Rick and Mortyseason three has come and gone in the blink of an eye. With only ten episodes, season three is over, and audiences are going to have to wait an indeterminate amount of time before season four is released.

But season three of “Rick and Morty” was top-notch from front to back. Featuring everything from Pickle Rick, to Noob-Noob and the Vindicators, to Beth’s childhood trauma; season three had it all. It even featured a subtle character arc for Rick and Morty, each one maturing in their own way.

Season 3, episode 1

Season three of “Rick and Morty” started airing on April 1 of this year.

April 1 is also April Fools Day, a day dedicated to pranks and mischief. It hardly seemed like a coincidence.

Without warning, Adult Swim introduced the first episode of the third season of “Rick and Morty” via a stream available on their website. It would be almost four months later until episode two was released on July 30.

Without a set date or even a time frame for “Rick and Mortyseason four, audiences could be in for a long wait, similar to the two-year span between seasons two and three.

However, the “Rick and Morty” creators have proven themselves to be spontaneous and unpredictable, as shown in the April fools release and general absurdity of the show itself. The best thing for audiences to do now is stay alert and hope the new season comes soon.

Rick and the family

Rick’s character has seen a transformation from the beginning of season three to the end, which would seem obvious if Rick were not so set in his ways. He prides himself on individuality, on being a genius, but that seems to be changing.

In season three, episode one, Rick breaks himself out of prison and replaces Jerry as the patriarch of the family.

As a result, he seems to have total mastery over Morty’s existence.

In season three, episode ten, however, Rick swallows his pride and resigns his position as the male figurehead of the family to Jerry, his least favorite person, in order to maintain his relationship with the rest of the family.

This is the same Rick that turned the entire population of earth into Cronenberg's and then bailed on his daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law, and brought Morty to an entirely new universe where they were already dead because he wanted Morty to stop bothering him.

Morty and himself

In season three of “Rick and Morty,” Morty has proven himself to be a different person than he was in seasons one or two. He has become more independent, unlike his grandfather, Rick, who seems to be more dependent than he once was.

In season three, episode four, “Vindicators 3: The Return of Worldender,” Morty takes on the task of disarming one of Rick’s neutrino bombs by himself. Based on Morty’s body language and general apathy, it would seem that disarming a bomb, something that would have rattled season one and two Morty, was a chore and a nuisance.

In season three, episode ten, Morty stands up to Rick, choosing his family over Rick’s hijinks. Then Rick submits to the family and tells Beth that she isn’t a clone, which she still very well might be, in order to remain as a part of their lives.

It would seem that Rick and Morty have both changed, each one becoming more like the other. Will Morty become a super genius and take over the family business? Will Rick become a regular grandfather and abandon his super genius ways? Fans will have to wait until season four to find out.