Rick and Morty Season 7 Episodes 1-2 Review

Join Swimpedia as we review screeners of the first two episodes of Rick and Morty Season 7 with minimal spoilers, and find out whether the show can successfully continue given its recent major voice acting changes.

[MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD]

It’s undeniable that Rick and Morty continues to be one of the most successful and popular series to come from Adult Swim to date. Following the premiere of Season 6, the show continued to be a domestic and international hit, still managing to be a frontrunner in the desired demographic groups and across animation itself. Thus, it’s unsurprising that Adult Swim would want to ensure a long life for the series, with old and new fans clamoring for more after the finale of Season 6. However, in the midst of producing Season 7, alarming allegations and charges arose against co-creator Justin Roiland. At the time, many were left uncertain about the future of the series, with others even considering boycotting upcoming installments of the show altogether. Then, on January 24, 2023, Adult Swim came out stating that they were ending their association with Justin Roiland, and that Rick and Morty would continue under the supervision of its talented and dedicated crew. For some, such a strong statement in favor of the accusers addressed their concerns, but plenty were left wondering if the changing of Rick and Morty’s voices would become a negative distraction and if the quality of the series would decrease. If you’re interested in learning more about how this change plays out in Rick and Morty Season 7, please continue reading and check out the premiere episode tomorrow night at 11:00 PM.

Starting with the elephant in the room, fans of the series have already received a preview of the new voice actors for Rick and Morty in the trailer for this season. Although Adult Swim has made the decision to keep their identities private until the first episode premieres, the biggest question is still whether or not they have the ability to pull off the network’s goal of soundalike voices for the two leads. Turning our attention back to the trailer, there are certainly scenes where the voices manage to hit the mark, but there are other times, particularly when the characters are yelling, where the voices have some slight notable differences. However, over the course of the first two episodes, the voice actors prove to be even better. Admittedly, both episodes have much more of a focus on Rick over Morty, thus providing us with greater examples of the range of the new Rick voice actor. However, there were plenty of scenes for both characters where the voices were indistinguishable from the original. Then, when they were off, the discrepancies were minimal, or often faded into the background after multiple sentences from each character.

The character with the most noticeably different voice was actually Mr. Poopybutthole, who was featured in the recently released cold open for the season premiere. Although still close to the original voice, when compared to Rick and Morty, the new voice stood out through the entire episode. This didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the story, but fans looking for a seamless transition may struggle more with his voice than the others. We’ll need a more Morty focused episode to fully judge that voice actor’s ability, but for now the voice actor for Rick stands as the most consistent new cast member. Especially in fast-paced scenes with a lot of action or other returning characters talking, it’s hard to tell Rick has a different voice actor if your attention is on the overall presentation of the show. Thus, it would be tough to argue that Adult Swim didn’t succeed in their goal, as it’s clear that with more time and practice Rick and Morty’s voice actors will continue to improve and further nail the original voices.

That being said, this still leaves the question of whether or not the seventh season manages to continue the recent quality of the show despite one of its original creators no longer present. Before diving into the specific episodes, it has been stated by some that by this point in time, Justin Roiland already had limited creative involvement anyways. True or not, the first two episodes of the season, although quite different from one another, are exactly at the level that fans would expect from solid, all around well done Rick and Morty stories. The first episode of Season 7, “How Poopy Got His Poop Back,” plays out as a much more ensemble episode that starts off with Mr. Poopybutthole’s depressive state from the cold open. Without spoiling too much, the spotlight is turned onto Rick, not as a scientist, but as a caring friend. Along with plenty of classic shenanigans, unexpected reveals, returning characters, and comedic pop culture references, the episode has a lot of heart that expands our perspective on the characters involved. It’s the kind of episode that the series could only pull off after years of developing other stories and characters, yet at the core also feels like a typical side story.

When it comes to the second episode, “The Jerrick Trap,” we’re treated to a narrative that combines two fan favorite Rick and Morty elements: a Rick and Jerry episode and an innovative science fiction premise. The start of the episode features structural components similar to “The Whirly Dirly Conspiracy,” with Rick and Jerry paired together butting heads. However, this gets completely out of hand, when the rest of the episode combines that with a wacky science fiction plot device, such as with the decoys in “Mortyplicity.” Thus, Rick and Jerry are left to deal with one of Rick and Morty’s most entertaining achievements yet, which of course reverberates throughout the entire family, and even maybe teaches them a lesson by the end, or maybe not. Ultimately, this is likely to be more of a standout episode than the premiere, feeling both familiar and completely fresh for the show, yet both episodes prove that Rick and Morty has not lost its charm just yet despite the internal transitions.

Overall, fans have little to fear when it comes to the start of Rick and Morty Season 7 following the turbulent path leading up to the premiere. First off, the new voices for Rick and Morty are consistently spot on throughout the episodes, or have such little differences that they’re forgivable as the voice actors adapt to the roles. Second, the first two episodes bring the fun that fans of the series have come to expect, with the variety of a heart-to-heart yet wild of a ride culmination episode followed by a wacky Rick and Jerry high science fiction episode. In the end, it’s clear that Rick and Morty still has a future, and we hope that fans will give the changes a chance as they’re treated to the love and effort that Dan Harmon and the rest of the crew put into making this season as entertaining as ever.

The first episode of Rick and Morty Season 7 premieres tomorrow night at 11:00 PM on Adult Swim!