With its Season 5 finale, Rick and Morty broke its multiverse wide open by giving the metaphorical keys to the kingdom to Evil Morty, even though fans will probably have to wait another four years to see where that storyline goes next. Thankfully, though, we didn't have to wait very long at all before the latest Rick and Morty-based Adult Swim promo was released. And fittingly enough, the promo highlights one of the most comedically disturbing moments within the Stephen King adaptation Stand By Me.
Check out the video below, which lays out a pretty "sucky" experience for Morty's various stop-motion iterations in their tighty-whities, and yes, that was indeed a leech pun, people!
It doesn't matter how many times I see that scene in Rob Reiner's classic film, or how many times I read that scene in Stephen King's novella The Body, my automatic instinct is to leap into the air and swipe my hand across every inch of my body. You know, just in case that very moment was the one where technology made it possible for ideas from movies and books to manifest in real life, Sphere-style. It hasn't happened yet, but if it doesn't my swiping hands are always at the ready, even while watching that promo.
There seemingly isn't any real rhyme or reason behind Rick and Morty paying homage to Stand By Me, at least beyond it being a great coming-of-age film. I'd connect it to the way Stand By Me perfectly encapsulates childhood innocence being darkened by the traumas of real life, but Morty's innocence has been destroyed a million times over by this point in the series, as has the innocence of just about every other Morty that has been paired with a Rick.
Not that Rick and Morty needs rhyme or reason to do anything, especially when it comes to Stephen King, whose works have been referenced in the TV series as well. Needful Things was a clear inspiration for the installment "Something Ricked This Way Comes," while the novella The Langoliers visually influenced "A Rickle In Time," with its timeline-breaking narrative. And I'm trying to find ways to connect Morty's Sperm Queen situation to IT's child orgy, but that's probably best left for another time. Or never.
Here's hoping there are many more random ass Rick and Morty promos on the way — and more with Christopher Lloyd! —since Season 5 is now a thing of the past, and there's no clear sign for when Season 6 will arrive to clear up everything we were left with. In the meantime, check out all the new and returning shows hitting the 2021 Fall TV season!
