We still can't find the joke in this trailer for Rick And Morty: The Anime

Ever since it was announced—way back in May of 2022, i.e., so long ago that Justin Roiland was still voicing the title characters back in its mothership series—we’ve been trying to figure out what the gag of Rick And Morty: The Anime is supposed to be. It has a great pedigree, sure, and even some solid proofs of concept, with series head Takashi Sano having already made five fun little shorts (transplanting basic Rick And Morty storytelling beats into anime situations) that aired in 2020 and 2021. But a full 10-episode series, of what is still essentially Rick And Morty, just with a different art style (and writers)? What’s it trying to say about the series? Or about anime? What, exactly, is the point?

If we’re being honest, we still don’t know, despite having now watched the new trailer for the series, which will debut on August 15 (before heading to Max the following day). It’s cool-looking, sure, with lots of high energy action, and all sorts of clear Rick And Morty signifiers. All of the characters seem to be basically the same, down to little cameos from Birdperson, Nimbus, and even that one Jerry who got kind of badass and cool after he got abandoned in Cronenberg World. But it still doesn’t resolve the basic dilemma: If you’re going to hew this close to the basic Rick And Morty template, what’s the point of making this thing in the first place, beyond just finding a way to get more episodes of the show out to feed the slavering fans?

Regardless of our quibbles, it’s clear Adult Swim is giving the series the full-court press. (It probably doesn’t hurt that non-anime Rick And Morty’s next season is far enough away that it’s still just being described as “probably some time in 2025.”) The network is running a touring promo event for the show that’ll kick off at Comic-Con, allowing fans to see the first full episode. That’ll air in English on Adult Swim on August 15, before re-running with Japanese voices on August 17 on Toonami.