Morty goes to summer camp in "Rick and Morty" season 9 (’ It’s one of the show's best and brightest seasons yet, with a cavalcade of interdimensional wackiness to enjoy.We hooked up with "Rick and Morty" co-creator, Dan Harmon, and showrunner Scott Marder to get the full scoop on what this new batch of episodes brings. leaning back into hard sci-fi, and that sweet martial arts showdown in a treacherous Trader Joe's parking lot."I think it felt familiar and felt relatable," Marder explains to Space regarding the third episode, "Rick-Fu Hustle.” “Like, how cool would it be if an episode could just start from a minor fender bender? In this case, it just so happens to be with a kung-fu master, that gets the whole story rolling. A lot of times those are really joyful starts to episodes, things that start as small as that." EARLY PREVIEW: Rick Fu Hustle | Rick and Morty | adult swim - YouTube Watch On Harmon is eager to hear enthusiastic reactions from viewers, both longtime and new."It's been a long, turbulent ride," he notes. "The show's been on for a long time. Scott came on board to run it, and it was not a rewarding job to be brought into it. That's the thing I’m excited about. It’s like feeling like a grown-up. Having a show, and it’s airing, and it's airing on schedule, and people are responding to it and liking it."There's one episode in particular that Harmon is excited to see the fan reaction to. "I’m really excited to see people’s response to the evolution episode," he reveals. "It was a little bit of a departure and an experimental way of telling a story, and I'm interested to see if it's a crowd-pleaser or not. I'll be proud of it regardless."As showrunner and executive producer, Marder senses a creative solidarity flowing into this latest outing that starts with the entire creative team across the board."This season in a lot of ways is a celebration, and I think you can feel it in everything," he adds. "Everyone was so grateful that this show held together and weathered all the storms it did internally. All our best people stayed with us. The morale was through the roof, and you could feel it in every department, and it bled into every episode. That's why it feels so dense and upbeat. Everyone was so thrilled being part of this thing. It just doesn’t feel like the ninth season of a show; it feels like the third season of a show." "Rick and Morty" season 9 is one of the strongest in years! ("I know that everyone in the writer's room of a sci-fi show watches like 'Black Mirror,'" Harmon says. "That's the one that comes to mind in a very meta creative way. That probably had a big influence on us. I'm saying the same thing now about 'Widow's Bay.' That obviously won’t apply to season nine, and we talked about 'Severance' being an influence on season eight. But it’s more like whatever show is out there hitting it, and you draw inspiration from watching it."You put yourself in the Salieri role of a Mozart story, and you just bathe in whoever is killing it. When I was doing 'Community,' 'Breaking Bad' was that thing. We were inspired by it, writing an NBC sitcom about a community college. Limiting it to sci-fi, maybe 'Black Mirror' is that thing. The writers can come in and go, 'what do you think about this way of handling these themes?'" Rick and Morty | Season 9: Trailer #2 | adult swim - YouTube Watch On Staying locked in and motivated doesn’t seem to be an issue for Harmon, even though he admits it's been a very challenging past couple of years."Last year, my answer would be something as grim as, 'I just want to keep the kids o
Small but perfectly formed, this Lego AT-AT set is more dynamic in appearance than some bigger sets. (That's not all, either. Lego has introduced a whole new way to enjoy the best Lego Star Wars toys. It's unleashed several sets equipped with a 'Smart Brick' that enables interactivity between toys.Sets equipped with Smart Bricks, such as Throne Room Duel & A-Wing will let you listen to Luke and Darth Vader's weapons clash, hear the infamous Imperial March play and more! It's the kind of idea my younger self would have dismissed as sheer fantasy, but I need these toys and I need them now.Between Smart Brick technology and the other sets, Lego Star Wars fans are spoiled for choice. Here are the Lego Star Wars sets released in 2026 that I wish I had right now. After all, it's not like you can take your galactic credits with you. Chris is a freelance journalist who, aside from covering games and gaming-related tech, has a taste for horror, sci-fi and the post-apocalyptic. As well as Space.com, you can find his work at The Escapist, GameSpew (where he’s the morning news writer) and more. You can follow him on Twitter @MarmaladeBus.
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