10 Rick And Morty Fan Theories That Change Everything
5. Rick Never Left
One of the things we have been told time and time again about Rick's sketchy past is that he left the family for 20 years. What we don't know however, is why exactly he left, and why exactly he came back when he did. It's no surprise we haven't been given these details, but what if there no details to give.
Rick had supposedly been gone for 20 years when he came back to Beth and her 14 year old son, so how is it possible for Birdperson to have a photograph of his friend holding Morty as a child? It makes no sense with the timeline we have been given, so maybe the timeline is wrong. Maybe Rick never actually left.
One theorist points to Rick's ability to wipe people's memories as the reason why his family believe he left, something he did to avoid them being able to give any information up should they fall into the wrong hands and be subjected to interrogation.
This exact situation presented itself at the end of The Wedding Squanchers, so maybe it was something Rick planned to do again in the future, with the Intergalactic Federation's sting coming at the wrong time.