Premise and main characters
{{see also, List of Rick and Morty characters The show revolves around the adventures of the members of the Smith household, which consists of parents Jerry and Beth, their children Summer and Morty, and Beth's father, Rick Sanchez, who lives with them as a guest. According to Justin Roiland, the family lives outside ofProduction
Development
{{multiple image , align = right , direction = horizontal , total_width = 360 , footer = Creators Dan Harmon (left) and Justin Roiland (right) , image1 = Dan Harmon by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg , image2 = Justin Roiland, XOXO 2015 (cropped).jpg ''Rick and Morty'' was created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon. The duo first met at Channel 101, a non-profit monthly short film festival in Los Angeles co-founded by Harmon. At Channel 101, participants submit a short film in the format of a pilot, and a live audience decides which pilots continue as a series. Roiland, then a producer on reality programming, began submitting content to the festival a year after its launch, in 2004. His pilots typically consisted ofWriting
Animation and voice recording
Animation for the show is done usingBroadcast and ratings
Episodes
{{main, List of Rick and Morty episodes {{:List of Rick and Morty episodes In May 2012, Adult Swim unveiled its development slate that included a ''Rick and Morty''Ratings
''Rick and Morty'' has been a ratings hit since season one, with viewership doubling and tripling over their first six episodes. The third season ended with the best ratings in Adult Swim history, an 81 percent increase in overall viewers over the second season.{{Cite web , author=Tom Huddleston Jr. , date=October 1, 2017 , title=Millennials' Favorite TV Show Is Adult Swim's 'Rick and Morty' , url=http://fortune.com/2017/09/30/why-adult-swims-rick-and-morty-is-millennials-favorite-tv-show/ , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127112734/http://fortune.com/2017/09/30/why-adult-swims-rick-and-morty-is-millennials-favorite-tv-show/ , archive-date=January 27, 2018 , access-date=March 8, 2018 , website= Fortune According to a Nielsen poll, the third season was the most watched television comedy of adults between the ages of 18 and 24. The president of Adult Swim said that ''Rick and Morty'' "goes beyond just appealing to millennials," with statistics suggesting that people of every age tune in to the show. The fourth season started relatively strong, with its premiere reaching 2.33 million viewers (the show's average is 2.51 million). However, interest soon appeared to taper off after the network decided to split the season in half causing a steep drop in the season's second half–about a 40% drop in viewership from the third season. The fourth episode of the fourth season saw 1.62 million viewers, which was noted to not be impressive in its own right, but in that it showed consist viewership especially when competing against shows like '' The Walking Dead'' in the same time slot. The season five premier episode was posted on YouTube and had 1.7 million views within the first 12 hours. The television premier saw 1.9 million views. The premier of season six was shown on September 4, 2022, and saw the highest ratings in telecast for women age 18 to 24 and 18 to 34 and non-sports telecast for male viewers age 18 to 24 and 18 to 34. The episode was also the number two most-viewed non-sports program overall for viewers age 18 to 49.Streaming service and home media
The show is available to watch in its entirety onThemes and analysis
Comedic style
The general formula of ''Rick and Morty'' consists of the juxtaposition of two conflicting scenarios: an extremely selfish, alcoholic grandfather dragging his grandson along for interdimensional adventures, intercut with domestic family drama. Co-creator Dan Harmon has described the series as a cross betweenPhilosophy
The series addresses the insignificance of human existence as compared to the size of the universe, with no recognizable divine presence, as described by Lovecraft's philosophy of cosmicism. The characters of the show deal with cosmic horror and existential dread, either by asserting the utility of science over magic or by choosing a life in ignorant bliss. However, as Joachim Heijndermans of ''Geeks'' notes, none of them appear able to handle the absurd and chaotic nature of the universe, as Jerry gets by throughReception
Critical reception
{{Television critical response , link1 = Rick and Morty (season 1)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes1 = 96% (28 reviews) , metacritic1 = 85 (8 reviews) , link2 = Rick and Morty (season 2)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes2 = 91% (13 reviews) , metacritic2 = , link3 = Rick and Morty (season 3)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes3 = 96% (10 reviews) , metacritic3 = , link4 = Rick and Morty (season 4)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes4 = 94% (31 reviews) , metacritic4 = 84 (5 reviews) , link5 = Rick and Morty (season 5)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes5 = 95% (22 reviews) , metacritic5 = 89 (5 reviews) , link6 = Rick and Morty (season 6)#Reception , rotten_tomatoes6 = 95% (47 reviews) , metacritic6 = 86 (4 reviews) ''Rick and Morty'' holds an average approval rating of 95% on review aggregator websiteIndustry impact
Several former ''Rick and Morty'' storyboard artists and crew members proceeded to develop their own shows or work on major new productions. Creator Justin Roiland and showrunner Mike McMahan have gone on to co-create '' Solar Opposites'', an animated sci-fi sitcom that has been frequently compared to ''Rick and Morty''.{{Cite web , last=Jones , first=Marcus , date=2022-10-13 , title=What Exactly Made ‘Rick and Morty’ One of Hollywood’s Most Influential Writers Rooms , url=https://www.indiewire.com/2022/10/rick-and-morty-writers-avengers-star-trek-1234771086/ , access-date=2022-11-21 , website=Awards and nominations
{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; width:99%;" , - ! Year ! Award ! Category ! style="width:38%;" , Nominee(s) ! Result ! class=unsortable, {{Abbr, Ref., Reference , - , style="text-align:center;", 2014 , IGN Awards , Best TV Animated Series , rowspan="5" , ''Rick and Morty'' , {{nom , style="text-align:center;", , - , rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;", 2015 ,Other media and products
Possible feature film
Show creator Justin Roiland said in 2019 that he would love to make an Motion Picture Association film rating system#R-rated, R-rated ''Rick and Morty'' feature film. In June 2021, producer Scott Marder confirmed that the creators and crew hope to eventually produce a feature film, with Roiland stating that it is more a question of "when", rather than "if". In 2022, American filmmaker Zack Snyder expressed interest in directing a ''Rick and Morty'' science fiction movie.Spin-off series
On May 20, 2021, Adult Swim announced a short Spin-off (media), spin-off series centred on the The Vindicators, Vindicators team (Supernova, Vance Maxiumus, Alan Rails, Crocubot and Noob Noob) previously seen on the episode, "Vindicators 3: The Return of Worldender" to be in development, alongside spin-offs from other Adult Swim shows like ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'', ''Robot Chicken'', and ''Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell''. The 10-episode series, ''Vindicators 2'' was released in July 2022. On May 18, 2022, Adult Swim announced there would be a full spin-off series based on the anime shorts, directed by Takashi Sano.Cameos
Film
Rick and Morty, both voiced by Roiland, have a Cameo appearance, cameo in 2021's ''Space Jam: A New Legacy'', as they claim to have experimented on the Tasmanian Devil (Looney Tunes), Tasmanian Devil but say they were disgusted by the results; thus, they voluntarily give him back to LeBron and the Looney Tunes by dropping him on their rocket's windshield. Notably, they are the only characters featured from any property held by producer Warner Bros. (under its Warner Bros. Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics, Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics division since 2019) through subsidiary Turner Broadcasting, one that would hold a variety of animated characters through Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, or any affiliation or collaboration with them.Television
Rick and Morty were featured in the couch gag at the beginning of "Mathlete's Feat", the final episode of the The Simpsons (season 26), twenty-sixth season of ''Comics
{{Main, Rick and Morty (comics) On April 1, 2015, a ''Rick and Morty'' comic book adaptation debuted with its first monthly issue, entitled "BAM!"{{cite web , url=http://www.comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=332793 , title=Rick and Morty (2015) - #1 , publisher=Comicbookdb , access-date=April 8, 2015 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150414034652/http://www.comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=332793 , archive-date=April 14, 2015 , url-status=live The series was initially written by Zac Gorman and illustrated by CJ Cannon.{{cite web , url=https://comicbook.com/2015/01/22/rick-and-morty-comic-book-preview-revealed/ , title=Rick and Morty Comic Book Preview Revealed , publisher=Comicbook.com , date=January 22, 2015 , access-date=April 8, 2015 , last=Steinbeiser , first=Andrew , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416031032/http://comicbook.com/2015/01/22/rick-and-morty-comic-book-preview-revealed/ , archive-date=April 16, 2015 , url-status=live Artist Tom Fowler (cartoonist), Tom Fowler wrote a multi-issue story arc that began in March 2016. Using the television series' established premise of alternate timelines, the first two volumes of the comic book expressly features the Rick and Morty (and supporting cast) of a different timeline, allowing the comics to tell stories without conflicting with the Canon (fiction), canon of the show. From the third volume onwards, with the departure of Gorman as written and his replacement with Kyle Starks, the series switched focus to display the off-screen adventures of the specific Rick and Morty of the television series, keeping in the canon of the show, with the Ricks and Mortys of different timelines forming the basis for backup stories.{{cite web , last=Johnston , first=Rich , date=September 23, 2019 , title=The ''Rick and Morty'' Comic Series to End With #60 , url=https://bleedingcool.com/comics/rick-and-morty-comic-series-60 , access-date=September 23, 2019 , website=Bleeding Cool On August 29, 2018, a four-issue crossover comic with the fantasy tabletop role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' was released. The series titled ''Dungeons & Dragons (IDW Publishing)#Crossovers, Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons & Dragons'' is co-written by Jim Zub and Patrick Rothfuss, and art by Troy Little. A sequel mini-series, titled ''Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons & Dragons: Chapter II: Painscape,'' was published in September 2018. It was written by Jim Zub and Sarah Stern with art by Troy Little. The ''Rick and Morty vs Dungeons and Dragons Deluxe Edition'', by Rothfuss, Zub, and Little, was nominated for the 2022 "Best Graphic Album—Reprint" Eisner Award.Product tie-ins
Szechuan sauce (McDonald's), McDonald's Szechuan Sauce returned to their menu nearly twenty years later after being referenced numerous times in "The Rickshank Rickdemption", the Rick and Morty (season 3), Season 3 premiere. The sauce was announced to return to all McDonald's stores on February 26, 2018 due to popular demand from ''Rick and Morty'' fans. On March 31, 2022, it once again returned to stores, featured as an app only exclusive until April 4. Adult Swim and Wendy's have collaborated to create commercials featuring the titular duo. They have also created Morty themed food trucks and restaurants. In 2022, Wendy's offered ''Rick and Morty''-inspired combo meals exclusively on Uber Eats and brought back their "Portal Time Lemon Lime" soft drink to promote the series' sixth season. The promotion also featured a giveaway of ''Rick and Morty'' merchandise. Adult Swim released a promotional video advertising ''Death Stranding''. The ad involves Rick and Morty traversing the world of Death Stranding and to deliver packages to stations in order to rebuild human civilization while trying to avoid being harmed by hostiles.{{cite web, last=Brayson, first=Johnny, date=2019-11-06, title=Rick And Morty Meets Death Stranding In Hilarious Crossover Video, url=https://www.looper.com/173614/rick-and-morty-meets-death-stranding-in-hilarious-crossover-video/, access-date=2021-11-12, website=Looper.com, language=en-US, archive-date=November 12, 2021, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211112222550/https://www.looper.com/173614/rick-and-morty-meets-death-stranding-in-hilarious-crossover-video/, url-status=liveNotes
{{notelistReferences
{{reflist, colwidth=30emExternal links
{{Commons category * {{official website * {{IMDb title, tt2861424 * {{Metacritic television * {{Rotten Tomatoes, tv/rick_and_morty {{Rick and Morty, state=expanded {{Navboxes , title = Awards for ''Rick and Morty'' , list = {{Annie Award for Best General Audience Animated Television Production {{Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Animated Series {{EmmyAward AnimationLessThanHour {{Justin Roiland {{Dan Harmon {{Adult Swim original programming {{authority control {{Subject bar, portal1=Animation, portal2=Comedy, portal3=Science fiction, portal4=Television , portal5=United States, portal6=Cartoon, commons=yes, commons-search=Rick and Morty, q=yes, d=yes, d-search=Q15659308 Rick and Morty, 2010s American adult animated television series 2010s American animated comedy television series 2010s American black comedy television series 2010s American comic science fiction television series 2010s American sitcoms 2010s American surreal comedy television series 2013 American television series debuts 2020s American adult animated television series 2020s American animated comedy television series 2020s American black comedy television series 2020s American comic science fiction television series 2020s American sitcoms 2020s American surreal comedy television series Absurdist fiction Adult Swim original programming Alcohol abuse in television American adult animated adventure television series American adult animated comedy television series American adult animated science fiction television series American animated sitcoms American comic science fiction television series Animated adult television sitcoms Animated duos Animated space adventure television series Animated television series about dysfunctional families Animated television series about extraterrestrial life Animated television series about teenagers Annie Award winners Computer-animated television series Emmy Award-winning programs English-language television shows Fictional duos Metafictional television series Self-reflexive television Shorty Award winners Television series about parallel universes Television series based on Internet-based works Television series by Justin Roiland's Solo Vanity Card Productions! Television series by Williams Street Television series created by Dan Harmon Television series created by Justin Roiland Television series set on fictional planets Television shows set in Washington (state) Works about nihilism Incest in television