Comic Review: Rick and Morty vs Dungeons & Dragons Chapter II: Painscape #4

Overview:

The Smith family are in the throws of war as Rick’s former D&D characters attempt to take over the real world. But, as the magic of the D&D world takes over, they are left defenceless. In their final stand, the Smith family are defeated and killed. With nothing to stop the evil Bardrick, a new demonic reign befalls the Earth.

Unbeknown to Bardrick, the original Rick has been trapped in his own D&D world XP-grinding, levelling up, and multiclassing. Finding a ring of his own creation with the ability to grant three wishes, Rick becomes a rule shattering overpowered character.

After years have passed, Rick returns to have the ultimate battle with Bardrick. With as much power as he has gained, Rick is victorious. He uses another wish to return the world to the way it was before Bardrick had appeared.

Our Take:

Well, that was an epic conclusion! This whole series has been leading up to a final showdown between Rick and Bardrick. However, there was no way of guessing the lengths that this title would go to. As the first few books progressed, there was a clear path for the story. This issue leads off with a surprising twist with the death of Morty and the rest of the Smith family. It only got bigger and more exciting from there, helping to bring this four-book series to a stellar ending. And, suddenly, this sequel is as strong, if not better, than the original run.

Issue #3 ended on a strong note (which was our first hint that this comic would be significant). Jerry had stepped up in a big way pulling together a resistance to the oncoming war. Watching all of that fall apart early in this issue brought more stakes into the finale. Virtually, this is an Avengers: Endgame scenario where our heroes had already lost. Thankfully, we have never seen a problem that Rick Sanchez can’t fix.

We love Rick for being overly competent and never being out-of-control in dangerous situations. And, this title took everything away from him at the start, including being the most intelligent one in the room. Yet, our Rick Sanchez is unstoppable, and we know he will bring peace to his world in the end. That is why watching him level up in the other issues has been fun. Then they took it to extreme measures for the finale, and it couldn’t be more fun. Unbalanced Multiclass Master Rick, or Mega-Rick the Thaconator, maybe the most powerful versions of this character that we may ever see. And, that is saying a lot considering the many variations we get to see of Rick throughout the franchise. The bottom line being, he’s super cool in this comic.

Now, I need to admit that despite being a mega-fan or Rick and Morty, comic books, and Rick and Morty comic books, my D&D knowledge and experience is lacking.  More like I have never played a game in my life. Regardless, I can still understand how much D&D fans can drool over some of the ideas laid out in this issue. There are elements of things extraordinary and concepts unfathomed riddled throughout the book. Already there exist D&D variations including Rick and Morty thanks to the original run of this title. This issue may have changed that game entirely as for what is possible. It makes noobs like me very curious as to what is happening within that world.

There is also a significant hint for more from this crossover in the future. Well, it’s less of a hint and more of a blatant call to action for fans to build the demand for the third chapter to this trilogy. With Oni Press just recently announcing that the ongoing Rick and Morty comic title would be coming to an end later this year, Rick and Morty vs Dungeons and Dragons is asking for a sequel right in the final pages of the book. Apparently, writer Jim Zub has another story in the barrel, and it best not go to waste. Both chapters of this title have been amazing, and there are some answers and revelations that could come from one more run.

This issue on its own is exciting and epic in scale. Not only that, it helps to enhance the entire series like a good comic book should. There are things in the pages of this book that you would never imagine to see out of the franchise. The random crossover of a role-playing game and an animated sitcom in a media that neither of them stands out in has been a resounding success in terms of development and execution. Let’s just hope financially this one pays off so that we can get that sweet, sweet trilogy.