Review: RICK AND MORTY: FINALS WEEK– OLD MAN MORTY #1

Buy it here.

Overview

Morty is at his wits’ end. He’s failed his last four exams and is desperate for a miracle. As he begs Rick for help, they’re paid an unexpected visit by . . . MORTY?! No, OLD MAN MORTY, who takes his younger self on a journey, much to Rick’s chagrin, as something just doesn’t feel right…

The final chapter of the sad, hilarious Finals Week saga, written by Rick’s New Hat scribe Alex Firer, and drawn by Rick and Morty veteran Fred C. Stresing. This tale promises to entertain, if not inspire you to make better choices in your life!

Our Take

At first when I kick off reading this new special one-off I’m getting a bit nervous. I mean, ANOTHER glimpse into Morty’s future? Like, how many of these are we going to do. But, as I’m reading through I’m less caring about that and more enamored by the stellar and hilarious dialogue from Alex Firer. Presented as very succinct and full of grit, RICK AND MORTY: FINALS WEEK– OLD MAN MORTY #1 isn’t afraid to go out on an extreme limb and force feed the reader into an unsightly future for our star here when he skimps out on school.

That said, I don’t buy that Rick would be the one to try and save Morty and make him do well in a science test. For starters, Rick traditionally has no respect for any of Morty’s science teachers and would much rather help Morty blow off class though an argument could be made that Rick’s jealousy could be the real issue but that isn’t really showcased here. Fortunately, FRED C. STRESING’s art continues to dazzle with such ambient colors, tasty visuals of gore, and full page layouts that will knock your socks off.

Rick and Morty comics are slowly, but surely, surpassing the actual series in more ways than one. I’ll be curious to see how this growth continues as we move towards 2025.