Rick and Morty: Three Seasons in Review

       Since its release on Adult Swim in 2013, Rick and Morty has easily become one of America’s top comedies. The dark sci-fi series’ offbeat and wacky humor sparks the viewer’s interest, who are later won over by its deeper meaning. 

       The animated series follows mad scientist Rick Sanchez and his timid, half-witted grandson Morty Smith who travel the depths of their parallel universe, dimension C-137, in search of adventure. Although the purpose of these adventures are usually to cater Rick’s own amusement the characters tend to run into tribulations that cause them to question their own relationships and moral values.  

       On the home front parental figures Beth and Jerry Smith struggle to work through a failing marriage while dealing with the pressure of Rick’s antics and his return to their lives after 20 years of absence.  Rick is the star character of the show. Known to be the smartest being in the universe, he has the power to save or destroy entire worlds with only his mind and quirky inventions. Watching Rick attempt to maintain the balance of the universe while struggling against extreme alcoholism and emotional detachment makes for an exciting half-hour of television. 

       Rick and Morty, the work of co-creators Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland, has been a huge success. The show has landed quite an impressive list of guest stars such as Keegan-Michael Key, John Oliver, Steven Colbert and more. Rick and Morty has captured over 11 million viewers breaking Adult-Swim records. It has been the second-highest rated TV show falling only to Game of Thrones.   

       Harmon and Roiland have a knack for leaving fans begging for more, which has surprisingly called Rick and Morty’s future into question. Viewers are beginning to become frustrated with the creators only having produced three seasons containing 31 episodes in just under five years. Fans waited 18 months between the end of season two and the premier of season three, which was aired in the form of a pleasant surprise as a reverse April Fool’s joke earlier this year.  

       As for season four there is no set release date and it does not seem like it will be coming any time soon. Writer and producer Ryan Ridley said the network, Harmon and Roiland should probably get their “[expletive] together”.  There does not seem to be any form of internal conflict in the show’s writing and production. Harmon and Roiland have left many open storylines that fans are excited to see play out. The creators are extremely picky about the content that they produce.  

       “It’s a common yet odd phenomenon,” said Harmon, “Tail-chasing, perfectionism, overthinking? One problem is that any description you pick for it.” 

       Nevertheless, Rick and Morty is worth checking out. Its dedicated fans would rather wait for the producers to get it together than face disappointment. Hopefully the next time we get to see Rick and his crew “get schwifty” on screen will be sooner rather than later.