Warning: This article contains spoilers for Rick and Morty season 8, episode 1.

I’ve wanted Rick and Morty to parody The Matrix since the show first started way back in 2013. Now, it’s finally happened in the season 8 premiere, “Summer of All Fears,” and it didn’t disappoint. Rick and Morty has been spoofing the classics of sci-fi cinema from the very beginning. In just its second episode, it entered Mr. Goldenfold’s dreams and satirized Inception and A Nightmare on Elm Street simultaneously. In its third episode, it satirized Jurassic Park and Fantastic Voyage simultaneously. Rick and Morty season 1’s parody of Needful Things is better than the real deal.

Throughout its eight seasons and counting, Rick and Morty has lampooned all kinds of sci-fi movies. It brought a hilarious mundanity to the Alien franchise’s terrifying facehuggers. It sent Rick, Morty, and Summer to a Mad Max-style post-apocalyptic wasteland for some gonzo, gas-guzzling adventures. The entire show began its life as a Back to the Future spoof, with Rick and Morty themselves being bizarre stand-ins for Doc and Marty. But the series had never spoofed one of the very best sci-fi movies, The Matrix — that is, until now.

Rick & Morty Finally Parodies The Matrix In Its Season 8 Premiere

Rick Traps Morty & Summer In A Matrix To Teach Them A Lesson

Ever since Rick and Morty arrived as a delightfully subversive sci-fi comedy with a unique style of cinematic satire, I’ve wanted to see the show’s take on The Matrix. In the season 8 premiere, my wish finally came true. The episode begins with Morty and Summer trapped in a Matrix-style virtual reality, where all the NPCs are obsessed with the need to return a borrowed phone charger. As it turns out, Rick created this entire Matrix world to teach his grandkids to return his phone charger when they borrow it.

In retaliation, after escaping from his Matrix, Morty traps Rick in his own Matrix, where all the NPCs talk about the immorality of trapping people in a Matrix to prove a point. It’s a classic Rick and Morty premise: it uses a lofty, existential sci-fi premise to tackle a relatable everyday situation. It digs into some of the deeper themes from The Matrix, too, like free will, the difficulty to distinguish between the real world and the virtual world, and the idea that human beings will create their own meaning in whatever reality they’re put in.

Rick & Morty’s Matrix Spoof Highlights Rick’s Genius & His Pettiness Simultaneously

It Captures The Underlying Comedic Conceit Of Rick’s Character

Rick and Morty’s season 8 premiere isn’t just a great parody of The Matrix’s premise; it also highlights the essence of Rick’s character: he’s as petty as he is hyperintelligent. The underlying comedic conceit of the character is that he’s capable of anything — if a gadget or technology can be imagined, Rick can make it a reality — but he uses his inventions for mundane, selfish purposes, like chastising his grandkids for taking his phone charger, instead of finding more useful applications for them. This can be seen all throughout the series.

Rick created a sentient robot capable of complex thought just to pass him the butter. He turned himself into a pickle just to get out of going to therapy. He built an entire Matrix world — a feat that took an entire army of machines to pull off in the movies — just to make sure he always has access to his phone charger when he wants it.

Rick & Morty Set Up Its Matrix Parody 4 Years Ago

The Show Posted Some Matrix Artwork When The Matrix Resurrections Was Released

While the season 8 premiere is the first time Rick and Morty has parodied The Matrix in the show itself, it’s not the franchise’s first reference to The Matrix. Four years ago, when The Matrix Resurrections came to theaters and HBO Max at the same time, the official Rick and Morty Twitter account posted an image parodying The Matrix. The artwork depicts The Matrix Reloaded’s classic fight scene with Rick taking the place of Neo and Jerry taking the place of all the Agent Smiths. Rick and Morty and The Matrix go hand-in-hand; they’re both ambitious, genre-bending, thought-provoking sci-fi epics.

Rick and Morty

8/10

Release Date

December 2, 2013

Network

Adult Swim

Directors

Bryan Newton, Dominic Polcino, Anthony Chun, John Rice, Stephen Sandoval, Jeff Myers

Writers

Tom Kauffman, Wade Randolph, Eric Acosta, David Phillips, Erica Rosbe, Sarah Carbiener, Matt Roller, Michael Waldron, Caitie Delaney

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  Justin Roiland

  Rick Sanchez / Morty Smith