Rick and Morty Season 4 return after a two-year absence

Rick and Morty is so close to a triumphant return on Adult Swim and fans are ready for more adventures. The first episode of Season 4 is called “Edge of Tomorty: Rick Die Rickpeat.” The episode title is a parody of the Tom Cruise vehicle from 2014, Edge of Tomorrow.

At the end of this animated show’s third season, a character addresses one of the more tortuous aspects of being a fan of the series: “See you for Season 4 in, like, a really long time.” Now, after a two-year wait, Rick Sanchez, the self-centered mad scientist, and his grandson, Morty Smith, are finally back for a round of new adventures through the multiverse.

This isn’t a drill. After two long, excruciating years Rick and Morty is back and it’s funnier and more devastating than ever before. In honor of the return of Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland’s burp-filled baby, re-watch the first three seasons. Then brace yourself for a whole new episode that totally isn’t ripping off Edge of Tomorrow. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll question your own mortality. As a wise man once said, that’s the waaaaay the news goes.

Fans were probably surprised when Rick and Morty co-creators Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon confirmed the length of the new season earlier this year. The duo even talked about how work has already started on Season 5 of the show. Rick and Morty got a very lengthy seven-season renewal in May of 2018. That means that there are 70 episodes coming at some point. But, not all at once, so contain yourselves people.

In execution, “Total Rickall” has an improvisational feel similar to Rick and Morty’s Interdimensional Cable bit from “Rixty Minutes” and “Interdimensional Cable 2: Tempting Fate,” but because it’s essentially a clip show episode with a series of (fake) flashbacks, comparing it to “Morty’s Mind Blowers” is even more appropriate. Whereas each of those episodes goes off-the-rails in entertaining ways, “Total Rickall” keeps its focus to tell a tight, emotional story about the relationships between members Smith family, chief among them the turbulent bond between Rick and Morty.

Chris Parnell, an alumnus of the UNC School of the Arts, continues his role as Rick’s long-suffering son-in-law Jerry, who is Morty’s ineffectual dad. He frequently tries to clash with Rick but is largely ignored and dismissed.