Commentary: ‘Star Trek’ And ‘Rick And Morty’ Share A Common Thread
by Frank Martin
At its core, science fiction is all about utilizing high concepts to tell stories. It doesn’t even have to be necessarily rooted in real science, just asking abstract questions and then running with them in terms of plot, setting, and characterization. Because of this, there is a bond between all science fiction stories that touch upon these various topics. Great science fiction takes ideas and expands them to their fullest potential. Because of this, it’s strange how completely different series manage to share this common thread. Specifically, it’s weird to see stories that take place in the Star Trek universe share something in common with a ridiculous show like Rick and Morty.
Created by Gene Roddenberry, the premise behind Star Trek is well-known even beyond its fan base. It’s all about exploration and discovering the unknown. Many episodes are about encountering life forms and celestial phenomenon beyond human understanding. These are definitely high concept premises that the episodes truly stretch to philosophical and ethical levels. Created by Dan Harmon, Rick and Morty does something similar. It takes tons of sci-fi tropes such as alternate realities, cloning, genetic manipulation, and more as jumping off points for episodes.
The way in which Rick and Morty differs is obvious. It has no problem taking these high concepts and going well beyond the goal of creating compelling stories. Instead, the show is about ridiculousness and absurdity and stretches these concepts not just to have a philosophical message but for entertainment. Unlike Star Trek, Rick and Morty isn’t bound by tone. It can really showcase how absurd a lot of these high concept science fiction ideas can be. So while the two shows are wildly different, it’s strange to see how they utilize science fiction tropes and ideas so well in their two distinct venues.
Star Trek is now streaming on Paramount+. Rick and Morty is now streaming on Hulu.