Review: Rick and Morty “Rickuiem Mort a Dream”
OVERVIEW (SPOILERS)
When Rick and Morty have another massive fight, Rick gives Morty an alien parasite that allows him to better empathize with others. Does that sound like a situation that’s going to work out for the best?
OUR TAKE
Despite having a title referencing a movie that made me pretty bummed out for a whole week, this episode actually makes me a bit optimistic. Much like the personal toxicity episode from the third season (oh hey that’s the second time I’ve called back to that this season), this tackles the concept of using some alien tech or creature to boost some perceived negative aspect of a character’s personality that then goes horribly awry when they become too reliant on it. Huh, actually that sounds just like what happened with Jerry and the anxiety worms just a few episodes ago. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, that just came to mind. And I’m glad that instead of anxiety, this episode tackles the idea of empathy, which can be quite difficult to have when you’re having a fierce argument with someone, even if it’s someone you love. So, when Rick tries to get Morty to hear what he MEANS when he yells at him instead of what he says (which is usually really hurtful stuff), this empathy parasite acts like a steroid that helps Morty see the better in everyone, trying to meet them on their terms and help them out. But of course, like any drug, once you get off it, there are some withdrawals, and it can be easy to get addicted.
This then leads Morty to overusing the parasite and empathizing with shit so hard that he gets his arm blown off and releases a massively overfed parasite upon the world, as well as now being basically drained of his empathy, though that’ll probably bounce back by next episode. Summer and Jerry actually end up on an also interesting subplot of trying to get barrels for Rick’s broken distillery but happen upon a serial killer in action. This leads to Jerry also trying to meet the killer on his level, but overdoes it and makes himself seem like an even more depraved killer, which I guess is a lesson that trying to reach people with warped self perception can lead to bad outcomes. In yet another example of an episode of television this reminds me of, an episode of another Dan Harmon show, Krapopolis, comes to mind, as they also did an episode about the potential pitfalls of empathy. But where that ep’s conclusion didn’t sit quite right with me because it seemed to be saying empathizing will lead to others taking advantage of you, this Rick and Morty episode seems be landing more on making sure to look out for yourself and remember your own needs even if you want to help someone with theirs, which I think is a pretty good thing to say. Anyway, two episodes of the season left, let’s see if they stick the landing!
