Ricktrospective
Author’s Note:
I was a huge fan of Rick and Morty long before it became a bigger than Big Bang Theory and somehow forced McDonald’s to resurrect a 20-year-old McNugget sauce. It was even before I began working at Inverse, where I now write regularly about the series.
I have fond memories of bingeing the first season in my tiny corner of a small three-bedroom apartment in Providence, RI somehow shared between four, sometimes five, people. It was 2014, before Season 2 premiered, and Rick and Morty’s cynical humor resonated with this frustrated 20-something balancing three random jobs and grad school.
Rick and Morty caters to despairing millennials like myself in a way that’s almost uncanny, wearing its nihilism like a badge of honor in a chaotic world. It makes you feel special and smart to a meme-worthy extent, like it’s an exclusive privilege to ride along with Morty and Rick on their adventures.
Like everyone else, I get dismayed by the lengthy delay between seasons, so in the uncertain era after Season 3 ended, I couldn’t think of a better project as an entertainment journalist than to look back at every Rick and Morty episode ever to analyze, rank, and wax philosophical about one of my favorite television shows. Because going chronologically felt too bland for a zany show like Rick and Morty, I decided to review each episode according to the incoherent, arbitrary order in which I’d ranked them.
I’ve always urged fans to join us as we “search for finite meaning in an inherently meaningless infinite multiverse” because that’s the same challenge that Rick and Morty presents to its viewers, and it’s one that’ll continue throughout the next 70 episodes and beyond. Read that original ranking here.
Rick and Morty’s horniest episode ever is outrageous but redundant
Slut-shaming horny dragons as a bit gets old pretty quickly.
Rick and Morty Season 4’s worst story also has its best fight scene
What's worse than destroying someone's dreams?
Rick and Morty Season 4's worst episode turns Jerry into a cult leader
A normal camping trip becomes a bland sci-fi spectacle.
"Total Rickall" reveals the recipe for the perfect 'Rick and Morty' episode
Everything brilliant about 'Rick and Morty' condensed into 22 minutes of glorious storytelling.
Rick and Morty's greatest troll sets up the biggest conflict of Season 4
The show is at its best when it's at its most nihilistic.
Rick and Morty's greatest Season 1 adventure will feel essential in Season 4
"Meeseeks and Destroy" is a must-watch before the new season.
Rick and Morty’s raunchiest parody is one of its all-time greatest episodes
"Vindicators 3" is a triumph.
'Rick and Morty's most heartwarming early episode is one of its best
"We are not them."
"Rick Potion #9" proves ‘Rick and Morty’ has the scariest multiverse ever
Seldom do sci-fi stories with a multiverse present such dire consequences.
Every Single 'Rick and Morty' Episode, Ranked and Reviewed
Searching an infinite, meaningless universe for finite meaning.
This 'Rick and Morty' episode shows Rick at his worst — and inspired Elon Musk
A murderous car is funny, but only in the multiverse of 'Rick and Morty'.
'Rick and Morty's most devastating episode changed modern TV as we know it
"The Wedding Squanchers" feels like the start of 'Rick and Morty' as a global phenomenon.
'Rick and Morty' fans will never forget Season 2's darkest moment
It also sparked one of the most disturbing fan theories of all time.
'Rick and Morty' first achieved brilliance in this Season 1 episode
"Come watch TV."
Is "Morty's Mind Blowers" in a different 'Rick and Morty' dimension?
The one Season 3 episode that almost broke 'Rick and Morty'.
This 'Rick and Morty' episode could hint at Evil Morty’s shocking origins
One big clue could be hiding in plain sight.
Read More on Rick and Morty
Rick and Morty Ruined the Multiverse For Everybody Else
And I mean that in a good way.
Rick and Morty Season 7 Needs to Steal the Best Doctor Who Trick
Just have Morty and Rick Regenerate. Problem solved.
Rick and Morty can survive without Justin Roiland
Adult Swim made the correct decision.
Rick and Morty takes down Star Wars in a brilliant Season 6 finale
On Christmas!
'Rick and Morty's Season 6 finale will finally make Morty's wish come true
Just in time for the holidays, the season finale is a Christmas episode.
Rick and Morty takes on an epic new genre in Season 6 Episode 9
In the penultimate episode of the season, Rick and Morty are stuck in an otherworldly medieval adventure.
High on Life is 2022's most intriguing shooter
Jokes and doom!
Rick and Morty Season 6 Episode 8 release date, time, title, plot, and trailer for Adult Swim’s sci-fi show
The duo deal with a string of "90s-style goofball supervillains."
Rick and Morty Season 6 Episode 7 release date, time, title, and trailer for Adult Swim’s sci-fi show
After a midseason hiatus, the intergalactic hijinks return in full force on Sunday.
Rick and Morty Season 6's most surprising scene was almost even wilder
Did anybody see that three-way coming?
Rick and Morty Season 6 just fixed the show’s biggest sci-fi problem
The Season 5 finale has been undone.
Rick and Morty Season 6 Episode 6 release date, time, plot, cast, and trailer for Adult Swim’s sci-fi show
Dinosaurs from space arrive to make the planet perfect — a little too perfect.
Rick and Morty Season 6, Episode 5 review: Controversial and played out
Incest and poop jokes abound
Rick and Morty Season 6 Episode 5 release date, time, plot, cast, and trailer for Adult Swim’s sci-fi show
The Night Family retired so it’s time to leap into the season’s second half for more surreal fun.
Rick and Morty’s scariest episode ever copies the best sci-fi of the year
Scratchy voices and severed consciousness
Rick and Morty Season 6 Episode 4 release date, time, plot, cast, and trailer for Adult Swim’s sci-fi show
Who needs exercise when you’ve got a Somnambulator machine like Six-Pack Rick ?
