Let’s just talk about this piece of creative, artistic genius that is the show Rick and Morty.
For those of you who have not watched or heard of Rick and Morty, it’s a fairly new (2013) Adult Swim TV show on its 3rd season about an alcoholic scientist named Rick and his socially awkward, anxiety-ridden, teenage grandson Morty who go on space travel adventures typically involving hopping between different dimensions, universes, and planets and the complications surrounding that. Now there are a lot of things to love about it and there are plenty of others who agree with me, according to the 97% rating it has on Rotten Tomatoes. But what I love the most about this incredible show is that it absolutely does not shy away from, nor does it sugarcoat, the harsh realities surrounding our world and ourselves. I know, this went from 0 to 100 real quick.
There’s way more than meets the eye in this satirical comedy. Unlike every other TV show ever, these episodes rarely have a so-called “happy ending”. In my opinion, happy endings are overrated because they seldom happen in real life. Nothing ever turns out perfectly or exactly how we planned, which is okay because that doesn’t necessarily mean it had a bad ending–just not what we expected. I mean of course Rick and Morty’s adventures are not anywhere near something we’d experience in reality, but the more intimate, personal, character dynamics and developments are something we can all relate to.
Take grandpa Rick, for example. The backstory on him, for all we know so far, is that he left his wife and daughter (Beth) when she was a little girl and only very recently reunited with Beth, now living with her and her family. The main catch with Rick is that he is an unapologetic, almost apathetic, cynical genius. He’s so intelligent (allegedly) to a point where regular human interactions and behaviors aggravate him. He has no idea how to show real love or emotion, which isn’t a bad thing because he doesn’t care to.
As viewers, we really get attached to the character that is Rick. We want him to be happy, to have successful adventures, and for everything to have a somewhat “happy ending”. Even though he shows us almost every episode how much he doesn’t care, we still do. Why? Because we have hope for him. However, the big slap in the face that this show really gets at is that inevitably, some people just aren’t considerate, no matter how deep down you look. No matter how much you want them to be good, there are some things you can’t change about a person. We all know at least one person like that. Especially in the case of Rick and Morty, because it’s Morty who tries every time to make Rick a little more loving and even when he says he gives up, he doesn’t. Rick is inherently an asshole. But, we love him anyway.
Rick and Morty touches on a lot of social realities as well. Everything from sexism and misogyny to the looming fear of death, it’s covered in the most creative ways possible. Not every episode is this heavy in life lessons, though. Some are just light-hearted and funny–a good break from our own reality. At first glance the series seems weird and a little scary, which they kind of are. But, whichever episode you choose to watch I promise you won’t be disappointed!