Fans were right to ask: Why was Rick and Morty’s relationship one of the only recurring constants across the dozen or so universes glimpsed throughout the series - maybe the only constant?Īfter five seasons, “Rickmurai Jack” delivers the answer. After defending Rick, Birdperson points to an assemblage of framed photos, one of which is of a much younger Rick holding what appears to be a very young Morty. That question became even more conspicuous in the episode “Get Schwifty,” when Birdperson, Rick’s longtime pal, rescues Morty after he runs away with Rick’s portal gun. But that’s impossible: If Rick has been gone for at least 20 years, as the series claims, and has only recently reappeared to his daughter Beth, how could he have memories of Morty as a baby? Image: Adult Swim “Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind” shows a glimpse of Rick’s memory of holding infant Morty. The question has hovered at the fringes of Rick and Morty’s premise as far back as the first season. (Why does Rick hate himself so much?) In the two-parter finale, “Forgetting Sarick Mortshall” and “Rickmurai Jack,” the show finally circles back to answering one of the most profound, consequential questions at the heart of the series’ dynamic: What do Morty and Rick really mean to each other? And now season 6 may look nothing like what we’ve come to expect from the series, in a good way.Īcross 50 episodes, Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland’s animated sci-fi sitcom has been propelled by Big Questions, from the farcical (what if there was a universe where people were chairs and food was made out of phones?) to the more serious. As the season 5 finale puts into perspective, much of the series’ run, the show’s format has mirrored the arc of Rick’s actual fragmented life, and now it was finally time to confront the messy consequences of his actions. As a fan of Rick and Morty, it’s a welcome change: With each subsequent season I’ve grown more exhausted with the show’s emphasis on one-off episodes where the plot repeats the same comedic broad strokes over and over again to diminishing effect - but maybe that’s by design.
5 with a two-part finale, leaving the mad scientist and his grandson-sidekick at a point where they can no longer run away from the past or the truth behind their relationship. Beth just didn’t have any bad memories of him so assumed he was a parasite. Of course, he’s been real this whole time. The kicker is Beth assuming that the peppy Mr. Each parasite that's unrooted in the absurd vignettes that take place in the episode – such as Reverse Giraffe saving Ghost in a Jar’s life in Vietnam – brings the family back together again, even if it comes at a tragic cost. They range from the tragic (Sleepy Gary), to the weird (Amish Cyborg) and the intentionally lazy (Ghost in a Jar). The concept really allows the creative team – from the creators to the artists – to have a lot of fun, and it shows. When the Smith-Sanchez household is overrun by parasites who invent memories of made-up friends and family, Rick must root out the dozens of potential fakes to save the day. Ooo-eee! Here it is: the best Rick and Morty episode – and god bless the animators who worked on it.