Warning: Spoilers for Rick and Morty season 6, episode 10.
While the Rick and Morty season 6 finale was mostly a light-hearted and silly affair, the episode still saw the show address its unique tonal quandary. It is not clear, from episode to episode, what Rick and Morty’s tone is. In a lot of outings, the Adult Swim hit is as anarchically silly as it was back in season 1 (albeit a little less edgy) while, in other episodes, Rick and Morty has dramatic scenes that are played entirely straight.
Throughout Rick and Morty season 6, the series has bounced between freewheeling comedy and darker character drama without settling on one tone over the other. Whether Rick’s nihilism makes him irredeemable has made Rick and Morty a darker show over the years, but the question has been particularly important since the season 5 finale gave Rick a clear opportunity to change his ways and treat Morty and the Smith family more equitably. However, since Rick and Morty season 6 didn’t know if the show wanted to be the episodic comedy series that used to be or something more ambitious, strange, and dark, this question went unanswered—until the finale.
Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation Balances Comedy With Drama
For the most part, Rick and Morty season 6, episode 10, “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” is a silly story about Morty dropping a lightsaber and the President later doing the same. Like the preceding outing, which recreated a hated Rick and Morty episode and made the story sillier, lighter, and less edgy, “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” is a break from the dramatic character work that Rick has faced in season 6. However, within the goofy tale of Morty’s disastrous Christmas present, “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” is also a tragic story about Rick retreating from his last connection to the real world, Morty, and ending up alone with his all-consuming obsession.
In the closing moments of the Rick and Morty season 6 finale, Rick eventually drags Morty down with him when he reveals that he has been tracking Rick Prime all this time. This subplot reveals that, although Rick and Morty season 6 broke its rules when Rick displayed respect for Morty and trust in his grandson, this was really just a cleverly disguised misdirection. In reality, that was a robot standing in for Rick, and the real Rick is as self-centered and obsessive as always. However, thanks to his isolation in the family basement, he is more unhinged than ever, a change that brings back Rick and Morty‘s oldest issue.
Why Rick and Morty Season 6 Moved Away From Serialization
Since season 1, Rick and Morty has been caught between the show’s penchant for serialized character drama and its origins as a silly, chaotic comedy show. This can be seen in the tonal disparity between the season 6 premiere and the rest of season 6. While the premiere featured a devastating glimpse into Rick’s past before he lost his family, in contrast, the saddest moment in Rick and Morty season 6, part 2’s first episode was the return of season 1’s Butter Robot. After the premiere’s dramatic events, the remainder of Rick and Morty season 6 made a conscious move away from serialized storylines and toward goofier standalone silliness.
However, within these more outwardly comedic plots, some moments hinted at Rick’s internal struggles. Rick and Morty season 6, episode 2, “Rick: A Mort Well Lived,” was mostly a spoof of Die Hard that also featured a convoluted gag about Morty’s consciousness rebelling inside a video game. However, the episode ended with Rick removing the most independent portion of Morty’s subconsciousness instead of admitting that he loved his grandson, one of the worst things the character has ever done.
How Rick and Morty’s Season 6 Finale Addressed Its Tonal Problems
Rick and Morty season 6 has not hidden the show’s struggles with its tone, nor has the show been coy about the cause of the issue. One subplot in “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” features a slew of on-the-nose jokes about nostalgia for Star Wars and who should say what direction it takes, which can be read as a transparent dig at Rick and Morty viewers who demand that the show returns to its roots. Similarly, Rick and Morty season 6, episode 7, “Full Meta Jackrick,” was more audacious about its meta-commentary as Rick explicitly said he was sick of being told to stage more adventures that felt like season 1.
Rick and Morty’s Season 6 Finale Took A Dark Turn
When Rick and Morty season 6 saw Dr. Wong return, Rick’s redemption arc seemed to be a priority for the series again. However, this turned out to be another misdirection as he later admitted in “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” that he was just as obsessed with hunting down Rick Prime as ever, and had secretly withdrawn from family life entirely because he could no longer focus on day-to-day existence. Rick’s promise that season 7 would see him and Morty hunt down Rick Prime (whether it was in the background or as the main plot) proves that Rick and Morty is not headed anywhere solely fun-focused in a hurry.
Not only was Rick’s apparent growth a robotic red herring, but his willingness to hide his struggles from Morty changed the instant Morty demanded insight into his tortured psyche. While Mr. Nimbus’ comeback could have given Rick and Morty season 6 a sillier villain and a lighter ending, “Ricktional Mortpoon’s Rickmas Mortcation” instead used the episode’s closing moments to cement the idea that Rick wasn’t improving after all. Rick Prime still consumed his thoughts, and now he wanted Morty to join him on his rampage of revenge.
Rick and Morty season 6 partially returned to the show’s standalone, episodic formula, even joking about how much it wanted to resemble season 1 in the process. However, in the background, the show was building toward Rick’s breakdown. From his insistence on keeping Pissmaster’s suicide note to exonerate himself to his frustration with formula in “Full Meta Jackrick,” Rick wasn’t getting better but rather getting better at hiding his struggles. Now, the Rick and Morty season 6 finale has made it clear that season 7 will see the series officially return to a darker serialized plot.
