Rick and Morty Creators May Gift Us With A Surprise Christmas Episode

If you’re a Rick and Morty fan, you’ve probably been patiently (or not so patiently) waiting for the promised 70 episodes Adult Swim ordered back in May in a long-term deal with the creators, Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon.

Well, we might have some good news for you. There’s evidence that there will be a surprise Christmas episode waiting for us this December, so listen up.

Some have said that this episode will kick off season 4, but there’s a better chance that this will be a stand alone episode like the mini Thanksgiving one we were blessed with in November 2017.

Since the creators are notoriously slow at piecing together the complex series, this could be their way of ‘throwing us a bone’. Though the writing for season 4 began back in June, we can’t forget Mr. Poopy Butthole’s warning that season 4 would not be here for “a really long time”. I’m sure we all remember the agonizing almost 2 years between seasons 2 & 3 as well.

However, Polygon spoke to Dan Harmon about the anticipated wait and he seemed much more optimistic about the timeline:

fans shouldn’t worry about waiting another two years for a season, despite previous reports that suggestedRick and Morty’s fourth season may not debut until late 2019. Roiland didn’t offer any information about when Rick and Morty’s fourth season will hit Adult Swim, but confirmed they started back up again in the writers room this week. Roiland is adamant that part of the goal — alongside creating good television — is to ensure the episodes get released quicker.

“It’s exciting, it’s a little surreal,” Roiland said. ”Even just being in the writers room for half the day every day this week, the ideas are … it’s going to be great.”

Since we’re just a stone’s throw away from 2019, it’s possible he may placate us with a Christmas present. ‘Cause a season kickoff looks unlikely.

Give them a chance, for science. Get our ‘Say perhaps to drugs’ shirt, available in our store!

Writer and producer Ryan Ridley told Detroit Cast back in January that fans should keep their eye on the end of next year.

“I know how long this show takes to write, let alone animate,” he said. “I’d be surprised if there was a fourth season on the air anytime sooner than 2019… late 2019.”

We know Rick and Morty fan’s love of theories. And we’d be remiss of us to forget the fan theory that circulated around the end of season 3. Blasting News reminds us of the details:

During the ending credit for the episode “The Rickchurian Mortydate”, we see the all too familiar Mr. Poopybutthole and his family.

Normally that could be shrugged off as an extra, or perhaps a joke, but Mr. Poopy butthole said something that got the attention of the fandom as a whole. He states that Season 4 won’t be out for a while, but when it does come out, perhaps he’ll have a Santa Claus beard.

This is particularly compelling because of Mr. Poopy butthole’s track record with hints. During the end of Season 2, he dropped the hint that Season 3 maybe around a year and a half away. While that seemed like a vague statement, Season 3 did in fact air on April 1, 2017, almost exactly a year and a half after the finale.

It is also noteworthy that Season 3 just kind of showed up. There was no warning or release date in place, but the first episode of the season still aired. This may be the situation with Season 4, in which case the vague hint would make sense.

Watch the scene here:

The April Fool’s surprise episode, which turned into the full season, was the brainchild of Mike Lazzo, senior vice president at Williams Street in charge of Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim. Dan Harmon was openly against the idea, but the premier made a big splash. And also sent all Rick and Morty fans searching for clues to the next big surprise.

Were they setting us up for a series-long guessing game, in which we agonize over details, to build up anticipation? Or was this surprise release a one time thing Lazzo was able to talk the creators into?

Considering that Mr. Poopy Butthole’s clues came at the end of season 3, and the negotiations for season 4 took much longer than anticipated, it’s hard to believe that they could stick to any previously decided schedule. Anything is possible, though, if Dan Harmon and crew miraculously changed their ways.

There’s also a theory circulating about a July 30th, 2019 premier. This is based on an unboxing video of Rick and Morty’s deluxe vinyl, where you can see a poster behind the creator with the date ‘July 30th’ on it. Fans theorized that since there has never been a season premier on July 30th, it must be talking about season 4.

However, though the first episode of season 3 aired on April 1st, the remaining episodes aired in July. The particular episode that came out on July 30th is “Rickmancing the Stone”, so it could be assumed this poster was for season 3.

So we continue to guess, theorize, and wait. A Christmas episode is all we can really hope for at this moment in time.

Luckily, re-watching the 3 available seasons on Hulu over and over again reveals small jokes and anecdotes you may have missed the first time around. That’ll have to hold you over for now.

Okay so its close to Christmas, where the fuck is @RickandMorty Dan Harmon? @JustinRoiland ?? #RickandMorty #Season4 pic.twitter.com/da7bgm7EYi

— §µþêr §åï¥åñ ᘻ𝐚ᑰ ᒏÍᵐ ᒏ𝐚ઽ𝒑𝟈𝚛 (@MadJimJasper) December 12, 2018

https://twitter.com/iwenttohogwart/status/1051219502560628736

Is it not horrible to realize that we live in a dimension with only 3 seasons of Rick and Morty. It's Rickdickulous. #rickandmorty #danharmon #harmon_dan #season4 #tiredofwaiting #howtochangedimension #harmontown

— DJ Hova (@deejayhova) November 16, 2018