Rick and Morty season 9 finale ending explained: Did Morty return?

Rick and Morty season 9 ends with Morty returning to his original universe after his attempt to find a better life in another reality ends in tragedy. In episode 10, Field of Dreams, Morty explores alternate universes through “funeral hopping” and discovers a version of the Smith family that initially appears happier without Rick.

As the episode progresses, that seemingly ideal reality reveals its own hidden problems and ultimately collapses in a violent confrontation. After witnessing those events, Morty returns home with Rick and reunites with his family. The finale also follows the downfall of an alternate Rick and concludes with a mid-credits scene that leaves the search for the original Mr. Poopybutthole unresolved.

Why does Morty return to Rick at the end of Rick and Morty season 9?

The ending of Rick and Morty season 9 follows Morty’s realization that no alternate universe can provide the perfect life he has been searching for.

After receiving a Portal Junior from another Morty, he begins “funeral hopping” across different realities. During one visit, he arrives in a universe where his counterpart, Mort, has recently died. At first, this version of the Smith family appears happier and more stable because Beth and Jerry separated themselves from Rick years earlier.

Morty spends time with the family and considers staying permanently. Jerry even asks him to become their new son. However, the situation changes when Jerry destroys the Portal Junior, preventing Morty from returning home.

As events unfold, the family’s seemingly peaceful life begins to unravel. Jerry’s protective nature turns controlling, and Morty discovers supplies that Mort secretly hid before his death, suggesting he had been planning to escape his father’s survivalist lifestyle.

The truth becomes fully apparent during a confrontation with Professor Rick. The conflict ends with Jerry, Summer, and Professor Rick dead, while Beth takes her own life after witnessing the violence.

Another interdimensional estate sale follows, and Rick eventually arrives to bring Morty back to his original universe.

Back home, Morty tells Beth and Summer that he loves them before leaving with Rick. During their motorcycle ride, Rick refers to Morty as his son, and Morty calls Rick his father.

The ending does not suggest that their relationship is free of conflict. Instead, Rick and Morty season 9 shows Morty accepting that every universe has its own problems. After witnessing the collapse of a reality that initially seemed ideal, he chooses to return to his own family rather than continue searching for a perfect alternative.

What happened to Professor Rick?

Another important narrative in Rick and Morty season 9 is about an alternate Rick who chose to have a stable life instead of becoming the cynical scientist portrayed throughout the series.

This Rick is a physics professor at MIT and has been clean for 17 years following his break-up with Beth. He lives with his wife Julie, and is researching portal technology as a speculative scientific project, rather than for interdimensional travel.

That changes with the appearance of Morty. He wants Professor Rick to continue researching portal technology so he can return to his own universe. The experiments keep failing, the project eats Rick. The pressure pulls him back into drunkenness, and Julie leaves him just before he finishes a workable prototype.

His story resembles in important ways other versions of Rick. He gives up the stability of the life he’s built to pursue portal travel.

The conclusion doesn’t imply that all Ricks are going to pursue the same route. Instead, it suggests that Morty’s coming is a contributing factor to the demise of this reality. In his efforts to find his way home, Morty inadvertently nudges Professor Rick closer to becoming the Rick he wanted to leave behind at the beginning.

What does the Rick and Morty season 9 mid-credits scene mean?

Season 9 of Rick and Morty ends with its characteristic mid-credits scene featuring Mr. Poopybutthole. Amy starts her quest for the authentic Mr. Poopybutthole because she has learned that somebody replaced him. Amy and a team of scientists use DNA of the fraud to turn on the interdimensional tracker and find him. Unfortunately, the tracker stops working and disappears before showing the location.

The mid-credits scene does not connect to the events of Field of Dreams and is related to the continuing subplot but does not give any answers to the questions raised.

To sum up, season 9 of Rick and Morty ends with a focus on Morty. Having returned back home, Morty understands that no universe has a perfect family and accepts himself as Rick’s sidekick. In addition, the collapse of Professor Rick indicates that portal technology can change any person’s life.

Rick and Morty season 9 is now streaming on Adult Swim and Max, where viewers can watch all ten episodes of the season, including the finale, Field of Dreams.