'Rick and Morty' Season 4 Episode 9 'Childrick of Mort' will finally see a Smith family adventure
Finally, after what feels like way too long, it seems that we are going to get a full Smith family adventure in the upcoming ‘Rick and Morty’ episode. Episode 9 of season 4 of ‘Rick and Morty’ is titled ‘Childrick of Mort’.
At first glance, the name seems to be an obvious play on ‘Children of the Corn’, Stephen King’s 1977 short story that was adapted into a film of the same name in 1984. Set in rural Nebraska, the film tells the story of a malevolent entity referred to as “He Who Walks Behind the Rows” that possess all of the town's children to ritually murder all the adults to ensure a successful corn harvest.
However, it seems more likely that the name may actually be a play on a 2019 action role-playing video game called ‘Children of Morta’. The game follows the story of the Bergson family, custodians of Mount Morta, who must defend it from an evil called the “Corruption”.
Why does the video game feel more likely? Well, for starters it involves a family. The Smith Family -- Jerry (Chris Parnell), Beth (Sarah Chalke), and Summer (Spencer Grammer) -- seems to be accompanying Rick and Morty on this adventure. Or so the promo video suggests. For another, the promo video also features a kind of a volcanic mountain, maybe similar to Mount Morta in the game.
The promo begins with the volcano erupting; only instead of lava, weird alien creatures seem to gush out of it. Beth takes a trampoline out, ruining Jerry’s surprise idea to bounce on it. When Rick asks Beth to chill, Jerry reluctantly agrees with him, saying that they were, after all, on a vacation. Beth then angrily shouts at him: “You’re unemployed, Jerry. Every day is a vacation for you.”
Well, we know at least one thing: the family dynamics really haven’t changed much and that’s always fun to watch!
Yes, one can endlessly speculate which film or video game the new episode of ‘Rick and Morty’ is paying homage to. But it’s ultimately futile because if there is one thing we know about Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland’s animated comedy, it’s this: expect only the unexpected.
'Rick and Morty' Season 4 airs Sundays at 11.30 pm EST on Adult Swim.