I'm a HUGE How I Met Your Mother fan.
Anyone who knows me can tell you that I've seen every single episode and have watched the entire series several times. (I even have all the seasons on DVD.) When I got to college, I noticed that there are a lot of guys that have likened themselves to characters on two major sitcoms: Jim Halpert from The Office and Ted Mosby from How I Met Your Mother.
Starting in 2017, I began to notice articles that pointed out Jim's character flaws, particularly Buzzfeed's "Sorry to Break This To You, But Jim From "The Office" Is Actually A Dick." However, I couldn't find many articles discussing Ted Mosby's flaws, and believe me- there are many of them.
I've had a few guys tell me that they're a 'Ted Mosby' kind of guy. To this, I responded, "You realize that's not a good thing, right?"
The opening episode highlights a problem of Ted's: impulsivity. He tells a girl that he thinks he's in love with her after being with her, what- 3 hours at most? I probably don't want to date someone who jumps in to 'love' that fast, and I'm amazed that Robin still talked to him after that.
Ted also claims to be searching for 'the one,' but when it comes down to it, is kind of a slut. Throughout the course of the series, it is estimated that Ted sleeps with, or has slept with somewhere in the ballpark of 30+ women. According to reports conducted in 2017 and 2018, the average number of sexual partners a person has within a lifetime is somewhere between 7-10. So, for Ted to have slept with this many women JUST within the course of a series (Remember, he dated Robin for a year, and the ninth season didn't introduce any new characters) proves him to be a bit promiscuous. (He also admits to only dating a girl because of the size of her breasts.) He also dates a wonderful girl that he decides to try long distance with, and cheats on her a month after she leaves the country.
Aside from Ted's promiscuity, he's also extremely pretentious. As someone who is a bit pretentious themselves, I still find Ted to be obnoxious at times. Seriously- how he pronounces 'encyclopedia' and 'renaissance' can be a bit much. (Also, how he pronounces encyclopedia is actually incorrect.) There's an episode that highlights this: Season 5, Episode 22- Robots vs Wrestlers. Ted drags his friends to a fancy party, and leaves them to their own devices while he rubs shoulders with rich old men- tasting wine and reciting Italian poems. (Dante)
While these are just a few of the flaws in Ted's character, it should be enough to dissuade guys from wanting to be like Ted. So, if you are a self-proclaimed 'Ted Mosby kind of guy,' remember that for much of the series, Ted was unable to be mature enough to be in a real relationship until his mid thirties. Ted also had a tendency to be extremely self centered, and obsess over insignificant things, inconveniencing those around him. While Ted may finally get his act together, he still isn't a model for how to treat women, and if a guy acts like Ted does for most of the series, I would consider it a 'Major disappointment.'
