Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind

"Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind" is the tenth and penultimate episode of the first season of the American science fiction comedy television series Rick and Morty. Directed by Stephen Sandoval and written by Ryan Ridley, the episode aired on April 7, 2014. With a title alluding to Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the episode is notable for introducing both the rules of the franchise's multiverse and the main antagonist of the series — Evil Morty — whose storyline is continued across the 2017 third season episode "The Ricklantis Mixup", and the 2021 fifth season finale "Rickmurai Jack", forming a trilogy, as well as the 2023 seventh season episode "Unmortricken". A stand-alone sequel comic book arc, A Tale of Two Jerries, was published by Oni Press from 2016 to 2017.