Rick and Morty - Season One Finale

I'm no stranger to cartoons. I think I'm part of the first generation of people to have a lot of adult-oriented animation options, and I'm very happy that the nice creative people are making them for us grown-up types. There are an infinite number of stories that are not feasible to be told through live action, either due to technical or practical limitations.

Rick and Morty is my new favourite animated show, taking its place in the pantheon with Bob's Burgers and Venture Bros. (Archer has been slipping this season). You can read a complete piece on the show in my Pop Culture Cornucopia column in the most recent issue of The Projector if you're a Red River College student, to be re-published here in the near future.



The first season of Rick and Morty ends with a bang, making the most of its multiverse playground. Earlier in the season, we are forced to acknowledge that there are infinite alternate realities, and that there are versions of the title characters in many of those realities. In the finale, we learn that several thousand alternate versions of Rick Sanchez have banded together and formed an alliance of Ricks. Someone has been killing Ricks, and naturally, our favourite Rick is hauled in front of a panel of Ricks with odd hairstyles to answer for his involvement.

This show is fine with delving into the dark side of humanity, and no punches are pulled when we chase down the Rick that is behind all the trouble. Meanwhile, Jerry makes friends with 'Doofus Rick', who may or may not eat poop. I'm trying to say that this is an intellectually stimulating program.

I've enjoyed the seamless way that visual callbacks have populated the season as it progresses, it makes it clear that this is the exact order the episodes are intended to play. Often, animated programs have their order jumbled around, but it wouldn't make any sense to do that to Rick and Morty.

The season finale, like a good season finale, asks more questions than it answers. We get a bit of closure on the story we've been watching, but there are clear implications for the show's future in the episode's end. I am left to wait for the second season, which has been given the go-ahead, and wish that animated shows could be produced more quickly.