Adult Swim's Rick & Morty has remained incredibly popular for several years, a fact that highlights the show's innovative concepts, engaging comedy, and most of all, its hallucinatory animation style. While initially focusing on the adventures of its two titular characters, Rick & Morty has evolved beyond itself, delving into aspects of family drama and relationships that are uncomfortable, intimate, and extremely necessary.
The multidimensional perspectives explored in several episodes help explain their consistently high IMDb scores—every single one in the top ten is greater than 9.0. While it's important to consider the subjectivity of online ranking systems, there are a few Rick & Morty episodes that are universally appreciated.
Updated on March 22nd, 2022: Rick & Morty has five exceptional seasons under its belt, although it must be noted that many viewers found Season 5 lacking, particularly in terms of ingenuity. Fortunately for the fandom, this is not the end of the road for Rick & Morty; there are at least a few more seasons on the way. As new episodes release, a show's IMDb hierarchy is often reshuffled—in Rick & Morty, however, the ranking order remains mostly intact.
15 "Morty's Mind Blowers" Explores The Arbitrary Dynamic Between Rick And Morty — 8.9
Morty enjoys his experience as Rick's sidekick, but only to a point. He gets furious upon discovering how Rick has been storing unwanted memories in an underground cache, especially because his grandpa takes some creative liberties with the term "unwanted."
Morty learns way more about his horrifying past than he bargains for, eventually leading to a scuffle during which both he and Rick accidentally erase their memories. Fortunately for them, Summer is fully equipped to deal with this specific situation and reverses the damage with nobody the wiser.
14 "Edge Of Tomorty: Rick Die Rickpeat" Takes Viewers Through Several Alternative Scenarios — 9.0
"Edge of Tomorty: Rick Die Repeat" takes viewers through a scenario where Morty is free from Rick's influence but still has access to the latter's incredible technology. In the hopes of securing his future with Jessica, Morty evolves into a Tetsuo-esque entity — a reference to the Cyberpunk classic Akira (1988).
Rick is left to fend for himself in a variety of unnerving dimensions, each of which is progressively worse than the last. By the end of the episode, Rick enlists Wasp Rick's help to bring his grandson back to his senses.
13 "Meeseeks And Destroy" Introduces The Deceptively Charming Entity Known As Mr. Meeseeks — 9.0
Although significantly weaker than genies, the Meeseeks also exist within the confines of a small container and help people with their problems. In "Meeseeks and Destroy," Rick allows his family to avail the assistance of these blue-hued humanoids.
Jerry demands something beyond Meeseeks' capabilities but manages to dispel the resulting Meeseeks infestation successfully. Meanwhile, Rick and Morty go on an adventure through a medieval dimension, where Morty is physically harassed by the seemingly benign King Jellybean.
12 "Rick Potion #9" Has A Philosophically Macabre Twist Ending — 9.1
Morty often whinges about Rick never doing anything for him – a classic style of grandchild guilting that is periodically successful. In "Rick Potion #9," his grandpa generates a "scientific" love potion using vole DNA. It's an invention that inevitably leads to the entire planet's conversion into gooey Cronenbergs.
Rick makes serious errors in his calculations in this episode, but its rating is largely due to the philosophically macabre twist ending. Rick and Morty replace versions of themselves in a reality where they'd recently died.
11 "Star Mort Rickturn Of The Jerri" Punishes Rick For Lacking Empathy — 9.2
Beth's anxieties about being a clone are made real when she discovers the existence of Space Beth (who also believes that she's the fake). The Season 4 finale is a glittering series of relationship anecdotes, such as Tammy's point-blank execution & Jerry's irreverent manipulation of her corpse, Phoenixperson's psychological transformation, as well as Morty and Summer tag-teaming against a planet-destroying cannon.
The only person left out of the emotional equation is Rick: he finds himself at the bottom of the family hierarchy as punishment for his lack of basic empathy. "Star Mort Rickturn Of The Jerri" emits George Lucas vibes and in a very good way.
10 "The Ricks Must Be Crazy" Shows How Oppression Repeats Itself Down The Ladder — 9.3
It obviously takes someone as actively thoughtless as Rick to use an entire universe to power his spaceship's battery. The fact that he takes pleasure in having billions of living beings serve his most basic needs is a core concept in "The Ricks Must Be Crazy."
It unravels layers that Rick himself doesn't expect, suggesting that intelligence is a natural product of evolution and, if used irresponsibly, might result in what the episode calls "slavery with extra steps." Also, the Summer vs. Rick's Car side-story is as thought-provoking as it is traumatic (to her).
9 "Pickle Rick" Is Considerably More Hard-Hitting Than It Might Appear — 9.3
Beth takes Morty and Summer to therapy, initially rejecting the psychiatrist's analysis that her children's school problems are linked to their grandfather's behavior. Dr. Wong's exploration of the Smith family's collective subconscious in parallel with Pickle Rick's overblown misadventures clearly illustrates the negative influence the latter has on his grandkids and his daughter.
Although Dr. Wong points them in the right direction, Beth and Rick prefer to express themselves via denial. "Pickle Rick" is considerably more hard-hitting than it might appear at first glance.
8 "The Wedding Squanchers" Culminates In Rick's Surrender To The Galactic Authorities — 9.4
Rick grudgingly accepts Birdperson's wedding invitation but is notably upset about "losing" his best friend to marriage. He and the Smiths travel to Planet Squanch where Rick finally admits how much he loves Birdperson during the toast.
The heartwarming moment is punctured when Tammy fills her newly wedded husband with bullets, exposing her cover as a Galactic Federation stooge. "The Wedding Squanchers" goes further, showing the Smiths' growing distrust of Rick, culminating in him surrendering to the galactic authorities in order to keep his family safe.
7 "Close Rick-Counters Of The Rick Kind" Introduces Evil Morty — 9.4
Rick C-137 is accused of killing various Ricks across infinite dimensions at the Citadel, an allegation he vehemently denies. The Council rejects his story, forcing him to take Morty and find the real killer himself. The pair discovers a secret base—a dome coated with a lattice of tortured Mortys—where Evil Rick gleefully confesses to his crimes.
However, before Rick C-137 can be killed, his Morty frees a horde of imprisoned Mortys who maul Evil Rick to death. The unpredictable twist in "Close Rick-Counters of the Rick Kind" is that the actual villain behind the whole scheme has always been Evil Morty.
6 "The Vat Of Acid Episode" Is A Spectacular Vehicle For Rick's Ego — 9.5
"The Vat of Acid Episode" is little more than a vehicle for Rick's ego: a semi-sentient entity that is as fragile as it is monstrous. However, it works spectacularly in this context, taking viewers on a journey through Morty's life as he uses his "save-game" device to reset himself after committing various atrocities.
He even embarks on a new relationship, but things ultimately turn out worse than when they began, something Rick had been planning on. In the end, Morty is forced to capitulate to his grandpa by "perishing" in a vat of acid to escape the consequences of his actions.
5 "Mort Dinner Rick Andre" Integrates Two Distinct Plots With Near-Perfect Harmony — 9.5
The Season 5 premiere, "Mort Dinner Rick Andre" focuses on Rick's relationship with his nemesis. Mr. Nimbus proves to be among the few characters capable of defeating Rick in a fight, but the so-called Ocean King only wants to reestablish their lost friendship.
Nimbus and Rick apparently make amends, but Summer shatters the illusion by revealing her grandfather's betrayal. The secondary plot — Morty's fight with the inhabitants of the "Narnia-like dimension" — helps counteract the emotional weight of the episode with a dose of pure surrealism.
4 "Rickmurai Jack" Breaks Open The Doors To Season 6 With An Explosive Cliffhanger — 9.5
"Rickmurai Jack" breaks open the door to Season 6 with one of the most explosive cliffhangers in Rick & Morty history. President Morty painstakingly explains the reason for the Central Finite Curve's existence, prompting Morty to shed some of his unbreakable faith in his grandpa.
The latter half of the episode occurs at a breakneck pace: President Morty hacks every known portal gun and vanishes into the safety of a Rickless multiverse, while Rick and Morty barely manage to stay alive. "Rickmurai Jack" also describes Rick's past with canonical accuracy; however, the show is known for retconning previously established facts.
3 "The Rickshank Redemption" Reveals Rick's Plan To Seize Emotional Control Of The Family — 9.6
Rick is interrogated inside his own mind by a Federation agent, giving him a pathway towards freedom. He jumps bodies, rising in the hierarchy within the Citadel of Ricks until he reaches his captured grandchildren. Not only does he rescue them, but he also destroys the Galactic Federation by driving its currency extinct with a simple numerical transposition.
The best thing (or worse, depending on which aspects of Rick fans relate to) about "The Rickshank Redemption" is how there's no genuine redemption, only a calculated plan to slowly dismantle Jerry's authority over the family.
2 "Total Rickall" Demonstrates That Families Aren't Limited To Empty Moments Of Happiness — 9.6
An episode that manages to be endlessly entertaining despite being entirely set in the Smith home, "Total Rickall" is a delightful and convoluted flashback adventure. The sub-stories get wilder and more derivative with each Memory Parasite; however, the main characters are unable to distinguish reality from fiction.
The epiphany that helps the family is that the aliens cannot manifest unpleasant memories, which brings them victory while simultaneously reminding them of how much they (sometimes) hate each other. Perhaps that's what the episode's title refers to.
1 "The Ricklantis Mixup" Is A Fascinating Cocktail Of Themes That Also Sets Up A Major Antagonist — 9.8
Rick and Morty C-137 disappear for an entire episode, apparently enjoying a rather pleasant quest-vacation. Instead, audiences get to see a sociopolitical slice-of-life about the daily grind of hundreds of Ricks and Mortys living in the Citadel.
There are some interesting themes in "The Ricklantis Mixup," including a darkly poignant parody of Stephen King's Stand By Me and a scathing indictment of police brutality. Most importantly, however, this is the episode in which Evil Morty makes his transition to President Morty, setting an ominous stage for future conflicts.