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There's a lot going on in Rick and Morty, with its dimension-spanning adventures involving Szechuan sauce and catchphrases like "wubba lubba dub dub.” It's a complicated show to jump on board with from the get-go. So to help newcomers and those who need a refresher, let's explain the otherworldly story of Rick and Morty.
To be clear: We're going to spoil everything that's happened on the show so far. So there's your warning.
Let's start with Rick Sanchez, the smartest man in the universe. Rick only recently reunited with his adult daughter, Beth Smith. Because she's desperate for her dad's approval and traumatized by him leaving in the first place, Beth welcomes his dysfunction into the home she shares with her husband, Jerry, a perpetually down-on-his-luck loser who Rick hates.
Beth and Jerry have two kids. Their daughter, Summer, is in many ways the average American teenage girl. She's worried about fashion, her friends, and the various boys she likes at her school. What sets her apart from the rest of her peers is how utterly unfazed she seems to be by her parents failing marriage and her grandpa's high-risk space adventures.
Then there's Morty, the youngest in the family and Rick's closest ally in his maddening adventures. Prior to Rick's arrival, Morty was a troubled kid charting well below average at his school. A big reason why could have to do with his crippling crush on a girl named Jessica. After Rick shows up, well, none of that really changes, but Morty's life becomes very different.
The first episode of the series opens with Morty falling asleep at the breakfast table after a drunk Rick kept him up the night before with threats to restart humanity with a neutrino bomb. Yes, that's the first thing that happens.
Morty's parents worry that Rick's hijinx with their son are having unhealthy affects on him, particularly at school, where they acknowledge he may be developing slower than his peers. But Rick nonetheless takes Morty out of school for an adventure using his famous portal gun: a handheld device that allows him to travel anywhere in space. It can also travel between infinite alternate dimensions. So, while Rick can't travel in time, he can travel in different timelines.
The show doesn't shy away from the impact that traveling multiple universes can have on even a super-genius' mind. It's revealed in episode one that it's hard for Rick to relate to other people, even his family, because he knows that the best and worst versions of himself exist in infinite realities.
The adventure goes horribly, and it's pretty traumatic for Morty, who breaks his legs and is forced to kill some alien officers. When it's over, Rick explains to Beth and Jerry that traveling with him is the only way a mind like Morty is going to catch up in school. Of course, that's not really true. Keep watching the video to see the entire Rick and Morty story finally explained!
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Meet Rick and Morty | 0:24
Thinking with portals | 1:30
The Cronenberg incident | 2:43
Dysfunctional dimension | 3:44
Every Rick needs a Morty | 4:51
Rick's greatest enemy | 5:54
Fall of the Federation | 7:04
Family fractured | 8:17
Evil Morty returns | 9:02
Rick's power struggle | 9:57
Rick surrenders his place | 10:54