The Con Men

The Con Men Show

Adrian and Dan discuss the ins and outs of Comic Book Convention life, fandoms, and sometimes we just have a conversation.

  1. 3 FEB

    The Class of 1986

    This week The Con Men kick things off with collector talk and Transformers: The Movie nostalgia before tumbling headfirst into a discovery: 1986 might be one of the most stacked pop-culture years ever. From childhood-defining movies to “it was on HBO every weekend so we watched it 400 times,” we break down the difference between true classics and nostalgia classics — and accidentally map out future commentary and deep-dive content for the year. We also talk con season kickoff energy, upcoming shows, fandom aging alongside franchises, and why sometimes you go into new entries of your favorite franchises wanting to love them… even when they make it difficult. Plus: Convention season preview Guest excitement and circuit planning Star Wars and franchise fatigue vs franchise love The ongoing dream (and threat?) of Century Con The shocking low cost of buying our loyalty (breadsticks negotiable)

    56 min

  2. 27 JAN

    The Return To Innocence (With Apologies To Enigma)

    In this episode, The Con Men unpack the idea of “movies that lost their innocence” — not because the films changed, but because we did. From Dragnet’s jokes that flew over childhood heads to the cultural whiplash of Revenge of the Nerds, Bill & Ted, Big Trouble in Little China, and Cannonball Run, the conversation drifts through ratings systems, generational context, and how nostalgia collides with modern sensibilities. It’s a wide-ranging, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful look at why it’s okay to love flawed movies — as long as you understand why they’re flawed.

    58 min

  3. 23 JAN

    Blinded Me With Weird Science

    The Con Men Bounce from the death of the penny, into the metric system’s shipwrecked origin story, and why America refuses to measure things like a normal country. From there, the show veers into tabletop RPG war stories (including a near-fatal Alien RPG dice roll), Kickstarter confessions, and the strange poetry of declaring “intent to do harm” in Powered by the Apocalypse systems. The back half of the episode becomes an enthusiastic deep dive into Central Carolina Comic Con, with a rapid-fire rundown of guests that reads like a Gen-X nostalgia starter pack: Doug Jones, Billy West, Tom Kenny, Mick Foley, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Lou Diamond Phillips, Lindsay Wagner, Lee Majors, John Schneider, and more. Along the way, Dan shares behind-the-curtain con stories (including Tom Kenny being an actual delight), while Adrian brings the fan-first perspective—who’s worth the wait, who’s genuinely kind, and why wrestlers are secretly all teddy bears.

    1h 7m

  4. 15 JAN · BONUS

    Here We Are, Face To Face...

    How about an in-person field report straight from the con floor? The Con Men finally record in the same room while working Central Carolina Comic Con, trading remote latency for real-world chaos, side chatter, and the kind of conversations you only get after a full day of badges, handlers, and folding tables. The episode pulls back the curtain on the less glamorous—but far more interesting—side of conventions: volunteering, moderating, handling, knowing when to step in and when to vanish. Along the way, they dig into what makes certain guests legendary with fans (Doug Jones, Dorian Kingi, Tom Kenny), why behind-the-mask performers deserve more spotlight, and how not to waste your shot when you finally get to ask a question. It’s a shop talk episode, so If you’ve ever wondered how cons actually work, or why some moments feel magical and others awkward, this one fills in the gaps.

    58 min

  5. 1 JAN

    One Butt-Dial Away From Hollywood

    Episode 12 of The Con Men Show  starts exactly where it should: mid-thought, mid-argument, and somehow mid–Golden Girls appreciation. From there, Dan and Adrian take a lovingly chaotic stroll through the golden age of television—sitcoms, spin-offs, theme songs, VHS wizardry, and the unspoken social contract of “you missed it, too bad.” What begins as a riff on why certain shows worked (and why their spin-offs absolutely did not) turns into a broader meditation on shared cultural moments—when TV schedules ruled your week, when sitcoms were the backbone of the medium, and when entire generations watched the same finale at the same time… then all went to the bathroom together. Along the way, the guys hit everything from Golden Girls, Night Court, MASH*, Cheers, Soap, The Jeffersons, and I Love Lucy, to Mel Brooks, Eddie Murphy, Bill Cosby (handled with nuance), and the strange magic of latchkey childhoods fueled by Swanson pizzas and zero supervision. The episode drifts (intentionally) into stand-up comedy, Canadian cultural infiltration, centenarian comedy legends, and the realization that yes—we were absolutely feral kids, and somehow we lived.

    57 min

  6. 22/12/2025

    This Podcast Goes to Eleven*

    Dan and Adrian start by tumbling headfirst into a conversation about aging bodies, playground-safe anatomy jokes, and the eternal comedy supremacy of “bingo wings” and the weenus. From there, the episode settles into a warm, nostalgic groove—snacks, chips, French onion dip, and the quiet tragedy of modern convenience foods. The conversation widens into holiday realities: Christmas budgeting, practical vs. joyful gift-giving, Santa logistics, and the unspoken truth that uninterrupted sleep may be the greatest gift of all. The back half leans hard into shared cultural memory: Christmas movies, Muppets, Jim Henson’s legacy, and the awe of practical effects—loving the magic while still wanting to peek behind the curtain. This naturally segues into a larger theme: forgotten or culturally sidelined ’80s movies, media that once dominated the zeitgeist and now lives in half-remembered VHS corners of our brains. *RIP Rob Reiner

    1h 23m

  7. 17/12/2025

    The McRib, The Gobbler, & The Gospel of Grease

    This time around we enter the sacred halls of fast–food anthropology: Arby’s Gobbler, McRib nostalgia lies, flaming-hot Funyuns, Checkers fries, Burger Con, fake burger franchises, Pluto TV comfort programming, and holiday survival without shame. Double digits, baby—we’re official. 🎧 Listen now & send us your burger lore.

    1h 3m

  8. 08/12/2025

    Bartles & James Remembers

    Dan kicks things off with a birthday rundown: his wife’s big day, a middle child who showed out with a from-scratch chocolate fudgy bundt cake and homemade ganache, and a family trip to Chewy’s in Conway that landed squarely in “perfectly fine..." Adrian follows with his own downtown Italian misadventure: greasy calamari swimming in oil, kids’ menu “New York slices” that turned out to be Domino’s-sized, a side salad built out of olives and disappointment, and a Caesar that was mostly lettuce spines.  From there, the conversation drifts the way only Con Men can: mall food court nostalgia, Sbarro and Pizza Hut buffet memories, tabletop Pac-Man, and then a full dive into anime and mecha—Robotech/Macross, Toonami, Demon Slayer, and how anime and voice actors helped shape the modern con scene. They also spotlight the upcoming inaugural Illinois Comic Con in Peoria, running through guests like Billy West, Barry Lowin, Bryce Papenbrook, and more, and talk about why anime fests and VO guests are the backbone of a lot of regional shows. It’s food gripes, fandom history, and convention hype all in one long, geeky hangout.

    1h 1m
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About

Adrian and Dan discuss the ins and outs of Comic Book Convention life, fandoms, and sometimes we just have a conversation.

Information

  • Creator
    The Con Men Show
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    16
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The Con Men Show
  • Show Website
    The Con Men