Skip it or Stream it: Rick and Morty season 4
After two years in development, the highly anticipated fourth season of “Rick and Morty” wasn’t worth the wait.
Despite its finale being filled with action packed scenes, it didn’t end satisfactorily. Episodes leading up to the last episode weren’t enjoyable enough to merit rewatching.
The protagonists, Rick and Morty (both voiced by Justin Roiland), have been through their fair share of antics throughout the series, with recurring humor from the contrast between Morty’s horror at his predicament and Rick’s simultaneous nonchalant attitude.
Most episodes of “Rick and Morty” follow the same plot structure: Something goes awry, often due to Morty’s clumsiness, then he and Rick, his grandfather, attempt to resolve the conflict using one of Rick’s many inventions created in the family’s garage. Rick lives with his daughter’s family after being estranged for 14 years.
Among the extra-terrestrial adventures Rick and Morty stumble into include falling into a vat of acid, “befriending” dragons, and creating new civilizations.
In the episodes leading up to the season finale, I expected there to be a build-up, or at least some foreshadowing of a coming disaster. To my dismay, this season lacked exactly that. Instead, it offered trailed on a series of events that had no correlation to a larger storyline.
The finale expanded on an idea teased in the prior season, the possibility that Rick’s daughter Beth was replaced with a clone. It was an idea that many fans theorized upon, though given with how abruptly the finale started, the outcome was less rewarding. No tension of clues were given prior to the reveal, making the finale underwhelming.
In the latter half of the season, which was halted with a five month break, there is a noticeable increase in meta jokes: humor that relies on taking a jab at the show’s own structure. While “Rick and Morty” has never shied away from self-reference, it eventually grows trite. The meta humor is especially present in episode six, “Never Ricking Morty,” where the entire plot revolves around an analogy of the show’s writing process. However, the kind of comedy that “Rick and Morty” never strays away from is dark humor. While still good for a couple of laughs, the comical aspect throughout the season fell short of previous installments.
“Rick and Morty” isn’t known for its nuanced character development–the only noticeable growth is that Morty becomes increasingly apathetic toward situations, albeit only slightly. Season four takes the same approach, as characters stay more or less the same.
Overall, season four delivers the least humor and interesting plots this series has seen. Though some episodes are worth viewing, to watch the entire season once is a challenge due to the dip in quality. Repeated viewings are definitely not worth your time.
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