I have struggled to write using Harmon's story circle in the past, partly because of the "embryo" metaphor... it helps to think of it as a plot "cycle" instead of an "arc" I guess, since the characters Rick & Morty change so little in all those episodes. Probably why Harmon called it a "circle" not an arc or a plot. Other explanations of this have always used cartoons or episodic stories as examples, making the "Return" more like a "Reset to Original State of Mild Despair." This video really helped me see how I could adapt it to an actual transformative story not an episode for a sitcom (no shade on sitcoms, I just can't write them). Oedipus was an excellent example- just what I needed! Thanks Troy!
I have struggled to write using Harmon's story circle in the past, partly because of the "embryo" metaphor... it helps to think of it as a plot "cycle" instead of an "arc" I guess, since the characters Rick & Morty change so little in all those episodes. Probably why Harmon called it a "circle" not an arc or a plot. Other explanations of this have always used cartoons or episodic stories as examples, making the "Return" more like a "Reset to Original State of Mild Despair."
This video really helped me see how I could adapt it to an actual transformative story not an episode for a sitcom (no shade on sitcoms, I just can't write them). Oedipus was an excellent example- just what I needed! Thanks Troy!
Thanks for this great comment, @Wordsmiths! We've shared this with Troy.