Rick and Morty is well known for its April Fool's Day gags but fans of the adult animated sci-fi comedy likely weren't expecting what was unleashed during last Saturday's Toonami. Speaking to the Observer, Adult Swim's Sr. VP and Creative Director Jason DeMarco revealed that he was the architect behind the anime-inspired short that channeled its inner Lone Wolf and Cub.
"The idea for a Rick and Morty anime short came from myself," said DeMarco. "We are always making interesting little Rick and Morty Network IDs, with other artists doing their interpretation of the characters, and I thought it would be cool to do an anime take on the show."
To create the product, DeMarco reached out to Japanese film producer, Maki Terashima, a colleague he's known for years and someone that specializes in cross-cultural productions having previously worked on the live-action Ghost in the Shell film starring Scarlett Johansson, Neo Yokio, and Adult Swim's recent FLCL revivals Progressive and Alternative. In turn, Terashima reached out to a colleague at Studio Deen, Kaichi Sato, who just happened to be a big Rick and Morty fan. Deen is a veteran anime studio that's been around since 1975 and has produced such memorable titles as Rurouni Kenshin, Ranma ½ , GetBackers, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju and many more.
In regards to the Lone Wolf and Cub homage, DeMarco states that the idea originated with Sato. "This short uses the music from [the Lone Wold and Cub] films, as well as an homage to their score with the Rick and Morty theme song re-recorded in that style. The voices of Rick and Morty are played by the Japanese actors who play Rick and Morty in the Japanese version of the show, as well. Sato loves Lone Wolf and Cub and so do I, so I was really excited when he brought us the concept."
Rick and Morty creators Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland were aware of the side project but weren't involved in its creation or production.