The Vat of Acid Episode

"The Vat of Acid Episode" is the eighth episode of the fourth season of the Adult Swim animated television series Rick and Morty. Created by Dan Harmon, written by Jeff Loveness and Albro Lundy, and directed by Jacob Hair, the episode was broadcast on May 17, 2020, in the United States. It won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program. Plot Rick and Morty meet with alien gangsters at a factory to exchange valuable crystals. The gangsters betray them and Rick fakes his and Morty's deaths by jumping into a vat of fake acid; however, the gangsters do not immediately leave, and instead discuss their feelings before testing the vat's acidity. Morty eventually grows impatient, revealing the ruse and forcing Rick to kill the gangsters. Morty insists the vat of acid was a bad idea and harangues Rick over never taking any of his own ideas seriously. He goads Rick into creating a portable "save point" button that one could return to escape death or correct their mistakes. Rick relents and crafts a special remote, which Morty takes without waiting for an explanation of how it works. Morty uses the button to commit numerous crimes and pranks, resetting himself each time to avoid any consequences. Eventually, though, he begins a relationship with a girl, Carey, falling in love with her. When they end up stranded in the mountains after a plane crash, Morty considers using the remote, but calls for rescue instead, since the last save point was right before they met. However, after they are rescued, Jerry unintentionally activates the remote. Morty then fails to recreate the relationship and accidentally overwrites the save point.