Dan Harmon, co-creator of Rick and Morty, confirmed that season 5 of the animated series will continue the "Beth clone" storyline. Despite both Harmon and co-creator Justin Roiland's insistence that the show isn't meant to be anything more than a serialized animated sitcom, many fans are drawn to Rick and Morty because of its interesting and subversive storylines and lore. Much to the frustration of some, Harmon, Roiland, and the writing staff don't make a point to follow up on storylines that grab the interest of fans. Plots, characters, and locations are brought in, but largely due to the show's serialized format, they're sometimes dropped without any follow-up.
Toward the end of season 3, Rick offers to clone his daughter, Beth. One Beth could stay on Earth with her family, and another one could go out to the cosmos and explore. At the time, it was never explicitly revealed if Beth goes through with it, and the character herself began to wonder if she was a clone. The storyline was largely ignored for most of season 4, surprisingly getting a follow up during the final episode. It was revealed that Rick did clone Beth, and during the last year, one version of her has been leading a rebellion against the Galactic Federation. Rick himself can't remember which Beth is real and which is the clone, and the rest of the family decide they don't really want to know. "Space Beth" ends up staying on Earth to be near her family.
During the digital PaleyFest 2020 (via Comic Book), Harmon revealed that the mystery behind which Beth is real and which is the clone will very much be relevant during season 5 of Rick and Morty. Harmon mentioned how important the "Beth Clone" storyline is for Rick as a character, and serves as the biggest repercussion for his callous nature (so far). See Harmon's full statement below:
You know as much as Rick knows. I don’t want to keep secrets with the audience. She’s Schrodinger’s Beth right now. The fact she may or may not be a clone is actually the important thing. It’s the profound revelation about Rick’s commitment to non-commitment and how abusive that can be as a parent. That is the important thing here. We’re adding aunts to the family. We’re having fun looking at more options with space Beth.
Another interesting point was brought up during the event. Given Rick and Morty's well-thought-out and compelling overarching storyline, one would assume that Harmon and the writers have a general outline for where the series is going. However, Harmon revealed that isn't the case. The writing team purposely doesn't adhere to any kind of story bible or plan, largely to not get trapped into serving some kind of future story point and retain the freedom of spontaneity. On future storylines, Harmon says this:
The last thing we want to do in an environment like that is [to] have a plan. We are the plan because we’re the future. We’re the guys who wrote the stuff they’re now drawing. We make a tremendous effort to stay in the moment and not box ourselves in.
Harmon's reveal that the clone storyline will continue to be addressed should serve as a good omen for Rick and Morty fans that are invested in the show's story. Perhaps this hints at the show addressing other popular plots like the seldom-seen "Evil Morty" storyline. The question of which Beth is the real one, and the natural fallout that will likely come from that uncertainty, will also have interesting implications for Rick as a character. He has managed to slide out of many morally ambiguous circumstances relatively unscathed, but this Beth situation might be enough to force Rick to address the laundry list of character flaws he has. Either way, season 5 of Rick and Morty will surely be worth tuning in for.
Source: Comic Book
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