( CNN ) -- CBS ' newest `` How I Met Your Mother '' episode was supposed to serve as the latest and greatest installment in the series ' ongoing gag about soundly , if humorously , slapping around a good friend . Only thing is , some in the Asian-American community saw it as a slap in the face . The sitcom 's Monday show generated buzz on social media , but not for the reasons its creators intended . Instead , some reacted angrily to the decision to recast lead character actors -- all of them white -- in yellowface and to dress them in stereotypical Asian attire . 'DWTS ' cohorts defend Julianne Hough 's blackface costume . `` Yellowface ? Orientalism ? Fu Manchu ? What ? '' tweeted one person , referencing the term `` oriental '' that many Asian-Americans find offensive . `` Not okay @ cbs . '' On Wednesday , the creators of `` How I Met Your Mother , '' which is in its final season , acknowledged the controversy and that some people had been offended by the portrayals in the show . Carter Bays tweeted that the episode aimed to be a `` silly and unabashedly immature homage to Kung Fu movies . '' But Bays added that some did n't see it as funny at all , and for that , `` We 're deeply sorry . '' `` We try to make a show that 's universal , that anyone can watch and enjoy , '' Bays said , in remarks seconded by the show 's co-creator , Craig Thomas . `` We fell short of that this week , and feel terrible about it . '' The episode was titled `` Slapsgiving 3 : Slappointment in Slapmarra , '' continuing a tradition on the series about solitary , powerful , ritual slaps among friends . This one starts with the main characters sitting in their favorite bar , with Marshall Eriksen ( played by Jason Segel ) explaining how he had sought out `` special training '' to deliver Barney Stinson ( played by Neil Patrick Harris ) an especially epic slap . Lawmaker apologizes for blackface costume . A kung fu master spurned his first attempt at instruction , explaining , `` Kung fu is an ancient and honorable martial art . It must be learned with great devotion and respect . '' Then a young boy in the studio comes out of nowhere and tells Marshall how he can master `` the slap of a million exploding suns . '' Despite Barney 's disbelief , Marshall explains his yearlong journey to Shanghai and Cleveland getting schooled by three masters who teach him speed , strength and accuracy . Each of these masters are played not by Asian actors , but other actors on the series adorned in Asian garb , yellowface and , in one case , a Fu Manchu mustache . The episode climaxes 17 hours before the wedding of Barney , who receives a mighty slap that literally leaves him red in the face . Out of nowhere , the group Boyz II Men then comes out and signs about the `` so awesome '' slap . Some viewers reacted angrily to the episode the next day , including several who used the # HowIMetYourRacism hashtag . There were a number of people who rallied to the show 's defense , saying people were overreacting . But others did n't think anything about the ordeal was funny , with some jabbing the program for its lack of minorities and playing up Asian stereotypes . `` Incredibly easy for white people to say 'that was n't racist , ' '' one person tweeted . `` Not so easy for PoC '' -- shorthand for people of color -- `` to be marginalized their entire life . '' Halloween costume campaign spawns meme , fuels race debate .
A `` How I Met Your Mother '' episode recast 3 of its actors , all white , to be Asian . They are in yellowface , stereotypical Asian clothes , even a Fu Manchu . The show is still on the air and has been for years now. The show 's creators apologize , with one saying he feels `` terrible ''