Before we begin, this episode was exactly what I expected.
As Rick himself said during the episode, most viewers-including me-aren't particularly invested in Beth-centric stories. Beth simply isn't a character who can be written meaningfully outside the overused theme of "My father never showed us love." No matter how they try, her character seems permanently limited, and it feels nearly impossible for a Beth-focused episode to ever earn an 8.0+ rating at this point.
That said, the episode wasn't all that bad.
However, the second plotline was unnecessary. I think it would have been more entertaining if Rick, Summer, Morty, and Jerry had stayed home watching TV while events unfolded among the Beths. Still, I really liked the final scene between Rick and Beth.
As many people have pointed out (and I agree), this season seems designed to remind us of Rick's humanity, that he still has a soul beneath all that cynicism. Unfortunately, they haven't managed to pull it off very well so far.
And then... the references. 9/11? Really?
There was absolutely no need for such cheap shots in Rick and Morty. It felt ridiculous-cheap even. What reaction did they expect from the audience? Shock? Laughter? I didn't feel any of that.
These kinds of 9/11 references are everywhere these days, and not only are they no longer edgy-they were never that clever to begin with.
Looking ahead at this season-and future ones-I think this will be the average quality going forward.
Seasons 9, 10, 11, and even 12 might decline further. Of course, we can't expect every episode to be canon, but the creativity in filler episodes has dropped significantly.
The last high-quality filler episode I remember enjoying was probably "That's Amorte." So here's the truth: our expectations for R&M should be adjusted. There will still be a few brilliant episodes from time to time, sure-but filler episodes simply aren't what they used to be.
All we can do now is try to enjoy what we get-or at least give it a fair shot.
