He says it himself near the beginning when he recognizes that he could just go to another universe and pick up a Birdperson that wasn't on the brink of death, but for some reason, he cares about this one. This is a more complex Rick, one that genuinely cares about his friend, but for all the wrong reasons. Indeed, this is arguably the best characterization of Rick we've seen in a good while, one that is more than just a caricature of a genius asshole we saw in previous episodes and even Space Jam 2. RELATED: New ‘Rick and Morty’ Short Delivers a Better Anime Homage Than Actual Episode of the Show
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It is genuinely shocking to see a version of Rick free of his drunk self-hatred, one that just hung out with friends he respected, which adds to Rick's overall characterization. Before he finds Birdperson's consciousness, Rick teams up with a 35-year-old version of himself, one without any of the narcissism and nihilism, but with all the love for sci-fi mayhem. The animation is striking, and we see dozens of inventive alien designs, as well as a stunning action sequence near the end. The episode shows many events that were previously only alluded to, like Rick, Birdperson and Squanchy forming a band, in the closest Rick and Morty has got to a pure flashback episode.
The episode's title is a reference to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, as Rick explores memories of Birdperson's past, from his planet being conquered by the Galactic Federation, to the happier days when Rick and Birdperson were freedom fighters. The only problem is that Birdperson's consciousness has retreated deep into his mind, so Rick pulls an Inception and heads inside his friend's mind to bring him back from the brink of death. Turns out, Rick has been slowly building Birdperson back in his garage after he was turned into Phoenixperson and seemingly killed last season. Just like that episode, Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort features an entertaining and bonkers sci-fi premise and outstanding fight scenes that also compliment some significant character development. The episode starts with Rick being left alone in the house while the family goes out on vacation, and he ponders the possibility of another solo adventure a la Pickle Rick.
Thankfully, Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort remembers that the show is at its best when the sci-fi craziness feeds a character-driven story, as it not only gives us huge revelations about Rick, but about the lore of the show, all in casual conversation. After the premiere episode hinted at some actual character growth and consequence for the characters, every episode of season 5 since then has tried to one-up the previous episode with sci-fi shenanigans, whether that's a turkey president, a giant incest baby, or a Voltron parody. It took the return of Birdperson for the source of many of the problems with this season of Rick and Morty to click: the show has mostly forgotten about characterizations and instead focused on empty sci-fi spectacle and bizarre concepts.
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