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damaged-coda-em-rp · 2 days ago

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I've seen this technology before (part 2)

think of the implications think of the implications THINK OF THE FREAKING IMPLICATIONS (trigger warning for sexual abuse)

Sigh... Here we go.

First of all, let's get the easy parts out of the way.

Despite people who are being puppeteered sometimes appear to be in a fugue state (that thousand yard stare lol)--

--or, you know, puppeteered. VIOLENTLY sometimes--

--it's clear that they are also both alive and aware:

Would you say this is pretty much the definition of a mind rape?

I mean, we've seen Unity do pretty much the same thing, but the subjects never seem to be aware that they got possessed, are not traumatized nor upset (and hilariously the quality of their lives was greatly improved when Unity had taken over). I don't know if they forget because Unity is actually kind of nice and makes them forget on purpose to avoid trauma, or if it's just how assimilation by hiveminds works. In any case, it is apparent that this is simply how hiveminds live. Ugly, of course, but in the sense of "a predator has to eat" fashion. Not exactly a choice on the hivemind's part. So... technically also a mind rape, but... also not as evil as what Evil Morty has been doing.

Secondly.

Do we all agree that it seems that the receiver is above Evil Rick's eye? We can see its light going on and off, which would likely not be visible if the receiver was at the height of the bottom eyelid (I'm referring to where Evil Morty's cables are sticking out).

Indeed, the Citadel Rick does not have to stick his whole hand inside Evil Rick's face, just the fingers.

In fact, would you say the receiver is... right... about... here:

(and yes, I combined the two frames to achieve the ultimate creepy frame)

So... in the hypothetical scenario that "the reason Evil Morty has cables sticking out of his eye is that he was once puppeteered himself and some remains of the implant are still in his head"...

...would you say that the place where his own receiver must have been would be... somewhere around here:

Which, accounting for the curvature of the giant cartoon eyes (lol) might be the correct distance from the bottom eyelid if one combines the length of the cables Evil Morty already has sticking out of his eyes and the the length of the cables in the eyepatch.

At the same time, it'd be kinda weird for someone to remove the receiver but not the rest of the implant cables and stuff. I mean, if Rick C-137 was trying to remove such an implant from Morty Prime, wouldn't he be thorough about it? Wouldn't he make sure Morty Prime was completely clean?

Unless, of course, you're hastily trying to gouge your own eye out in desperation:

Oops. You too, eh?

Also, it is interesting to note that it appears Evil Rick was trying to stick the shard in his eye (the left eye, btw, where his receiver was) which is... not how one would typically try to commit suicide when you also have a throat available.

So either the mind control kept Evil Rick's hand far away from his throat on purpose, or there are built-in contingencies that ensure unauthorized removal of the receiver is akin to a death sentence...

...which (in the hypothetical case that Evil Morty was at some point in the past also frantically gouging his own eye out) may be negated if you somehow also managed to gain access to some kind of healing equipment (of which we know Ricks have plenty) and set it to turn on automatically (because you're a very smart, careful boy). I'm not gonna add the screenshots because they're too many, but I'm going to list a few:

the one Rick used to jumpstart Pissmaster's brain

the thing Rick injected Morty with after Morty bully-gunned himself

the one Rick used to restore Morty's arm

Rick's freaking garage

(It's possible by the way that the original receiver Evil Morty had did not have a "contain suicide attempt" function. It's possible that the threat of death was deterrent enough that Evil Morty wouldn't try to remove the receiver on his own. It's possible Evil Morty added the "contain suicide attempt" function to Evil Rick's receiver because he knew from experience that this is a price he might be willing to pay. Which would, you know... also explain why he didn't bother downloading the schematics of Rick Prime's auto-healing ability for himself)

IN ANY CASE, you mutilated yourself successfully, pulled the receiver out of your eye's remains, died, your brain healed (physically), the eye reformed, but happened to reform while the cables were sticking out from when you were pulling the receiver. Uh-oh. It's okay, tuck them back in, no one has to know. Better not inform the Citadel nor update your Morty Agency record on your newest implant, either. You wouldn't want other Ricks to know they only need to attach a receiver in your head to exert complete control over you, huh? (like grabbing a... joystick?) Maybe kill your Rick, if you haven't done it already. Run away.

Sigh. Let's go to the hard parts now.

Fans smarter than me have already pointed out that the Rick-Morty dynamic is deliberately built around the idea of grooming, predation of minors and sexual abuse. A lot of the things in the show are either outright instances of grooming, are meant to refer to sexual abuse or are meant to be allegories to sexual abuse, even though canonically Rick is not grooming Morty for sexual reasons. (I strongly suggest you check out all the above links, by the way. I was disturbed.)

Take also into account that Citadel with its Morty Market also has disturbing similarities to a messed up, horrible foster care system, as well as child trafficking.

Although I can't find all the links (message me if you have them), I had also found posts from fans comparing Evil Morty's actions to sexual abuse, against Ricks and Mortys this time.

The "literal" mind rape he has committed is the most blatant example, in my opinion, but far from the only one. The violence of Evil Rick's puppeteering when he was forced to kill Guard Rick was disturbing. Another fan alluded that Evil Morty making Evil Rick drunk before assaulting him was akin to drugging someone before taking sexual advantage of them. Extra disturbing by Evil Rick's exclamation "Get off me!"

Personally, Evil Morty closing the garage door before attacking reminded me of... other scenes in movies etc, where the assaulter turns up the volume on the radio before commencing his attack. I mean... we've seen all sorts of insane stuff happening in that garage (people exploding, redheads flying in, a flying saucer parking) and none of the neighbors even care. Gene actually had the courage to STEAL a rake from this house of madness. It is all treated as comically absurd. Only when Evil Morty attacks are the happenings treated as an actual violent crime that the perpetrator would want to stay hidden.

And sure, Evil Morty needed a large crowd of alive Mortys to hide amongst, and he needed an excuse to keep them alive so he strapped them on the Morty Dome and tortured them, but did they really have to be naked?

Now, I'm in no way an expert of any sort in any of the above, but I've read that when children (and Morty is 14) do physically violent or sexually aggressive acts against others, it's typically because they've been assaulted themselves in a similar fashion. I guess they're either trying to process what happened, are mimicking it, are venting their frustration on someone weaker, or are simply desensitized to it. SOMEONE PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M HORRIBLY WRONG.

I'm sure that canonically, no actual rape has taken place, but given the show's general... vibe... I doubt the above mentioned similarities are a coincidence. I'd say that a 14-year-old boy literally losing all body autonomy by becoming an old man's literal puppet for an unspecified amount of time is as close to the concept as possible without actually being the concept. (Edit: sadly, I no longer think this was only metaphorical. There's no way to explain his utter indifference at torturing Mortys, in the particular fashion that he did, unless he concluded that they'd be having a MUCH EASIER time than HE had.)

Of course, this is just a theory. We don't know if anything like this has happened. However, the truth is that while we've seen plenty of miserable Mortys in the Citadel, none of them seem to be as angry, traumatized, nor desperate as Evil Morty. They all managed to smile, or find companionship among each other, or even among Ricks (Cop Rick, I'm looking at you). Evil Morty is the only one who did completely messed up things to an extreme scale without batting an eyelid, just so he could get as far away as possible. He didn't exactly seem to enjoy his journey to freedom, either.

His face here as he finishes the transmitter reads to me as a particularly sad and defeated "...I'm really doing this, then" thought.

And (like actual sexual abuse victims) it's not likely he could have safely unburdened himself by sharing the secret of what happened to him with someone in the Citadel. Another Rick might have taken advantage of him in the same way, once he realized the opportunity was available.

Not to mention that by telling someone he would risk hearing some variation of "you asked for it by being cocky and not doing what you were told" or "being completely controlled by a Rick was the best thing that ever happened to you, you finally stopped doing dumb mistakes". The Rick who puppeteered him could have also framed it as "I'm doing this for your sake, because you keep getting yourself injured in adventures".

And he mustn't let himself react overly emotionally or go into hysterics about it, because then he'll get mind-blown and forget everything that happened (roofied, much?) and be vulnerable to it again. Or, even worse, he may be discarded as "defective" and end up in that Morty slaughterhouse... So he must really tone down his emoting.

He could have theoretically confessed to another Morty, but we've already seen Mortys throwing each other under the bus in their bid to survive. I wouldn't like my chances, personally.

So it seems to me that he be stuck in the Citadel, simming in his own fear, grief and anger with no one to confide to (although gaining a level-up in confidence (cockyness, if you want) given that he successfully orchestrated his own escape attempt). Either living in the lousy conditions of Morty Town, surrounded by clueless Mortys who, if ever discovered that he could get mind-controlled might tip off a Rick in exchange of a better quality of life. Or partnering with a Rick, living every day in fear that his secret might get revealed accidentally and that he'd end up dissected and studied, or simply controlled once again. (It would be even more dangerous if his Rick was wanted by the Citadel, and Evil Morty was in danger of getting executed for assisting him.) And, of course, we know that Citadel Ricks do not form lasting bonds with their Mortys. Even if his secret was never discovered, Evil Morty would find neither peace, nor family in the company of the Rick of the Day who adopted him.

I also think there is a lot of internalized victim blaming among the Mortys in the citadel. At some point he might have been convinced that he really did ask for it by not behaving. And this puts the eyepatch in a... different perspective. It made sense that he used the eyepatch initially, that's pretty much the only place where he could put his transmitter. But after he gained access to aaaaall the Citadel's tech as president, he built a lot of cool things. Couldn't he have built a better interface, one that doesn't require an eyepatch?

I mean... he definitely improved the eyepatch itself. In the beginning he had to connect it with his implanted cables manually:

But after he became president, it appears that it connects automatically. No longer necessary to stick your fingers in your own eye socket (yayyy).

It's unclear if the cables themselves are still there (they might be!) but some part of the original implant definitely remains. However, why still use an eyepatch at all? However he may have started off originally, we can't really say that he incapable of performing surgery to himself by the time season 7 rolls in because we saw him have a plethora of body augmentations, and yet he still wears an eyepatch. Couldn't he have also altered the implant in his brain so that he keeps any potential perks but no longer needs an external eyepatch?

Sure, maybe he enjoys triggering Rick's fear of pirates (even though he wears it when he is alone outside the CFC). Or maybe he thinks he looks cool wearing it. Or maybe he's just an angsty teenager.

Or... Well... if the whole experience is a source of shame and self-blame for him, he may be metaphorically hiding the place of intrusion... or, conversely, a physical reminder that he managed to literally cut himself free might make him feel better. I tend to think it's the latter.

This is all just a theory. Maybe he simply is evil.

Or maybe he's heartbroken by being constantly discarded in the "adoption" program of the Morty Market to the point where he felt he would explode. Ricks scouring the universe for Mortys meant that blowing the CFC was the only way he could be left alone in peace.

...But I'm leaning towards him having one more reason to run away as far as he can without looking back.

(and as of now, I get the feeling that he hasn't run away far enough)

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damaged-coda-em-rp · 22 days ago

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I've seen this technology before (part 3)

aka: the Updated Puppetmaster Rick theory

(trigger warning for implications of SA)

(also warning: this is my longest post yet, but I couldn't condense it)

If we tie the theory of the existence of Puppetmaster Rick to the combo Infinite Rick Theory (i.e. that Rick Prime had been infecting other Ricks like a virus by using mind-control), then an interesting question suddenly pops up:

Who came up with the mind-control technology first? Rick Prime or Puppetmaster Rick?

(I will preface this by saying I doubt it was a coincidence. I doubt they both independently developed nearly the same tech)

Hypothesis A: Puppetmaster Rick came up with it first

I had initially assumed that there once was a Rick obsessed with controlling others, who followed this obsession to the extreme, developing mind-controlling technology, and practicing it so much that the unlucky Morty who happened to live with him got to watch the surgeries (e.g. done to Beth? Jerry? Rick's enemies? Other Mortys?), while at some point having also a surgery performed to him.

Watching others' surgeries was what allowed Eyepatch Morty to later repeat the process himself, to Evil Rick.

Afterwards, when I read about the Infinite Rick Theory, I assumed that at some point early in the story (when Puppetmaster Rick was just starting his act and when Rick Prime was exploring different universes and meeting other Ricks) Rick Prime met this one creepy dude, got inspired by him, and greatly improved Puppetmaster Rick's tech, so that it permitted him to simultaneously control many other Ricks. This common ancestry between the two puppeteering techs meant that Eyepatch Morty's fingerguns also worked on Rick Prime's version of the implant (transmitter? processor? whatever is in his own head).

HOWEVER.

This wouldn't explain why there is still code in Eyepatch Morty's implant that forbids him from killing Ricks with a, so-to-speak, admin status...

...Not because Puppetmaster Rick wouldn't have wanted to include such code...

...but because someone like Eyepatch Morty would have been able to eventually alter said code. You'd need to have extra code that forbids you from altering the code itself; but why on earth include a failsafe like that, if your target victims are Jerrys, Beths and Mortys?

ON THE OTHER HAND, if the implant was made for controlling other Ricks, such contingencies are the bare minimum, are they not? A Rick would totally by able to hack the implant and turn off the mental restraints.

In addition, I can't really see Rick Prime copying another Rick, either. At most he may have been mildly inspired by Puppetmaster Rick (who might have developed a lame proto-implant with pretty limited abilities) and took it up to eleven, but even that I feel is a stretch. Rick Prime is the smartest. I do give him full credit for whatever tech he used to control his backups.

Sooo...

Hypothesis B: Rick Prime came up with it first

Suddenly there is a very, very simple explanation as to how Puppetmaster Rick became familiar with the puppeteering tech: he was one of Rick Prime's puppeteered victims.

(I'm going to go on a limb and add that he might have even been the "Weird Rick" that we have seen in Pocket Mortys...!)

(and that people have been pairing him with Eyepatch Morty because they didn't know who he really was and thought they were just pairing up two cool characters) (bleaaargh) (I honestly hope not)

Then he was somehow freed by Prime's control.

a) He might have gotten freed by accident, i.e. someone stabbed him in the eye and it destroyed the receiver...

b) Or he might have cut off his own receiver, similar to what Eyepatch Morty did. I feel this is extremely unlikely, given that he'd have to orchestrate an escape plan against Rick Prime; not just some random creepy Rick. Plus I honestly doubt someone as essentially lame as "Puppetmaster" Rick would have the intelligence to come up with a plan... but I DO think it's something that could be possible.

At this point I would like to point out that we have already met a Rick who was obsessed with Rick Prime, who also had... something happen to his eye:

(Coincidence? He even has clothes kinda similar to Rick Prime's and looks like he might be outgrowing a mullet...)

c) When the Central Finite Curve's wall came into force, it might have cut off the signal of Rick Prime's transmitter.

I doubt this was the purpose of the Central Finite Curve wall (because wouldn't Rick C-137 think that, wherever Rick Prime is, he's the smartest man in that universe; and therefore intend for his universe to be included in the Curve?) but given that it turns out Rick Prime really was outside the Curve...

...it's possible the signal got disrupted when the wall first came into effect, either cutting off Rick Prime's influence entirely, or leaving "Puppetmaster" Rick into a glitching, malfunctioning (or maybe merely unfathomably traumatized) mess.

I would also like to point out that we actually have seen evidence of Rick Prime controlling victims of his who were INSIDE the Curve...

...while he was still OUTSIDE, so this theory might be wrong. It is, however, possible that after he was forcefully transported to the Prime Dimension, Rick Prime upgraded his transmitter to be able to bypass the Curve, or that after the Citadel was destroyed and no longer actively supporting the interdimensional wall, Prime's signal was able to pass through, same as everyone suddenly able to portal in and out of the Curve.

In all these options, the scenario plays out identically for Eyepatch Morty as it did in "Hypothesis A: Puppetmaster Rick came up with it first": "Puppetmaster" Rick went on to live in the Citadel, began venting out his frustration by enslaving and puppeteering Jerrys, Beths etc. Eyepatch Morty was unlucky enough to be partnered with him, assist in the surgeries, and eventually have a surgery performed to him.

(The only thing I don't like about this version of the events is that literally every significant character's grievances can be directly traced back to Rick Prime. Like, that seems a bit excessive. People can be evil independently of each other lol. On the other hand, this theory ties with how the cycle of abuse repeats in real life. The abusers were often victims themselves once. It starts with Rick Prime, then continues with "Puppetmaster" Rick, then Eyepatch Morty... then it hopefully stops.)

...Anyway, there is one last option concerning how "Puppetmaster" Rick could have gotten freed:

d) Someone helped him.

A Morty helped him.

Imagine the following scenario. (I know it's fanfiction but please humor me. Or else, if you don't feel like reading lengthy baseless hypotheses, feel free to scroll down to the large gap with the red text!!!)

Imagine "Puppetmaster" Rick really getting stranded inside the Curve when its wall came into effect; his connection to Rick Prime disrupted, but the puppeteering implant (cables, receiver, processor, etc) still remaining inside him. This would probably have some... repercussions.

He might have been compelled to fullfill the last ordrers he had received (I have the inkling that, unlike Eyepatch Morty, who would turn Evil Rick's puppeteering on and off, Rick Prime would always have it on).

Or his implant might have been forcing him to find a way to restore the connection and return to Rick Prime.

Or maybe he was glitching and twitching, lying in a ditch somewhere like a malfunctioning robot.

Whatever state he was in, I can't imagine it to be a good one.

Now suppose another Rick found him in that sorry state: either a wreck mentally, or being forced to fulfill orders that are no longer applicable, or malfunctioning in some way.

Would said passerby Rick help him?

N O .

He wouldn't care. He wouldn't spare a single thought. He might be able to tell that something is off and he would definitely have the means to help, but he wouldn't lift a finger to do so.

And as for Rick C-137?

Why, he'd want to keep him in his basement, study him, and use him to capture Rick Prime.

Now imagine a Morty came across him instead.

Not a Morty already paired with a Rick, who would dutifully trail after his dismissive grandfather; but a lone, discared, cloned Morty.

A Morty --as attentive as all Mortys are, as familiar with Ricks as all Mortys are-- noticed that something was wrong.

A Morty --as compassionate as all Mortys are-- approached and offered whatever meager help he could...

...which included paying close attention to Rick's subtle hints (whatever the guy could signal without triggering the "do not reveal you are being puppeteered" order), carefully following his lead and suggestions, and using a lot of intuition (emotional intelligence, out-of-the-box-thinking stuff I think we can agree are the staple for all Mortys).

Under Rick's directions, this Morty did a "mild" operation on Rick's brain (removing some crucial part of the implant or maybe resetting the processor), any mistakes resolved by Prime's healing tech...

...essentially freeing this one Rick and giving him back full control of his life.

After this, "Puppetmaster" Rick of course adopted the Morty who helped him...

The Morty, naturally, probably thought he hit the jackpot with this Rick. There was now an actual connection between him and this one Rick: a stronger one than between any other Rick he ever had or could have in the future. He had saved this one version of his grandfather from a fate worse than death. This Rick should be eternally grateful to him. It would be Rick and Morty, a hundred years, forever, but for real this time. There's no way he'd be unwanted or replaced.

...And he was right.

I bet that things seemed good at the beginning, at least as good as they can get with a Rick. I wouldn't be surprised if "Puppetmaster" Rick actively protected the Morty in ways (seemingly) similar to those we've seen Rick C-137 protecting Morty Prime, if he healed him after he got hurt, if he spoiled him with gifts, if he showed off various cool science stuff (more on this attachment later).

But this Rick wasn't well, mentally.

I'll preface this by saying that, given that he was tricked into getting assimilated by Rick Prime, he mustn't have been the sharpest Rick in the multiverse in the first place. Plus the fact that he abandoned his original family in favor of becoming "the smartest thing in every conceivable universe; the Infinite Rick: a god", points to infinite amounts of arrogance and selfishness, even for Rick standards (only he couldn't even achieve said greatness --or any significant success-- by himself. In other words: he was a loser).

Add to the above the traumatic experience of losing huge chunks of his life, the painful inferiority of mentally comparing his (lack of) achievements to other Ricks', and most importantly: the humiliation and anger someone as arrogant as him must have felt from becoming another man's toy. And he didn't even manage to break free by himself: a kid, a kid "as dumb as he was smart", a Morty, had to help him. He was the smartest man in the universe and yet he had no option but to resort to a Morty's aid.

...all the above point to a boiling pot ready to explode. A normal person would be humbled and re-examine their worldview. A Rick as arrogant, pathetic and self-centered as him, would be desperate to reaffirm that HE was in control, that HE was superior...

...at the expense of the only person who wanted to be around him.

I'd bet that while the relationship started (seemingly) affectionate and sincere on Rick's part, things turned sour fast. I'd bet anything he belittled and insulted the Morty who saved his life like there's no tomorrow. I'd bet the verbal lashings became loads worse, more bitter, more spiteful, more unreasonable, and more unsettling than what the average Morty has to face.

...I'd bet that the Morty chose to endure it even as it got progressively worse, understanding perhaps where it came from, remembering how things used to be good in the beginning, and wanting this family to last with every fiber of his being.

Until, at some point, the Morty showed backbone one time too many, and Rick crossed the line in his effort to assert control over the one person available, in the only surefire way he knew:

The puppeteering implant.

He could do it, too.

"Puppetmaster" Rick already knew how the mind control implant worked. He was familiar with it, from the time "he was Rick Prime". The code necessary for it to work was available to be copied from by his head. The failsafes preventing the victim from asking for help, from attacking the "admin", from escaping, from committing suicide, from altering the code, were already included in his own copy. He had a set of the implant inside his own head; he could study it and replicate it.

So he repaid the favor to the Morty who saved him by performing the mind control surgery on him.

...with all the implications concerning their interactions from that point on, given Ricks' unhealthy obsession over Mortys. In other words, I do think this is a metaphor for something a lot worse, although I'm sure it will remain vague in the show. Given than I have no actual knowledge on this extremely serious real life subject and I could be wrong in a million different ways, I will shut up about this now.

The potential allegory also makes any speculation about the dynamic between "Puppetmaster" Rick and his victim pretty much impossible: the situation is too messed-up, the similarities to real-life scenarios are too unsettling. Did "Puppetmaster" Rick ever actually "love" his victim, before he snapped? Was it just a matter of possession and he never loved his grandson in any way? Does it matter? Is it really much better than those other Ricks who may have those same thoughts and intentions, and not act upon them, at least not all the way (yet)? Is the "self-restraint" that other Ricks might be displaying something that happens in real life, or is the outcome always the worst? Does any of that matter?

I don't know. But I DO think that, whatever attachment "Puppetmaster" Rick was feeling in regards to his Morty, it was possessive. It was "his" Morty. In stead of feeling appreciation for the Morty who granted him his freedom, he wanted this Morty to act like his emotional crutch. This one Morty was the only person "Puppetmaster" Rick felt safe around, the only person he felt like he could trust, the only person he wanted around, all the time. The Morty would have (initially) mistaken this obsessive attachment for affection, which meant that having to face the reality that the person he loved more than anything in the world was the one performing the mind control surgery to him must have been absolutely crushing.

Not to mention that if the Morty saw the surgery coming (as opposed to it happening e.g. while he was asleep) the moments leading up to it would be mind-numbingly terrifying: surely he had grasped by then the purpose of the implant he had disabled in "his" Rick's brain. He had seen the cables, the implant itself. He would recognize the receiver if he saw it placed next to an operating table. He knew the fate that awaited him at the end of the scalpel.

Because of the potential allegory, I don't want to make any guesses about what everyday life was like for the Morty after the surgery, either, but the possibilities are unsettling. How did he spend his days? Was he stuck in the house? Did "Puppetmaster" Rick allow him to go to school, or did he isolate him further? Did they keep going on adventures, or did that stop under the pretext of keeping Morty "safe" from dangerous situations? Did he take any resistance of Morty as him "asking for" being puppeteered? Did Morty try to get for help from (this version of) his parents? Did they ignore him? Did they believe him, try to take action, and inevitably fail with catastrophic consequences?

(I originally thought that the reason why Eyepatch Morty never tried to connect with anyone outside the Curve was because he had been brainwashed into thinking everyone is replacable, or because he'd been through countless families, and none of them managed to tell him apart from their previous -or next- Morty, none of them managed to see him... but what if it was because he knew from experience that people might try to bond with him, but none of them would ever be able to meaningfully support him when he needed it?)

...Did "Puppetmaster" Rick puppeteer Morty into killing the family who tried to help him, and then blamed Morty for forcing his hand?

(...Is this why Eyepatch Morty never tried to connect with anyone outside the Curve?)

I don't know. I've had countless ideas about how the events could have unfolded, but I'm sure nothing I come up with would be able to do the story justice, and I already feel like I've spoken too much about a subject that I'm guaranteed to do disservice of. If the puppeteering implant is, indeed, a metaphor for something much worse, then I want to see how the story plays out. I'm only going to say that I'd bet the Morty's life was living hell, and that his imprisonment lasted far, far too long.

At some point the Morty eventually succeeded in freeing himself and, since he couldn't actually kill "Puppetmaster" Rick because of the implant's failsafes, trapped him... in a fate worse than death (and very rightfully so). He then returned to the Citadel, having to go on living like nothing had happened...

...but something had happened. He had been hurt and betrayed in the worst possible way by the one person he had honestly initially thought would be his family forever; the one Rick he had forged a special bond with, the one Rick for whom he was actually irreplaceable, the one Rick he had originally wanted to be "Rick and Morty, a thousand years, forever".

(...no wonder he never smiled again)

This version of the events also explains something that was bugging me in the initial "Puppetmaster" Rick theory:

Why on earth, despite what "Puppetmaster" Rick did to him, did Eyepatch Morty enlist himself in a Morty Agency to try again with another Rick?

The answer is: he remembered being cherished. He experienced feeling like he was special and loved and like he found a place where he belonged. He got to experience that rare, one-of-a-kind, magical connection that Mortys experience when Ricks make an effort with them, the same thing we've seen "our" Morty experience with "our" Rick.

Sure, things went to shit afterwards, but he now knew it was possible; if not with this one, then maybe with another, less fucked-up Rick. Maybe if he tried again. Maybe, if the next Rick just saw how useful and devoted he could be, he would want to keep him and care for him. Maybe the next one. Maybe the next one. Maybe the next one. Maybe the next one.

...Until he realized it would never happen. He would always get discarded, and the one Rick who wouldn't discard him was a psycho and a loser, and he didn't actually care either... (and, in hindsight, he must have seemed to Eyepatch Morty like a complete weirdo when compared to all the other cold and distant Ricks.)

Not to mention how this disturbing attachment must have f-ed up Eyepatch Morty's perception of relationships with people: his best and worst memories (actual memories, not fake, implanted, lived by another Morty, the Morty whose copy he was) result from the same person. I can't imagine this not being confusing. Is being treated like a possession prerequisite to being wanted? Is this f-ed obsession what being "loved" is supposed to be like?

...Is it really strange, or un-Morty-like, that Eyepatch Morty gave up on any sort of family or friendship after he escaped the Curve?

I also wondered for a long time what Eyepatch Morty might feel in regards to "Puppetmaster" Rick now.

Has the still-remaining extreme power disadvantage between them (the receiver is gone, but the puppeteering processor with all the failsafes preventing him from defending himself is still there and active) conditioned him to always fear "Puppetmaster" Rick? Or did the fact that Eyepatch Morty defeated him in his own game while at an extreme disadvantage grant him the confidence to not be afraid of him anymore? Does he feel furious anger? Disgust? Unimaginable pain over what was done to him? Disappointment over what it could have been, if only this Rick wasn't such a monster?

I bet that, whatever it is, it's not the cold apathy with which we've seen him dispose of other Ricks before. This is not a random sadistic Rick who plucked him off the streets and tortured him. This is THE Rick he had hoped would be his family forever. I bet that whatever Eyepatch Morty feels, it's a mess of raw, visceral emotions, and I have no idea what would come out on top if he were to meet this guy again. I wouldn't be surprised if part of Eyepatch Morty is still a hurt and shocked child who can't wrap his mind over what happened to him and sees this one Rick as the most unsettling thing possible.

(I would like to point out at this juncture how the expression on Eyepatch Morty's (through Evil Rick's) face changes when it comes to the one I assume is "Puppetmaster" Rick. It seems almost... sorrowful.)

This theory also turns the prospect of any future interactions between them a lot more unsettling:

Eyepatch Morty wasn't just a random victim of "Puppetmaster" Rick's who rightfully trumped the cards against his tormentor by trapping him in a fate worse than death, and now "Puppetmaster" Rick is looking for him out of spite and having nothing better to do.

No, no, no.

This is personal.

He really was "his" Morty, initially. "Puppetmaster" Rick never intended to replace him. When Eyepatch Morty framed him and escaped, "Puppetmaster" Rick saw it as the worst betrayal possible from the one person who was special to him. The underlying obsession suddenly makes any currently unfolding search for "his" Morty a thousand times more terrifying. This is not just about vengeance. "Puppetmaster" Rick may not have cared as much if a random Morty had trapped him in the Machine of Unspeakable Doom; but. Not. This. One. HE. WANTS. THIS. ONE. BACK. Whatever the cost.

(That's it, that the updated "Puppetmaster" Rick theory.)

Technically, the end result is identical whichever of the above scenarios is true: Eyepatch Morty would still get operated on. He would still come out of this knowing how to perform the mind control surgery. He would still be unable to actually kill "Puppetmaster" Rick. "Puppetmaster" Rick would still be alive.

However, I do think it makes for a much more interesting story if Eyepatch Morty and "Puppetmaster" Rick were actually "close" to each other in the beginning, rather than an unlucky Morty who happened to be picked by a sadistic Rick. But I have no concrete evidence and it makes no difference to the events that have unfolded.

HOWEVER.

There is ONE, CRUCIAL repercussion to the plot if "Puppetmaster" Rick was indeed one of Prime's victims, no matter how he got freed from his control:

He would be familiar with most of Prime's tech.

He saw Prime make a lot of stuff through his own hands.

He has whatever equipment was on his person when the connection was severed.

He knows how Prime acts, how he speaks, how he dresses, what he's like. He could impersonate Prime, if he wanted.

He knows where Prime's various lairs are outside the Curve, at least up until the point he was freed, because he literally saw them with his own eyes.

He knows the locations where a buttload of weapons and raw materials are stored.

Eyepatch Morty would likely not know anything about Prime's various lairs (I'm sure the implant forbid "Puppetmaster" Rick from verbally giving out any info), but he likely would have seen plenty of Prime's superior tech being actively used; at least whatever equipment was on "Puppetmaster" Rick's person when he was freed.

Including...

...Rick Prime's healing tech.

...You know, I was wandering how exactly Eyepatch Morty healed himself after gouging his own eye out. Given that removing the receiver equates with a death sentence, it seems there is a built-in contingency in the implant; something that fires and kills the victim for trying that transgression (along with another contingency that prevents you from killing yourself).

There were a lot of healing gimmic options presented in the story that Eyepatch could have used, but given that it doesn't really take a lot to instantly fry a person's brain, or, if (like Rick C-137's captive Prime clone who vanished into nothingness) the implant completely disintegrates the victim, I was wondering what on earth Eyepatch Morty used that was so potent it could essentially counter instant death.

And the answer is very simple.

Why, he used the best.

(...I can't imagine the process of "simultaneously getting disintegrated to death and getting healed" being pleasant.)

(...I can't imagine him wanting to repeat it to remove other parts of the implant.)

You still with me?

...Just one final thing.

EXHIBIT A:

Why is Eyepatch Morty so chill about Rick C-137 attacking him? Sure, he has the forcefield that protects him from getting shot, but what if Rick escalated things and went up against him like this:

Obviously Eyepatch Morty had plenty of ways to fight back against Rick's weapons (as we saw in the Prime Fight) but he couldn't have been sure he'd be able to counter all of them...

...unless he knew, for a fact, that he'd be able to get up from anything.

EXHIBIT B:

Whichever Morty it was, he got his gunshot wound miraculously healed with no explanation... (there was even a fan who noticed the similarities between Rick Prime's healing ability, and whatever happened to this one Morty, and I think they were wondering if it was some property of Rick Prime's lair... although I can't find that post anymore)

EXHIBIT C:

Why were we never shown Eyepatch Morty disabling Rick Prime's healing tech?

Did it happen off-screen to conserve time from showing us Eyepatch Morty poking and prodding him to find the time crystal or whatever equipment and remove it or find a way to turn it off?

Or did it happen off-screen because he already knew where it was and how to turn it off and it would only take seconds and it would be blatantly obvious to us Eyepatch Morty is familiar with it?

EXHIBIT D:

Why were we never shown Eyepatch Morty downloading the schematics for Rick Prime's healing tech, like he did with the Omega Device?

Did it, once again, happen off screen to conserve time? (But Eyepatch Morty is practical; would he really prioritize stealing any tech before minimizing danger for himself by killing Prime's backups?)

Was Eyepatch Morty simply not interested in having such a potent healing device, because he knew from personal experience that sometimes death is preferable? (But wouldn't he be able to connect the healing tech to his brain implant and turn it on or off at will, allowing him to die if he wished?)

...Or did he not bother stealing it because he already had it?

Plot-relevant conclusions:

We might see in the future Eyepatch Morty insta-healing from an injury, and we would assume he stole the tech from Rick Prime, but the reality would be he already had it.

"Puppetmaster" Rick would have access to A HUGE BUNCH of Prime's weapons

"Puppetmaster" Rick would be able to impersonate Rick Prime

The name "Puppetmaster Rick" really doesn't fit anymore.

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