| Host | |
| Brad Jones (Pilot) The Nostalgia Critic (Doug Walker; series) | |
| Other Characters | |
| General Anesthetic (Fard Muhammad) Colonel Kink (Barney Walker; pilot only) Miss Stockholm (Tamara Chambers; pilot only) | |
| Broadcast (Channel Awesome) | |
 Series (Weekly): 7/15/2015 - 8/26/2015, 12/2-23/2015 | |
| Packager | |
| Channel Awesome | |
PILOT OPENING SPIEL:
"Brad Jones, my name is synonymous with nostalgia. But one thing has eluded me: the game show. I always wanted to try my hands running at the elusive prize, but when the powers that be refused, I had to take matters into my own hand. With the aid of my fellow partners in crime, General Anesthetic and the lovely Miss Stockholm, I've created my own prize-filled wonderland. Questions will be asked, contestants tortured for my amusement, but one thing always remains the same. Here the 80s and 90s rule. Heads up, universe, this is "Pop Quiz Hotshot"!"
SERIES OPENING SPIEL:
"I'm the Nostalgia Critic, and ever since I was a child I always wanted to play games of quoting movies and TV with my friends. The only problem was...I had no friends. Well, now that I have power, I can take my friends by force. With my new pal General Anesthetic, I can kidnap all the friends I want and force them to answer questions on my "Saved By the Bell"-style set. There will be laughs, trivia, those disturbing cartoons that give you night tremors...but most of all, there will be fun. The laughter and joy will last however long I want. Heads up, America, for this is "Pop Quiz Hotshot"!"
Pop Quiz Hotshot was a game show saluting nostalgic quotes and somewhat a satire of the genre a la The Cheap Show. Two contestants face off, with the victor facing the Nostalgia Critic for a "fabulous prize".
Premise[]
Round 1 begins with a mini-game worth 10 points (ala Double Dare), followed by the Critic alternating questions about nostalgic quotes to each contestant for 10 points apiece; giving a wrong answer that makes the Critic laugh still awards the points, however. At the end of Round 1, a "Spazzie" appears; the player who does not hit their buzzer first gets a punishment of the Critic's choosing for the entirety of Round 2.
For the pilot, the rules were different:
- Round 2 also began with a mini-game, but neither had any bearing on the rest of the show.
- The questions were about pop culture (1980s in Round 1, 1990s in Round 2), and had the contestants buzz in to answer.
- At one point during each round, an air horn went off; the player who didn't press their button first got punished, which involved wearing a costume from one of the Nostalgia Critic's old reviews and answering like said character.
In both the pilot and series, the player with the most points after Round 2 wins the game. The loser is taken off to be "killed".
Bonus Round[]
The winner of the main game faces off against the Nostalgia Critic in a rapid-fire quiz. General Anesthetic asks seven questions to each person, going back and forth. If the contestant wins, s/he receives a jackpot which starts at $100 and grows by $100 per show until won. However, if the Critic wins, the contestant is "killed".
On the pilot, Brad asked the questions and the round appeared to continue until a timer expired.
Rating[]
Trivia[]
- In September 2013, Channel Awesome received Indiegogo funds of $89,757. Of this, $47,767.67 was spent on studio upgrades and the initial costs for this show. According to the site, the rest of the money would be used on producing comic book- and video game-based game shows, neither of which got off the ground.
- According to former Channel Awesome contributor Allison Pregler (aka "Obscurus Lupa"), there were at least 17 pilot tapings, most (if not all) with the same questions and guests.
- In March 2018, Pregler further revealed that episodes were only posted because Channel Awesome CEO Mike Michaud forced them to, as Indiegogo was going to investigate them for producing nothing of what they had promised to backers. Since the posted episodes showed an effort to complete the stated goal, this covered them legally.
- Also according to Pregler, the pilot's endgame was supposed to be rigged in the contestant's favor, but the cards ended up being switched and the Critic won as a result.
- The show's title is a reference to the 1994 film Speed in which Howard Payne (played by Dennis Hopper) asked "Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a bomb on the bus. Once the bus goes 50 miles an hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50, it blows up. What do you do? What do you do?"
- The aired version of the pilot contains several questions about other game shows, including Remote Control, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, and Monopoly.
- Episode 7 had voice actor Uncle Yo and pilot host Brad Jones as contestants, with reference made to the pilot.
Links[]
Official Channel Awesome video posts for the pilot and Episode 1
Official Channel Awesome video posts for Episodes 2-11
YouTube Videos[]
Official series playlist (pilot not included)