Just in time for the birth of the Baby Jesus – or whatever holiday the month of December promotes – Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim delivered a teaser promoting the upcoming eighth season of Emmy winning series Rick and Morty. Unfortunately, unlike the animatic previewed at this year’s New York Comic Con by Executive Producers Dan Harmon and Scott Marder, this teaser doesn’t include any previews or highlights of the upcoming season. It also doesn’t revisit any past adventures a la Morty’s Mind Benders as a means of reengaging with audiences who – despite the Takashi Sono Rick and Morty: The Anime released earlier this year – have been awaiting new episodes since last christmas.
Still, in under 2 minutes the showrunners and star studded voice acting cast which includes Harry Belden, Ian Cardoni, Sarah Chalke, Spencer Graham and Chris Parnell manage to provide audiences with just what the world needs now. A gift to everyone – including his family – of what a wonderful life with Rick is like.
If you happen to be one of the losers yet to portal Swim to take a peek into the Smith/Sanchez household dynamic, here’s the previously on. After two decades of absence, Rick Sanchez reenters the lives of his now married daughter who has two children of her own. The opening moments of the first episode are just a little bit of the insanity and outlandish antics that viewers – along with Morty – have come to be prepared for each week. For the most part Beth is overjoyed at Rick’s return but for Jerry it would take a while before he didn’t wish the mad scientist would disappear again. Guess given the season you could call this teaser the Ghost of Rick-Mas Past.
As for the teaser – which clocks in at 1:23 – it begins with an unfamiliar alien standing in what is obviously, to any fan of the show, the Smith family’s living room. The creature gives a brief biography before inquiring whether it is okay to start. Off camera a somewhat familiar voice advises they can proceed, at which point the alien begins a pretty good impersonation of someone fans of the show will certainly recognize.
From there the clip features several seconds of various “actors” all who are apparently auditioning for a familiar – and irreplaceable, take that Paul Fleishman – role in the Smith family. This becomes even more apparent once the Smith’s return from what appears to have been a holiday shopping spree. One which Rick got out of because he had “important house business”; a claim that Morty is now questioning. After receiving some backlash for the auditions from Beth and Summer – not to mention Jerry, who gets increasingly upset after realizing these are callback auditions – before cutting to text suggesting the upcoming season will feature an All New Jerry.
If you’re new to Rick and Morty don’t allow the events of the teaser to deceive you. Despite their opposing ideologies – and intellect – Rick and Jerry have a deep connection. Over the course of the series 7 seasons the two have been on several adventures together starting with season 1’s M. Night Shaym-Aliens. So many that next to Morty, it is Jerry who comes in second place in terms of running around the galaxy with Rick. In fact these days the two may even be closer than the title card indicates after the events of season 7’s The Jerrick Trap that saw the two get rather intimate. First, due to their brains being inadvertently swapped before eventually merging to share the same body. The adventures of Burger and Fries was a far cry – or whine – away from the animosity and disdain filled relationship that was set up in the show’s pilot.
Meanwhile, even without any additional information, the teaser at least indicates that the series is one step closer to Rick’s prophetic proclamation from that episode; infinite seasons of Rick and Morty. Thanks to the teaser, and after some more whining on his part, we at least know that we will still have the original Jerry when Rick and Morty returns in 2025. But for a show that skirts the edges of infinity – in regards to themes, topics and tones – that still leaves plenty of opportunities, and even more adventures, left to surprise longtime fans.