While it is better that Rick and Morty season 7 is happening, the critically acclaimed Adult Swim hit could have ended with the season 6 finale in terms of story and character. When the news that Justin Roiland, the co-creator of Rick and Morty, was charged with domestic violence, the future of the Adult Swim hit seemed uncertain. Roiland had voiced both title characters in the massively successful series since the show debuted in 2013 (although his involvement in the writing of recent seasons of Rick and Morty was reportedly minimal). In late January 2023, Adult Swim confirmed that the network had severed its ties to Roiland, but clarified that Rick and Morty would continue production.
While replacing Roiland as Rick and Morty’s lead characters could be tricky for the network, this decision was ultimately the right call. Dozens of creatives would have been left unemployed by the cancelation of the show, and canceling Rick and Morty due to Roiland’s actions could have reinforced the inaccurate notion that a show’s original creators are its sole creative influence. Instead, producing Rick and Morty season 7 without Rolland’s involvement gives the large staff behind the series a chance to shine. That being said, in terms of story, Rick and Morty’s season 6 finale could have been a good ending for the series.
Outside of Roiland’s real-life dismissal, season 6’s finale is a surprisingly strong ending for Rick and Morty as a whole. Rick’s wild attempts to drag Morty into his newest mess resembled season 3’s ending, while his loss of his family’s respect recalled the end of season 4. Rick and Morty’s season 6 finale mirrored the pilot’s opening in the most pointed and interesting parallel of the episode. In the Rick & Morty pilot’s cold open, Rick attempts to get Morty on board with a potentially lethal scheme he has concocted, only to then pass out drunk before almost annihilating all of humanity. In the season 6 finale’s closing scene, Rick successfully convinces Morty to help him seek out Rick Prime.
From everything that viewers have seen in Rick and Morty season 6 so far, there is every reason to believe that Rick dedicating more of his life to tracking down Rick Prime will only lead to further bloodshed and disillusionment. However, Morty is too overwhelmed and tired to fight Rick’s mania in Rick and Morty’s season 6 finale, resulting in him glibly signing up for this grim plan. Rick’s season 6 arc comes to completion in this scene as he abandons any pretense of self-improvement and shows Morty that he is secretly more unstable than ever. Under his uncaring facade, Rick is not only invested in vengeance but consumed by it.