The fun of Rick and Morty is that over the years, it’s built up an eclectic cast of supporting characters that turn out to be just as hilarious, or as deep, as the titular duo. Rick and Morty vs. The Universe #2 is a great reminder of this, as in their quest to “reboot” the universe, Rick and Morty end up going to Mr. Poopybutthole for help.
But Mr. Poopybutthole isn’t feeling, well, “ooo-wee”, so to speak. Due to some mysterious event, he’s been locked in a chair reminiscent to the one that Christopher Pike was stuck in during Star Trek: The Original Series (one of Rick and Morty vs. The Universe #2’s more subtle sci-fi shoutouts.) But the biggest draw is how little Rick seems to care about the fate that’s befallen his old friend…which leads to a heated argument with Morty later on.
It’s here that Daniel Kibblesmith smacks the reader with a surprise blast of emotion. When he’s accused of treating everyone as “replaceable”, Morty explodes: “That’s how you talk about the rest of us!” It’s not hard to see his point, what with all the dimension hopping and chaos Rick’s left in his wake, but it lets Kibblesmith tackle an underlying issue that’s been brought up with multiverse stories: in a seemingly infinite universe with different versions of a character, does the “core” character still matter? Judging by Morty’s freakout and the ending of this issue, it looks like Kibblesmith is arguing that no matter the universe, your actions matter.
Jarrett Williams also ups his art style for the issue, drawing the type of sequences you’d usually see in a big blockbuster movie or a major comic book event. One such sequence features a meteor slamming into the Smith house; Williams gets to draw said meteor increasing in size, until it finally slams into the ground and causes a massive shockwave, sending everything in its path flying. Alessandro Santoro adds to the danger by wrapping the meteor in burning reddish-gold flames; later, he adds a red hue to certain panels with Mr. Poopybutthole that leads to a literally explosive result.
The real standout to me is whenever Parmesan Universe is on screen. Williams has this trick where he draws her literally engulfing the page, an ocean of stars and celestial bodies dotting the page. If that’s not impressive enough, there’s a moment where Parmesan reaches into her stomach – and her hand emerges at another point, threatening to swallow up Rick and Morty. I don’t know whether I was impressed or terrified at this moment.
Rick and Morty vs. The Universe #2 brings back some old faces, but places its titular duo in a new kind of danger. The story might be halfway over, but it sounds like the creative team is just getting started when it comes to bringing fans the over the top sci-fi shenanigans that define Rick and Morty‘s whole world.
