- changed vows with news anchor Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders), Ted's ex-girlfriend, and spouses and new parents Marshall and Lily (Jason Segel, Alyson Hannigan), Ted's longtime pals, will con- tinue to be the adorable couple they've always been. Carter Bays, who co- created and executive produces the show with his longtime pal and writ- ing partner Craig Thomas (they met when Thomas became the drummer for Bays' band at Wesleyan University), is just back from a week in Hawaii. Spending time in paradise with his wife and two chil- dren was intended to help him from the stress and exhaustion of getting "HI- MYM" (as fans call it) over the finish line. "I hadn't really done the Hawaii thing," he says, "and it was everything they said it would be." Of all the twists and turns of the final season (which has played out as one very long weekend before Barney and Robin's wedding) and the finale, the end has always been in sight. "I feel like the less we say about the finale, the better," says Bays. "This is the ending we conceived when we conceived the show 10 years ago. It's what we've been stead- fastly writing towards ever since." If Barney and Ted fi- nally both make it down the aisle, they're going to be a few years behind the show's creators, who loosely based "HIMYM" on their own experience as buddies sharing an apart- ment in New York. Both Thomas and Bays are husbands and fathers, but it was not always thus. "At the beginning of the series," says Bays, "I relat- ed to Ted, because I was single, and I hadn't met my wife yet. Now, I feel much more like Marshall and Lily, although there is a lot of Ted and the Moth- er in my wife and I. There are a few details that are taken directly from life." been about. It's about their feelings for each other." While Ted always had one eye on the altar, Bar- ney let his eyes roam. "What else is there to do with a character like that than watch him grow up?" Bays says. "The last few episodes will give a real accelerated view into just how much Barney grows up." Having found his bride, Bays can heartily recom- mend the married state to any bachelors watching the show. "You have to meet the right person," he says. "At the same time, it's won- derful. It's great. There is no right time; there is no checklist you have to hit. You have to be open to it, and you have to find someone who's open to it, and who you get along with. "When you do that, it's great. It's the best thing I've ever done." As to whether the Moth- er resembles his wife, Bays says, "I'm nervous about comparing the two. I definitely think the way Ted loves his wife comes directly from how I love my wife, for sure. I don't think I'd be able to write that stuff if I hadn't gone through it myself." As for the nature of love and marriage, Bays says, "We've spent nine years writing about it, and I still don't feel like we've come close to distilling it down. Marriage is a series of lots of little stories. "I guess a marriage is kind of like a sitcom. You have to keep it interesting, you have to keep it fun, and there'll be twists and turns in the plot. You have to stick with it, just keep the central cast together." Cristin Milioti stars in "How I Met Your Mother," which ends its nine-season run Monday on CBS. While Ted and Barney stand in for many singles who are either looking for true love or merely just a good time, Marshall and Lily started the show to- gether, got married and had a baby — but at no point did they become boring. Says Bays, "Marshall and Lily have been almost like immortals, almost like Greek gods, represent- ing marital love. They've always been superhuman in that way, and they con- tinue to be. "They have trouble — and there's a little bumpi- ness ahead for them — but there's just some wonderful stuff coming up. They're two people who follow their gut, and that's what their love story has 2 The Goshen News • TV Spotlight • March 31 - April 6, 2014 C C O O M M S S I I C C B B w w L L N N I I G G 1300 W. PIKE ST. • GOSHEN, IN 46526 574-533-8564 www.MapleCityBowl.com Maple City Bowl at … BUY ONE GAME GET ONE FREE EXPIRES 1-31-2014 COSMIC BOWLING HOURS … FRI. 9:30 PM-12:30 AM; SAT. 1:00-3:00 PM & 8:00 PM-MIDNIGHT 5-31-2014 Say It On Page 2 Of The • Announcements • Birthdays • Memorials • Special Events • Congratulations Advertisements must be paid in advance. Contact us for deadlines and prices. 574-533-2151 or 800-487-2151 ext. 398

• Cover