Rick and Morty spoilers follow.
Across the infinite multiverse, there are also an infinite number of Ricks. Starting with Rick C-137, Rick and Morty introduced fans to the Council of Ricks soon after, and then things got even schwiftier from there.
Pickle Rick, Shrimp Rick, Wasp Rick... the possibilities are truly endless, so it was only a matter of time before Adult Swim would bring us a Samurai Rick. What did take us by surprise though is that this new Rick would debut in a surprise anime special which dropped while the regular show is still on hiatus. Check it out above!
Inspired by the classic manga Lone Wolf and Cub, (which in turn inspired The Mandalorian), 'Samurai and Shogun' follows Samurai Rick as he walks through a field at night with Shogun Morty. The pair are suddenly ambushed by a small army of Ninja Ricks who teleport in and attack.
The ensuing battle is just as manic as you'd expect, combining the insanity of Rick and Morty with the theatricality of anime at its most violent. What's most impressive about all this is how 'Samurai and Shogun' balances these two styles with such ease.
Much of that is down to Studio DEEN, the animators who helmed this blood-drenched escapade — and it helps that Yohei Tadano and Keisuke Chiba were enlisted too. These two actors usually lend their voices to Rick and Morty for the Japanese dub, and their involvement here adds extra layers of authenticity to the project.
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At first glance, these kind of random shorts might just seem like a fun way to fill time while the main show takes a break, but in reality, their impact could affect Rick and Morty in a big way moving forward.
Back in 2018, Adult Swim announced that Rick and Morty had been renewed for seventy more episodes. The announcement had fans screaming "Wubba lubba dub dub" with joy, but as longtime viewers might remember, that phrase actually means: "I am in great pain, please help me."
New episodes should be a cause for celebration, but a renewal that big is also a bit worrying. While the first three seasons of Rick and Morty shone brighter than one of Rick's inter-dimensional portals, season four hasn't been quite as strong so far. If the quality is already dipping five episodes into this new run, what's in store for the remaining sixty-five episodes that haven't been released yet?
While it's encouraging that the creators are taking their time with each new run, this means that Rick and Morty is going to be around for a very long time indeed. After all, it's taken eight years just to release what we've seen so far, and if they continue at their current rate, then the team will still be producing Rick and Morty two decades down the line.
No show can maintain itself for that long without making some drastic changes, and that's where shorts like 'Samurai and Shogun' come into play. Rick and Morty has already played around with the show's format before, most notably with earlier claymation shorts and even stranger efforts such as 'Bushworld Adventures'.
To stay relevant and avoid viewer fatigue, Rick and Morty will have to experiment more in future seasons, enlisting other creatives to play around with the show's form and genre. Fresh blood would also help address themes that Rick and Morty currently lacks, including queer representation and more rounded female characters.
This need to mix things up is true of all shows to some degree. However, none lend themselves better to this idea than Rick and Morty.
In a world where Rick can transform himself into a pickle or meet alternate shrimp versions of himself from another dimension, it wouldn't be much of a stretch for the show to explore new styles entirely while still retaining what makes it special in the first place.
After all, there's an infinite number of possibilities out there in the multiverse, and Samurai Rick could just the beginning.
Rick and Morty airs on Adult Swim in the US and Netflix in the UK.
![Rick and Morty Season 1-3 [Blu-Ray]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1573053428-511PG0pmhOL.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "Rick and Morty Season 1-3 [Blu-Ray]")
Cryptozoic Entertainment Rick and Morty Total Rickall Cooperative Card Game
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After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
