Ash and Little Beard are in rare form this week, riffing on everything from Star Trek to Ice Pirates. Ash dives into Bridge Commander mayhem, while Beard dreams up cosplay plans involving “space herpes” on RC cars. The crew spirals into conspiracy theories about clowns as the true Illuminati, riffs on Land Before Time as a horror story, and debates Star Trek vs. Doctor Who crossovers.

Geekgasms this week included Ash’s massive Orville model build and Beard’s autograph haul (Jason Reitman, Stay Puft Marshmallow Man, and more). News coverage hit on GalaxyCon’s AI-art ban, Paramount eyeing Warner Bros., and TsunamiCon’s new venue at Newman University. The guys also cover the wild Demon Slayer theater incident and upcoming festivals like Great Plains Ren Fair.

• 🎮 Bridge Commander Destruction — Ash’s return to classic Star Trek gaming

• 🤡 Clownspiracy — Clowns as the true Illuminati (with mimes as assassins)

• 🌿 Land Before Time Reframed — Dinosaurs as ravenous horror monsters

• 🛠️ Geekgasms — Ash’s Orville model, Beard’s Ghostbusters autographs

• 🎨 News Bites:

  • GalaxyCon bans AI art

  • Paramount & Skydance circling Warner Bros.

  • Demon Slayer movie incident shocks theaters

  • TsunamiCon moves to Newman University

• 📅 Event Roundup — Great Plains Ren Fair, TsunamiCon, KC Ren Fest, Flying Monkey Con recap

Ash and Little Beard dive into a wild mix of geekdom this week. From the indie juggernaut Hollow Knight: Silksong crashing servers worldwide, to Borderlands 4’s price hike backlash, to the new Jordan Peele–Hideo Kojima horror project OD, it’s a stacked gaming lineup. They also cover the TsunamiCon venue shake-up, the firestorm around AI art bans at DragonCon, and why 3D printing at conventions is facing similar questions of legitimacy. Along the way, the crew swap stories about Pokémon Go nostalgia, the strangest Disney films (yes, Pulp Fiction counts), and the collector’s hunt for rare autographs.

Ash, Little Beard, and Cookie return from a whirlwind week of festivals, cons, and chaos. From ICT Comic Con in Wichita to the nine-block marathon that was Big River Steampunk Festival, the crew share stories of geekgasms, cosplay treasures, and late-night shenanigans. Ash talks Star Trek models and surprise connections for Jessica’s career, while Little Beard and Cookie recount the exhaustion, hilarity, and scheduling madness of Big River. Toss in storms with baseball-sized hail, Dead South concerts, Ghostbuster props, and a Romulan Warbird model worth $1,000—and you’ve got one wild ride of an episode.

This week, Ash, Little Beard, Cookie, and special guest Sean Major pull back the curtain on the Big River Steampunk Festival in Hannibal, Missouri. Sean has been with the fest since its humble parking lot beginnings in 2014, and now oversees the sound and production across multiple stages, concerts, and ticketed events. We talk about the explosive growth of the festival, the challenges of running sound for five stages at once, the new additions this year (Wasteland Olympics, Boilerplate, Steampunk Ramblers), and the quirky community moments that make Big River feel like family—including the infamous “festival turkey.”

Along the way we detour into geek news: AOL ditches dial-up, AI avatars outsell human livestreamers in China, Robot Olympics, Penn & Teller’s Ren Faire return, and new casting news for Booster Gold and Spaceballs 2.

It’s a mix of festival chaos, steampunk community, and geek culture gold.

This week, Ash, Little Beard, and Cookie dive deep into the ever-expanding world of geek culture, starting with a guest shuffle that turns into a full-on celebration of the upcoming Big River Steampunk Festival. From ICT Comic-Con’s growth to guest list geek-outs, they swap stories of past cons, celebrity encounters, and the grind of performing across multiple stages in one weekend. Along the way, the crew tackles hot topics like Gina Carano rumors, Marvel’s Spider-Man shake-ups, AI news including Perplexity’s bold Chrome bid, the Unitree R1 robot release, and even a UFC fight planned at the White House. It’s a whirlwind tour of conventions, pop culture, and the latest tech that has the fandom buzzing.

This week on ConCast, Ash, Little Beard, and Cookie go full throttle on geek culture. They recap San Diego Comic Con’s biggest trailers, including Peacemaker and Spinal Tap 2, and dive deep into Ash’s shiny new $300 Elegoo Centauri 3D printer that’s performing as well as machines 4x the cost. The trio debates the Visa/MasterCard Steam debacle, celebrates Crunchyroll’s new anime theater initiative, and ponders the return of parody movies. Plus, plenty of love for Terry Pratchett, Tim Curry, and those chaotic internet corners where Rule 34 lives. Also: Muppets, Klingon K-Pop, and cosplay collectibles.

This week on ConCast, Ash, Little Beard, and Cookie are joined by Buddy from the Bawdy Buccaneers in a full-blown Ren Fest reunion that dives into everything from embarrassing smoker show stories to the rise of AI-generated VFX in Hollywood. We Geekgasam over tricorders, the secret life of Elmo’s Twitter, and the fine line between fan fiction and lawsuits. Come for the chaos, stay for the corn jokes and watermelons.

This week on ConCast, we’re joined by Angela Kearney, the mastermind behind the very first Topeka Renaissance Festival! She walks us through the wild ride of bringing an 8-year dream to life—from pirate meetups at Golden Corral to building a full-blown Ren Fest complete with jousting, Viking encampments, mermaids, and even a pole dancer in the 21+ pirate bar. We talk about the grassroots hustle, dealing with old-school gatekeepers, the creative reuse of garage sale treasures, and what it takes to make magic on a shoestring budget. Plus, as always, we wrap up with geeky news, mead talk, and toy-collector heartbreak over She-Ra Barbies.