Well folks, here we are. Another year is set to wind down and with the holiday season upon us, it’s that time of year again. A long and tiring process leading up to the new year, so that means we have to count down the episodes that I have to pick and somewhat review and give my thoughts on certain episodes from certain series. As for 2023 as a whole, as we’re nearing the end of the year...let’s just say that uh...it was an “interesting” year to say the least. I mean, hey, we’re finally back to normalcy after having to endure a pandemic that lasted us two years and now we might be on the verge of seeing the series finale of America come the end of next year and possibly the world, hopefully, it’s neither of those two for the next twelve months. Wars, the possibility of economic collapse, the strikes, YouTube being a little bitch over people for using AdBlock...yeah, it does sound like I’m going in the direction of doom and gloom going for next year, mostly because 2024 is a leap year and leap years don’t have the nicest reputation. I mean, take a look at the last time we’re in a leap year. But enough with the negatives because the last thing we need is the reader to have anxiety, we’re celebrating the end of the year and that means, we have to count down the last twelve days of the year and get this show on the road. Starting with number 12 in the countdown...is pretty much a late-minute entry when coming up with the list.
Yep, we begin the countdown with the recent season finale of Rick and Morty. And to be fair...
This was a difficult position to put up with for the list to where we are now with the countdown. It was either this or the recent series finale of Archer and those two, including the recent Christmas episode of Bob’s Burgers that I’d just reviewed, aired on the same night. Rick and Morty seem to be the better out of those three to be added to the countdown to take the number 12 spot. With knowing how Season 7 performed throughout the past few months and there’s one that took the words out of my mouth and spoilers, that’s later in the countdown, so hang on tight. And how the episode functions is simple, it’s Rick and Morty going through a hole that contains their deepest fear when seeing it as a challenge in the bathroom at a Denny’s after confronting someone at a nightmare carnival to see what true terror is all about. Treating it like it’s an episode of Fear Factor.
Starting the whole experience with the show gunning for the horror aspect once the duo enters the hole. Morty has to experience maggots being inserted through his belly button as if he’s being dissected and meanwhile, you have Rick having the time of his life and beating every piece of fear as if he’s treating those nightmare beings like they’re nothing. Though both of them did survive once they got out, though Morty felt the opposite of what Rick was feeling for a bit after surviving the hole, that and also them shitting their pants because of what they have gotten through. But that’s not what important and that is just the appetizer because...
You got Rick’s dead wife Diane popping through the portal with a dying young Rick in her hands and causing a massive shock to the family, primarily Rick and Beth. And this Diane popped out from the moment Rick was supposed to see Diane and a young Beth being killed off by Rick Prime and here, the roles may have been reversed with the family seeing Diane surviving the blast. And yeah, Rick and Morty already knew that this was the hole doing its work as if they weren’t truly out and appeared to be stuck. And boy, this is where each of the duo’s fears come to light with this episode. And we start with Rick and when you think of the guy, him being OP and scoffs at anything that would cause harm that you think that he’s invincible to everything despite the near-death experiences but that’s pretty much a normal Tuesday for the guy alongside Morty. But as the episode progressed, especially in the entirety of the first half and going into the second...
The fear hole decided to pull out the biggest hits with Rick’s fear of having to let go of his slain wife. And mind you, that was Rick’s entire arc from the moment he saw his wife and his daughter at a young age die right before his eyes to, spoiler alert, finally getting justice served by beating Rick Prime to a bloody pulp. So you think that him finally avenging his wife would be the end of that chapter? But the fear hole decided to be a pesky little fucker and play with Rick’s fears and have Rick try to play nice with Diane with him taking her and Beth (and also Morty) to get ice cream as he promised to take them if they didn’t die to build a robot butler to deliver her food, it’s like after drawing a check on the list to take our Rick Prime, it feels like with him seeing his dead wife alive, though 20 years younger since that was the last time he saw Diane, feels like he’s back to his old ways. Before the moment that changed his life and left him with a permanent mental scar and looked happy, despite the eyebags that looked like a zombie as if the fear was feasting on him to the point where he looked like he hadn’t gotten any sleep nor anything to eat as if he’s in some sort of bubble. So, that’s Rick’s fear of him not being able to forget about Diane, especially once we get to the moment where he decides to help Morty with his fear. And speaking of Morty...oh boy.
Morty...yeah, the guy in the suit gives zero fucks when it comes to the fear hole and the fears that both Rick and Morty had to endure while at a Denny’s. Calling Morty out after Morty tells the guy in the suit to cut the crap because he’s concerned about Rick’s health with the way he looks and how his happiness is eating him courtesy of the fear hole and this is where the tomfoolery comes into play. Because the man in the suit decided to call Morty out regarding the situation with Rick. Him bringing out a metaphorical gun and shoots truth bullets at Morty and says what Morty is truly afraid of. You thought it would be worrying about Rick’s declining health with him being reunited with Diane but in reality, Morty’s biggest fear is rejection. The fear of not being accepted and worried that if Rick continues to be happy and spend time with Diane, he’s going to be left all alone. Like...bro, this is a child. And sure, the fear of rejection is in the top 10 items on the list of the biggest fears in life, but again, the guy in the suit gives zero fucks, and finding out what Morty’s biggest fear is with him fearing that he’s going to get rejected and not feel accepted. And his traveling with Rick, despite the times those two get into some disagreement during their adventures, does feel like he is automatically being accepted to just hop along, even if he is being dragged to do Rick’s odd jobs. So what did Morty do to face his fear?
Go balls on the wall with him doing dumb things in hopes of him getting accepted. From letting a spider enter his mouth to participating in a play naked and not knowing any lines in front of a crowd with someone from the paper in attendance, knowing how sickly he looks as he continues to expose himself throughout the second half of the episode, he goes balls on the wall to face his fear. It has gotten to the point where Rick notices that Morty is looking sickly and malnourished the same as he feels when seeing the play, drawing concern for his grandson and decides to enter the stage nude and does a song number to impress the crowd but as a result, would cause Rick to say his final farewell to Diane before doing all of that to get them out. Only to find out that the acceptance issue wasn’t his true fear at all, and instead, it’s the fear of Rick leaving him, which was said by the end of the episode.
Hell, we see that with that small flash-forward scene with Morty growing up from the present to his time at college and graduating to him becoming a full-fledged adult with a house and a job. And where was Rick in all of this? He’s hanging out, just had to inject something into his veins to keep himself from aging. Oh yeah, that’s also the fear hole doing its job to fuck around with the duo, especially towards Morty. Especially when finding out that Rick didn’t even enter the hole. That was all Morty. Sure, we have seen Rick leaving the family and Morty a few times in this show in the past. Mostly with Season 2’s “The Wedding Squanchers” where he turned himself in to the Galactic Federation in return for getting the family back to Earth safely and Season 5’s “Forgetting Sarick Mortshall” with him leaving with the crows after realizing that their dynamic had been toxic after replacing Morty with the flock of crows, but even though that’s not the case when stating the facts...sort of, Morty without Rick is something that Morty can’t live on, even though Rick isn’t the type of person who would admire like he’s some sort of idol.
But Rick does have a soft spot for Morty, especially once Morty finally gets out of the hole, and for real this time around and mentioning Diane inside the hole and what he had seen, you have Rick planning on going there, mostly to take a look for himself, but decides not to. Mostly because Morty had seen enough and decided to leave the bathroom, but not before Rick placed a photo of his grandson on the bulletin board to showcase that he had faced his fears as an accomplishment.
So, this episode was an interesting one to close off the show’s seventh season, and even though this was picked at the last moment because...well, had to wait to see what this episode had in store, and they did do that to the point where it landed to that final spot in the countdown. Gunning for the horror aspect with Rick and Morty going into the hole and fighting their fears, only to have their fears fight them whether it’s Rick embracing happiness when reuniting with Diane or Morty having to embrace his fear of rejection, only to figure out that his true fear is him not having Rick around, this was an interesting episode and what a way to go to wrap an interesting season after going through massive changes...mostly regarding the issues regarding Justin Roiland, but this was an interesting episode.
The visuals looked amazing when being in the fear hole. Typical Rick and Morty stuff in the writing and direction when going into the fear hole and having both Rick and Morty having to endure their deepest fears throughout the first half of the episode and going into the second. And even though the focus is on the duo with their fears being highlighted even though some may think that it’s mostly Rick because of him being reunited with Diane in I guess you could say the most fucked up way possible by having her appear from the portal through the ceiling to escape the blast, it’s Morty who had the most attention when going into the second half when having to face his deepest fear. Having to be called out by the man in the suit to him going balls out in trying to get himself exposed by doing some tomfoolery, having to fight his fear and feel sickly and malnourished, as well as him facing his actual fear of Rick not being on his side and the question of him whether or not being quote-on-quote “irreplaceable” after coming out of the hole. Think that’s more than enough for Morty to breathe a sigh of relief as the duo make their way out of the Denny’s bathroom, but not before Rick puts a photo of Morty that he had to pull out from his wallet to place it on the bulletin board to show that he survived the hole. Closing the books for Season 7 and let’s wait and see what Season 8 has in store.
Day 1 of the Top 12 Countdown of the year 2023 is in the books. What do you think about this episode? Should it be higher, lower, or stay put on your list? Put it in the comments below as we prepare to go into the Number 11 spot of the Top 12 Countdown. Which episode and series will be taking the eleventh spot? Find and see sometime tomorrow. Follow me on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon, Threads, and BlueSky for updates and behind-the-scenes stuff. And y’all should know the drill by now...
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