Very few animated shows in the modern age have managed to achieve as much critical and commercial acclaim in a relatively short span of time as Rick and Morty. The brainchild of Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon is easily one of the wackiest, zaniest... and funniest shows to have come out in the last decade, with its popularity soaring through the roof even after some unbearably long hiatuses between seasons.
There is a multitude of reasons as to why Rick and Morty has absolutely skyrocketed in popularity over the course of its four seasons — the writing in this show is truly top-notch and simply never lets up when it comes to the fun factor. Of course, this writing would've fallen flat without a bunch of strong performances to do it justice, and — thankfully enough — the main characters in Rick and Morty definitely rise up to the challenge, propelled by character arcs that are genuinely compelling for a show that just seems nonsensical in every manner possible. That being said, some main characters are simply more compelling than others, and this list will take a look at each main character's arc while simultaneously ranking them for better clarity.
Jerry Smith
Out of all the members of the Smith family, one can easily call Jerry the most pathetic of the lot, which is not necessarily a bad thing, since his personality becomes the driving force for a ton of hilarious running gags throughout the series... at his expense, of course.
That being said, there are times when the weight of the insults is too much of Jerry to bear, and he ends up acting out in a bid to prove himself to his family. While this ultimately leads to his character being lampooned way more than usual, it's still a nice way to humanize the character somewhat without losing a comedic edge. However, it's simply impossible for his character to evolve beyond his pathetic image due to the nature of Rick and Morty itself, making his character arc quite stagnant as a result.
Summer Smith
Summer is one of the more cliched characters on the show, but there's no denying the fact that she still has her moments. Just like Jerry, her typical teenage persona is used as a base for a ton of jokes on and around her, but she definitely comes into her own as a clutch character of sorts when the plot demands it.
It's in these instances that Summer really comes into her own as a brave character who never backs down and always proves herself to be a person who's more than capable of standing on her own two feet — an important development, given the fact that her first impression makes her out to be way less independent than she actually is.
Morty Smith
One of the eponymous characters who goes on a myriad of crazy adventures with his grandfather, Morty is easily one of the most entertaining characters on the entire show by a country mile... and also one of the most relatable as well, which is quite intentional given that someone needs to mirror the reaction of the audience to the madness that surrounds these characters in pretty much every episode.
That being said, Morty isn't averse to doing some ridiculously foolhardy stunts of his own, which indicate a darker side to his character that has been fully realized with the creation of Evil Morty. It's only a given that Morty's evil half is going to play a major role over the coming seasons, and one can't wait to see what the show has in store for them in regards to this highly compelling subplot.
Beth Smith
There are several interesting dynamics that are explored in Rick and Morty, but one particular relationship that sees its shares of ups and downs is definitely the father-daughter relationship between Beth Smith and Rick Sanchez. It's genuinely one of the deeper and more complicated relationships explored in the show, with the history between these two family members stretching for quite some time. It's mostly this dynamic that governs Beth's development as a character — which is, once again, another instance of Jerry being left in the mud — and leads to some of the more emotionally-driven moments in the entire series. Perhaps the best example that explains why Beth is so compelling as a character in this regard comes from the existence of a clone named Space Beth.
The episode with Space Beth is a great example of the weird nature of Beth and Rick's relationship, with Rick himself being unaware of who exactly is the clone and who is real. Ultimately, it doesn't matter — both versions of Beth are similar in their own ways and embarked on different journeys... yet the love-hate relationship with their father still remains constant to this day.
Rick Sanchez
Speaking of Beth's father, it's obvious that a show ranking everyone's character arcs would be incomplete without the nihilistic Rick Sanchez, who is easily one of the greatest and most iconic animated characters in television history. His world-weary personality, alcoholic tendencies, and massive intellect have helped him separate himself from most cliches associated with a persona like him. However, regardless of the apathy that Rick might show to the world around him, the fact of the matter is that he still has a soft spot for his family... well, everyone except for Jerry, perhaps.
Unfortunately, it's Rick's biggest strength that also ends up being his biggest weakness as well — he's simply too smart for the world around him, rendering him completely emotionless to conventional situations and severely affected by fabricated ones. The reason why he decided to intentionally forget the identity of the clone Beth and the real one was to prevent himself from breaking down over this decision, which speaks volumes when it comes to the character's psyche.