10 TV Fan Theories Better Than We Actually Got
4. Ted Lied About Barney Being A Womaniser - How I Met Your Mother
It's tough to overstate just how disappointing How I Met Your Mother's series finale was, jerking the fanbase around by killing off the Mother (Cristin Milioti) so that Ted (Josh Radnor) could get together with Robin (Cobie Smulders) instead.
And though a sunnier alternate ending was ultimately released to calm frustrated fans, an altogether more creative and daring rug-pull was dreamt up by tumblr user gingersaurus.
Their thesis? That Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) wasn't actually the prolific womaniser he's depicted as throughout the show, but that he was characterised as a "bad guy" by Ted to help gain his kids' approval to pursue Aunt Robin aka one of his best pal's ex-wives.
When Digital Spy asked Harris himself about the theory, he soundly supported it:
"I think that that's very accurate... Given the story structure, and with [Ted] telling the story to his kids, everything was able to be overdrawn."
Harris also pointed out examples of Ted bending the truth to fit his own narrative during the show, making it all the more plausible that the Barney we think we know is actually a fabrication to make Ted seem a more favourable partner for Robin.