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| Rick and Morty parody is 'nothing like' Bendigo, Australian city's mayor insists | Rick and Morty parody is 'nothing like' Bendigo, Australian city's mayor insists |
| (30 days later) | |
| The mayor of an Australian city featured in a parody of the popular cartoon Rick and Morty has welcomed the sudden spike in internet traffic about her community, saying “I guess any publicity is good publicity”. | The mayor of an Australian city featured in a parody of the popular cartoon Rick and Morty has welcomed the sudden spike in internet traffic about her community, saying “I guess any publicity is good publicity”. |
| The rural city of Bendigo in central Victoria was featured in the 11-minute Australian-themed parody short, which aired on a loop on the US cable channel Adult Swim on 1 April. | The rural city of Bendigo in central Victoria was featured in the 11-minute Australian-themed parody short, which aired on a loop on the US cable channel Adult Swim on 1 April. |
| It has also been shared with the show’s social media following of almost 5 million people and streamed on the Adult Swim website. | It has also been shared with the show’s social media following of almost 5 million people and streamed on the Adult Swim website. |
| Created by the Australian animator Michael Cusack, the short showed protagonists “Reek” and “Mordi” leaving on a 12-hour roadtrip to Bendigo to retrieve Reek’s green cube, riffing on the inter-dimensional adventures of the titular Rick and Morty from the animated series, which was created by Dan Harmon. | Created by the Australian animator Michael Cusack, the short showed protagonists “Reek” and “Mordi” leaving on a 12-hour roadtrip to Bendigo to retrieve Reek’s green cube, riffing on the inter-dimensional adventures of the titular Rick and Morty from the animated series, which was created by Dan Harmon. |
| Bendigo is depicted as a barren wasteland, and the short itself is darker and more vulgar than its already disturbing source material. | Bendigo is depicted as a barren wasteland, and the short itself is darker and more vulgar than its already disturbing source material. |
| Google searches from the United States for “Bendigo” spiked within minutes of its release. | Google searches from the United States for “Bendigo” spiked within minutes of its release. |
| Can't believe @MichaelRCusack has single handidly saved the bendigo tourisim scene. Next thing you know Dubbo and wagga wagga going to be hitting him up. pic.twitter.com/cqpTtolSUu | Can't believe @MichaelRCusack has single handidly saved the bendigo tourisim scene. Next thing you know Dubbo and wagga wagga going to be hitting him up. pic.twitter.com/cqpTtolSUu |
| That Rick and Morty parody has ruined my TweetDeck feed for Bendigo pic.twitter.com/CUPV5NlDEe | That Rick and Morty parody has ruined my TweetDeck feed for Bendigo pic.twitter.com/CUPV5NlDEe |
| The Bendigo mayor, Margaret O’Rourke, watched the short on Tuesday morning after hearing about it on ABC radio. | The Bendigo mayor, Margaret O’Rourke, watched the short on Tuesday morning after hearing about it on ABC radio. |
| She was not familiar with the original program and said she was “quite staggered” by the vulgar parody. | She was not familiar with the original program and said she was “quite staggered” by the vulgar parody. |
| “Obviously there are different tastes for everyone,” O’Rourke told Guardian Australia. “But I believe the Google searches have soared ever since it was released, and people would know by those searches that Bendigo is nothing like what’s in the parody.” | “Obviously there are different tastes for everyone,” O’Rourke told Guardian Australia. “But I believe the Google searches have soared ever since it was released, and people would know by those searches that Bendigo is nothing like what’s in the parody.” |
| The city of 115,000 is the third-largest in Victoria, after Melbourne and Geelong, and just held its annual Easter festival, which is the most popular tourist event of the year. | The city of 115,000 is the third-largest in Victoria, after Melbourne and Geelong, and just held its annual Easter festival, which is the most popular tourist event of the year. |
| “In some ways I guess any publicity is good publicity,” O’Rourke said. “Bendigo is a very vibrant and beautiful place and nothing like what has been displayed.” | “In some ways I guess any publicity is good publicity,” O’Rourke said. “Bendigo is a very vibrant and beautiful place and nothing like what has been displayed.” |
| Cusack, who is based in Wollongong in New South Wales, admitted he had never been to Bendigo but thought the name sounded funny. | Cusack, who is based in Wollongong in New South Wales, admitted he had never been to Bendigo but thought the name sounded funny. |
| Me realizing @RickandMorty done April fooled us #bendigo #RickandMorty pic.twitter.com/29XwwqGs5P | Me realizing @RickandMorty done April fooled us #bendigo #RickandMorty pic.twitter.com/29XwwqGs5P |
| “For some reason, Bendigo sounded funny to me, I don’t know what it is, but it’s something behind that name, that it seemed right to use, so I went with it,” he told the ABC. | “For some reason, Bendigo sounded funny to me, I don’t know what it is, but it’s something behind that name, that it seemed right to use, so I went with it,” he told the ABC. |
| The short met with a mixed response from the show’s often problematic fan base, with some calling for more episodes and others disappointed to have received a genuine April Fool’s Day joke instead of the release of the show’s fourth season. | The short met with a mixed response from the show’s often problematic fan base, with some calling for more episodes and others disappointed to have received a genuine April Fool’s Day joke instead of the release of the show’s fourth season. |
| The boys head to the Bush Dimension. Streaming now and on TV till midnight: https://t.co/ewRdtVTwPe pic.twitter.com/Opb0CVD5VY | The boys head to the Bush Dimension. Streaming now and on TV till midnight: https://t.co/ewRdtVTwPe pic.twitter.com/Opb0CVD5VY |
| The Rick and Morty season three premiere was released on 1 April 2017 and received 11.7m online views. The season finale was even more popular, making it the most popular comedy television show for 18- to 34-year-olds in the US. | The Rick and Morty season three premiere was released on 1 April 2017 and received 11.7m online views. The season finale was even more popular, making it the most popular comedy television show for 18- to 34-year-olds in the US. |
| A deal for the fourth season has yet to be signed due to protracted contract negotiations with the network, Harmon has said. | A deal for the fourth season has yet to be signed due to protracted contract negotiations with the network, Harmon has said. |
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