TL;DR – Asks the question, can you do an episode of Rick and Morty without Rick? And the answer is: sure.  

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this episode.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a post-credit scene.

Rick and Morty Review –

It can be hard to break when you have built your show around some bedrock principles, so you have enshrined them in your show’s title. Well, if this season of Rick and Morty is known for one thing, it is breaking with what they have established in the past, and this time that is, can you have a Rick and Morty episode without Rick?

So to set the scene, Morty (Harry Belden) has one of those rare moments where he is not out on an adventure with Rick (Ian Cardoni) and is instead at Harry Herpson High School in Mr. Goldenfold’s (Brandon Johnson) math class. After getting detention, he is held back, which is when Water-T (Dan Harmon) arrives because the Numbericons have invaded his planet and killed his father, Helium-Q (Ice-T). Now, only Goldenfold can save them. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

I have to say that among everything else happening in this episode, there is an almost surreal feeling when you have Ice-T voicing Dan Harmon’s Ice-T’s father, Helium-Q. It is a narrative turducken that makes you pause and think back to the original Get Schwifty, of which this week’s episode is a clear sequel. Indeed, this is one of the rare direct sequels we get outside Interdimensional Cable. It also probably only works as well as it does because we don’t have Rick there to make it easier or add in the cynicism you know would be there.

This leads to an almost earnest speed-run of the general Star Wars trilogy in about twenty minutes. Throw in as many numbers and word puns as possible while doing it, and you get the show’s basic shape. Thankfully, I don’t think any of the humour outstayed its welcome, partly because we are moving so fast through the narrative that we don’t linger long enough to be a problem. Focusing in on Mr Goldenfold and his stupid past beef with Ice-T was a fun angle to take, and it was nice to explore some of the side characters outside of their comfort zone.

In the end, do we recommend Rick and Morty: Rise of the Numbericons: The Movie? It was a fun episode that showed that you can still pull off an episode of Rick and Morty without most of the main cast, including Rick. I have liked some of the experiments they have been doing this season, and I’ll be interested to see where they land in the upcoming season finale.   

https://youtu.be/BKYJ5AIOU9I?si=0jdvUocMkBFmU5-1

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

Have you seen Rick and Morty yet?, let us know what you thought in the comments below, feel free to share this review on any of the social medias and you can follow us Here. Check out all our past reviews and articles Here, and have a happy day.    

Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Rick and Morty
Directed by – Kyounghee Lim
Written by – Alex Song-Xia
Created by – Justin Roiland & Dan Harmon
Production/Distribution Companies – Justin Roiland’s Solo Vanity Card Productions, Harmonious Claptrap, Williams Street, Adult Swim & Netflix
Starring – Chris Parnell, Spencer Grammer, Sarah Chalke, Ian Cardoni & Harry Belden with Ice-T, Keith David & Peter Serafinowicz and Troy Baker, Dan Harmon, Terry Ilous, Brandon Johnson, Albro Lundy, Nick Reczynski, Ryan Ridley, Rob Schrab, Gary Anthony Williams & Debra Wilson