I think that I can speak for a lot of fans when I say that the release of five new Rick and Morty episodes is truly a quarantine miracle. Over the course of quarantine, like most, I have been growing tired of the same drab everyday shows. Quite frankly, I think that at this point I have maybe three shows that I watch, and only one that I actually am invested in. I have gone through more Netflix shows and movies then any normal person ever should. As an avid Rick and Morty fanatic, I cannot describe my excitement level in any way to do justice to the absolute pure joy that I felt when I found out new episodes were coming. If my memory serves me correctly, I screamed so loud that the neighbors heard and I texted just about everyone I know (even those who don’t watch because Rick and Morty Needs to be shared with the world). I have decided to channel all my excitement, anticipation, and opinions into new posts each week breaking down the new episodes as they arrive.
After much debate over what this series was going to be called, I have decided to call it Lily’s Mind Blowers, after one of my favorite episodes of Season Three (Episode 8 for those who don’t know). This series will be covering and highlighting the amazing work from the creative minds on the Adult Swim team, including masterminds Dan Harmon and Justin Roland. I have been watching the show since the premiere back in 2013 (whoa), and let my anticipation build and overflow as the dates of each season grew closer. For months on end, my friends and I would discuss when we thought the elusive 4th season would arrive and predict what Justin Roiland had up his sleeves.
This show has been with me through thick and thin, and I know that some people just see it as an ignorant adult cartoon, but that is pretty much the opposite of how I see it. Coming from a writing perspective alone, creatives like Ryan Ridley work alongside directors like Justin Roiland and Pete Michaels and the Adult Swim to not only make the show clever with on topic/ current humor, but make it marketable, on brand, have relatable characters, and be original. Without the work of the writers and creator at the show, we wouldn’t have a look into the mind of iconic Rick Sanchez or a lovable idiot like Jerry Smith. No matter how outrageous their adventures may be, I still watch each episode fully invested and connected to all the characters. I think that people tend to overlook the work that it takes to create a show like this, and the effort and raw talent that it takes to grow a fanbase and audience like this. It is crazy thinking about how much time has passed and how much not only the show and characters have grown, but so have the writers, actors, creators, and animators. It is a difficult balance to be able to work with such a large team to try and coordinate something that not only fits their vision, but keeps the audience entertained and wanting more. As a writer myself, I have the utmost respect for everyone working on the show, and am so thankful that a show like this exists, because legitimately, I have never cared about or stayed so invested in a single show like this ever before.
So far, two out of the five episodes of the other half of the season have aired, and I love them so much. I was hoping that there would be another Interdimensional Cable episode, and “Never Ricking Morty” was quite possibly, in my opinion, the best version of it we have seen so far. I would also like to highlight one of my favorite parts of the episode and give props to the incredibly talented animators including Michaels, Roiland, Harmon and more. Without giving away too much if you haven’t had a chance to dive in yet, there is a scene where there is a large crowd of characters and it goes from overhead to a head on perspective where you can see all of their movements. Coming from experience and research as amateur animator, creating an army of people or characters is truly one of the hardest things to do, digital or not. For lack of better words, it looked truly epic and quite honestly, grabbed my attention more than almost anything else in the episode. I have been learning more about the process each week. Adult Swim has been releasing behind the scenes looks at the animation, directing and challenges that go into creating each episode. I highly recommend checking it out if you are interested in the masterminds behind the show or just want to learn the meaning behind the newest episodes.
This season, in my opinion, not only has the best animation so far, but really shows how far the characters, and the creators have come since it first aired. Releasing these episodes now is probably one of the best decisions that Adult swim could have made. Thank you for giving the fans, including myself something new to look forward to each week. Be sure to check out the new episodes of Rick and Morty every Sunday at 10:30 CT on Adult Swim, and make sure you keep up with behind the scenes looks and updates on their Instagram page and other socials. I’ll continue with more in-depth looks into the last three episodes! See you then!
