UI-Con 2026: 1986 - RAD Movies or BAD Movies
For CatBusRuss and "Couchman" Andrew Tiede, UI-Con truly kicked of for them at 8 pm on Friday night. The convention had taken a break from panels to let the visitors kick it to Otter Chaos and to prepare for the anime-themed rave. In other words, if you were there to be nerdy, the evening panels were where you wanted to be. Even if some may have lacked that Japanimation flair.
This was "I Dig Crazy Flicks" debut for a new panel, "1986: RAD Movies or BAD Movies". CatBus had listed the similar movies and Andrew brought the box office stats to see what audiences thought at the time. It was a time where the important thing was to be first to a new film premise.
Some would say one flick would be a blockbuster while the other a mockbuster. This panel takes you back to when there was no direct-to-video market for studios to spend little on a VHS tape to capitalize on a major motion picture. It was a time to go big or go home.
“I Dig Crazy Flicks” was founded as “Ninety For Chill”. It is Russ Stevens’s blog dedicated to movies with runtimes between 70 to 100 minutes. This runtime was the standard for horror movies and goofball comedies. Without the time for drawn out narratives, throwing everything at the wall and seeing what would stick was the rule. Thus, craziness ensues, and cinephiles like CatBusRuss want to preach the greatness of embracing the insanity.
Recent Episodes
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Episode 255
Which 1986 fighter pilot flick was better: “Iron Eagle” or “Top Gun”? Which 1986 cartoon was better: “The Great Mouse Detective” or “An American Tale”? What film from 1986 had the best robot? CatBusRuss & Andrew Tiede explore these at UI-Con.
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Bonus
UI-Con advertises itself as an Anime and Comic Convention. CatBusRuss and “Couchman” Andrew Tiede came to host panels about U.S. Domestic Cinema. How did they fair when the cosplay and vendors were focused on Japanese Cartoons?
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Episode 254
CatBusRuss and Jason Parker welcome you to the Church of Bokeem Woodbine as they discuss the bonkers feature “Caught Up”. It is a De Palma tribute from the hood.
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Episode 253
CatBusRuss is joined by a mostly focused Gregory Carl to discuss the most influential feature in adult animation, Ralph Bakshi’s debut. A time before rotoscoping.
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Episode 252
CatBusRuss recaps the last day of Fan Expo New Orleans 2026. He meets Billy Boyd and Joe Pantoliano, gets some audio from Jamison Newlander, and survives beignets and Bourbon St.
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Bonus
CatBusRuss recaps the first two day of Fan Expo New Orleans 2026. “Bootleg Safari”, John Cena, Jamison Newlander, reunions for both 1990’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and the original four Hobbits.
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Episode 251
CatBusRuss and “The Cinema Shitshow’s” Nix Eclips present GalaxyCon St. Louis with the concept of why movies should be between 70 & 100 minutes. They chat about censorship and lots of horror.
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Episode 250
Jess McCord, co-creator of TTRPG "Skies of Fortune", left GalaxyCon Des Moines's edition of "Ninety For Chill: The Panel" with a suggestion for an anime that best represents the premise of "Ninety For Chill: The Podcast". CatBusRuss had been hearing about "Pompo: The Cinephile" from Jess before he met him in Iowa's capital city.
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Episode 159
HappyBeebsMeowMeow steps out of her comfort zone.
With a Twitch handle like that, watching a movie where a feline plays a big role seemed perfect. Henry Selick's Neil Gaiman adaptation, "Coraline", be the focus of the show.
Support I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS
Become a member of the “Thrill Chill Cult” by signing up for the I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS Patreon.
For three dollars a month (enough to give Eva the Queen Kitty three tins of wet food, or CatBusRuss an energy drink to push through his 50-hour work weeks), you will receive an I DiG CRAZY FLiCKS waterproof sticker and a shout out on each episode of “Ninety For Chill: The Podcast”.
Meet the Host
Follow along with our host, CatBusRuss as he is supervised by Eva the Queen Kitty. He discusses a broad range of cinema and interviews fellow movie fanatics.