Rick and Morty is an adult animated sci-fi comedy series created by Dan Harmon in 2013. It centers around eccentric scientist Rick and his timid grandson Morty. Each episode follows Harmon's "story circle" structure, starting in order, descending into chaos, and returning to order. Notable episodes like "Total Rickall" and "Pickle Rick" place absurd comedy in gritty reality, tackling themes of family and personal freedom. The show is popular among devoted fans who analyze plots and create their own stories and theories. Main character Morty is a 14-year-old who is easily distressed but learns on his adventures with his grandfather Rick.

1. Rick and Morty

2. About the show
• Rick and Morty is an adult animated series created by Dan Harmon in 2013. It centres around a suburban
family with a mad scientist as the grandfather of Morty and his siblings. It is heavily influenced by Back to
the Future and even went by the name “Doc and Mharti” at one point before changing to “Rick and
Morty” due to obvious copyright concerns
• Because the show was created by Dan Harmon, it follows his signature story structure known as a “story
circle”. It starts off as orderly, but then descends into chaos for much of the story before returning back to
normal by the end. This method works better with TV shows because it allows for a sudden descent into
madness once order is returned, unlike films, which end in order to allow for a fitting conclusion.
• The Harmon Story Circle runs as follows:
1. Character in zone of comfort
2. They desire something
3. They enter an unfamiliar situation
4. They adapt to it
5. They find was they have been searching for
6. They pay a price to get it
7. They return back to where they started
8. But they have also changed

3. Total Rickall (s02e04)
• This episode sets up a very bizarre situation in which it is hard to predict how the issue will be resolved. It
also slightly breaks the story cycle, as it skips step 2 (wanting something) and heads straight to step 3
(unfamiliar situation). It also makes heavy usage of plot twists.
• It opens with the family having dinner with a relative (1). Then, Rick shoots the relative, revealing him to be
a parasite that feeds off memory and creates fake ones (3). Rick then immediately quarantines the house
to ensure the parasites cannot escape (4). But the parasites then multiply into a vast number that fills the
whole house and this causes the whole family to suspect one another. It then becomes apparent that the
parasites are only capable of creating good memories, which they use to get their victims to trust them,
meaning that those who were part of bad memories were real (5). This meant that those who allowed for
good memories had to be shot and killed, regardless of good it is to have then around (6). With all the
parasites gone, the family returns to having dinner (7), but not without shooting an unusual looking
character among them who actually turned out to be real, causing them to injure him (8).
• Some of the additional content that came with this included the shows traditional love of humour and
sudden but purposeful shock value. Its scenario fits in well with the sci-fi comedy style of the show, with
parasites invading the family home and warping everyone’s minds, as well as being simply effective and
engaging. The episode features emotional conflict, most notably between family members as well as
Morty’s father being convinced by a parasite that he has a homosexual relationship with the parasite. The
episode also has a good moral that you can truly trust someone unless you have had conflict with them at
some point and complete content with life is physically impossible.

4. Rickmancing the Stone (s03e02)
• This episode is a clear example of the show’s ability to successfully combine comic absurdity with
gritty reality, as it marks an important point in the timeline of this family. It also skips step 1 of
the story cycle.
• The episode starts after a divorce of Morty’s parent, with Morty’s dad leaving the family home
(3). In the meantime, Rick has discovered a new element and has to travel to the dystopian
future to retrieve it (2). Using his dimension jumper, Rick, Morty and elder sister Summer enter
the dystopian future, which is reminiscent of Mad Max (3). All three of them join a travelling
tribe, where Morty gets injected with a muscular left arm from a carcass that helps him win
cage fights. Summer also develops a crush on the leader of the tribe (4). Rick then discovers he
elements he has been looking for, which in the form of a stone worn as a talisman by the
leader (5). While trying to obtain it, he is caught, but manages to redeem himself by recreating
the suburban life of his time with scrap metal housing and the element powering the electricity
(6). Afterwards, Rick, Morty and Summer return to their time, with the stone in tow at the cost
of the new society (7). They soon settle in to their new life without Morty’s dad (8).
• As well as parodying the post-apocalyptic thriller genre, the episode tackles the theme of family
and divorce. It also discusses public perception and lacking confidence, as the leader of the
tribe has a very smooth face in contrast to his muscular body and so fears how people will treat
him if they found out about this.

5. Pickle Rick (s03e03)
• This is another example of this show’s knack of effectively placing comic absurdity to gritty reality,
as it follows immediately after the divorce of Morty’s parents.
• The episode starts seemingly normal (1), but quickly descends into the show’s usual over-the-top
nature when it is noticed that Rick has transformed himself into a pickle because he apparently
does not want to attend family therapy (2). After the family goes to therapy, Rick suddenly rolls
out of the garage, roasts in the sun, but it starts raining before he shrivels up. However, the rain
then whisks him down a drain into the sewers (3). After being nearly eaten by rats, he then
attaches metal arms and legs from nearby metal grates, allowing him to escape and kill the rats
(4). He then invades a secret government building against some armed guards and successfully
retrieves an element that he had been searching for (5). He then arrives at the family therapy
meeting, still a pickle, to discuss with the therapist about his choice to be a pickle. On the way
back, Rick reveals that he is dying due to the pickle form (6) and requests he is injected with anti-
pickle serum to return him to normal. He is injected and everything is back to normal (7) with all
the characters, including Rick, having successfully attended the therapy without incident (8).
• The episode continues the early season 3 theme of family and divorce. However, the pickle side plot
intercut with the therapy scenes discusses a theme of personal freedom, though the opening was
reportedly meant as a comedic way of trolling fans. However, the therapy scenes also discuss
conflicts between characters, main or side.

6. Production context
• The show is animated using the Toon Boom Harmony software and
Adobe After Effects, with backgrounds created in Photoshop. It is
animated by Bardel Entertainment in Vancouver, Canada.
• It was created in late 2013 by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon and is
broadcast on TV through Adult Swim and is available for streaming
on Netflix. It is also available for purchase on DVD.
• It is also distributed by Warner Bros. Television Entertainment.
Because of this, the show has financing straight from the Time
Warner conglomerate, allowing for consistent programming.

7. Fan engagement
• Rick and Morty has a very prominent following. This is present in the
presence of fan-made media, such as comic books and even applying
different theories to the story, which alter some fan’s perceptions of
the story. Some comics even have their own original stories to them.
• The wide and devoted fanbase also allows for several instances of
“textual poaching” within the community. This means that audiences
create their own meaning to something based on present experience
or their own observations of character traits. This comes from some
fans’ studying of the show’s canon and the different features of said
canon.

8. Major character- Morty
• Morty Smith is a 14-year-old boy who is the grandson of the alcoholic mad
scientist Rick Sanchez. He does not fit the stereotype of a confident
young man; instead he gets easily distressed and agitated, fitting the
show’s tendency of showing emotional distress and conflict, sometimes
to the point of being homicidal.
• As a result of this and the fact that he stutters, he is often seen as mentally
challenged by some of his peers at school, though he is a good listener.
He is also known for his tendency to be very malleable, but sometimes
shows his strength and will when he really has to.
• Despite his lack of confidence, he is regularly brought by Rick on his inter-
dimensional adventures, often becoming distressed as a result, but also
learning various aspects of these dimensions and himself.
•

9. Bibliography
• Davies, L. (2016). How fan interaction has affected the cross-platform of Rick and
Morty. Available: https://i7464569.wordpress.com/. Last accessed 17th Sept
2017.
• Multiple. (2013). Rick and Morty. Available:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_and_Morty. Last accessed 16th Sep 2017.
• Levine, E. (2010). The Structure of Fan Texts: What is 'textual poaching'?.
Available: http://fantexts.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/what-is-textual-
poaching.html. Last accessed 17th Sep 2017.
• Multiple. (2015). List of Rick and Morty character. Available:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Rick_and_Morty_characters#Morty_Smit
h. Last accessed 17th Sep 2017.
• Multiple. (2013). Morty Smith. Available:
http://rickandmorty.wikia.com/wiki/Morty_Smith. Last accessed 17th Sep
2017.

10. Bibliography
• Davies, L. (2016). How fan interaction has affected the cross-platform of Rick and
Morty. Available: https://i7464569.wordpress.com/. Last accessed 17th Sept
2017.
• Multiple. (2013). Rick and Morty. Available:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_and_Morty. Last accessed 16th Sep 2017.
• Levine, E. (2010). The Structure of Fan Texts: What is 'textual poaching'?.
Available: http://fantexts.blogspot.co.uk/2010/06/what-is-textual-
poaching.html. Last accessed 17th Sep 2017.
• Multiple. (2015). List of Rick and Morty character. Available:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Rick_and_Morty_characters#Morty_Smit
h. Last accessed 17th Sep 2017.
• Multiple. (2013). Morty Smith. Available:
http://rickandmorty.wikia.com/wiki/Morty_Smith. Last accessed 17th Sep
2017.