Comic Review: Rick and Morty #55

 

 

Overview:

“Honey, I Ricked the Kids”

In search of light bulbs in Rick’s garage, Jerry accidentally sets off one of the machines. The kids, struck by the machine’s beam, are instantly turned into versions of Rick. With all of his intelligence and none of his alcoholism, Summer and Morty set off to be geniuses while Beth and Jerry attempt to reverse the accident. Morty uses his new personality to become popular at school under the new nickname, M-Smooth. While Summer uses equations to become a rich and powerful social media influencer. It all comes tumbling down when the real Rick makes it home and fixes Jerry’s mistake.

 

“Last Things”

In the year 400 trillion, Tammy finally seeks her revenge on Rick. With time running out the two cybernetic ancient beings fight for supremacy on a distant planet. However, despite gaining the upper hand, can Tammy pull the trigger before the end of time and space?

 

Our Take:

Rick and Morty is about to swing back into animated action as season four is about to premiere next month. For many of us, that never-ending void we have been feeling between seasons has only been filled by one thing, Rick and Morty comic books. Thankfully, the content that has been filling these pages has been more-often-than-not absolutely entertaining. Aside from this monthly title which hit the 50th milestone this year, there have been many spin-offs and even a couple of Dungeons and Dragons crossovers. So, while Rick and Morty will finally be returning to the lives of millions of fans, some of us never left the party.

This issue was crammed full of all the science fiction and dark humour that the Rick and Morty franchise is loved for. Sometimes these comics fail to hold up to the standards we have for this series in one department or another. But, between both stories in this book, you have just about everything you could ask.

“Honey, I Ricked the Kids” is the parody done in the way you would expect from this franchise. The essential points of the story are there: ridiculous father accidentally nearly murders children, children suffer some unbelievable trauma, and… well, that’s about all you need. Of course, things need to go off the rails from the source material. Otherwise, where is the fun? We do get a unique concept where we see what Morty and Summer would do should they have the intelligence and superiority complex of their grandfather. And, what’s funny is good ol’ Morty would do right by the world if given a chance. He’s such a good kid. Summer maybe a little more greedy, but with the best intentions as well.

The first story fills up more pages than we usually see in these issues as well.  This is nothing but a positive. Considering the amount of humour and plot that is utilized, this story could have quickly filled an entire episode of the original series, never mind part of a comic book. The second story may have been rushed and straightforward, but it didn’t need to be anything more than that. In fact, it could have easily been slipped inside the first story as a side-event of what Rick was doing the whole time he was gone.

“Last Things” was a fun side story, and the ending is satisfyingly unfinished. And, despite me saying that it could have been squeezed into another story, this plot could have also been expanded upon. The idea of Tammy and Rick battling it out at the end of time is incredible. It would have been even more enjoyable if we had seen some milestone moments through their few hundred trillion year war. It may have been lacking a lot of words and substance, but sometimes an action-packed comic is all you need. Just look at The Death of Superman in the nineties.

Honestly, Rick and Morty comic books tend to lack the consistency of the original television series. Sometimes these books just don’t hold up. This issue was a back to form. There are some negative sides to it. The artwork in the first story is more cartoonish than should be acceptable for this series. And, it would have been nice to see some of the stories expanded upon. However, all in all, it is an enjoyable read, and it brings you back into the Rick and Morty-verse.  Truly, what more could one ask for?