Channel Awesome

Douglas Darien "Doug" Walker (born: ), better known online as Channel Awesome (also known as the Nostalgia Critic, formerly ThatGuyWithTheGlasses), is an Italian-American YouTuber, reviewer, actor, and film maker. His channel mainly consists of Nostalgia Critic Reviews, The Making of Nostalgia Critic Reviews, Real Thoughts on Nostalgia Critic, Bum Reviews, Doug Walker Reviews, Sibling Rivalry, Spoiler Corner, Various TV Vlogs, Pop Quiz Hot Shot episodes, Demo Reel, as well as reuploads of classic Nostalgia Critic episodes.
==Early Life==
Walker was born in Naples, Italy to parents Barney and Sandra Walker, along with his older brother, Robert Walker. His family moved to the United States and lived in many different places across the country when he was growing up. He went on to study film at Northern Illinois University, majoring in communications. 
After college, he worked as an illustrator and started making YouTube videos for fun. He first grabbed viewers' attention with clever 5 second movie versions of popular films, and gained more notoriety with his snarky "Nostalgia Critic" reviews.
In 2008, "Nostalgia Critic" moved from YouTube to the independent site That Guy With the Glasses and Channel Awesome. By 2009, an increased income from advertising on the new site allowed Walker to quit his day job (a video that he made to commemorate the occasion also went viral) and develop his web persona full-time.
==Personal Life==
Doug has a older brother named Rob who often contributed to the site in its early days via reviews of movies, shows and toys or anything else that came his way. Normally, Rob is the man behind the camera as he films Doug's shows such as Bum Reviews, The Nostalgia Critic and Ask That Guy With the Glasses. Every once in a while he cameos in a few of the videos. He's also one of the site's co-writers, providing much of the material used in videos. Their company currently is based in Chicago, Illinois.
==Cast==
The channel awesome cast consists of many people including Doug, Rob, and Barney Walker, Tamara Chambers, Malcolm Ray, Ryan McGee, Walter Banasiak, Jim Jaroz, Heather Reusz, and Aiyanna Wade.
==Controversies==
===Abuse allegations===
On April 2, 2018, a document was released titled "Not So Awesome", in which it had former Channel Awesome members, including Linkara, Lindsay Ellis, Allison Pregler, Benzaie, and more talking about their experience working with the company.https://docs.google.com/document/d/1WZFkR__B3Mk9EYQglvislMUx9HWvWhOaBP820UBa4dA/edit#heading=h.yolnfgrwxs0r 
Allegations made against the channel include turning a blind eye to sexual harassment until it almost got violent, not compensating people for days of work, not providing food or water for people on their movie sets, and trying to force two of their contributors (Linkara and Lindsay Ellis) to do a rape/sexual assault scene.https://twitter.com/AllisonPregler/status/974025422873784320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E974026529868001281%7Ctwgr%5Ea52dd79fa9f23ea2ae378bdcffb0594b917c201c%7Ctwcon%5Es2_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailydot.com%2Fupstream%2Fchannel-awesome-sexual-misconduct-allegations%2Fr The abuse was primarily done by member Justin "JewWario" Carmichael and COO, Mike Ellis.
Channel Awesome gained severe backlash, losing about 70,000 subscribers due to these allegations. This would result in a campaign on Twitter called #ChangeTheChannel, which was made to fix multiple issues with the company.
==Criticism==
Some of the channel's videos have been criticized by multiple fans and audiences. One example is Doug Walker's short film, Melvin: Brother of the Joker. This short consists of the brother of the Joker, Melvin describing himself while being constantly interrupted. This short was criticized for unfunny humor and slow pace. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMwGNRWBh9A Another example is when the Nostalgia Critic played the SNES game, Bart's Nightmare. This gameplay video would also be criticized for the same reasons.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjhB6wUoZKQ
After the film To Boldly Flee was released where the Nostalgia Critic was killed, Doug Walker planned a new series titled Demo Reel in 2012. This show focused on budget filmmakers creating parodies of popular Hollywood films. The new show was bashed for its confusing morals, terrible characters, and slow, unfunny humor. Due to the heavy backlash, the show attempted to bring back the popular Nostalgia Critic in the episode, The Review Must Go On. Like before, the 30-minute episode was criticized as they tried to explain retcons from To Boldly Flee.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFIlUa6WYuM 
When the Nostalgia Critic was brought back, some fans didn't like the new revival. Some criticized it for its slow-paced humor and cut away gags that don't relate to the review. Some fans compare the new Nostalgia Critic show to Demo Reel, particularly on the over-reliance on skits to progress the reviews.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUz2f-A9Oqw
In 2013, Channel Awesome started an Indiegogo campaign to raise money for several shows. While the goal was $50,000 initially, the campaign ended up raising $89,757 in total. One of the shows created as a result of the crowdfunding was Pop Quiz Hotshot. The show had a troubled production; although it went into development in 2013, the show was not broadcast until 2015. Upon its release, it was lambasted by fans for its low production values and the decision to only film 12 episodes instead of the previously promised 40. It was later revealed that the cancellation occurred after Indiegogo had threatened to investigate the matter. In addition, Channel Awesome was also criticized for a 6-month delay in delivering the reward prizes to the people who donated the aforementioned money.
===Pink Floyd–The Wall Review===
On September 18, 2019, a Nostalgia Critic review was uploaded of Pink Floyd–The Wall. This review attempted to imitate the style of the movie while also addressing issues.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg4EZW3_XuA However, the review was polarized by fans and critics for unrelated skits, poor editing and special effects, bad acting, and misunderstanding the film. One example is where the Nostalgia Critic called the film "Oscar Bait", even though the album was released first, to which the film was made four years later.
He was also bashed for inserting his own issues into the review which don't have anything to do with the film. One example is during the "In the Floyd" segment as it's an attack on internet hate and the #ChangeTheChannel movement. Doug also created a tie-in album of the same name, which has also been criticized for bad singing and lyrics. Multiple YouTubers gave severe backlash such as JAR Media,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKmLEwyWDkw&t theneedledrop,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OEbf8YhTWEo and Ralphthemoviemakerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RlcSh_rxGY. On the Double Toasted podcast, Doug said the reason he made the video experimental was because of how much he loved the movie while also making criticisms. He also said anybody could watch the video and come out with a different opinion and is happy others have reviewed his video.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3j2BHk4BwE
==Related channels==
Back when Channel Awesome relied mostly on its own portal, it formed a network of reviewers. Only two remain affiliated, The Cinema Snob and Larry Bundy Jr.
Former affiliates include AngryJoeShow, Atop the Fourth Wall, Chris Stuckmann, Lindsay Ellis, Noah Antwiler, and Todd in the Shadows.
==Collaborations==
Doug Walker sometimes collaborates with other YouTubers. For example, he appeared on the Screen Junkies show, Movie Fights, and in one episode of Screen Junkies Honest Trailers for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of The Shadows. Cinemassacre also appeared in a few reviews like his review of The Mummy (2017) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014). He also has a close relationship with TeamFourStar and a member of the group, Masakox, appeared in his review of DragonBall: Evolution (2007), along with LittleKuriboh.
== Quotes ==
* "And I have a bone to pick with one Angry Video Game Nerd."
* "Who keeps piles of boxes around? Honestly."
* "Cow humping transvestite!"
* "You'd poo on a baby just for a couple of laughs."
* "Fuck monkey."
* "Ass blower!"
* "That's the fuckest thing I ever heard, shitmop!"
==Subscriber Milestones==
==Trivia== 
*Doug Walker was banished to the Shadow Realm in VideoGameDunkey's Youtuber Tier List.
*He is mentioned and joked about in OneyPlays videos so often that he is listed as a recurring character in the OneyPlays wiki 
**Doug responded to OneyPlays on a live stream saying how funny they were and complementing their hilarious imitation of the Nostalgia Critic.
*Several celebrities like Dante Basco, Cree Summer, Mara Wilson, Rob Paulsen and Don Bluth have guest starred in the show, and even Roger Ebert has praised them.
==References==
Category:Vlogging YouTubers
Category:Review YouTubers
Category:Gaming YouTubers
Category:Film YouTubers
Category:Commentary YouTubers
Category:Reaction YouTubers
Category:Comedy YouTubers
Category:American YouTubers
Category:Italian YouTubers
Category:Users who joined in 2014
Category:One million subscribers
Category:One billion views