In all parts of life, there will be a time when you will come across stress. There are many things that can cause stress, breaking up with your beautiful girlfriend in college who you’ve dated since middle school, getting a B+ and having to tell your parents when you get back home, or thinking about something dumb you did. I’ll let your imagination think that one up. I promise you that there is an ocean of people who agree with you. Except, one of those fishes in the ocean will crudely point out you probably deserved it and to go f*ck yourself.
That’s right. That one fish is no other than Rick Sanchez. There are unfortunate events in your life that can make you stress out, or there will be people like Rick that shape your life to be ten times more depressing than you can ever imagine. In the show Rick & Morty, Rick is a narcissistic, self-centered, manipulative grandpa that we are blessed not to have. Rick, the most brilliant scientist in the universe, travels across galaxies with his timid grandson, Morty. Their journey together brings viewers to witness their exhilarant adventures: jumping through alternate realities, visiting other planets, and witnessing other lifeforms. Rick and Morty never have a shortage of stress.
Between the two, Morty has a more difficult time processing his stress. An example would be in the S.2 Ep.9: “Look Who’s Purging Now,” Rick and Morty get stuck on a planet of aliens who are moderately peaceful people 364 days a year because of one night. After the sun goes down, villagers have until sunrise to release all their anger and stress without any consequences, whether it would be murder, rape, etc. Sound familiar? Throughout the episode, Rick effortlessly kills the villagers hunting them down, while Morty chooses the pacifist route, berating Rick that murdering is unethical. However, Morty soon kills an elderly alien by accidentally pushing him down the stairs and cussing him out after he dies. Morty then goes on a killing spree with his destructive weapon suit. The mental breakdown and consequences of Morty’s experiences all stem from Rick. In a study by Cross River Therapy, 45% of students in high school admit to being stressed almost every day in school. As a prepubescent boy, the show throws examples of Morty having teenage boy problems such as getting good grades, crushes, and figuring out his place in the world. No matter where or what situation, Morty is shown to be an awkward, frail boy who needs guidance on how to cope with his strain in a healthy way. Rick chooses to be an inadequate influence on Morty by placing him in dangerous situations and demeaning his persona. It is delightful to see how the creators show the toxic relationship between Rick and Morty, which makes this a top-tier dark humor comedy.