Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Rick and Morty season 5.
Rick and Morty has introduced a fantastic range of brand-new supervillains — the perfect candidates for a supervillain team-up. While previous seasons might have introduced one or two big baddies, Rick and Morty season 5 has introduced a new villain in every episode. With so many new villains with unfinished business, it's likely that Rick and Morty is gearing up to put together a supervillain team.
Rick and Morty season 5 has had some of the wildest plot lines and villains of the series so far. "Mort Dinner Rick Andre" introduced Mr. Nimbus, Rick's greatest nemesis and King of the Ocean. "Mortyplicity" introduced an infinity of Smith family decoys, as well as Mr. Always Wants To Be Hunted, who was one of the few to make it out of the episode alive. While "A Rickconvenient Mort" started as a romance, it quickly crashed and burned when Morty broke Planetina's heart after her murderous rampage. The Sperm Queen was defeated by the end of "Rickdependence Spray," but the Giant Incest Baby still has the potential to cause future trouble. "Amortycan Grickfitti" introduced the Hell demons, who take pleasure from pain and cringe, and the Changeformers, who Rick's ship slaughtered after they teased her for only being a car.
This lineup of characters has the potential to come back as the incredible league of villains that Rick and Morty needs. Season 5 introduced Rick's proclaimed nemesis, Mr. Nimbus, who would make a fearsome leader of the league. All of them finished their respective episodes with unfinished business — and some, like Mr. Nimbus, have inextricable ties to Rick and the Smith family, making it likely that they'll be back to settle the score later. All of this combined creates the perfect storm for all of them — and any others introduced in season 5 — to return later in the season as a unified league of villains.
Rick & Morty’s Season 5 Villains Expand the Universe
Rick and Morty's season 5 villains have brought up some major questions about the Rick and Morty universe. Mr. Nimbus's presence opens a door for the show to explore more of Rick's past — especially regarding Rick's wife, Diane. On a similar level, the presence of the Hell demons expands the universe into new territory as Rick, Beth, and Jerry all take a trip through Hell. This not only gives the Smiths a new domain to explore but raises a lot of questions about the demons themselves — how did Rick get involved with them, and how did they become a race of Hellraiser-esque aesthetics? While Mr. Always Wants To Be Hunted has no backstory so far, he does bear a resemblance to Mr. Poopy Butthole, meaning it's possible the two are of the same species. If that's true, there is the potential to finally explore one of the series' weirdest characters. The Giant Incest Baby is also a large question mark in the Rick and Morty universe, as it has been left out in the universe to develop. Planetina further develops the idea of superheroes in the Rick and Morty universe, as well as the ethics behind their existence.
Rick & Morty’s Season 5 Villains Have Unfinished Business
Each villain introduced in season 5 has been left with unfinished business. Mr. Nimbus and Rick have had a long-standing feud and Rick's attempt to strip him of his powers left new bad blood between them. With no truce agreed upon, Rick and Mr. Nimbus's rivalry has been jump-started once more (he also had a threesome with Jerry and Beth, which ties him into Rick's life more than Rick knows). Inversely, Mr. Always Wants To Be Hunted is entirely a mystery; his motives and his backstory have yet to be revealed, but he is clearly out for blood and is very serious about being hunted. It's unknown if every decoy family has been taken care of, but if any survived, their main objective will be eliminating the remaining Smiths. Rick owed the Hell demons a debt, and he and Beth were the demons' greatest source of suffering. Planetina and the Giant Incest Baby both have unfinished business with Morty, and even Rick's car made enemies in the Changeformers. The common denominator of these villains is that they have unfinished business with the Smith family, so a team-up between them all to take down the Smiths together would make sense.
Rick & Morty Season 5 Has Introduced Rick’s Nemesis
Rick & Morty's season 5 premiere introduced Mr. Nimbus, Rick's greatest nemesis. Mr. Nimbus is the King of the Ocean and Atlantas. He also has the ability to control the police, which he demonstrates multiple times throughout the episode. Rick and Mr. Nimbus's backstories seem to be tightly interwoven; the two appear to even have been friends until their falling out. Mr. Nimbus is the first person to ever refer to Rick Sanchez as "Richard," and alluded to knowing Rick's mysterious wife Diane — he even makes a brief reference towards sleeping with Rick at the end of the episode. He is also one of the few people Rick has ever appeared afraid of; just the thought of Morty breaking their truce was enough to make Rick panic. Which so much unfinished business between them and Mr. Nimbus's ability to go toe-to-toe with Rick, he would be a very likely candidate for a Rick and Morty league of villains.
Rick & Morty Season 5 Needs A League of Villains
Rick and Morty season 5 ultimately needs a league of villains. The season has brought up a string of major baddies with unfinished business which all lead back to the Smith family; they may all have their individual motives, but they all want to see the Smith family burn. A league of villains would be the ultimate way to display the incredible villains this season has introduced, but it would also give the Smith family another excuse to really work together. The entire family has displayed some major growth throughout season 5 — Beth and Jerry have been making attempts to be better parents, and Morty and Summer are starting to stand on their own apart from Rick, handling entire adventures on their own. Even Rick and Jerry have made progress in their relationship, as Rick feels guilt for taking advantage of Jerry in "Amortycan Grickfitti," resulting in an actual apology from Rick. A league of villains hellbent on destroying their family would allow the Smiths to really showcase what they can do as a unified front. A team-up of the Smiths against the villains of Rick and Morty season 5 would display the very best the show has to offer.