After season 7’s finale, Rick and Morty season 8 will see the acclaimed Adult Swim comedy return to screens with new confidence. In season 7, co-creator and original voice of both Rick and Morty, Justin Roiland, was replaced after allegations of domestic violence, so the season's arrival was fraught with concern over the new voices of the show’s title characters.
Fortunately, Rick and Morty's new voices fit the characters perfectly and few viewers even noticed a change between seasons 6 and 7. Furthermore, Rick and Morty season 7’s finale was a massive critical success that earned the series its highest IMDb rating in years. Season 7, episode 10, “Fear No Mort,” saw Morty face his greatest flaw by jumping into a bizarre interdimensional tourist attraction that promised to show the their worst fears. After spending the entire episode navigating the hole’s false reality with Rick, Morty finally emerged and realized what his true fear was.
Morty Learned That He Doesn’t Need Rick In Rick and Morty Season 7’s Ending
“Fear No Mort” Ended With Morty Finally Gaining Some Independence
At the end of “Fear No Mort,” Morty escapes the creepy immersive nightmare world only to realize that Rick had never actually jumped into the hole with him. The reason Morty assumed he had was, the same reason that Morty’s alternate reality focused on Rick fading away and forgetting about him. Morty’s greatest fear was that he was irrelevant without Rick, something he finally faced and conquered as the episode ended. Embracing Rick, Morty decides to live life for himself from now on and stop relying on his genius grandfather for his purpose.
Morty wasn’t even the main character of his first solo outing, a belated sequel to season 2, episode 5, “Get Schwifty."
This is a seismic shift for Morty. ittedly, Rick and Morty season 7’s weakest episode, episode 8, “Rise of the Numbericons: The Movie,” had already provided viewers with a storyline that didn’t include Rick. However, Morty wasn’t even the main character of his first solo outing, a belated sequel to season 2, episode 5, “Get Schwifty,” that focused on his math teacher Mr. Goldenfold and Ice-T. “Rise of the Numbericons: The Movie” highlighted Morty’s biggest problem, namely that his character was too ive to work as protagonist without someone more proactive like Rick or Mr. Goldenfold around.
Rick and Morty Season 8 Will Make Morty More Independent
Rick and Morty’s Hero Can’t Return To His Old Self
Until “Fear No Mort,” Morty had always been too dependent and hapless to act as Rick and Morty’s primary protagonist. Some outings challenged this paradigm, with Morty once breaking off his partnership with Rick in season 5, episode 9, “Forgetting Sarick Mortshall.” However, this twist was swiftly undone by Morty when he realized Rick got along fine without him, but he was unmoored without his grandfather’s guidance giving him purpose.
Season 6, episode 9, “A Rick in King Mortur's Mort,” saw Morty decide what adventure he and Rick went on, only for things to go disastrously
Similarly, season 6, episode 2, “Rick: A Mort Well Lived,” saw a particularly independent part of Morty’s consciousness try to escape Rick’s influence, but this misadventure also ended badly. The infamously divisive season 6, episode 9, “A Rick in King Mortur's Mort,” saw Morty decide what adventure he and Rick went on, only for things to go disastrously and the next episode to reveal that his guardian wasn’t even the real Rick. season 7’s Morty-centric storylines all fell victim to this same issue.
Rick and Morty Season 7 Struggled With Separating Rick and Morty
Morty’s Solo Adventure Was Rick and Morty’s Lowest-Rated Episode
“Rise of the Numbericons: The Movie” proved that Morty wasn’t ready to be entirely independent of Rick, while Rick’s earlier solo episode was more successful. Season 7, episode 3, “Air Force Wong,” fared better than “Rise of the Numbericons: The Movie” since Rick was a dynamic enough character to carry a storyline alone. Luckily, Morty’s newfound independence and self-reliance mean he will be better suited to solo stories in season 8. Although Rick and Morty season 7’s twist ending wasn’t entirely unprecedented, it was a clever way to establish that Morty’s character had grown and changed.
Why Rick And Morty Will Never Be The Same Show Again After Season 7
Rick and Morty season 8 is unlikely to feel like the show's earlier seasons, but this could secretly be a good thing for the future of the series.
Rick and Morty season 8’s version of Morty can now be a more self-assured figure whose lack of reliance on Rick gives him the freedom to pursue new storylines. Meanwhile, Rick’s search for a new partner in crime will likely result in more episodes that pair him off with Summer, Jerry, and Beth. Already, season 7, episode 7, “Wet Kuat Amortican Summer,” and episode 2, “The Jerrick Trap,” both proved that Summer and Jerry’s adventures with Rick have just as much potential as Morty’s stories.
However, the real appeal of Rick and Morty season 8’s new Morty is the chance to see a more self-actualized version of the show’s underrated title character. Morty has always been a pivotal part of the show's appeal, but his relative lack of character growth has grown frustrating over the years. As such, Rick and Morty season 8 changing Morty means the series can feel fresh for the first time in years upon its return.
Source: IMDb
Rick and Morty
- Release Date
- December 2, 2013
- Network
- Adult Swim
- Showrunner
- Dan Harmon
Cast
Summer Smith (voice)
Justin RoilandRick Sanchez / Morty Smith
WHERE TO WATCH
- Directors
- Bryan Newton, Dominic Polcino, Anthony Chun, John Rice, Stephen Sandoval, Jeff Myers
- Writers
- Tom Kauffman, Wade Randolph, Eric Acosta, David Phillips, Erica Rosbe, Sarah Carbiener, Matt Roller, Michael Waldron, Caitie Delaney
- Franchise(s)
- Rick and Morty
- Creator(s)
- Justin Roiland, Dan Harmon
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