The following contains spoilers for Rick and Morty Season 6, Episode 4, "Night Family," which debuted Sept. 25, on Adult Swim.
One of the things Rick and Morty loves doing is taking shots at the superhero genre. In Season 6, Barbs have been thrown at the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and also at the dreams in Zack Snyder's Justice League. It is Rick's way of saying he doesn't think these franchises are art, unlike properties such as Die Hard.
Interestingly, Rick took aim at Wonder Woman 1984 with a snide comment. Again, it was up his alley, reiterating it wasn't the kind of content he knew and loved over the years. However, while Rick did have a point some fans would agree with, one has to wonder if he was right about the sequel.
Rick Believes in Avoiding Talk of Wonder Woman 1984
The DC Extended Universe has tried hard to shift away from Zack Snyder's bleak vision, but it really hasn't helped with Batgirl getting canned years later. However, Wonder Woman was a lighthearted start to Warner Bros.' course-correction, encouraging more inspirational efforts such as Shazam! and Aquaman. Patty Jenkins then followed up with Wonder Woman 1984, but it didn't catch fire like the first effort with Gal Gadot.
This is why Rick poked fun at it in Season 6, when Jerry found out that the Beths were having an affair with each other. Jerry turned into a bug, leaving his family worried if he'd survive. "Anyway, he's in perfect health in there, and he can unroll when he chooses to, but can also stay in metabolic hibernation pretty much indefinitely," Rick nonchalantly confessed, as he gave Jerry this ability. Rick then added, "It's a cool power to have, like if you have to fly coach or if Summer asks you what you thought of Wonder Woman 1984."
Wonder Woman 1984 Was Judged By the Wrong Standards
Rick's burn has credence due to a weird narrative. Firstly, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice made it seem like Diana was hidden all this time, yet in 1984 she was out and about in public. Also, Steve Trevor's spirit occupied another man's body, which Diana used to help her in her mission against Max Lord, and also for sex, which was pretty creepy. To top that off, a lot of the sequel was formulaic. It had a finale with bad CGI, using Cheetah the same way Ares was used, ergo why there weren't many calls for a third film. The reviews were lukewarm, plus it didn't help that the box office return (which was COVID-affected) garnered a global total of less than $200 million. A big part of that had to do with it being streamed on HBO Max, debuting simultaneously in theaters for Christmas.
However, while Rick didn't want to waste time talking about it, it's worth noting some haters were toxic males who just didn't want to see female superheroes. Beneath the surface, though, there were bright moments and a spine for a good movie. The training scene, showing more of young Diana on Themyscira, wasn't bad, and the film overall had an even more powerful message about liberation from mental slavery. It led to Diana using Max's power to tap into the world's love and desire for unity to break him and his wish-stone. The Lynda Carter cameo and the golden armor were nice nods to the past and future, which reiterated this was a franchise for women and more so, girls.
Thus, if the layers of hard judgment are stripped away, certain demographics and reviewers may realize this flick, as imperfect as it was, wasn't for them. Ultimately, movies are made for global audiences, but again, children's movies can't be judged by Avengers standards or Oscar standards. As a result, leeway can be given to Wonder Woman 1984, because while it was held to a high standard in the genre, it wasn't terrible. Had Rick lightened up and enjoyed it for what it was, like Summer was implied to have done, he'd have realized this and not been as caustic about something never meant to be in his lane.
Rick and Morty airs Sundays at 11:00 p.m. on Adult Swim.