Summary
- Killing Rick Prime left Rick lost and despondent, ironically paving the way for a lighter, funnier season 8 of Rick and Morty.
- Rick's pursuit of revenge shaped his character negatively, impacting his relationship with Morty and hindering his growth.
- With Rick Prime out of the picture, season 8 can explore lighter, standalone adventures and potential character growth for Rick.
Although Rick and Morty's darkest season 7 outing saw Rick lose his motivation, this might ironically make season 8 a funnier, lighter outing for the show. In Rick and Morty’s season 5 finale, the series finally revealed what was driving its eponymous antihero, Rick Sanchez. Rick might have seemed like an erratic, unhinged figure throughout the series, but it transpired that he was motivated by a surprisingly clear purpose. Rick sought violent revenge on Rick Prime, the version of himself who killed his wife years earlier. This quest for bloody retribution had secretly shaped his life for years, unbeknownst to Morty.
Midway through season 7, Rick and Morty killed off Rick Prime in a twist that changed the overarching story of the series. Directly or indirectly, Rick’s quest to kill Rick Prime shaped the stories of Rick and Morty’s entire cast until that point. Then, as season 7, episode 5, “Unmortricken,” came to an end, it became clear that Rick himself hadn’t realized how much this would impact his existence. Rick stumbled away from the scene of the crime in silence and stayed that way for days, something Rick and Morty season 8 will undoubtedly explore further.
Rick Killing Rick Prime Was Rick and Morty’s Darkest Moment
Rick’s Defeat Of His Nemesis Left Him Empty and Despondent
As “Unmortricken” ended, Rick was left in a daze that mirrored Morty’s thousand-yard stare at the end of season 1, episode 6, “Rick Potion No. 9.” The comparison was no accident, with series creator Dan Harmon noting that the episode mirrored Morty’s season 1 loss of innocence. Harmon told Variety “That’s why we wanted to do the same needle drop, because this Rick is now just as lost in an emotional sense as Morty was in a philosophical sense at that moment.” According to Dan Harmon, Rick lost his purpose in ”Unmortricken,” but this could ironically be a good thing for the character.
Rick’s desire to kill his greatest enemy gave him purpose, but that purpose wasn’t necessarily healthy or worthwhile. Rick and Morty season 7 used an underrated tradition from earlier in the series to pick up after “Unmortricken,” devoting an entire episode to clips from Rick and Morty’s wackier offscreen adventures. This light-hearted outing harkened back to the show’s simpler early seasons before the show began to seriously explore Rick’s character flaws. Season 8 could take this approach and run with it, making Rick a funnier, less troubled character now that he is no longer burdened with barely contained homicidal rage.
Rick’s Pursuit of Rick Prime Made Him Worse
Rick’s Treatment of Morty Worsened As He Sought His Nemesis
When Evil Morty destroyed the Central Finite Curve in Rick and Morty’s season 5 finale, this seemed like it would result in Rick treating Morty more equitably. Morty had learned the awful truth about his grandfather’s exploitation of him and every other Morty, but he had still chosen to save Rick’s life in the episode’s ending. Despite this, Rick’s single-minded pursuit of Rick Prime meant that he didn’t change after season 5's finale. Early in season 6, he removed the part of Morty’s brain that refused to follow his orders and left it in a video game, effectively molding Morty.
Rick continued to exploit Morty’s labor throughout season 6 and the first half of season 7 despite Evil Morty pointing out that this made him no better than Rick Prime.
Later in season 6, Rick replaced himself with a more understanding clone so he could avoid going on an adventure of Morty’s choosing. While Rick and Morty season 8's release date won't arrive for some time, it is pretty clear that Morty is overdue a healthier relationship with his grandfather. Rick continued to exploit Morty’s labor throughout season 6 and the first half of season 7 despite Evil Morty pointing out that this made him no better than Rick Prime in season 5's finale. Killing Rick Prime left Rick with no excuse to avoid self-reflection, meaning he might finally change.
Rick’s Newfound Freedom Makes Character Growth Feasible
His Desire For Revenge Held Rick Back For Years
Rick couldn’t have grown while he was still trying to hunt down Rick Prime, and not just because he needed to devote significant time and attention to his traps and plans. Even outside of the practicalities involved in trapping Rick Prime, Rick also had to make himself hard and uncaring to defeat his nemesis. This justifies Rick creating a more understanding clone of himself in season 6 since he couldn’t get too invested in any version of Morty that Rick Prime could easily kill when the pair faced off again. This held back Rick’s potential for character growth.
While Rick and Morty’s solo Morty episodes offer Rick’s grandson a chance to strike out on his own, the show’s episodes that centered on Rick typically did the opposite. When Rick was the lone focus on an outing, whether it was season 3, episode 3, “Pickle Rick,” or season 4, episode 2, “The Old Man and the Seat,” the episode usually ended by revealing that Rick was sadder, more isolated, and more profoundly alone than he previously seemed. Rick Prime explained why Rick refused to build any lasting relationships with other people, and his death removes this impediment.