The Fall of Rick and Morty?

By Xander Townsend | Misfit Media Editor

With the recent release of the first and second episode of season 5 of Rick and Morty, it has become very apparent to me that the series has a completely different tone that may be impacting its quality. Misfit Media recently published an article on Rick and Morty, theorising the directors difference in approach with the new season. I asked myself why, and in doing so revisited the pilot episode. The series has tackled many hurdles including an inherently idiotic reddit-eque fanbase and a quick rise to fame, but what was different now that made the series so unimpactful?

 One thing that was made very clear to me is I have a problem with the directors no longer having the same creative freedoms they once had in terms of politically incorrect and inherently offensive content. One of the original marvels of the serious is it was obnoxiously and blatantly walking the line of content that usually wasn't approved for television. This gave the series an authentic feel, and allowed us all to laugh at the spicy content no other series had the metaphorical balls to showcase.

The content of the episodes used to be an amalgamation of philosophy, science, and offensive topics. Nothing was off the table, and it was inherently interesting because of it. When you start a series with this lens it practically condemns it when you put filters on the content you were known for blatantly ignoring. When money becomes involved in content like this, it loses its freedoms and in my opinion, loses its quality and uniqueness.

Another clear problem with the series is the progression of the characters. All the characters in the pilot had extensive flaws. Morty was a weaselly little boy with absolutely no sliver of self-confidence and always found himself doing what Rick told him to do. Rick was an arrogant and rude alcoholic with absolutely no filter and no interest in doing anything for anyone but himself. Summer was an obnoxious high school teenager with her goal being the most popular girl in school and making Morty miserable at any point she could. Beth was an independent, career driven woman constantly pawning for her father's approval and being less than impressed with her husbands every act. Jerry was an insufferable, emasculated, backboneless husband, constantly attempting to assert dominance but failing miserably with constant career blunders.

You couldn't apply these character profiles to the characters of Rick in Morty in the most recent episode, not even close. The reason why the family dynamic was so entertaining to watch was that every one of these characters was deeply flawed. This made the comedy much easier to manufacture and the focus wasn't on liking the characters as people, it was seeing how they would immensely mess up something on the level of destroying the space time continuum for Rick to refuel his car.

I understand all things must come to an end, and I believe apart from a content hungry and ego driven fanbase the series had a great run. I think I'm comfortable letting it go at this point, but I wouldn't mind it returning to its former glory.