Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Rick and Morty season 7, episode 4.
While the final scene of Rick and Morty season 7, episode 4 might feel like a silly gag, Rick’s words could come back to bite the Smith family. Rick and Morty is known to shift its tone between goofy, knockabout comedy and dark existential drama at the drop of a hat. The Adult Swim hit became a success precisely because its darkly humorous writing is able to elicit a range of tones, with some of Rick and Morty’s best episodes veering between black comedy and surprisingly poignant moments.
In Rick and Morty season 7, little of the show’s dark side remains visible. While Rick is supposedly still searching for Rick Prime, this has yet to impede his ability to go on wacky adventures with Morty. While the Smith family is still dysfunctional, the outright bitterness of their interactions has mellowed into typical sitcom snark. However, this isn’t necessarily destined to last. One moment in season 7, episode 4, “That’s Amorte,” sees Rick issue a dire warning that might have been a meta-gag setting up a tonal shift in the latter half of this outing.
Rick May Have Given Away Rick and Morty’s Season 7 Ending
Throughout “That’s Amorte,” the Smith family is annoyed with Morty for informing them that Rick’s spaghetti has a deeply disturbing secret. As the episode comes to a close, Rick replaces this meal with an unsettlingly similar Salisbury steak that the family finds equally irresistible. While Rick and Morty season 7, episode 3 mentions Rick Prime briefly, it’s Rick’s warning about this meal that seems to cryptically allude to the villain’s storyline in this outing. Although Rick hasn’t mentioned hunting Rick Prime recently, the season 6 finale makes it clear that the search for his nemesis consumes him constantly.
Rick tells the family that they really don’t want to know what goes into making their Salisbury steak, but he also wants them to know it is a terrible secret. This way, they can’t claim they weren’t complicit later on. This could be Rick’s defense when the family finds out whatever he has been doing to find Rick Prime. He openly admits what he’s done is terrible, but he also considers them semi-responsible for choosing not to hear about it. While Rick and Morty season 7’s changes mean the show focuses less on Rick’s character flaws, he is still a deeply manipulative figure.
Rick and Morty Season 7 Already Set Up Rick Prime’s Story Return
In Rick and Morty season 7, episode 3, “Air Force Wong,” Rick’s ex-girlfriend Unity admits she’s worried about him searching for his nemesis again, but Rick brushes this off without much thought. This provides even more evidence that season 7 is setting up a major fall from grace for Rick. If Unity is willing to seek him out despite how acrimonious their split was, then there must be something seriously wrong. Meanwhile, if the Smith family is saying they’d rather not hear about Rick’s terrible deeds. This gives Rick and Morty’s antihero carte blanche to commit any number of atrocities off-screen — and makes the Smiths complicit in the process.
