At this point, it’s my favorite animated series. It has had a fairly strong influence on me, and I also think it came along at a very fortunate time for me to understand the meaning embedded in it (though maybe I’m just projecting my state at the time onto the plot).
So, a bit of backstory: imagine a young man of 21–22 who, within a single year, went through a lot of traumatic events—the deaths of his grandmother and both grandfathers, a breakup with a girl he had feelings for because she cheated on him, and other unpleasantries of adult life. At the same time, I appear successful to others because I managed to buy a one-room apartment almost without help and even have some kind of career; true, there’s also alcoholism and an inability to process and discuss feelings and emotions—an emotionless robot, basically. Naturally, I’ve described myself in considerable detail. The only thing that stands out from this sad picture is that I have a close friend whom I’ve known for five years, and we will always come to each other’s aid. We were sitting around discussing my life and his, and eventually the circumstances that had piled up began to weigh on us enough that we changed the subject. I asked what I could watch that would pull me in and be bingeable, with dark and ambiguous humor and characters interesting to watch. I expected some comedy or maybe a grim series, but my friend thought for literally ten seconds and recommended Rick and Morty.
When I got home, I immediately turned on the first episode. I remember the feeling of immersion, and it was as if I felt lighter. Rick was making jokes, I was having fun, I wasn’t thinking about what was happening—it was a light comic adventure of a grandfather and grandson. I dove headfirst into the series, but the further I watched, the less easy it became; one way or another, I began to think. I remember hearing Rick’s speech about love and marriage (“Love is just a chemical reaction that compels animals to breed”), and then the translation of his cheerful phrase from Birdperson’s language, “wubba lubba dub dub.” That made me wonder how Rick had come to this—how he had become such a cold, detached, emotionally unhealthy person. At the same time, we watch him interact with his family, where, for a long time, no one except Morty truly becomes close to him. Naturally, there are certain plot points that made me think more than others—for example, how Rick surrendered to the Galactic Federation for the sake of his family, or the pickle episode, where Rick did everything he could to avoid articulating his psychological problems. To a certain extent, this series had a therapeutic effect on me. Through the characters, I was able to ask myself the questions I had consciously avoided. I won’t burden readers with conclusions or character analysis unless someone asks for it in the comments. The only thing I’d like to say is that this is exactly what art should be like: it should leave a mark. And Rick and Morty does leave one.
Wubba lubba dub dub—see you again.