1. Plausibility. Though this is, yes, a TV show and therefor not the real world. I’d like to think there’s at least a tiny portion of believability to the plot line. Now as much as a fan of Ted as I am….he is not gonna land over half of these girls. Even Robin is a little bit of a stretch. He’s a good looking dude, but would he get together with someone like Rachel Bilson or Shiri Appleby. Along these lines, I’d prefer an unknown, not unlike Cobie….cute, but not too cute.

2. Likable. Most of the girls, nay, pretty much all of the girls Ted has dated, with the exceptions of Robin and perhaps Victoria, haven’t really been all that likable….which is, I assume, the point. However, there’s a general sense among my friends that watch the show and I that whoever the Mother is, she’s going to have to be spec-goddamn-tacular, but somehow still retain her plausibility.

3. I think she has to be a lot like Robin. Robin was great, save her drive to travel. So I think this girl has to be much like her, but somehow relieved of what in Ted’s mind are drawbacks or faults. I.E. – want to live abroad, dislike of children, republicanisms….etc.

Overall, not only an intensely hard person to cast, but also an exceedingly difficult character to play. You’re basically walking into a firestorm, because at the beginning people were setup with this notion that Robin is the one Ted should marry. He spent over half of the first season trying to be with her and all of the second season being with her. It would be a very tough dynamic to work with. There’s no way to go back without seeming like you’re trying to push it, plus you’ve already told the kids that their “aunt Robin…..”. And going forward is very tough because of all of the preconceived notions we have in our minds of who and what this character should be like.

So to sum up…find: an unknown that is not only pretty but not too pretty, and can act their ass of and make us somehow think she’s a believable person, but is also better than Robin. Yikes. I think I said Lacey Chabert, just for the simple fact that I think she would be the closest to pulling it off, but I don’t think any of the options, with the possible exceptions of Lacey and MAYBE Rachel Leigh Cook, could truly pull off the plausibility factor.

Jason

Shiri Appleby is pretty good too.

Rachel Bilson would be a decent choice but I’d prefer someone who would then best be known as ‘The Mother’ once cast – Bilson, obviously, wouldn’t fit that bill.

Rachel Bilson got my vote; she seemed nice.