https://www.etonline.com/alyson-hannigan-looks-back-at-how-i-met-your-mother-on-shows-15-year-anniversary-exclusive-153058

The CBS comedy kicked off its nine-season run on Sept. 19, 2005. In looking back at her time on the show, Alyson Hannigan remembered that "we used to have amazing pun runs on the show. I don't know why. I think it started with somebody mentioning Cat Fancy, the magazine Cat Fancy. I think it was a guest star and I don't know why that started a pun-off, but [there were] years of puns. Oh my goodness, we would laugh so hard at the puns that would happen... We got really good at punning." ALSO: Why each HIMYM season is the best (https://screenrant.com/himym-best-season-reasons/).

I read an observation from someone on Reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/television/comments/jtg4y1/what_tv_shows_do_you_think_have_aged_poorly/gc6cqqp/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=web2x&context=3) who said that for all of the criticism regarding the series finale, HIMYM hasn't aged well all together because of economics. After the 2008-2009 recession, jobs opportunities for college graduates have been scarce. The idea that a group of young twenty-somethings would all crush life together just isn't something millennials can connect with.

Simply put, the show's premise and setting made it difficult to feel the suffering that the characters went through. Guys like Ted and Barney had everything they needed in life. They lived at a restaurant/bar, wear suits, work in skyscrapers, and love nice things. Ultimately however, they were their own roadblocks to happiness.

And because HIMYM framed itself as the story of how a happy ending occurred, it's impossible to feel true empathy for the main character(s) when you know everything works out in the end.