deideiblueeyez

If you're looking for a smartly written, self-deprecating, nihilistic, pop culture-referencing show, this is for you.

What makes Rick and Morty stand out from a lot of the adult animation chaff is that this show is indeed predicated on a cynical cheapening of life and extreme violence orchestrated by sociopathically sane genius scientist Rick Sanchez, but it does not allow the joke to simply settle at that. Much of the humor is in fact derived from the sincere empathetic connection and commitment that is highlighted by bit characters that we never see again. Ironically, it is that humanity played straight that makes it funny because it is played straight, because we as a society have grown so accustomed to the cheapening of happiness and the allure of apathy to shield us from our own pain that we find genuine happiness and love shared between two characters to be humorous. Finding such gags funny, finding them to be punchlines, feels as much cathartic as it does traumatizing, in a way.

And what's more is that these serious moments infiltrate the lives of the Smith family and touch Rick, too. The relationships among its members hem and haw over episodes and seasons, primarily between Beth and Jerry, Morty and Rick, Summer and Morty + Rick, and Rick's presence within the family dynamic overall. Conversations are had, anger is vented, decisions are made. That they are "settled" in an episode or two to me doesn't detract from the fact that relationship lines were still drawn and carry over into future episodes. Subtly, you feel the characters grow or else shift uncomfortably in the skin of the character they were assigned in episode 1 over the course of the series. There are 'soft resets', yes, but you always feel like they have those past adventures in the characters' memories. It isn't episodic amnesia, but rather 'looking forward'. They may not successfully break completely from their shell or their habits, and that in of itself may be a moral about the futility of attempting self-change, but that the creators wrote a struggle in the first place might be a symbol of hope for some viewers: Trying is better than not trying at all.

In essence, this show has given me very much to think about. It is a perfect balance of nihilism and finding meaning in what doesn't matter; in living vicariously through the sociopathic antics of Rick and grounding yourself in the stable morality of 14 year old Morty; in confronting your mortality while finding comfort in the fact that you are a tiny speck of something in the great universe. Like Bojack Horseman, this show has something to say and it does so with a disarming poignancy that catches you off-guard.

To anyone who says that the show has been hijacked by SJWs or PC culture, it's painfully obvious your brain is stuck in 2014. Get over yourself. There are multiple episodes that make fun of, and highlight, the perceived differences and tensions between the sexes and Rick's apathy toward it all. I have watched every single episode to date and nothing stuck out as out-of-step or 'trying too hard'. From start to end, the series progresses perfectly. Yes, even Season 4 and 5. I see nothing wrong with them.

Despite all the odds, this film actually came out decent. Of course it is still heavy-handed with its ideas that the country disproportionately hates Christians and Christianity, there is still an underlying message of "We as a nation are not talking to each other as we should. We are screaming and not listening to other peoples' views". The movie does undercut its own message by featuring news pundits who espouse the typical "Liberals don't listen to Christians" but this is supplemented by several scenes where actual conversations, however brief, are had between these so-called liberals (read: atheists) and Christians. What the film does best is open itself up to be called out for hypocrisy with its typical "Christians are being persecuted" and, instead of chanting the mantra to itself throughout the film, actually turns to face the accusations and defend its stance. The Lawyer (played by David Corbett) and Reverend Dave (played by David A.R. White) are the main example of this phenomenon, and David A.R. White's earnest convictions are matched by Corbett's charming, needling lawyer character. This is the first time that the film series ever actually takes the time to establish a dialogue between these two forces that the film itself claims are tearing this country apart, and that sort of self-awareness in a film genre that seems eager to play the victim card can not be understated.

I would not recommend this film as anything but for the curious, and I would dissuade everyone from watching this until they've seen the first two in order to truly appreciate the level of growth that this series experienced in its writing and storytelling.