Brad Jones was originally meant to be the host, but after the pilot, he was unable to commit to the series, and so Doug Walker stepped in to replace him as host using his Nostalgia Critic persona.
Series first went into development in 2013, but production was constantly hindered due to scheduling conflicts, financial difficulties and creative differences.
The show was financed through an Indiegogo campaign. According to claims by former producers, the show was mostly the idea of Channel Awesome CEO, Michael Michaud, and few of the talent had interest in it. Multiple pilots were shot and a potential fraud investigation by Indiegogo pushed Michaud to hastily release the show to deliver on the promise. Crowdfunding perks were also delivered six months late.
The Nostalgia Critic, played by Doug Walker, and General Anesthetic, played by Fard Muhammad, are the only characters in every episode of the series, including the pilot. The Critic was elevated from the final round's challenger to the series host, and General Anesthetic was the "contestant enforcer" for the entire series, but was also the final round's host starting with the second episode.