Who is in Love with Rick? A Deep Dive into the Romantic Relationships of Rick Sanchez

Hi friend! It‘s your pal Terry here, back again to geek out over one of my favorite animated shows, Rick and Morty. I know you‘ve been wondering: who exactly has Rick Sanchez fallen in love with over the course of the series? There‘s been a fair bit of romance for our grizzled, eccentric mad scientist, even if he claims not to care about love or connection. Well, strap in, because we‘re about to break down Rick‘s major romantic entanglements.

Rick‘s marriage to Diane Sanchez

While we don‘t see her directly in the show, Rick‘s late wife Diane was his original love. They were married and had their daughter Beth together. Rick speaks about Diane with genuine love and longing at times, like when he tells Unity:

"I loved my wife, Unity. I really did. But she got up against this terrible wall. I was naive. I didn‘t know how to help her. You know, we met in college. She was so…free. It was magical. And…our daughter being born, I thought that would fix everything. Ah…that freedom I lost… I didn‘t know how to get it back, Unity. Until I met you."

Diane‘s tragic death broke something in Rick and spurred his descent into extreme nihilism and recklessness. Losing Diane left a hole in Rick‘s heart that he‘s tried to fill with alien hiveminds and space adventures ever since.

Rick‘s fling with Unity

One of Rick‘s most significant loves was the hivemind entity known as Unity. Rick and Unity had an intense romantic and sexual relationship with a mindblowing metaphysical component, since Unity possessed an entire planet of beings.

Their connection was so powerful it inspired Rick into uncharacteristic optimism, leading him to proclaim:

"You make me feel that maybe there‘s a chance that someone out there can accept me."

But in the end the very nature of Unity‘s communal consciousness led to turbulent conflict with Rick‘s individualism. They were forced to leave each other, in one of the most heartbreaking separations in animation history.

Complicated feelings for his family

When it comes to closer familial bonds, Rick expresses a more complicated mix of emotions. He often acts dismissive or callous toward his daughter Beth, grandkids Morty and Summer, and even his surrogate son-in-law Jerry.

However, Rick does show moments of authentic care towards them, such as when he tears up and hugs Morty after nearly losing him in "Rick Potion #9." And while most wouldn‘t consider incest healthy, he openly hit on both Beth and Summer when he was detoxed in "Rest and Ricklaxation."

So while Rick purports not to value his family connections, he depends on them deeply and becomes completely unmoored when they are threatened, as seen in his berserker rampage in the episode "Auto-Erotic Assimilation."

Toxic chemistry with Morty

No discussion of Rick‘s love life would be complete without looking at his quasi-abusive but codependent relationship with Morty. Their camaraderie crosses some ethical lines, like when Morty was forced to hide a giant sperm in his room after Rick made him donate at a space hospital in "Vat of Acid."

And while Rick frequently endangers, belittles and manipulates Morty, they have also shown real affection. Morty is the person Rick trusts the most, even over his own daughter Beth. The musical episode "Gotron Jerrysis Rickvangelion" explored their conflicted bond in the song "It‘s Been a Long, Long Time."

Morty croons: "Rick, I don‘t like adventure all of the time. My feelings matter, stop pretending they don‘t."

So while toxic at times, Rick and Morty‘s dyad remains the most intimate relationship in Sanchez‘s life.

Rick‘s belief in love

How does Rick really feel about love after all the romantic failures and dysfunction in his past? He often expresses cynicism, such as saying:

"Listen Morty, I hate to break it to you, but what people call ‘love‘ is just a chemical reaction that compels animals to breed."

But we‘ve also seen Rick fight for and mourn lost love, even cry over being denied it. In the episode "Rickternal Friendshine of the Spotless Mort," Rick tells his imagined demons:

“I do deserve love, I know that I do. I’m a great guy.”

So perhaps beneath the cynical exterior, Rick still craves the kind of selfless connection he once had with Diane. He builds walls of arrogance and denial against being hurt again, but inside he remains a damaged soul searching for someone who can accept him. And that paradox of insecurity and grandiosity is what makes Rick such a complex, compelling character.

Well friend, we‘ve covered a lot of ground exploring Rick Sanchez‘s romantic history today. To recap, the key loves in Rick‘s life have been…

• Diane – Rick‘s beloved late wife and Beth‘s mother
• Unity – The hivemind that was Rick‘s most profound love
• His family, especially Beth, Morty and Summer
• Potential incestuous feelings for Beth and Summer when detoxed
• A co-dependent and abusive bond with Morty

Despite often claiming not to care, Rick has shown he needs connection and becomes self-destructive without it. Underneath the callous facade, he still seeks the kind of unconditional love he briefly had with Diane. Thanks for joining me on this deep dive into the swirling vortex of Sanchez‘s heart! Let me know if you want me to geek out about any other Rick and Morty topics in the future.