While Rick and Morty introduced the idea of Morty Brainwaves to show his intellect as the polar opposite of Rick’s, much of the show suggests this isn’t true. Though not a maths visionary or literary whiz, time and time again, the show contains scenes in which Morty succeeds due to thinking on his feet – which raises the question of exactly what these Morty Waves could really be.
The brainwave concept is introduced in the tenth episode of Rick and Morty, “Close Rick-counters of the Rick Kind”, which explains that Rick gives off a specific genius brainwave that can be traced by Rick’s powerful enemies. To stop this, every Rick tries to keep a Morty close by, since his grandson’s own brainwaves cancel out those offending ones, with the implication being that Morty is so unintelligent he is literally the opposite of a genius.
Initially, it seems fair to consider this yet another jab thrown the ever-unlucky Morty’s way, as the show is littered with reminders that Morty isn’t the pinnacle of cerebral success. Since it’s been made clear Morty isn’t exactly Einstein ever since his parents were shown worrying about his failing grades in school as far back as the first episode of Rick and Morty – a concern that developed well before Rick entered Morty’s life – it seems only natural that the idea of the child being the opposite of Rick in terms of intelligence would seem the definite truth. But the longer the show goes on, the more the idea of Morty being one of the most stupid people alive becomes a strange concept, and not just because Jerry also exists, and is infinitely more bumbling by every measurement.
While Morty is repeatedly shown to do poorly at school, it’s not fair to judge how smart he is solely by his grades, especially when there’s a lot of evidence in Rick and Morty’s various adventures through universes that suggest he excels in a more practical environment. This seems even more likely with the context of how often the show makes fun of the public school system and its failings, suggesting that Morty flunking a largely unimportant algebra quiz is no real indicator that he’s lacking mentally. In actual fact, the Morty brainwaves appear to be reflective of what he is thinking, meaning they really signify just how much he differs from his pessimistic grandpa – and there’s more than a few reasons this seems more likely than the brainwave theory the show initially offers.
Despite making Morty out to be an idiot for most of the show, it’s fair to say that Rick and Morty actively goes out of its way to suggest the ever-nervous boy is clever and a quick thinker. After all, this is the same kid who outsmarted space police by using anti-gravity boots, and who managed to work out how to identify memory parasites having only been introduced to the concept of them seemingly a few hours earlier – the same person who learned an entirely new language to befriend a race of aliens and eventually become their leader. When someone can face the disturbing scenarios Rick and Morty thrives upon every day and still counter them when necessary, it’s problematic to label them as somehow stupid. Add to this the fact that he actively realizes Rick’s plan is wrong before the scientist himself in “Rick Potion No.9”, and it’s clear calling Morty one of the dumbest people alive isn’t only unfair – it’s also wrong.
He may make a lot of mistakes, but these mistakes can generally be put down to some brutal combination of hormones, social awkwardness, and a desire to do the right thing even when that’s a terrible idea, none of which support the idea that Morty is so unintelligent he can be used as a genius concealment device. That said, these Morty waves are definitely used to hide Evil Morty in “Close Rick-counters of The Rick Kind”, so it appears that they’re not another exceedingly cruel prank played on the boy, but rather a legitimate concept that would still need an explanation in light of all this.
There are two likely possibilities for what the Morty brainwaves actually are, and both are supported by just how weird the Rick and Morty universe is on a regular basis. Either every Morty is genetically modified – which wouldn’t actually be the most out-there explanation, since Rick has also previously turned his grandson into a car – or there is the possibility Rick calling Morty stupid is actually just his way of saying Morty is the polar opposite of everything Rick is and stands for. The latter of these holds significantly more weight, as there are very few episodes where it isn’t expressly stated how different the mismatched duo are. Morty’s constant mistake making and second-guessing certainly doesn’t seem all that similar to his cynical yet ever-successful grandfather, and the majority of their arguments and conflict revolve around just how differently the two view the world, with the scientist repeatedly calling his grandson naive and foolish for his more optimistic outlook on life.
This would explain why Rick appears to be trying to teach Morty at various points throughout the show – he isn’t concerned a smarter Morty might sabotage his safety, because he knows there will always be enough to differentiate the pair that they’ll stay safe from detection. It would also neatly explain why whenever Morty is artificially made more intelligent – such as with the infamous Mega Seeds – Rick’s long-term enemies like the Galactic Federation don’t immediately show up to murder them, having been able to suddenly track them down. In fact, the only thing that would suggest this theory isn’t right is that Rick doesn’t answer his grandson when Morty asks if their complementary brainwaves are such because the pair are so different, and this could easily be explained by the fact that Rick sees no difference between being an idiot and being empathic and emotional.
Morty’s emotional intelligence, his ability to care for almost everyone, and his urge to always seek to do the right thing are all otherwise respectable traits, but also traits Rick has repeatedly denounced as dumb and pointless, as they’re totally at odds with his nihilistic approach to existence. During the infamous “Pickle Rick” episode, wherein Rick turns himself into a pickle in order to escape a family therapy session, it’s clear he is equal parts scientifically gifted, and also deeply emotionally repressed, without even taking into account the many times Rick is shown to be in a state of deep self-loathing and internal suffering. On the other hand, Morty is about as gifted academically as the butter robot, but he doesn’t have the same issue expressing himself that his grandfather does, even if he’s only expressing upset at his own failures. As such, of course, the two co-stars of Rick and Morty cancel each other out, both in terms of brainwaves and in life – as Rick teaches Morty to be academically brighter, and Morty reminds Rick he’s not as heartless as he might think.
Originally from https://screenrant.com/rick-morty-brainwaves-meaning-theory-stupid-explained/