Abhiroop Das
Co-created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon, Adult Swim’s ‘Rick and Morty’ pushes the envelope surrounding Rick’s arc, questioning whether he’s really matured over the course of nine seasons. SPOILERS AHEAD. In the previous episode, his desire for an alien tree’s rare zap lands him in a curse of the evolutionary cycle alongside Morty. The only way out seems to be a revolution against biology itself, but by the end of it all, Rick is as far from enlightenment as he’s ever been. In this episode, titled ‘Rickuiem Mort a Dream,’ the eponymous grandpa-grandson duo tinker around with a new alien innovation, while Jerry and Summer grapple with a much more human variety of terror.
Rick Gifts Morty a Bug That Turns the World Into Sunshine and Roses
‘Rick and Morty’ season 9 episode 8 begins with Rick waking up in the finest of spirits, as today is reserved for brewing. Geared up and all smiles, he puts up a “Don’t Disturb” sign over his garage door, marveling at the lab-like distillery he has set up inside. The star of the show, however, is the oversized, rainbow-colored, extraterrestrial potato that he has been saving up just for this occasion. However, as he hums to his own work with heavy-duty earplugs on, Morty seems to be getting desperate for his attention. With one accidental knock at a vat tank, he accidentally brings the whole system down in flames, leaving Rick absolutely furious and in urgent need of an entirely new laboratory set-up, as well as a space potato.
Though Rick is able to get Jerry and Summer to ride to the supermarket and get him the equipment he needs, bringing a new, colorful potato would require a trip to space. Having calmed down a bit, Rick tries to get Morty on board and offers to give him something to make things even. That something is a little ear bug called Sympathin, which is supposed to nest in people’s heads and turn them into super-empaths. From that point, nothing that Rick, or for that matter, anyone else in the world says or does to Morty, is registered on a completely different and far more pleasant note, which makes the job ahead a lot easier. After training with a super-cheerful version of Rick and winning a space dance competition, Morty is awarded another space potato, fulfilling Rick’s goal.
With the potato in hand, Rick is quick to suck the Sympathin out of Morty’s ear, and warns that holding on to it for too long can have catastrophic side effects. Elsewhere, an entirely different subplot seems to be developing in the lives of Jerry and Summer, as on their last pitstop for the day, they come across a man who’s hoarding all the barrels of a solution they need. However, upon a closer look, they realize that this man is a serial killer who’s using those barrels for an entirely different reason, and won’t be easy to talk to. In the quirkiest of fashions, Jerry decides that the way to go is to roleplay as a serial killer, and turn Summer into one of the victims he needs a barrel to dispose of. The trick works a little too well, though, and the serial killer ends up inviting Jerry to his head, hopefully for just a chat.
Morty Nearly Walks to His Death After Getting Addicted to Empathy
Despite being warned about the consequences of using Sympathin without restraint, Morty doesn’t think twice before re-injecting himself after he hears a random person harassing him. Sure enough, the bug does its trick and turns Morty into effectively the most understanding person alive. While others on his bus, or at school, might as well be uttering the harshest words ever, all Rick can hear are the confessions of their subconscious, and he cannot express warmth. On that note, he also tries to gift Rick his favorite sparkly things from an alien store, until Rick realizes what’s up and pulls out the bug from his grandson’s ear. In a flash, reality lashes Morty with full force as he realizes that he is missing an arm, because that sparkly little test tube was actually an explosive, and the cute little bug is now a full-fledged monster.
As Rick and Morty try to hoplessly battle against the giant Sympathin, the entire alien shop, now revealed to be a black market, turns hostile. In the process, the bug even manages to sneak into Rick’s brain at one point, forcibly amping up his empathy and lowering all of his defenses. However, Morty, now back to his usual self, is able to get the escape mission done just fine and boards the spaceship in time. Back on Earth, however, things only seem to be going downhill, as Jerry gets invited into a run-down shack in the middle of nowhere, while Summer breaks into the killer’s hidden den to rescue the abducted girl and get one of the barrels.
Jerry Meets His Match in the Form of a Serial Killer
While chatting over tea, the mystery man introduces himself as the “Cat-and-Mouse Killer,” owing to the cat key-chain he places on the body of each of his victims. When he curiously asks about Jerry’s modus operandi, the latter is left with no choice but to let his imagination go wild. In a story that seems almost too eerily detailed to be a mere concoction, Jerry labels himself as the “Birthday Killer,” known for killing his victims on their birthday, ending both their lives, and spiritually, that of their parents. To top things off, he imagines an elaborate ritual for the body that is creepy enough to spook out the serial killer himself. Just then, however, Summer’s cover gets blown, and Jerry suddenly finds himself trapped in a murder house.
As Morty manages to teleport his way out of the alien realm and back to Earth, he finds that his father is currently trapped with a serial killer, and the police are all but prepared to rain bullets on the house. However, this becomes the perfect opportunity for Rick to organically use his newfound empathy to bait the killer into leaving the house for a warm embrace, only to be wiped out by the police squad. With the dust now settled, Rick makes his premium drink at last, one that is potent enough to kill the worm inside his head and restore order to the universe.
You must be logged in to post a comment.