The seventh season of Rick and Morty ended in December, tying up many arcs in the beloved sitcom. The season had the task of going ahead and re-voicing all the episodes after co-creator and lead voice actor Justin Roiland was fired from the show due to his legal issues. The season of the show followed Rick and Morty’s adventures as they pursued Rick Prime.
While the final episode of the show tied up the arc of the main characters, there are still many seasons to go. With the main two antagonists of the series getting a resolution, fans have been coming up with theories on who the next season’s villain might be. In an interview with Variety, creator Dan Harmon debunked a popular theory by Mat Pat. Spoilers ahead.
Rick And Morty Season 7 Was All About Closure
The seventh season of the sitcom Rick and Morty saw the titular characters on a journey of healing, especially Rick. The show featured both canonized episodes that further the plot as well as the self-contained episodes that further the character. Rick seemed to be finally putting a stop to his self-destructive tendencies after getting his revenge.
The mid-season finale of Rick and Morty, titled Unmortricken showed him finally come face to face with the series’ main villain Rick Prime. The two hash it out after realizing that Rick Prime has created a device called the Omega Device, which erases Rick’s wife Diane from all universes. With the help of Evil Morty, Rick captures Rick Prime and kills him.
Creator Dan Harmon and showrunner Scott Marder spoke to Variety about how the season explored Rick’s self-destructive behavior and finally gave the fans closure regarding his relationship with his wife Diane. It is revealed that Rick has only been squatting with Morty and the Smiths to pursue Rick Prime and take his revenge.
Harmon said that Rick killing his own self was required to be shown in the series and they wanted to explore how it still did not matter in his journey. He said,
“There’s such a futility to his goal of basically beating himself to death with his barbaric fists that we’re leaning into the futility of it; it’s a thing that he needed to do, and now it’s done. And that is not necessarily a wonderful thing that then makes him able to relax”
Scott Marder also mentioned how he liked that they explored the non-existence of Diane in any universe or in ether, and then gave the audience a sense of Rick and Diane’s relationship in the season finale Fear No Mort. He said that it gave the fans a sense of closure with her character and also furthered Rick’s arc after his ‘main purpose’ was fulfilled.
“You’ve had this agenda, this vendetta, your whole life, and it normally ends in your own death as well. But like Rick’s living past that thing that’s been this singular focus his whole life and now it’s all about exploring who he is without that.”
With Rick’s primary antagonist gone and the other villain Evil Morty also getting a closure in his arc, there have been wide speculations on what season eight would explore in Rick and Morty’s journey.
Dan Harmon Debunked Crazy Fan Theory For Season 8
The ending of season 7 also seemed to give closure to Morty’s relationship with his grandfather Rick, where he comes to terms with his fear of being replaceable. However, the post-credits scene in the season finale also seemingly set up the main antagonist of the upcoming season 8.
Popular film theorist Mat Pat theorized that Mr. Poopy Butthole would be the main villain in the next season as his journey in the seventh season has set him up to be the antithesis of Rick’s journey of healing. In their video, The Film Theory channel mentioned that Mr. Poopy Butthole had faced similar grief to Rick and would probably turn to the dark side to face off against Rick.
However, Dan Harmon debunked this theory, sarcastically saying that Mat Pat predicted it and they wouldn’t be able to do it anymore. He said,
“S*it. Well, now we can’t do that, or he can sue us, right? Good job, internet! You blew it again! No, in all seriousness, I do love that guy so much; I want to encourage those kinds of theories. I love, love that stuff. I love him, particularly the amount of energy he puts into that stuff.”
Showrunner Scott Marder mentioned that it was not the plan they had for Mr. Poopy Butthole but that it was an interesting theory. Mat Pat’s theory does make sense as the season premier had him go to dark places after his divorce from his wife.
The post-credits scene also sees him go to another dimension after stealing the portal gun from Rick, where he kills that dimension’s Mr. Poopy Butthole and stays there to live with his family.
Rick and Morty is streaming on Adult Swim and Max.
