Rick And Morty Season 6, Episode 5 Showcases A Brand-New Skill From Rick's Résumé

To be the smartest person in the universe(s) comes with a fair amount of perks. Not only does one have access to all sorts of alternate realities through the usage of trans-dimensional portals, but also an impressive collection of gadgets that would make Batman and Inspector Gadget blush. As such, Rick Sanchez (Justin Roiland) in "Rick and Morty" has no qualms about expressing his superiority to his family, the Galactic Federation, and even to other iterations of himself.

Over the years, fans of the show have seen Rick utilize all manner of tricks and equipment to further his own agenda. He has created giant holographic images of himself that taunt decoys and those who would dare to use his isolated toilet. He has also manifested all sorts of weaponry from his body, which have included guns, rockets, lasers, skis, and even telescopic eyes. Even while fighting a cybernetic Bird Person (Dan Harmon), it is revealed that his organs are encased in reactive protective armor. 

Now that Episode 5 of Season 6 has dropped, viewers have been treated to yet another tool in Rick's arsenal, and this one is based on a popular image editing program.

Episode 5, titled "Final DeSmithation," picks up with Rick and company enjoying dinner at a Panda Express. After their meals are finished, the family is given fortune cookies, with one in particular being relatively foul and implying that Jerry Smith (Chris Parnell) is going to have a stomach-churning experience with his own mother. This in itself throws Jerry into an absolute state of shock and horror, and although his family tells him to let it go, it only causes him to focus on the fortune even more so. In order to get to the bottom of things, both Rick and Jerry infiltrate a company called Fortune 500, which is the fictional company that produces said fortunes.

Upon their investigation of Fortune 500, Rick comes to the startling conclusion that this company can in fact manipulate fate and that he and Jerry will need to infiltrate their headquarters. Summoning a new outfit for himself and Jerry, they creep through this area while avoiding the incredible amount of security in place. At this point, Jerry and Rick notice approaching security guards, which causes Rick to activate one of his gadgets, which generates several symbols from the palm of his hand. Rick then selects one symbol, which looks like a stamp, that he then uses to target the wall and coat both himself and Jerry in a similar pattern, allowing them to hide from the guards.

This is a hilarious joke for those familiar with Photoshop, or other similar editing programs, because it is the clone tool. Not only that, but several other icons are directly lifted from editing programs, like the icons for drag, paintbrush, text, and zoom. Clone tools act by defining a point on an image, and then when a mouse or similar instrument is used, it will duplicate the source image. This is great for editing all sorts of images, but it seems as if Rick has taken this tool into the real world for the sake of camouflage. This scene even features a familiar mouse-click sound effect, further driving the point home.

According to Techopedia, many image editing programs utilize a clone tool, which may also be called a rubber stamp tool or clone brush tool, and is primarily used in the editing processes. The site then goes on to list several examples in which a clone tool may used, such as removing blemishes from faces or removing telephone wires from pictures of the sky. 

However, there is no mention of using a clone tool to blend into your surroundings, which truly shows that Rick is able to take inspiration from something, and transform it into an object that he can use at any point for his own gain. After all, who would have thought that a program like Photoshop could be used in such a manner? Then again, we are talking about the smartest man within the Central Finite Curve.