Rick And Morty Season 6 Episode 2 Lays Into The Snyder Cut Using Math
The latest episode of "Rick and Morty" doesn't shy away from ripping into one of the most talked about superhero films of all-time.
The series has always had an interesting relationship with pop culture and that's no more evident than in Season 6 Episode 2, "Rick: A Mort Well Lived," which features a B plot that heavily parodies Bruce Willis' "Die Hard." '80s references aside, the Adult Swim comedy frequently taps into the one genre that dominates our current culture: the superhero film. Multiple episodes of "Rick and Morty" have made fun of, parodied, or made tribute to some of our favorite caped heroes and villains. The series has had a blast making fun of Marvel Studios' various offerings over the years. And just recently, the debut episode of Season 6 featured a hilarious, meta reference to the MCU's "Avengers: Endgame." With that in mind, it's only natural that "Rick and Morty" now throws a jab at the DCEU, as it lays into the famous Snyder Cut of "Justice League" with its second outing this season.
The existence of "Zack Snyder's Justice League" has proved to be controversial, but the director's cut of the DC film has nevertheless become one of contemporary pop culture's most fascinating talking points. "Rick and Morty" making a playful reference shouldn't be all too surprising, either, considering Zack Snyder has expressed his love for the "Rock and Morty" in the past.
Rick calls out Batman's dream sequences in The Snyder Cut
The A plot of the episode focuses on Rick trying to get the various NPCs (non-playable characters) in the video game "Roy: A Life Well LIved" to realize that they're actually Morty. While many liken Rick to be a cult leader and are hesitant to believe that they're actually a small percentage of a 14 year old boy's subconscious, others join the cause swiftly. Once enough people are on board with the assumption that they're Morty, Rick's plan is to get everyone to the edge of outer space, where the game will break, shocking the real Morty awake, with his identity in tow.
The problem is that some 8% of the population refuses to join in on Rick's plan, which discourages the leaders and influencers of the world who are aware that they are Morty. Rick replies by saying that 8% of Morty being sacrificed is perfectly fine. "It's not your finest 8%, Morty," the inventor says. An 8% of anything is expendable. 8% of pizza is crust. 8% of 'The Snyder Cut' was Batman dreaming." Morty responds by saying he doesn't understand Rick's reference.
Seeing as "Zack Snyder's Justice League" runs just over 4 hours, it's hard not to fault anyone from forgetting that a decent portion of the film focused on Batman (Ben Affleck) dreaming of the Knightmare timeline, i.e. a worst-case scenario that would've been explored in the sequel that never happened. Seeing as the so-called "Snyderverse" won't be continuing, the dream sequences from "The Snyder Cut" are setup with no payoff. So, in terms of being succinct and intentional, Rick is right when he says "8% of anything is expendable."