Like when I reviewed American Dad, it is difficult to watch certain shows that rely on bawdy humor. I personally think that issues of sex and violence can be explored fairly well, but they are often used as a punchline. I don’t necessarily that shows that show casual sex and violence support it directly, because pornography does too good of a job of that.

That being said, Rick and Morty is a show that is a definite love letter to science fiction. In fact, the main characters Rick and Morty are clearly based on two of the characters from one of the best science fiction films of all time: Back to the Future. Just look at these guys and you can’t help but think of Doc Brown and Marty McFly.

If you think about it, Doc and Marty had an odd relationship. I guess Marty would go over to use Doc Brown’s big amp, and Doc Brown would make Marty do errands. The original pitch for this show from Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon had these two characters in mind, but couldn’t get the rights. The idea that they went with is that Rick is a scientist who is always on some kind of adventure, and he takes his grandson Morty with him. Rick is a complete selfish jerk, and Morty is a teenager who constantly whines.

Unlike other science-fiction shows, there doesn’t seem to be a huge storyline for it. Generally, an episode has a plot with Rick and Morty, where Rick drags Morty into some kind of out-of-this-world adventure on another planet or in another dimension. Then there is usually a plot with Rick’s daughter Beth, her husband Jerry, and Morty’s sister Summer. Like most shows, there is a plot A and plot B on each one, but what makes it so interesting is that generally both plotlines are just as interesting. I have never seen a show that did that successfully, as usually shows have a plot B that feels like a useless obligation.

Instead of telling about the show, I would rather just share my top ten episodes:

1) M. Night Shaym-Aliens!

If there is one thing that Rick and Morty is good at, it is making fun of science fiction conventions. In this case, it uses the simulation plotline, and makes the characters doubt whether they are in reality or not. The ending of this episode just really makes it worth it as it is so very funny, and the fact that David Cross is the bad alien really makes it work.

2) Total Rickall

This is another episode where the main characters know that someone in the house is an alien shape-shifter, but it is only a question of who. This plot has been done to death, but the fact that these parasitic aliens can alter your memory is a great twist. In fact, the final twist really bring Rick and Morty into a realm of dark humor that actually works.

3) Something Ricked This Way Comes

A new shop opens up in town that sells objects that grants you your wildest dreams, for a price. Yeah, the shopkeeper is the devil, and when Rick realize how to de-curse the items and still get the benefits of them. It is a great set-up and Alfred Molina for a special guest star makes it work better.

4) Mortynight Run

This is one where the Plot B is better than the Plot A, assuming one is the Plot A. It begins when Rick and Morty take Jerry on an adventure, but then drop off Jerry at a “Jerry Nursery”. In Rick and Morty’s world, there are infinite timelines so an infinite amount of characters, so there are a ton of Jerrys in this place. The main plot has Rick wanting to kill an alien, while Morty befriends it. The ending is pretty dark.

5) Rick Potion #9

In this one, Morty is kind of the selfish one and wants Rick to create him a love potion. The potion has some side effects that lead to an outbreak of a terrible disease. I don’t want to spoil the ending for this one, but it is incredible, and it probably the darkest of the series.

6) Meeseeks and Destroy

Both Plots of this episode are fantastic. In one, Rick’s family demands his help, and so Rick gives them a box that, when you push it, will create a blue being that will do one task for you, and then die. In fact, they want to die, and Jerry really demands too much of the Meeseeks. Then there is one where Morty wants to go on an adventure, and Rick just comes along. It ends in a dark place, and it ironically works.

7) Rixty Minutes

In this episode, the main characters access television on other worlds and dimensions, and opens up a lot of comic sketches. What is amazing is that Jerry, Beth, and Summer realize that there are some things that will last throughout the timelines.

8) Lawnmower Dog

This episode has two huge plots that work well together. In one of them is an Inception parody that really goes deep and confusing. The other one is when Rick grants the family dog intelligent, and there is a lot that can be said for that plotline.

9) The Ricks Must Be Crazy

Rick has a very strange UFO of a car, and we learn what powers it. It turns out it is an entire society of miniature aliens, and it gets really interesting from there.

10) Anatomy Park

It’s an obvious parody of Jurassic Park, but it is about an amusement park in a human body that can be accessed via miniaturization. Like most Rick and Morty episodes, you can create an entire series based on the premise of one episode.

Rick and Morty works because it addresses a world where some amazing things exist, like an infinite amount of timelines, but it causes us to question our importance in the universe, and we might not like those answers.