Rick and Morty season 6, episode 4 called back to a joke in the season 3 finale, possibly confirming a massive Rick and Morty fan theory.
Rick and Morty season 6 just confirmed that a throwaway joke in the season 3 finale was actually true, confirming a popular Rick fan theory. Rick and Morty is no stranger to crude or offensive jokes, but one line that Rick says in season 3 has divided the show’s audience. While the Rick theory wasn’t addressed for a few more seasons, Rick made a callback to it in Rick and Morty season 6, confirming that the line was more than just a joke.
Rick and Morty follows the sci-fi adventures of the titular duo as they hop dimensions, fight aliens, and get into all sorts of wacky situations. While the series is known for its high-concept sci-fi, Rick and Morty regularly references pop culture, whether it be Rick just making a joke at the expense of a real-life celebrity or the entire episode being a genre homage. Rick and Morty is also known for paying meticulously close attention to its continuity, which sometimes means that these jokes have implications that impact far more than what was perhaps originally intended.
How Rick & Morty Season 6 Confirms Rick’s Season 3 Joke
In Rick & Morty season 3, episode 10, “The Rickchurian Mortydate,” Rick can be seen playing the sandbox game Minecraft. While playing, Rick asks Morty, “Is this game popular with autistic people?” Just as Morty starts to scold Rick, Rick chimes in and says, “Because I’m starting to love it!” This caused many viewers in the Rick and Morty fandom to theorize that Rick was actually neurodivergent, although it was never confirmed. However, in Rick and Morty season 6, episode 4, “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation,” Rick says that engineers have “neurotypical cooties,” once again bringing up his neurodivergence.
This is twice that Rick has not included himself under the neurotypical label, meaning that these two jokes may have finally confirmed the popular Rick and Morty theory. It’s interesting that the series waited all this time to confirm that Rick was neurodivergent, as the writers seemingly knew it all the way back in season 3. This isn’t all that surprising, as Rick and Morty co-creator Dan Harmon previously had neurodivergent representation in Community with Abed, meaning that Rick and Morty would be continuing a pre-established trend.
Rick & Morty Breaks A Common Neurodivergent Show Problem
Confirming this theory in Rick and Morty season 6 is a good thing, and it actually breaks a problem many shows with representing neurodivergent people. Often, TV shows infantilize neurodivergent people, representing them as if they aren’t mature or capable enough to get along by themselves. Rick is the polar opposite of this, as Rick is the most capable character in the show. Rick is considered the smartest man in the universe and is constantly one step ahead of everyone around him. Having Rick be neurodivergent in Rick and Morty turns what could’ve been a crude joke in season 3 into a fantastic piece of representation.
