Rick and Morty is popularly known for its off-color, often confusing humor. The show follows unstable scientist grandfather Rick, his teenage grandson Morty, and their sometimes unnerving experiences exploring the galaxy. The show has become an all-time favourite for fans who enjoy its particular sense of humor. But with the sci-fi themes and the open-ended jokes that have become a characteristic of the show, fans can sometimes need clarification on some of the show's elements.
A perfect example is that of the cob planet. The cob planet joke, which took place in the finale of season 2, left many fans wondering about the meaning and why Rick was so uneasy. In the episode, titled "The Wedding Squanchers," the Smith family visits this planet in search of a new place to start their lives again after becoming fugitives from the galactic federation. But Rick has a strange fear of the planet, leaving fans wondering if there's more to the story.
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When does the Cob Planet Appear?
The Cob Planet appears in episode 10, season 2, "The Wedding Squanchers." In this episode, the Smith family is on Squanch to celebrate the wedding of Rick's best friend, Birdperson. As viewers might have expected, not everything goes smoothly. In the middle of the wedding reception, it is revealed that Tammy, Birdperson's newlywed wife, is a galactic federation spy. Tammy and her parents are after Birdperson, Rick, and other wanted guests attending the wedding.
Birdperson is killed during the attack and the portal gun is destroyed, but Rick manages to escape with his family. Now fugitives, the Smiths decide to set up a new life on an Earth-like planet outside the federation's reach. On the first planet they land on, Morty and Summer are amazed that everything is on a cob. From the mountains to flowers to even strawberries, everything is on a corn-like cob. Rick inspects some ants on a cob and discovers that everything on the planet is on a cob, down to the cellular level. Disturbed, Rick forces the entire family to leave and settle for one of the two other planets they discovered.
Why Does Rick Panic on the Cob Planet?
What exactly was so wrong with the planet that Rick was so afraid of? Throughout the series, audiences see Rick and Morty face some scary aliens, strange planets, and other weird phenomena. It's incredibly out of place that a Cob Planet should upset Rick so much. Since the show never explains the real reason, several theories have emerged from fans analyzing the thirty-second cob scene.
The most popular is the atom theory, based on how scientifically accurate the show is. Adult Swim says Rick and Morty is their most scientifically accurate show, so a scientific explanation may not be so far off. On the Cob Planet, Rick zooms in on the ants on a cob and realizes that it goes down to an atomic level. Atoms can be transferred from one place to another. This implies that the longer the Smiths spent on the planet, the more likely it is that they could turn into cobs.
Another theory posits the oxygen was also made of cob, and would make breathing difficult. But this doesn't make much sense, because Rick would have told his family if the cobs made the planet's air unbreathable. Judging by his reaction, it seems that his issue with the cob planet would be difficult to explain right away.
Though a bit strange, the final theory is not out of the realm of possibility, considering the strange things that go on in the world of Rick and Morty. The theory states that eventually, the Cob Planet would attract a being that would gobble it up, thinking it was food. Rick and Morty fans are still speculating about the meaning of the scene, and the creators of Rick and Morty haven't been much help.
Rick and Morty's creators on the Cob Planet
Rick and Morty's creators, in an Adult Swim interview ahead of the season 3 release, address the cob question. Sadly, the creators aren't much help. The idea of everything being on a cob, they say, is truly scary. But the interview is filled with so many impractical jokes that it's hard to take the creators seriously. Of course, they may be trying to tell fans that sometimes jokes don't have true meanings, and that's fine. Sometimes, there's really not that much to it. Trying to figure out every single open-ended scene in the show isn't always necessary, and sometimes a joke is just there to make viewers laugh.
Rick and Morty
Rick and Morty is an animated sci-fi comedy that follows the outrageous interplanetary and multidimensional adventures of Rick Sanchez and his grandson, Morty. Airing on Adult Swim, Rick and Morty has become one of the most popular animated shows on television, blending humor, action, and genuine emotion.
