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It’s hard for Rick and Morty to get even darker, but by god they did it. Yet in between those devastating space battles and peaceful negotiations in “Promortyus” there may have been some callbacks you may have missed. On that front we’re here to help.
“Promortyus” starts off like almost any other Rick and Morty adventure. After being captured by a species of facehugger aliens, Rick and Morty battle their way off of the planet, gleefully killing anything in their path and content in the knowledge that they’re in the right and that their alien foes are evil. But after they have to go back to rescue Summer they learn the truth. The facehuggers were never evil. They were an evolved, intelligent species that was on its way to achieving peace across the universe. And Rick and Morty brutally murdered them in a guilt-free mow down that would make Star Wars’ treatment of Stormtroopers blush.
Wondering what Easter eggs or hidden themes you may have missed this episode? We have your back. Here’s everything you may have overlooked in “Promortyus.” And if you’re looking for more deep dives into the craziest show in the multiverse, check out all the Easter eggs you may have missed in Rick and Morty Season 4, Episode 6 “Never Ricking Morty.”
Those over-the-top mech suits are nods to Gundam.
You know those super cool, way over-the-top suits Rick and Morty don to cut through all those facehuggers? Those look familiar for a reason. Though the colors on both suits are a little off, Morty’s armor is a clear copy of the Mobile Suit from the Gundam anime, manga, video game, and film series. And Rick’s suit is obviously a version of the Ronin Mobile Suit from Gundam. By the way, that in and of itself is a nod to the Ronin Warriors anime and manga.
Interdimensional Cable is back again, baby!
Despite Rick’s insistence that he doesn’t do sequels because of integrity, “Promortyus” was packed with nods to sequels. In addition to essentially doing another Purge and seeing Summer in a familiar role, this is the second episode this season to end with Rick and Morty watching Interdimensional Cable. The first appearance of the fan favorite was mentioned in the anthology episode “Never Ricking Morty.” This time around the only glimpse we got into this televised madness was a commercial that kept asking “Do you suffer from Alzheimer’s?”
Summer's peacekeeping once again leads to ruin.
Though we’ve never seen Summer (Spencer Grammer) as a queen prior to this episode, we have seen her try out the role of savior. Throughout Season 2’s “Auto Erotic Assimilation” Summer fought with both Unity and Rick and how ethical it was to rob an entire planet of its free will.
This time around Summer’s socially progressive battle combined free will and birthing rights. After watching this alien species repeatedly take over hosts, impregnate them, and force their hosts to shit out eggs, Summer asked them a vital question: why? Thanks to her these aliens stopped aggressively reproducing and actually started living their lives in an analogy that clearly mirrored arguments about abortion and women’s rights.
For the most part, things were going great under Summer’s leadership. This species was thriving and achieving peace. But thanks to Rick and Morty’s Pearl Harbor-ing, all of that progress was destroyed. What’s most interesting about “Promortyus” isn’t that Summer’s methods were effective or that she and her toothpick are actually great leaders. It’s that she barely flinched after accidentally destroying an entire planet. Keep an eye on both Summer and Morty’s lack of remorse.
Rick and Morty shitting on the floor is a callback to the first episode.
Rick and Morty may not have felt anything after destroying an entire planet Star Wars-style but they still had something to worry about. In the final moments of “Promortyus” Rick and Morty panic over their upset stomachs, fearing that their alien hosts actually did impregnate them and that they’re about to die. But at the last minute they shit on the floor instead.
“Promortyus” is the second time Rick has taken a dump on the floor in the middle of an episode, the first time being “Vindicators 3: The Return of Worldender.” Rick also sang about pooping on the ground in “‘Get Schwifty”, and Morty’s habit of peeing in inappropriate places is what originally brought him to therapy in “Pickle Rick.” But Rick and Morty’s bowel movements aren’t just an ongoing joke. They’re a nod to this bizarre show’s beginnings.
This series began with Rick begging his grandson to smuggle a Mega Seed through security by hiding it up his butt. While Morty was on the ground writhing, that’s when Rick gave his now-infamous rant about “Rick and Morty forever and for a hundred years Rick and Morty.” So yeah, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that either Rick or Morty’s may die because of shit.
Summer's friend who's into Jerry also loves snake jazz.
The closing bumper for “Promortyus” offered a big, if not surprising and illegal, win for Jerry. Not only was Jerry (Chris Parnell) able to pursue his beekeeping hobby without having a horrible accident, but Summer’s friend Tricia reveals that she wants to sleep with him. Summer is understandably annoyed and pissed off by that confession. That may partially be because this is not the first time Tricia has pulled this nonsense before.
Tricia was first introduced as the woman Summer’s boyfriend left her for in “The Whirly Dirly Conspiracy.” Summer’s jealousy over Tricia’s large chest is what ultimately drove her to accidentally turn herself into a giant. But Tricia emerged again in “Rattlestar Ricklatica” as one of Summer’s friends who loves to jam out to snake jazz. It’s worth keeping an eye on this background character. If Summer’s relationship with Tammy proves anything it’s that her friendships are complicated.
