Rick and Morty S09E05 "Jer Bud" Thoughts: A Snowball's Chance in Hell

Posted in: Adult Swim, TV | Tagged: rick and morty

Rick and Morty S09E05 "Jer Bud" Thoughts: A Snowball's Chance in Hell

A surprising return, Morty doesn't take a moral stand, and Jerry... gets a job?!? Here's a look at Rick and Morty S09E05: "Jer Bud."

Published Sun, 21 Jun 2026 22:44:09 -0500
by Ray Flook
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Article Summary

• Rick and Morty S09E05 “Jer Bud” brings back Snowball, turning Jerry’s worry worm crisis into a sharp political allegory.
• Morty’s PTSD and reunion with Snowball push Rick and Morty into heartbreaking territory as rebels pull him into war.
• Jerry’s worm-fueled transformation delivers the episode’s wildest comedy, while Beth and Rick scramble to contain the chaos.
• Rick and Morty “Jer Bud” lands with a twisted payoff: Jerry gets the job, and Morty refuses the expected moral stand.

We're back with our weekly real-time thoughts on what Adult Swim's Rick and Morty Season 9 has to offer. For this go-around, S09E05: "Jer Bud" spotlights Jerry, whose efforts to calm his worries ahead of a job interview lead to Rick, Beth, and Space Beth into space to cure him of his worry worm problem. One thing that's caught our attention is that we haven't seen Morty and Summer involved after what appears to be the episode's opening, so we're really curious about what the possible side story could be. We know that Morty was heading off somewhere for the week… hmmm. Will it be the same old, same old, Jerry – or will we get to see a bit more of Jerry's evolution?

Rick and Morty Season 9 Episode 5: "Jer Bud" Thoughts

For the record, we forgot that Jerry was still looking for a job, too. I'm not going to lie. With all of the crazy shit going on around the family – and how Jerry seems to enjoy going along on the adventures – I kinda respect that Jerry hasn't taken his eye off of the prize. We know that Rick and Summer getting spoiled by Rick will be a storyline later this season. I have to give credit to Jerry for trying to maintain a little family normalcy. That said, I know he could easily prove me wrong with just one bad decision, and I end up going back to wanting to slap him upside the head.

SNOWBALL RETURNS!!!!!!!

"Humanoid creatures we bred to be pets." MUPs. Ouch, Snowball. Awkward conversation.

Damn. Snowball has done some amazing things with the world – but those humanoid pets are going to be a problem. Yeah, it looks like we're getting a serious metaphor for conflicting politics and how power not only corrupts but also causes history to repeat itself.

Is anyone surprised that Jerry would (A) overdose on worry worms, and (B) he would be a breeding ground for them? We're not going to lie. We were liking Jerry at around 10-20% worm.

Holy shit. Morty is having some serious PTSD, and how could he not? You couldn't help but see the connection to how Ricks would manufacture Mortys.

Yeah, once "eugenics" gets brought into the conversation, it's going to be tough to stay friends. Also, Morty has a point. Does he ever get kidnapped to help the ruling class? It's always the rebels.

I'm all about ass-kicking Beth, and the idea that the worms could turn Jerry into something that feeds off of other people's worries is a fascinating concept.

Yeah, there was no way Snowball wasn't going to hear Morty's shit-talking. And just like that, Morty's fighting for the rebels – and he just threatened to take down Snowball.

MENTAL NOTE: There is definitely a post to be written comparing Snowball/Justin Roiland with Morty/Rick and Morty. There are definitely some things that could be read into, depending on how all of this plays out.

I think we can safely say that Morty/Snowball has become the A storyline – a pleasant, twisted surprise.

Sorry, Morty. You're a Christ figure. Deal with it.

How can you not love Jerry at 60% worm? Though at 80% worm, things become a problem – like Jerry thinking he can fly a plane and use it to help deliver a baby.

That moment between Snowball and Morty was heartbreaking. Just a boy wanting to spend time with his dog – and I always felt that Morty saw himself as Snowball's human.

Is Rick afraid of not having Jerry around? Wow! But Jerry got the job!

Using the worms to help Snowball's people deal with the conflict and destruction caused by their civil war was a great way to bring the two storylines together. We also got a twistedly sweet moment when Rick expressed how proud he was of Morty for refusing to take a moral stance in any way, shape, or form.

Oh, and in case you forgot, we've got more "Rick and Morty" universe goodness heading our way next month:

Showrunner Scott Marder on Owen Wilson's Guest-Voicing

In case you missed it, Rick and Morty S09E04: "A Ricker Runs Through It" features actor Owen Wilson (Loki, The Royal Tenenbaums) as the voice of Reese, Rick and Morty's longtime friend who's also Rick's way of remembering his passwords. And who ended up offering viewers one of the more sobering looks at the dynamic between the dimension-hopping duo. Speaking with SYFY, co-showrunner and executive producer Scott Marder offered some insight into locking down Wilson for the role.

"We always heard [Owen's] voice for that role. One of the few times that he was really the guy in the mix, voice-wise, and the guy that we got," Marder shared. "Obviously, he was always inhabiting a bit of a McConaughey-type vibe, but Wilson was the guy that we realistically like, 'That's the vibe we want,' this easy-going guy that's looked at as a beloved uncle/friend, and it's kind of heartbreaking when he's ultimately just two-factor authentication."

Rick and Morty Season 9 Episode 5: "Jer Bud"

Review by Ray Flook

8.5/10

In tonight's episode of Adult Swim's Rick and Morty, S09E05: "Jer Bud," a fan-favorite returns in a very surprising - yet, sadly, not surprising - way, Morty refuses to take a moral stand (but it isn't easy), and Jerry shows us what 99% worm looks like. Though there were some interesting personal reveals along the way, tonight's episode went "big picture," addressing issues like absolute power corrupting absolutely, the dangers that come from not learning from the past, and how ideology can divide even the closest of friends.

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