10 Best Rick And Morty Episodes
8. The Ricks Must be Crazy
Existential dread is a concept that has a significant impact on many people, and cosmic horror is a freighting idea of our place in the universe, when the two are combined it makes for a horrifying way of looking at our place in the universe, and how insignificant we are, it also makes for hilarious cartoon shenanigans.
In this episode after exiting a movie theatre Rick, Morty and Summer discover that Rick's car battery is dead, and we are introduced to the method that he uses to power his car. That being a microverse that he created, with intelligent life inside it working to power the vehicle. Scientifically a great idea, but morally pretty reprehensible, Morty defines it as "slavery with extra steps".
Rick soon discovers that Zeep, a leading member of the microverse, has created a miniverse which is similarly unaware of the existence of a higher plain, inside that miniverse a leading member called Kyle is working on a teenyverse. It is, of course, apparent where the cosmic dread in this episode lies.
The idea of simulation hypothesis and the thought that we have no proof we don't live in a universe similar to these is a pretty tough subject to think about, and it's an element of the show that makes it both fun and nihilistic.
Add in a hilarious side story with Summer surviving in Rick's car, and you have a perfect episode to enjoy and dread simultaneously.