5: Close Rick-Counters of The Rick Kind
I’ll admit it – separating the top five episodes of Rick and Morty was a difficult task, such is the genius of the show. All five of these episodes could have easily been number one and the positions have shifted around somewhat, even in the writing of this article.
Close Rick-Counters of The Rick Kind was the first episode to really explore the idea of the multiverse and the infinite amount of timelines idea. The introduction of the council of Ricks provides the episode with some hilarious moments and some of the season’s most rick-diculous puns. It also introduced us to Evil Morty, a character who fans have been theorising about ever since and who Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland have admitted they spend a great deal of time inventing ideas for.
This episode could turn out to be one of the most important in the show’s narrative and it really adds a lot to the Rick and Morty dynamic. It also features some of the show’s funniest microverses as the duo attempt to escape for the council of Ricks.
4: Rixty Minutes
Rixty Minutes is Rick and Morty at its surrealist best. The episode, which sees Rick and the family watch a series of inter-dimensional TV shows is utterly bonkers from start to finish and features a series of bonkers and hilarious segments.
The fact that the episode was largely improvised is also a testament to the comedic genius of Harmon and Roiland and the show would do a sequel to the episode in season 2, which, while not as good, was still pretty damn funny.
The episode also has a darker side, though, with the family also getting to explore what their life could have been like in different realities. It does wrap everything up quite nicely, though, with Jerry and Beth getting to share a rare tender moment in the show’s closing moments. It also features Morty’s iconic ‘Everybody’s going to die, come watch TV’ speech’, which is one of the show’s best moments so far.
3: The Rickshank Redemption
The most recent episode on this list, the season premiere of Rick and Morty season 3, which debuted apropos of nothing this April Fool’s Day is one of the finest episodes the show has ever produced and if the rest of Season 3 can even be half as good as this, then we are in for a treat.
The episode sees Rick at his twisted best – destroying the Galactic Federation, forcing Jerry and Beth into a divorce, and then maniacally ranting to Morty at the end about how this is going to be the show’s darkest season yet, in a scene which echoes the one from the show’s pilot.
Everything about the Rickshank Redemption works – the story flows logically from the end of season 2, the episode creates a whole new dynamic for the third season, and more importantly, it’s laugh out loud funny from the first scene to the last.
2: Meeseeks and Destroy
Of all the one-off characters Rick and Morty has invented, Mr Meeseeks is far and away the best. The little blue man, whose sole purpose is to do the one task you choose for him has become one of the show’s most marketable characters and who will, hopefully, return to the show somewhere down the line.
Mr Meeseek’s quest to take two off Jerry’s golfing average is still one of the funniest plots in the show’s history, while seeing one of these strange blue creatures talk about Beth’s life decision with her is both hilarious and moving at the same time. On top of all of this, Rick and Morty’s adventure, which sees them enter a fairytale-like land is utterly hilarious.
1: Total Rickall
From its perfectly executed cold opening to its hilarious last moments, Total Rickall is basically the perfect episode of Rick and Morty. Built on the premise that a group of memory invading parasites have invaded the Sanchez household, the episode is as side-splitting as it is thought-provoking.
The episode’s main theme, of questioning what is reality and who is real and who isn’t, takes a fascinating turn when they realise that the only way you can truly know who matters is to see if you have any bad memories with them really hammers home some of the show’s main themes. The idea that a family has to be dysfunctional to truly be a family is one that is touched upon throughout the series, but this episode really drills it home.
It is also absolutely hilarious from start to finish. Mr Poopy Butthole, while also having the best name in the history of TV, is one of the series’ best side characters and the other characters introduced throughout the episode highlight just how innovative and funny Harmon and Roiland are.
SEE ALSO: Why Rick and Morty is the best animated series ever
What is your favourite Rick and Morty episode? Let us know in the comments below, and let Liam know on Twitter @liamhoofe
Originally published August 5, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
