Review: Rick and Morty, "Erickerhead" | Season 9, Episode 6
Rick loses his head and finds it again, as the season continues its win streak
Well, it’s official: we’re now far enough into season 9 that I can no longer say “Wow, I’m surprised at how much this season doesn’t suck!” Which is a relief, to some extent–having to find clever things to say about ten episodes of mediocre blandness is a form of critical hell. But it also means I can’t waste time commenting on how the show has found its groove again. We already know. The best I can manage is a meta opening paragraph, bemoaning the minor misery of writing about something that knows what it’s doing and does it well.
“Erickerhead” find the series returning to one of its strongest recurring themes: Rick versus himself. This time around, instead of getting lost on vacation, Rick literally loses his head, forcing Morty and Summer to scramble to get the two back together again. Unfortunately, having some time apart convinces the two body parts (well, one part and the rest… the rest) that they’d be better off making the split a permanent one. Comedic chaos ensues.
It’s a clever idea–nothing revolutionary, but it allows for a lot of great action sequences, first as Summer and Morty struggle separately to survive with their Rick halves, and then as the body and the brain go to war. Rick’s head is a bit colder than normal, briefly trying to steal Morty’s body before a responsible doctor catches on, and it’s neat watching the body learn to communicate without actually speaking.
