The Real Reason Rick From Rick & Morty Is So Intelligent

Adult Swim's Rick & Morty tells the story of the interdimensional misadventures of super-genius Rick Sanchez and his reluctant grandson Morty. Most of their trouble comes from Rick risking his family for a selfish need involving his overall research. Thanks to Rick's superior intelligence, he and Morty have seen it all; they've been through infinite dimensions, they've destroyed and resurrected entire worlds, and they introduced viewers to Meeseeks in a particularly controversial episode.

The show changed animation, combining just the right amount of sci-fi, adventure, violence, and lewdness into one hilarious cartoon. Rick defines depravity, he's normally drunk, and has very little regard for anyone but himself. It seems unfair that one of the most selfish people in the universe also gets to be one of the smartest. Some people are just born with it, right? Fans of the show have developed a theory regarding Rick's overall depravity, and besides genetics, how it relates to his IQ. Turns out there may be a hidden reason Rick from Rick & Morty is so intelligent.

In the pilot episode, Rick takes Morty out of school to help him with a task in dimension 35-C. As it turns out, Morty has the difficult task of smuggling back some mega-seeds via his rectum. The pointy mega-seeds are not exactly portable, but Rick stresses to Morty that they're important for his research. Once they're back, Morty exhibits temporary super-intelligence, shortly followed by incoherent drooling — side effects of having the seeds up his butt for a while.

The seeds appear briefly again in season 3, episode 7, at an entire farm full of mega-trees manned by a farmer Rick. This, paired with the fact that Rick's research is so broad, has fans theorizing that the seeds are the secret to his intelligence. ChannelFredator took the theory one step further on YouTube, asserting that the flask Rick is constantly sipping on contains a mega-seed elixir. That may be a constant source of intelligence for the genius, who may not be as brilliant as he seems.

The flash theory makes sense, especially given Rick's frequent drooling — a telltale sign of mega-seed consumption. However, the creators of Rick & Morty haven't confirmed or denied the theory. In fact, during a Reddit AMA thread, a fan asked what was in Rick's flask, and co-creator Justin Roiland deflected the question. "We're not ready to discuss the contents of Rick's flask yet, but I can tell you that in the pilot episode cold open scene, he was supping on some HENNY," he wrote.

We'll need to wait and see what's in Rick's flask and whether it's just cognac or the most valuable green juice in the universe.