Simon & Marcy "everyone [working on the series] was pitching in to make this one special". The episode features the voice of Ava Acres, who portrays the young version of Marceline. Acres had previously appeared in the third season episode "Memory of a Memory". As mentioned above, the episode makes notable use of the 1982 song "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" by Gary Portnoy—better known as the theme to the sitcom "Cheers". According to Sugar's father, Rob, on his official YouTube channel, the use of the song started merely as a placeholder. However, as the episode developed, Sugar decided to keep it in
Mike Portnoy The Who, Iron Maiden, and The Beatles, among many others. Portnoy claims to be self-taught as a drummer, though he did take music theory classes in high school. During that period he began playing in local bands, two of which (Rising Power and Inner Sanctum) recorded and released independent albums. He left Inner Sanctum (his last high school band) after being awarded a scholarship to attend the Berklee College of Music in Boston. There, he met John Petrucci and John Myung. They formed a band, initially taking the name "Majesty" before changing their name to Dream Theater. They left Berklee