Don’t let the bright colors and vibrant animation fool you—Rick and Morty is one of the darkest comedy shows ever released. Ostensibly a show about a young boy and his genius grandfather, Adult Swim’s nonsensical sci-fi adventure jumps off the rails from the get-go. Though the comedy and style of the show should be relatively niche, Rick and Morty has become a tremendously successful series which, according to one of its main characters, will be going on for at least the next century or so. With more uncanny exploits on the way, let’s get schwifty and review some of the best moments from the show’s second season.
How Plumbuses Are Made
Inter-dimensional Cable 2: Tempting Fate was a sequel to an episode from the first season in which Rick, Morty, and the rest of the family peak into the wide galactic span of TV from different realities. While the first part of this channel surfing saga wasn’t all that memorable, the sequel bestowed upon viewers some of the most important information of all time: how to make a plumbus.
As we all know, everyone has a plumbus or two sitting around, but few know the secrets behind their production. The funniest part of this segment is Justin Roiland’s ad-hoc rambling as he pieces together the anatomy of this alien object apparently on the fly.
Rick, Morty, and Roy
The second episode of the season, titled Mortynight Run, sees the show’s eponymous duo patronizing an intergalactic version of Dave & Busters known as “Blips n’ Chitz.” Morty is concerned that Rick sold weapons to a hitman in order to pay for the excursion, but, in typical fashion, Rick doesn’t care in the slightest.
While there, Rick forces Morty into an arcade game which sees the player take control of an earthling named Roy with the apparent goal of living for as long as possible. Morty seems dazed and mildly horrified once he comes out of the affair, but Rick only mocks him and states that he’s going to “thrash” his Roy score.
Werner Herzog Explains Human Culture
The Plumbus scene wasn’t the only highlight of the eighth episode of season 2. Rick’s interest in the hospital’s waiting room television might have been the A plot, but the B plot revolved around Jerry potentially donating a crucial bit of his anatomy to save the life of a galactic social activist with a really silly name. Jerry refuses, of course, and the rest of the assembled aliens fail to understand his decision.
That’s when a wise old humanoid voiced by famous film director Werner Herzog steps in and explains humanity’s fascination with… well, certain aspects of the male anatomical structure. Such serious conversation regarding such a bizarre topic makes the whole thing ridiculously hilarious.
Rick’s Car “Protects” Summer
The sixth episode of the second season of Rick and Morty sees the titular pair venture into Rick’s car battery—which actually contains its own micro-universe—to see exactly what’s causing his engine trouble. Meanwhile, Summer is left alone and told not to touch anything or stir up any trouble. However, things quickly spiral out of control when the car slices up a vagrant trying to get Summer’s attention. When the police show up to investigate, Summer demands that no more violent action be taken. Instead, the car employs a twisted psychological deterrent which is most funny due to it’s overwhelmingly dark nature.
Turn Into A Car, Morty
In that same episode, Rick and Morty are desperate to catch up with a scientist from a planet residing in Rick’s car battery/universe before he escapes and collapses the galactic microcosm. They can’t catch him on foot, so Rick urges his cohort to transform into a car.
He tells him that he implanted subdermal chip in him which could call upon nanobots in his bloodstream which would morph him into a motor vehicle. Hilariously, Morty starts grunting and straining in an effort to become the first human transformer. As that’s going on, Rick quietly hails a cab, making Morty seem like even more of an idiot than he already is.
Birdperson Gets Married
Birdperson, first introduced in the finale of season one, was a hilariously flat character supposed to have a lasting and storied history with Rick. He meets a high school girl named Tammy at a party hosted by Sanchez, and, in the second season’s finale, the two get married. With all of the wedding goers in attendance, Tammy, Birdperson’s bride, reveals that she is actually an agent of the Galactic Federation, and a shooting spree soon ensues between Federation agents and the cast of intergalactic criminals present at the ceremony. Tammy promptly riddles Birdperson with laser holes, to Rick’s horror. In this instance, we get to see Rick genuinely taken by surprise, which happens very rarely.
Rick Goes to Jail
After Tammy uproots Rick’s criminal past and sends the Galactic Federation into a frenzy, Rick is forced to take his family and go into hiding. They try to stake a claim to several planets, but none quite fit. Realizing what he’s putting his loved ones through, Rick has a rare moment of selflessness and turns himself in. He bargains for his family’s safety and is taken to prison in a surprisingly emotional montage set to Nine Inch Nails’ song Hurt.
Once incarcerated, a prisoner asks him what he’s there for, and the season concludes with a sigh as Rick simply responds with “everything.”
Morty Lets It Rip
After preventing an assassination partially staged by Rick as the result of an illicit arms trade, Morty befriends a strange non-carbon-based life form which takes a liking to the name “Fart.” After the two struggle to free Fart from his potential assailant, Fart thanks them before commenting that he’ll be returning with the rest of his race as part of their ongoing quest to annihilate all carbon-based life.
Though still panicked and indecisive, Morty takes action and blasts Fart away with a laser pistol before he can escape through a portal to his world. It would almost me strangely dramatic were it not so outstandingly funny.
Beth Shoots MPB
The fourth episode of Season Two gets really crazy as the Smith household is overtaken by a race of parasitic aliens which burrow their way into people’s memories and convince them of outlandish happenings which never actually took place. While Rick tries to sort out the situation, these aliens spread and create more zany characters by way of evocation manipulation. Eventually, they figure out who is who, and the sordid affair comes to an end. However, as they all gather around for dinner at the end of the episode, Beth shoots a beloved—although previously unmentioned and unseen—family friend, who turns out to be real despite the fact that he doesn’t appear to be human and wasn’t ever brought up prior to this episode.
Rick Gets Schwifty
One of the most iconic moments in the show’s history, Rick tries to save the day when a giant yellow head comes from outer space and demands that humanity “show him what they got”. No one save for Rick knows how to interpret this, and he eventually joins up with the American military to perform one of the greatest ad-lib songs of all time for the head. After stating that he “dabbles” in music, Rick gets on stage and strings together one of the most ridiculous pieces of music ever heard, chanting that everyone needs to “get schwifty” and calling himself “Mr. Bulldops.”
Unfortunately, the head likes what Rick’s got, and the planet is entered into a universe-wide singing competition with incredibly high stakes.
