Mr. Meeseeks is easily one of the funniest additions to Rick and Morty, but there has always been an air of tragic darkness surrounding them even upon the species’ introduction. Now, those death-craving task-doers just got even darker, as Mr. Meeseeks’ catchphrase has a heartbreaking secret purpose.
Mr. Meeseeks made their debut in Rick and Morty season 1, episode 5: “Meeseeks and Destroy.” In that episode, Rick gives Jerry, Beth, and Summer a device known as a Mr. Meeseeks Box as it has the power to summon blue, humanoid creatures who will do a task for them and then vanish from existence immediately after that task is complete. While that seems like a tragically short lifespan that should inspire dread and existential horror within the Meeseeks, they actually crave the sweet embrace of oblivion which is proven true as the episode continues. When the Mr. Meeseeks fail at teaching Jerry how to improve his golf game, the beings start losing their minds since they’re only supposed to be alive for a few hours. Eventually, the Mr. Meeseeks become so miserable that they decide to kill Jerry, determining that without Jerry, there is no problem to be fixed. Therefore, they’d be allowed to die.
In Rick and Morty Presents: Mr. Meeseeks #1 by James Asmus, Jim Festante, and CJ Cannon, Summer spawns a Mr. Meeseeks to stir her chili while she watches T.V. and that Meeseeks accidentally summons his own Mr. Meeseeks while pondering the true meaning of life. This means that the new Mr. Meeseeks has to uncover the meaning of life before he can cease to exist. From there, the two Meeseeks go on a journey of self discovery which makes them look inward into the truth behind their species’ most iconic catchphrase, “I’m Mr. Meeseeks! Look at me!” As one of the Mr. Meeseeks hypothesizes, all Mr. Meeseeks burst forth into the physical world shouting their catchphrase because, “it’s a call for our summoners to stay focused so that Meeseeks can finish their task and greet death sooner!”
The first words Mr. Meeseeks say upon being born is secretly a call for death, which this issue reveals is even darker than fans initially thought. In their debut Rick and Morty episode, the show makes it clear that Mr. Meeseeks will do anything that helps bring them closer to death. However, this comic book issue introduces a Mr. Meeseeks who actually doesn’t want to die by the time his task is complete. When the two Meeseeks discover that the meaning of life is dependent on the person or entity living it, the first Mr. Meeseeks decides that he wants to live his essentially eternal life to the fullest and even has a plan to summon more Meeseeks to him on this mission. Unfortunately, the chili was done cooking at that point, and he was erased from existence, but his desire to live proves that some Meeseeks don’t just want death as they are instinctively designed to pine for right when they first blink into existence.
All this time, Rick and Morty fans were able to look past the clear tragedy of such a short lifespan because the alternative drives Mr. Meeseeks to madness, meaning that the dark truth behind their catchphrase is immediately forgiven and looked at as a tool to reach the desired end of their lives. However, this comic reveals that isn’t always the case and Mr. Meeseeks don’t always necessarily want to die the moment they are born as some actually do want to live a fulfilling life. However, regardless of the newfound existentialism of the Mr. Meeseeks species in Rick and Morty lore, the fact remains that Mr. Meeseeks catchphrase actually has a dark purpose that fans were blissfully unaware of, until now.
