Rick and Morty is an adult animated series created by Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland that follows the continuing misadventures of the young Morty Smith and his alcoholic scientist grandfather Rick. Ever since the show began in 2013 it has reached high acclaim due to its clever writing, numerous cultural references and offbeat humour, gaining it a massive fanbase. However, among all of the bizarre situations and off-colour jokes, at times Rick and Morty can get really bloody emotional. Over the course of its two seasons there have been a number of moments where the show really pulled on our heart strings, so here are just ten of those moments that I feel have been the most tear-inducing. Warning, possible spoilers ahead.
10. Roy- Mortynight Run
While Rick and Morty stop at an intergalactic arcade called Blips & Chitz, Morty comes across a role playing game called Roy where the player takes control of a character named Roy and basically lives out the characters life. In a short sequence we see Morty playing as Roy where he becomes a football player, starts a family and even battles cancer before ultimately falling off a ladder and dying, leading to a Game Over. The sequence itself has nothing to do with the story but in such a short space of time we watch this character of Roy develop, and somehow we actually grow to like this fictional video game character. So when Roy does finally die just after receiving his 'Worlds Greatest Dad' trophy, it is surprisingly emotional. R.I.P. Roy.
9. Mr. Poopybutthole Gets Shot- Total Rickall
In this episode, the Smith family come under attack by mysterious brain parasites who alter memories and take the form of wacky characters in order to convince the host that they have been long time friends. The parasites manifest themselves as a number of wacky characters such as Pencilvester and Mr. Beauregard, but among all of these characters is a mysterious little yellow man named Mr. Poopybutthole. From the beginning the audience are led to believe that Mr. Poopybutthole was a parasite, despite claiming to be a longtime family friend. Towards the end, Morty's mother Beth suspects Mr. Poopybutthole to be a parasite and shoots him, only to reveal that he was in fact a longtime family friend. While the Smith family tend to Mr. Poopybutthole's wounds, a panicked Beth begins to drown her sorrows in a bottle of wine, it's pretty distressing to say the least. Luckily enough, the loveable yellow guy survived the gunshot, but seeing him learning to walk again at the end of the episode and Beth's sheer guilt is all pretty tragic.
8. Snuffles- The Lawnmower Dog
In this episode Snuffles, the Smith family dog, gains increased intelligence thanks to a helmet built for him by Rick. However, Snuffles soon becomes annoyed at how the Smiths treat him and begins to rebel by building a robotic suit for himself and creating an army of other hyper intelligent dogs. He and his army then set about enslaving human kind and taking over the world, however he decides to keep Morty as his pet as he was the only one to ever show him kindness. However, it is soon revealed that the dogs taking over was in fact a dream 'incepted' by Rick in order to stop Snuffles. In the dream, Rick poisons Morty in order to show Snuffles that taking over the world would be a bad thing. In a touching scene, Snuffles fights for Morty's life until he can do no more, he wakes up and realises his errors before he and his army of dogs leave for another dimension. Seeing someone losing their dog is never easy to watch, even in this bizarre context.
7. Jerry and Doofus Rick- Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind
Morty's dad Jerry has always had a hard time finding acceptance, from his job, his wife, his family, nobody ever seems to have time for him. In this episode when a number of alternate Rick's arrive in the Smith families dimension, Jerry befriends the kindest, albeit least intelligent of them. The two share a close bond throughout the episode, both of them finding some sort of acceptance in each other and to be honest it's pretty nice to see something finally go right for Jerry. However, at the end of the episode when the conflict is resolved, all of the alternate Rick's must return to their respective dimensions and this includes Doofus Rick. Before he leaves, the two share a warm farewell before parting ways for good. Poor, poor Jerry.
6. Birdperson Dies- The Wedding Squanchers
Birdperson was introduced in the season one finale as a friend of Rick's from years ago. Like Rick, it is believed that Birdperson had committed crimes against the Galactic Federation, despite this he seems kind in nature and very wise. In the finale of season two the Smith family attend Birdperson's marriage to his fiance Tammy, but just as things are going well for the likeable Birdperson it is revealed that his bride was in fact and undercover agent for the Galactic Federation. A gunfight ensues and Birdperson is tragically killed in the crossfire on his own wedding day. While not a lot of time is spent dwelling on his death, one can't help feel sad for the humble Birdperson meeting his demise. In a later scene Rick looks at a photo of himself with Birdperson and their other friend Squanchy, he is clearly upset due to the loss of his friend. Birdperson will live on forever in our hearts.
5. Morty Comes Clean to Summer- Rixty Minutes
Ok so in an earlier episode a chain of events led Rick and Morty to leave their own dimension and move to a new one where the Rick and Morty of that dimension died in an accident. The duo bury their alternate dimension counterparts and take their place for the rest of the show, as this dimension is basically identical to their old one however, nothing has changed. So in this episode, Rick's sister Summer begins to blame herself for her parents unhappy marriage after discovering she was an unplanned pregnancy. As she packs, Morty reveals that every day he has to wake up knowing that his own mutilated corpse is buried in his back garden, explaining that 'nobody exists on purpose, nobody belongs anywhere, everybody's going to die'. Not only is this the first time that Morty opens up about this clearly traumatic event, but it's the first time he really connects with Summer and marks their transition from bickering siblings to a more friendlier relationship.
4. Jerry and Beth Reconcile- Rixty Minutes
In that same episode, Jerry and Beth's ever declining marriage appears to be getting worse. Upon seeing alternate versions of themselves through interdimensional cable television where they are unmarried and successful, they begin to seriously question their marriage. In this alternate reality Beth is a successful heart surgeon while Jerry is a famous actor, leading the real Beth and Jerry to ponder whether or not their marriage was a mistake. However, when alternate Jerry has a mental breakdown he drives to alternate Beth's house where he confesses his love for her and reveals how leaving her was a mistake. As the alternate Beth and Jerry reconcile, the real Beth and Jerry realise that their marriage may not be a mistake and lovingly embrace each other. Although they do still fight consistently in the episodes that follow, it's nice to see the two finally showing each other some appreciation in this very poignant scene.
3. Morty Buries Himself- Rick Potion #9
In this episode, as I mentioned before, Rick and Morty mess up their own dimension so bad that they must flee to another dimension where their alternate selves have died. Rick and Morty then bury their alternate counterparts and while Rick does so nonchalantly, Morty is clearly traumatised by it all. It's not only because he just buried his own mutilated corpse, but also because things in his old dimension weren't so bad. Sure, most of humanity had been transformed into mutated 'Cronenberg' creatures, but the Smith family seemed much happier and Beth and Jerry's marriage seemed to have been repaired. However, in this new dimension things are the way they were before the Cronenberg incident and Morty's parents are back to fighting incessantly among each other. Struggling with the trauma of burying himself and adjusting back to his unhappy life, Morty sits in silence as the world around him continues as normal. It was one of the first times where the show got really dark and left me feeling pretty shit after watching it.
2. Rick's Attempted Suicide- Auto Erotic Assimilation
But it only got darker from there. In this episode, Rick reunites with an old flame of his named unity, a collective hivemind entity who assimilates many different hosts used to communicate and carry out a number of functions. Rick, Morty and Summer arrive on the planet inhabited by Unity where she has assimilated the entire population, creating a utopian society. Rick and Unity rekindle their old love and the two proceed to party and indulge in a number of bizarre acts. However, this causes Unity to lose control of some of her citizens causing utter chaos, she soon realises that as much as she wants to be with Rick she simply cannot and the two separate. Upon arriving home, a heartbroken Rick sits alone in his garage where he sticks his head in a death ray in the hope of killing himself, however he passes out just before it hits him. This was an extremely dark moment in the show, Rick rarely ever displays genuine emotion so to see him in such a dark place where he would attempt to take his own life is extremely upsetting.
1. Rick Turns Himself In- The Wedding Squanchers
However, for me the most emotional moment on the show came at the finale of season 2. The episode sees the Smith family on the run from the Galactic Federation for Rick's crimes committed prior to the events of the show. The family are forced to live in hiding on a tiny planet and are unable to return to their home on Earth. Rick soon realises that if he turns himself in then his family would be free to return home, however he is reluctant to do so as he fears that he will upset his daughter Beth. In the end, he leaves after telling the Smiths that he was going to get ice cream. He then stops at a bar for one last drink before mourning the loss of Birdperson and finally turning himself in. He is taken to an intergalactic prison where he is forced to live out his sentence while the rest of the Smith family return to Earth, visibly upset. And all to the tune of Nine Inch Nails' 'Hurt'. It's a really emotional sequence, especially as it came at the end of the season, we are still waiting to find out what will happen to Rick and the Smith family. One can only hope that they will be reunited in the third season.
Surprisingly emotional stuff for such a hilarious cartoon, the writers have certainly found the balance between outlandish comedy and sheer emotion and it's nice to see this much care put into the show. Rick and Morty will return some time before the year ends (hopefully) so that's something to look forward to. If you've got some favourite Rick and Morty moments that made you laugh, cry or even vomit then let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading!
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