How We Made Your Mother

In this episode of the How We Made Your Mother podcast, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit HIMYM Season 2, Episode 19, “Bachelor Party,” unpacking the dual-story structure that follows Marshall’s disastrous bachelor party and Lily’s painfully awkward bachelorette gathering. They discuss how the episode satirizes the clichés around bachelor parties—especially the idea that marriage ends a man’s f...

This week the guys revisit “Moving Day” and end up having one of those episodes where the rewatch turns personal fast. What starts as talk about Ted moving out spirals into a bigger conversation about how much everyone in the group depends on him, why Barney’s over-the-top sabotage is really fear of abandonment, and how relationships don’t have to move at anyone else’s timeline. Craig gets unexpec...

This How We Made Your Mother Instagram Live brings together Josh Radnor, Craig Thomas, and producer Alek Lev for a wide-ranging, funny, and unexpectedly heartfelt conversation about the podcast, the enduring legacy of How I Met Your Mother, and why the show continues to resonate with new generations around the world. The trio talk candidly about revisiting the series nearly 20 years later, the joy...

This episode dives into “Arrivederci, Fiero” as a love letter to friendship, nostalgia, and the messy logic of long-running TV. Craig and Josh unpack fan questions about continuity errors (when did Barney learn to drive?), lean happily on the “unreliable narrator” defense, and explain how the show’s triumphant orchestral version of “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” came together. The heart of the episode...

This episode is a loose, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful conversation about “Stuff”—both the How I Met Your Mother episode and the larger idea of what we owe our partners and friends when it comes to honesty, history, and emotional baggage. Josh and Craig dig into why the episode works as a joke machine (the mermaid debate, the slap bet payoff, Marshall’s infamous pants, Barney’s doomed robot m...

Josh and Craig walk through why this episode works so well, focusing on how the reverse storytelling lets the show explore blame, fate, and Ted’s instinct to overanalyze every turn his life takes. They talk about how the chain of small choices spirals backward until Ted realizes he’s the one who started it all—and how Future Ted reframes the missed flight as something that had to happen. The conve...

This episode of How We Made Your Mother is a fun, heartfelt hang centered on Monday Night Football (Season 2, Episode 14) of How I Met Your Mother, with director Rob Greenberg joining the guys to reminisce. It kicks off with a surprise listener marriage proposal, then rolls into stories from the early days of the show, Rob being the steady hand during the pilot, and what it was like directing one...

In this episode of How We Made Your Mother , Josh, Craig, and Alek dive into Season 2’s “Columns,” which explores the unexpected loneliness of becoming the boss. The conversation centers on Ted Mosby’s role reversal with Hammond Druthers (played memorably by Bryan Cranston), drawing directly from Craig and Carter Bays’ real experiences suddenly becoming showrunners with no training and realizing t...

This week’s episode is a big, warm, lore-heavy love letter to one of How I Met Your Mother’s most meaningful episodes. Josh and Craig talk about why “First Time in New York” works so well: filling in backstories, sneaking past network standards with euphemisms, and still making real present-day moves like Robin finally saying “I love you.” They dig into the Dirty Dancing sequence (yes, it cost a l...

Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit Season 2, Episode 11, “How Lily Stole Christmas,” the show’s first real Christmas episode—and one of its most emotionally honest. They talk about the fallout from Marshall and Lily’s breakup, especially Ted’s complicated position as best friend to both of them, and how the episode hinges on a single censored insult (the infamous “Grinch”) caught on an answering...

In this episode of How We Made Your Mother , Josh and Craig welcome the brilliant Wayne Brady to revisit “Single Stamina,” the Season 2 episode that introduced Barney’s gay, Black brother James. Together they unpack how Wayne came to the show, what it felt like to embody this new character, and how the episode balanced outrageous comedy with genuine heart. They discuss James as both brother and fa...

To celebrate New Years, we are flashing back to our Season 1 rewatch of “The Limo.” Josh and Craig recall the episode’s ambition to be a “simple shoot” that turned out to be one of the most technically challenging due to the cramped limo set, and share behind-the-scenes stories like Jason Segel’s triumphant foggy entrance, the difficulty of getting camera shots in the limo, and the running joke of...

In this episode of How We Made Your Mother, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit one of the most iconic episodes of How I Met Your Mother: Season 2, Episode 9, “Slap Bet,” with special guest Cobie Smulders. The conversation dives deep into the origin and impact of Robin Sparkles, from the wild writers’ room pitch to the massive, risky production of the full “Let’s Go to the Mall” music video—shot...

In this episode, Josh and Craig revisit Season 2, Episode 8: “Atlantic City,” written by Maria Ferrari, who started as a writer’s assistant before becoming a staff writer. They discuss the unusual challenge of writing a road-trip episode that takes the whole gang out of their usual sets and how that led to one of the longest rewrite nights of the early seasons. The conversation covers how the stor...

Josh recently sat down with his friend Jesse Tyler Ferguson for an episode of Jesse's podcast "Dinner's On Me." Both Josh and Jesse were on hit sitcoms during a very particular moment in TV's metamorphosis, and they've both had on-going, evolving relationships with the characters they played on those shows. Here's a preview of their conversation...

Josh and Craig are joined by writer Greg Malins, who co-ran Friends before joining How I Met Your Mother for Season 2. They revisit the episode “Swarley” (aired December 8 2006), talking about how Greg helped shape the show’s tone, the accidental (or maybe subconscious) Friends dig in the coffee-shop cold open, and how the “Swarley” name was coined by Rob Greenberg. Greg reveals a never-before-rev...

Season two, episode six of How We Made Your Mother features a special guest: the legendary Bryan Cranston, who joins Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas to revisit his first appearance as Hammond Druthers in “Aldrin Justice.” Cranston reflects on taking the role right after Malcolm in the Middle ended, how he almost didn’t get Breaking Bad if Fox had ordered another Malcolm season, and how one X-Files ep...

To celebrate Thanksgiving, we are flashing back to our Season 1 rewatch of “Belly Full of Turkey.” Josh and Craig reflect on Lily’s hilarious but heartfelt journey into Marshall’s giant Minnesota family, while Ted, Robin, and Barney navigate their own offbeat holiday at a food shelter (and later, a strip club). They discuss Alyson Hannigan’s standout performance, the visual comedy of a Brooklyn gi...

Season two, episode five of How We Made Your Mother dives into “World’s Greatest Couple,” where Lily moves in with Barney, and Marshall finds unexpected companionship with Brad—played by guest star Joe Manganiello, who joins Josh and Craig for the episode. The hosts break down how this fan-favorite storyline came together: Lily’s disastrous apartment, the debut of Barney’s Fortress of Barnitude, a...

Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas welcome Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey of Office Ladies for an “extra-extra-special” crossover episode that celebrates the shared DNA between The Office and How I Met Your Mother. The four trade stories about auditioning, early career struggles, and the naïve confidence it took to chase a dream to Los Angeles. Jenna and Angela recall the pressure of remaking the Briti...

In this episode of How We Made Your Mother, Josh Radnor and Craig Thomas revisit Season 2, Episode 4, “Ted Mosby: Architect,” which aired October 9, 2006. They reflect on the show’s use of music—like the Decemberists’ “Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect”—and how songs became part of Ted’s emotional language. They discuss the episode’s mystery structure, Robin and Ted’s first fight, and the episode’s...

Season two, episode three of How We Made Your Mother takes on “Brunch,” the HIMYM episode that juggles family chaos, secrets, and spicy breakfast rolls. Josh and Craig reminisce about casting Michael Gross—yes, the dad from Family Ties—as Ted’s father, and how surreal that was for Josh, who grew up watching him on TV in Columbus, Ohio. They unpack the episode’s Pulp Fiction-style structure, Ted’s...

Season two, episode two of How We Made Your Mother opens with a message from Brazil, and a story about growing up with HIMYM that sets the tone for a conversation about comfort, change, and creative courage. Josh and Craig discuss “The Scorpion and the Toad,” where Marshall tries to reenter the dating world with Barney as his wingman—only to be repeatedly sabotaged by him. They unpack the Aesop fa...

Season two of How We Made Your Mother kicks off with a big announcement: the show has officially joined the Office Ladies Network, thanks to a friendship between Josh Radnor and Jenna Fischer. Josh and Craig reminisce about filming “Where Were We,” the How I Met Your Mother season two premiere, breaking down the challenge of picking up right after Ted and Robin’s rain-soaked kiss and Marshall’s he...

We're back! How We Made Your Mother returns for another season of rewatching the hit TV series How I Made Your Mother! Josh Radnor and series co-creator Craig Thomas will discuss all 22 episodes of Season 2, including classic episodes like “Ted Mosby: Architect,” “Swarley,” “Slap Bet,” and “Something Blue.” You like guests? We’ve got guests, including Joe Manganiello and that man who finally prove...