The Flopcast

Hey, it's almost time for Dragon Con! Nerds, geeks, and weirdos from around the globe shall descend upon Atlanta for a long weekend of mirth, merriment, antics, hijinks, and perhaps even a shenanigan or two. And this week our Dragon Con coverage begins with a preview of what you can expect to find there. Including: Stars from Land of the Lost, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly, Smallville, and The Jeffersons! (We might just be dreaming about that last one.) The 120 Minutes dance party! The Sc-Fi Explosion video show! Very long lines! Bunny costumes! Puppets! Teeth! (Teeth? Really? Yes. Teeth.) And lots more miscellaneous nerdity. We even address the question of whether or not this is Dragon Con's 40th anniversary. (It's not. There, that was easy.) Next week: We'll reveal exactly what we're doing at Dragon Con. (Mostly silly things. Okay, that was easy too.)

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This week's promo: Earth Station Trek!

Our American Sci-Fi Classics buddy Joe Crowe is still here, and we're still exploring the odd world of made-for-TV reunion movies. In this week's batch of ratings-grabbing silliness: The Duke boys go to Hollywood, the Facts of Life girls get back together (except for Jo!), a Gabor sister (still not sure which one) returns to Green Acres, the Eight is Enough dad has multiple 50th birthdays, somebody wants to murder Dobie Gillis... and yeah, the Harlem Globetrotters face a team of evil robots on Gilligan's Island. (This was easily the greatest thing that ever happened.) And yikes, we still have a bunch of TV reunion movies to get through, but that'll have to wait. Dragon Con coverage starts next week. You've been warned.

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This week's promo: Monkeeing Around!

Back in the day, when your favorite goofy TV show was cancelled, it was not necessarily the end. Years (or even decades) later, it just might be resurrected in the odd format of the made-for-TV reunion movie. Thus we returned to Mayberry to catch up with Andy and Opie, we reconnected with Gomez and Morticia in the disco era, we attended the double wedding of Jan and Marcia... and we even learned the final fate of ALF. And because this is such a rich complex subject, we have a special guest to help sort it all out: Dragon Con American Sci-Fi Classics Track co-director Joe Crowe! And we're just getting started! Part 2 is next week. But join us this week, as we also try to answer the eternal question of which one was Cagney and which one was Lacey.

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This week's promo: The 42cast!

We have one more summer concert report for you, because thanks to an old friend, Kevin and the Mayor had VIP tickets to see John Mellencamp! (Are you like us? Do you still miss the "Cougar" part?) So today we're breaking down the whole show for you. Including: Pre-concert South Shore bar pizza with a kissing waitress! The Mellencamp VIP tent, featuring Mellencamp memorabilia, a Mellencamp video game, Mellencamp Jenga, and a non-Mellencamp medical emergency! Seats that were shockingly close to the stage! A backup singer we recognized from Billy Joel's band! The entire hit-packed set list! (If you're wondering which songs John played, the answer is yes.) And post-show fun with a drunk in the parking lot! You'll feel like you were there, and you'll feel like sucking on a chili dog outside the Tastee Freez.

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This week's promo: EnterpriseSplaining!

Our friend Judy is here again, and we're looking back at the supermodels of the 1980s! They popped up in movies and music videos, they sold jeans and shampoo, they married rock stars, and we just couldn't get enough of them. So to pay tribute to Cindy, Christie, Paulina, and the rest, Judy has prepared what might be our sexiest Top 4 1/2 List ever. (That's if we don't count our list of cartoon robots. Obviously.) Also: If you're gonna be in Massachusetts in September, and feel like running through the woods for a long time, you can join Judy at the Race for the Refuge! Meanwhile, slip into your Calvins and enjoy this episode. And watch for us in the upcoming all-podcasters edition of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

Race for the Refuge!

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Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: BatChums!

We have another summer concert report, because "Weird Al" Yankovic's Bigger and Weirder Tour returned to New England! Also: Retro 80s games at the Free Play Bar Arcade in downtown Providence! The Logan Awards for Excellence in Comedy Music! The return of Chickens in the News, in which we learn about a farm where you can gamble on chicken races! (Correction: This farm is in Boulder, Montana, not Boulder, Colorado! Sorry!) And a long-awaited conversation about the 80s cult film Streets of Fire! Hopefully you can stand this much excitement! Okay, nap time.

Nominations are open through July 25th for the Logan Awards!

Chicken races!

And our regular links...

The Flopcast website!

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Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts!

Email: [email protected]

Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: The Watch-A-Thon of Rassilon!

We're still looking at Happy Days spinoffs, because that's what the kids are excited about these days. There was Joanie Loves Chachi, of course, in which the two worst singers in the world dream of making it big. But does anyone else remember Out of the Blue, a sitcom about a guardian angel named Random? No, just us? Whatever. Then there were the Saturday morning cartoon spinoffs: Fonz and the Happy Days Gang (in which our heroes travel through time in a flying saucer), Laverne and Shirley in the Army (with their sergeant, an actual pig voiced by Horshack), and Mork and Mindy (but they're in high school and drive an egg car). We even touch on a few proposed spinoffs that never happened, starring Ralph and Potsie, those pesky Tuscadero girls... and the mysterious Kat Mandu. You know, a lot of this stuff is on YouTube... so proceed with your day accordingly.

The Mayor on The Doctor's Beard podcast!

And our regular links...

The Flopcast website!

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Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts!

Email: [email protected]

Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: Tales From Hollywoodland!

From the middle of a horrifying Chickentown heatwave, we present a Top 4 1/2 List of summer songs of the 80s! (Yes, this is ground we've covered before. If you thought we were ever going to stop yammering about Belinda Carlisle, you really don't know us.) And for more 80s summer music action, we also have a Sammy Hagar concert report! Sammy's show featured plenty of Van Halen classics, Joe Satriani on guitar, Rick Springfield topless, and free booze for everybody in the front row. Plus: A weird conversation about Weird Al on The Best Stuff in the World podcast! Enjoy, and stay cool. We recommend a fifty gallon drum of iced coffee.

Kevin, Kevin, and Dana talking Weird Al on The Best Stuff in the World!

And our regular links...

The Flopcast website!

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Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts!

Email: [email protected]

Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: Cosmic Pizza!

As promised/threatened, we're looking at all the TV series that can be considered spinoffs of Happy Days. And yikes, there are so many that we're splitting them into two episodes. So this week, we're covering: Laverne and Shirley! (Remember when Laverne, Shirley, and everyone they knew all moved from Milwaukee to Los Angeles together?) Mork and Mindy! (Remember when Mork gave birth to a weird old man?) And Blansky's Beauties/Who's Watching the Kids! (What?) And yeah, we're just getting started. If you can't stand the excitement, just have Fonzie whack your phone and stop the podcast.

#happydays #spinoffs #laverneandshirley #blanskysbeauties #whoswatchingthekids #morkandmindy #esonetwork #eso #geektalk #geekpodcast #geek #nerdtalk #nerd #nerdpodcast #podcast #flopcast

The Flopcast website!

The ESO Network!

The Flopcast on Facebook!

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The Flopcast on Bluesky!

The Flopcast on Mastadon!

Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts!

Email: [email protected]

Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: Dragon Con Report!

Our series of Wizard of Oz adaptation reviews brings us to 1978's The Wiz, an ambitious reimagining with an all-star all-Black cast led by the great Diana Ross. Also featuring: Richard Pryor, Lena Horne, Nipsey Russell, Mabel King, graffiti Munchkins, crow monsters, poppy girls, and way more long slow musical numbers than anyone really wanted. (Seriously, they could have cut the running time in half with no complaints.) Can Emerald City survive the disco era? Perhaps. Just barely.

#wizardofoz #thewiz #dianaross #esonetwork #eso #geektalk #geekpodcast #geek #nerdtalk #nerd #nerdpodcast #podcast #flopcast

The Flopcast website!

The ESO Network!

The Flopcast on Facebook!

The Flopcast on Instagram!

The Flopcast on Bluesky!

The Flopcast on Mastadon!

Please rate and review The Flopcast on Apple Podcasts!

Email: [email protected]

Our music is by The Sponge Awareness Foundation!

This week's promo: Monster Attack!