Critical Role (2015)
Is it Thursday yet?
Critical Role is a weekly actual play series that uses tabletop role-playing game mechanics as a means to explore and develop stories from the vast fantasy worlds of Exandria, Aramán, and beyond, with sweeping narratives intricately woven through collaboration between Game Masters and players.
| Type | TV series |
|---|---|
| First aired | 12 March 2015 |
| Status | Returning Series |
| Genre | Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Comedy, Drama |
| Created by | Matthew Mercer, Ashley Johnson, Marisha Ray, Taliesin Jaffe, Sam Riegel, Laura Bailey, Liam O'Brien and Travis Willingham |
| Starring | Brennan Lee Mulligan, Laura Bailey and Luis Carazo |
| Seasons | 4 seasons, 421 episodes |
| Episode length | about 236 min |
| Time to watch it all | about 1656 hours |
| Scores | TMDB users 8.2/10 |
Where to watch Critical Role
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What kind of watch this is
Critical Role is a 2015 actual play series that treats tabletop mechanics as a storytelling engine. The premise is simple: a group of friends sit around a table and play a game. What happens next is a sprawling fantasy epic that runs 1656 hours long. That is a lot of time to spend arguing about dice rolls and dramatic reveals. The tagline asks if it is Thursday yet, which is the only true question after an episode ends.
What the critics said
Polygon called it thoroughly modern in 2016, noting the business model was still developing. By 2020, Bleeding Cool’s Andy Wilson declared it the future of television, praising the safe remote production during the pandemic. Noelle Warner observed that the show evolved from low-fi origins to a highly theatrical presentation, curating the improvisation while keeping the voice intact. Some fans mourned the loss of early magic, but Warner viewed the evolution in a more positive light.
How it did with audiences
On TMDB, users rate it 8.2 out of 10. The fanbase, known as Critters, builds fanart, writes fiction, and sends gifts that occasionally spawn dedicated "Critmas" episodes. By January 2016, the series had accumulated over 37 million minutes of viewing on Twitch. Later data from Variety suggests a total per-episode audience ranging from 1.2 million to 1.5 million when on-demand plays are factored in. The YouTube channel passed 500 million views by September 2022. That is not just a show. It is a shared hobby.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Critical Role.
Sources
- Critical Role on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q22079668 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Critical Role” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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