Jakov is based on the character Jar-Jar Binks from Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999). Trey Parker and Matt Stone hated the character and felt betrayed as fans of Star Wars, so they made the character as retaliation. Before producing the episode, the creators had done a Jar Jar based spoof for the MTV movie awards, which MTV refused to run.
An instrumental version of Chef's song "Stinky Britches" from Chef Aid (1998) is playing when Mrs. Cartman is smoking crack.
Randy and Gerald suggest that the Jakov go to Fairplay, a town four miles away, because they sell better pretzels. Fairplay is an actual town located in Park County; it was established 1859. Fairplay is the town that provided inspiration for South Park.
This was the last episode directed by Matt Stone
The episode was produced just weeks before the release of South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999), and its production ran concurrently with the movie's post-production, a process which the show's creators described as "hell". The episode aired on June 16, 1999, the same day that Trey Parker was putting the finishing touches to the movie's sound mix.