I think it's an unpopular opinion generally, but I do love a musical episode. Subspace Rhapsody was particularly good because the characters could tell they were singing.
I used to dislike musical episodes, but I've either changed or have just grown into them. Figured I'd instinctively dislike Subspace Rhapsody but I enjoyed it a lot.
Yeah, the in-universe self-awareness of them singing was definitely a factor in making it successful (IMO, anyway). Now that I think about it, the other musical episode I really liked (Scrubs: My Musical) was also self-aware in that regard.
Maybe it's just the aspect of people breaking out into song randomly without explanation or acknowledgement is my issue with musicals 😆. They just need the proper framing device.
My partner usually rolls their eyes when a musical episode gets going, but has rewatched Subspace Rhapsody with me multiple times. It’s all in the execution, and SNW did a great job of it.