This nonlinear style of storytelling is ultimately the fatal flaw for Rick and Morty: The Anime. With the anime having to tell its story out of order, conversations between characters could never really allude to anything happening because it was unclear as to when a particular scene was taking place. It wasn’t clear as to what the actual timeline of the series looks like, and that was an issue that was carried all the way to the end.
That one special is all the anime dick&mo needed.