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Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8 has its usual irreverent humor and frantic storytelling. The after-credits scene, however, surprised the audience—not because it leaves them on a mind-blowing cliffhanger, but on account of the characters involved and the bizarre series of events that brought them together.
In a weird but forgettably brief moment, Rick and Jerry hang out with each other in a clumsily humorous yet awkward circumstance, in the spirit of the show's style but emphasizing a tense back-and-forth that is tighter than it has to be.
As opposed to some of the post-credits scenes on the show that stand alone as gags, this one circles back to a joke seeded elsewhere. It is a reference back to Jerry's earlier unsuccessful attempt at small talk with Rick over a survival reality show called Naked and Alone, a parody of Naked and Afraid.
What begins as Jerry's clumsy attempt at ice-breaking turns into an impromptu moment of brotherhood between two characters otherwise opposed to one another. And, as with Rick and Morty, naturally, things get weird in short order.
What happens in the post-credits scene of Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8?
The post-credits scene is Rick and Jerry on the couch, viewing Naked and Alone. Jerry and Rick are both naked, eating popcorn, and seemingly entranced by the television show.
The scene is the continuation of Jerry's earlier conversation with Rick about the survival show and its bizarre host, who drinks yak pee as part of survival training. Rick is bored at the moment—sort of—but by the end of the episode, he's addicted.
The laughter increases when Beth arrives and discovers Rick and Jerry naked on the couch. Agitated, she stands there frozen, not saying a word. The absurdity, however, is not only in their nakedness, but in the way it’s utterly normalized to them. Jerry, for a change, is not the cringe-causer; he's part of the moment.
Callback to a previous conversation in Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8
This is a direct callback to a previous scene in the episode, when Jerry attempts to make small talk about Naked and Alone with Rick during an awkward moment. Rick dismisses him, as he will throughout the episode, and isn't interested in Jerry's small talk. The bonus punchline—that Rick goes on to actually watch the show and eagerly embrace its culture in the post-credits scene—is a good one. It's an inside joke that only succeeds if people are tuned in to that initial conversation.
In taking us all back to this throwaway line, the show demonstrates how even its most cringeworthy joke can set up surprise punchlines. It's a familiar Rick and Morty trick: establishing what appears to be meaningless dialogue at first, only to then pay it back in some otherworldly, hyperbolic way.
The Rick & Jerry dynamic in Rick and Morty
Rick and Jerry never really share anything that would constitute a bonding moment. They coexist because they loathe one another: Rick considers Jerry useless and annoying, and Jerry is constantly trying (and failing) to gain Rick's approval. This post-credits scene flips that on its head for a moment. No fight, no victory, just two naked guys on the couch, eating popcorn handfuls at a time while they watch a survival show.
It is amusing that the scene is played for laughs alone. There is no implication that this is a new permanent dynamic between them. The absurdity of the situation, the nudity, the seriousness with which they approach the show, and Beth's reaction of outrage seize the tone tightly and well in comedy.
But the gag works because it reveals something never before seen: Rick agreeing to something that was suggested by Jerry, without sneering at him or ignoring him. Even if it is a silly TV show about yak pee and nude models, it is an odd moment of shared humanity between two men who otherwise loathe each other.
Why the scene works in Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8
Rick and Morty is known for packing as many layers as possible into even its shortest scenes, and this post-credits gag is not an exception.
At face value, it's ridiculous: Jerry and Rick naked and sitting in silence, watching a survival show like it's the most completely normal thing in the world. But under that is an observation of how mundane routines, no matter how strange, can gel even two people who would otherwise despise each other.
The humor also works on the level of visual absurdity. Rick's deadpan justification that nudity is the culture of the show is exactly the kind of dry, misplaced rationality that Rick and Morty excels at. It takes something horrific and makes it something completely mundane, causing viewers to laugh more out of discomfort than shock.
Beth's silent reaction is a perfect punctuation. Silence can be golden, but in this case, it's also bespeaking equal parts confusion, disappointment, and resignation. It's a perfect usage of body language and timing in the delivery of a joke without explaining it to death.
Is this scene of Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8 a setup or just a gag?
As with so many of the post-credits scenes on the show, there is not even an implication that this is going to be a part of something larger. Rick and Morty often uses these scenes to examine strange or humorous ideas that would not work within the larger story. Although some of the post-credits moments throughout past seasons have hinted at what was to follow, this one appears completely as a stand-alone.
All that aside, it does rather creepingly flirt with one of the bigger themes of the show: that relationships between characters in this universe are precarious, mutable, and occasionally makeshift. Even Rick and Jerry, whose perpetual hostility has been a series given, can have strange, uneasy moments of commonality, even though they're naked and are sitting there watching yak pee television.
The post-credits scene of Rick and Morty Season 8 Episode 8 is not so memorable because of the relevance to the plot, but because it is completely improvised. It just takes a joke about surviving on a reality series and runs with it completely as one joke, with nudity, popcorn, and an awed Beth. It is one of the few instances where Rick and Jerry are speaking the same language, albeit under the most surreal of circumstances.
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Rather than a turning point for character arcs, the episode is instead a confirmation of the show's ability to find humor in the most cringeworthy, most pedestrian of moments. It's a snappy, silly coda that brings the episode to a close on a final laugh, and a reminder that in the universe of Rick and Morty, even the most unlikely of pairings can get their moment. so long as it's yak pee and nothing else.
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