Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland was fired by Adult Swim after accusations of domestic abuse were made public. While the decision was made not to press charges, the floodgates opened and a series of sexual abuse and misconduct claims followed.
Roiland has strongly denied everything, though he hasn't been able to shrug off a resurfaced podcast appearance, which saw him make inappropriate comments about underage girls, quite so easily.
All of this left Rick and Morty in something of a mess, with the decision eventually made to recast Roiland's roles. During the first six seasons, he was credited with at least 25 roles and filling the void his departure leaves won't be easy.
In the season 7 premiere, newcomers Ian Cardoni and Harry Belden were revealed to have been chosen as the new Rick and Morty, while John Allen was tapped to play Mr. Poopybutthole. They're all soundalikes and, while the trio did an admirable job, something still felt a little off with all three characters.
That could go some way in explaining the poor negative response to the show.
As we first reported on Toonado.com, Rick and Morty season 7 had a "Rotten" 57% on Rotten Tomatoes by Monday morning, though it has since risen to a slightly healthier "Fresh" 63%. Even so, this still makes it the worst-reviewed season to date. It's important to note that this score will likely change in the weeks ahead as there are still another nine episodes to go. However, it's not a good start.
For comparison's sake, season 1 has 97%, season 2 has 91%, season 3 has 96%, season 4 has 96%, season 5 has 86%, and season 6 has 91%.
It appears even fans have largely rejected the show upon its return as its Audience Score is a dismal 32%.
Is all of this really down to the change in voice actors? The premiere certainly wasn't Rick and Morty's strongest outing, but with the characters lacking Roiland's unique performance, the jokes arguably didn't land quite the same way.
Roiland possibly returning to the show is completely off the table (and understandably so) but it will be interesting to see where Rick and Morty goes from here. The show can still turn things around over the coming weeks, but if this initial response has an impact on ratings moving forward...well, Rick may not get his 100 seasons after all.
"Rick and Morty are back and sounding more like themselves than ever!" reads the synopsis for the show's return. "It's season seven, and the possibilities are endless: What's up with Jerry? EVIL Summer?! And will they ever go back to the high school?! Maybe not! But let's find out!"
"There's probably less piss than last season," it continues. "'Rick and Morty,' 100 years! Or at least until season 10!"
Rick and Morty season 7 premiered on Adult Swim on October 15.