'Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons and Dragons' Is Basically Nerd Heaven

Rick and Morty fans are twiddling their thumbs waiting for season four to be announced. They're distracting themselves by unearthing obscure Easter eggs, pouring over the Blu ray commentary, arguing about Kanye West, and sneaking references to the show into episodes of My Little Pony and Jeopardy! A better use of time might be to dig into Oni Press’s and IDW Publishing’s wealth of Rick and Morty comic books.

In fact, a meeting of titanic nerd titles is right around the corner in a new comic book series called Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons and Dragons. In this upcoming release, Rick and Morty live in a universe where all the cool high schoolers are obsessed with Dungeons and Dragons. They recount their campaigns on the bus, listen to the live action role playing podcast The Adventure Zone, and talk about Griffin McElroy like he’s Brad Pitt. To be honest, it seems like a dope world.

Morty, anxious about being left out of the trend, enlists Grandpa Rick’s help to learn the dos and don’ts of Wizards of the Coast’s iconic tabletop adventure game. The situation seems to get mighty spicy, based on the cover art released in April. We’ve got a sneak peek of a few panels from the first issue, which takes place before the magic swords, gelatinous ooze, and many-eyed monsters get involved.

Rick and Morty creators Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland aren’t involved in the comic, but the creatives behind it are incredible in their own right. Twitter famous fantasy writer Patrick Rothfuss, who people actually watch play tabletop RPGs live, teamed up with Marvel Comics alum Jim Zub to write Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons and Dragons. Troy Little, who captured Hunter S. Thompson’s gonzo spirit in the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas comic adaptation, is tackling the art.

Before the contract negotiations that famously delayed the announcement of Rick and Morty’s 70-episode renewal, staff writer Ryan Ridley speculated that the show wouldn’t return until 2019 or later. Now that Harmon and Roiland have revealed a more steady workflow, it’s anyone’s guess when the series will return. But in the meantime, fans will be able to live out their RPG dreams through each Rick and Morty vs. Dungeons and Dragons installment, which hits stores on August 22.

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