Note: This article contains spoilers for episode one of Rick and Morty season four.

Rick and Morty season 4 episode 1 saw Morty eat Goldenfold's babies and maggot Ricks burst out of a giant Rick eyeball. Yet the most memorable moment in the premiere was actually a joke aimed at toxic elements of the show's own fanbase.

The scene in question takes place early on when Rick is reborn into a fascist reality, which unfortunately seems to have become "the default" in his multiverse.

As if that didn't feel real enough, a fascist version of Morty then takes Rick hostage and demands he stop being political. Instead, this even more evil version of Evil Morty insists that Rick should focus on the "fun" and "classic" adventures he's known for.

Sound familiar? Back when the last season of Rick and Morty was released in 2017, a small but vocal part of the fandom decided to act anything but schwifty, when they blamed the show's new female writers for "ruining" season three, presumably because they're female.

Adult Swim

Not only did this misogynistic take woefully ignore how writing TV actually works, some 'fans' even harassed McDonald's staff around the same time in search of Rick's precious Szechuan sauce. Yes, really.

Rick and Morty creator Dan Harmon addressed these toxic viewers in an EW interview, describing them as "knobs" who "want to protect the content they think they own."

Since then, Adult Swim's senior vice president, Jason DeMarco, has suggested that it's better to simply not engage with this part of the fandom, as doing so only encourages them (via TVGuide).

Fortunately, the team behind Rick and Morty didn't take his advice. While it might seem strange that the show itself has taken so long to directly address these fans, that's down to the long gap between seasons rather than any reticence on their part.

Right after fascist Morty makes his first jab at the fandom in season four's premiere, the writers double down on their stance when the character tells Rick to "avoid meta-commentary."

Aside from referencing Rick's constant desire to break the fourth wall, this also cuts to the heart of what's wrong with these misogynistic fans in the first place.

Rick might be the lead character in Rick and Morty, but that doesn't mean he should be idolised. Far from it, in fact, and that's something the show itself is acutely aware of, even if the toxic fandom isn't.

Adult Swim YouTube

Time and time again, the writers have riffed on how much of an arsehole Rick actually is. Despite his intelligence, Morty's grandfather is neglectful and narcissistic at the best of times, often veering uncomfortably close to abusive behaviours that the show tries to critique, rather than celebrate.

Unfortunately, some of Rick's most ardent worshippers are missing the point here entirely. Too distracted by the kind of "stupid catchphrases" that the show likes to make fun of, toxic fans actively channel Rick's cynical, entitled world view without question.

Even when the season three episode "Rest and Ricklaxation" revolved around an actual "Toxic Rick," that still didn't seem to register. Just check out a few Rick and Morty online forums if you don't believe us.

Evil Morty is often touted as the Big Bad, but you don't have to be as smart as Rick to see that Rick himself is the real villain of the piece.

While the show's creators have known this for some time now, there are still fans out there who just haven't got the message, which is why the season four premiere was forced to align the fandom's toxicity with fascism in the most direct way possible.

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Let's just hope the message is finally getting through, although, in the words of the show's most famous troll of all, "To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Rick and Morty."



Rick and Morty season 4 airs on Sundays on Adult Swim in the US, and premieres in the UK on Channel 4 on November 20.

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