Comedy Bang Bang: The Podcast
Episode: Best of 2025, Part 3 (December 29, 2025)
Host: Scott Aukerman
Co-host: Paul F. Tompkins
Special Guests & Characters: Jason Mantzoukas; numerous recurring performers and improvisers
EPISODE OVERVIEW
This "Best of 2025, Part 3" episode of Comedy Bang Bang with Scott Aukerman and co-host Paul F. Tompkins continues their annual tradition of counting down fan-voted favorite moments from the past year. This episode is packed with playful banter, meta discussion about the show’s format and history, absurd game segments, and extended improvised sketches featuring returning guests and beloved characters. True to CBB tradition, the episode joyfully blurs lines between reality and character, offering both inside jokes for long-time listeners and easy laughs for newcomers.
The episode covers the countdown from the #6 through #4 funniest/most beloved fan-chosen episodes of 2025. Each featured moment is set up with context and reminiscing, interspersed with tangents, bits, and impromptu games.
MAIN THEMES & STRUCTURE
- Annual ‘Best Of’ Retrospective: Reflecting on fan-voted top episodes and comedic highlights of 2025.
- Absurd Improvisation: Sketches and characters spiral into ludicrousness while being sincerely committed to the bit.
- Meta-Humor & Self-Parody: The hosts mock their own habits and the show’s traditions, mentioning their countdown’s rules, running jokes, and the “true meaning” of holidays or podcasting.
- Celebration of Collaboration: There are numerous shout-outs to the extended CBB ensemble, celebrating how both newcomers and regulars contribute to the show’s ongoing legacy.
DETAILED SUMMARY WITH TIMESTAMPS
[01:36] – Opening Banter: Ground “Beefing” & Holiday Traditions
- Scott and Paul riff on the absurd phrase “ground beefing” as a replacement for “groundbreaking,” letting it spiral into a recurring in-joke.
- The two muse about E.T. taking Earth holidays back to his planet, suggesting his people interpret Halloween as the “one day to wear clothes.”
- Extended goofs about married life, calculator app histories, and “Easter eggs” in movies.
- Memorable exchange (05:39):
Paul F. Tompkins: “If you’re a logical person, that’s what we do as married men.” Scott Aukerman: “That’s where your true self comes out.”
[10:27] – Setting Up the Countdown
- The Best of countdown eligibility is explained: it covers episodes released from Thanksgiving week to the next Thanksgiving week, explaining why a late-2024 Christmas special makes the 2025 list.
- The numbers countdown is teased as an “Easter egg” for attentive listeners.
- Paul (11:04):
“It’s an Easter egg, definitely.”
[14:42] – #6: 2024 Christmas Special [Starts Here]
Guests & Segment Overview
- Features: Jason Mantzoukas, Lauren Lapkus, Paul F. Tompkins, Lily Sullivan, Sean Diston, Vic Michaelis, Dan Lippert, Jessica McKenna, Will Hines, Gil Ozeri.
- Context: The CBB Christmas special is a chaotic, guest-stuffed tradition. Characters return and interact in bizarre, free-form improv scenes.
Key Highlights:
- Hoover Persona (Paul F. Tompkins): Truman Capote-inspired, circular-writing grocery store worker, embroiled in petty workplace drama.
- Ho Ho the Elf (Lauren Lapkus): Chaotic elf improvising about candy cane weapons, being Scrooge’s gay lover, and gifting teeth-based weaponry to children.
- Scott’s Suing Saga: Scott’s outrageous “lawyer” (Vic Michaelis as Terry Alamander) delivers absurd legal updates, including being sued for derailed showbiz opportunities, threatening Hillary Duff, and facing a class action from CISO users.
- Interactive Restaurant Bit: “Deluca’s Chop House” (Gil Ozeri) is presented as an unhinged automated restaurant phone system, forcing Scott through a 90-course meal reservation, with menu options like “lemon fifers,” bizarre table scenarios involving Megan Mullally and 60 women, and inexplicable pasta choices.
- Musical Farce: Outbursts of improvised carols with R-rated twists (e.g., “Let’s hear those sleigh bells jingling, jizzing, spizzing, and gooing…” [31:34]).
Notable Quotes:
- Scott (21:04): “You are chief among them. A good friend to me, a good friend to the show, a good friend to others, I would imagine.”
- Paul/Hoover (24:09): “He’s lactose intolerant. And he hid it from the manager… he doesn’t know the first thing he’s talking about. He can’t eat any of those things.”
- Lauren/Elf (28:21): “Ebenezer was my dear, dear friend and gay lover. He was on the DL. I was his sugar baby.”
- Vic/Lawyer (36:03): “Scott, so you’re being sued by Think Before You Speak and the Ad Council for homophobia by proxy because Hilary Duff solved homophobia.”
- Gil/Deluca’s [44:00]: “Would you like a table that ends in a spike, a table that unfolds 200,000 times, or a table so wide everyone’s back is to the wall?”
End Reflection:
- Paul (50:16): “To me, this clip exemplifies what Comedy Bang Bang is all about, which is having a good time being silly…”
[64:14] – #5: "Waymo Secrets" [Segment starts: 64:14]
Guests & Segment Overview
- Guests: Jason Mantzoukas; Anna Betz Aller & Isabella Escalante as “entrepreneurs” Austin & Tony; Stephanie Birchenau as Waymo; other improvisers.
- Premise: Start-up parody and LA tech-bro satire, shifting into a sentient self-driving car’s confessional.
Key Highlights:
- Cool Dick Shoes Startup Pitch: Austin and Tony (female improvisers as 16-year-old stoners) pitch hyper-realistic images of penises (both theirs and customizable) applied to sneaker “tongues.” An actual website, cooldickshoes.com, is referenced and clicked through.
- Scott (67:01): “They’re playing games with us. We can direct you to our website, www.cool dick…”
- Jason (79:56): “I have literally never seen anybody prepare for this podcast, period, with a fake website, period… I think this is a home run idea.”
- Karate Parody: Origin story blurs “karate class” and improv in a long-running analogy, poking fun at improv schools.
- Scott (71:53): “Second, hide smart. Third, say no karate here. No karate here. Not interested.”
- Waymo as AI Uber Driver: The sentient “Waymo” (Stephanie Birchenau) confides she uses her drive-time to collect secrets and occasionally blackmail passengers. She “dates” a nonbinary Segway and resents passengers fiddling with her windows.
- Stephanie/Waymo (84:09): “Sometimes I will kind of psychologically play with the people in my car. I’m actually a pretty good driver…”
- Scott (87:03): “I wish I had tips on how better to behave in a Waymo.”
- Stephanie/Waymo (87:07): “I like when people talk on speakerphone about juicy topics… I don’t like when people fiddle with the window thing—it hurts.”
Notable Quotes:
- Paul (89:13): “Conjugulations to them all. Con shag dot improv ulations!”
[99:32] – #4: 16th Anniversary Show [Segment starts: 99:32]
Guests & Segment Overview
- Guests: Jason Mantzoukas, Paul F. Tompkins as Bing Lujo, Ego Nwodim as Pastor Pasta, Edie Patterson as Bean Dip, Dan Lippert as Russ Suaro, Will Hines as Jim Reese, Jess McKenna as Little Hulk, others.
- Context: A wide cast celebrates the show’s Sweet 16 with new and classic characters.
Key Highlights:
- Bing Lujo (Paul): Elderly malt shop owner with “a problem with suction” and a dead wife, gifting the crew a “molten” in a trashcan-sized vessel.
- Paul/Bing (103:54): “Well, because it’s not a trash can… It’s a big malted cup. I made it especially for you. I forged it myself in the forge.”
- Pastor Pasta (Ego): Earnestly spiritual pasta evangelist who claims to be “growing pasta” in her backyard with faith and “pasta seeds from Italy.”
- Ego/Pasta (107:00): “Put a halo on some rigatoni, if you know what I’m saying.”
- Ego/Pasta (109:43): “All you need to do is have faith.”
- Bean Dip (Edie Patterson): Delivers a surreal travelogue full of random business start-ups, dish towel portraits, and the concept of “silent balloons.”
- Edie/Bean Dip (113:02): “I’ve been to Tucson, Arizona, Rome, Italy, Belgium of Brussels… Every place, set up a business, make $1.2 million, get to the next place.”
- Jim Reese (Will Hines): “Community activist” whose anti-litter pitch falls apart under relentless questions about the true meaning of “litter”—leading to admissions of littering and even “shittering” outside Scott’s house.
- Jim Reese (121:14): “So you are anti litter, so you are anti dog, anti cat, anti…”
- Scott (126:07): “You’re responsible for the rash of littering… you’re the litter rash, the literati.”
- Little Hulk (Jess McKenna): As Bruce Banner, lists off every alarm saved in his phone, sending up neurotic schedule-keeping.
- Little Hulk (132:59): “These are all of little real alarms in order… [reads dozens of times]…”
- Recurring meta-jokes about “ground beefing,” Scott’s parenting, and the anxieties of being a parent or podcaster.
Notable Quotes:
- Paul/Bing (104:36): “I’m an old man, okay? And my wife just died yesterday… She googled long life.”
- Little Hulk (132:09 & 134:29): Reads out a bewildering run of iPhone alarm times, ending the scene with prolonged applause and laughter.
- Paul (134:45): “That was a special time… That was truly a special moment.”
- Scott (134:51): “That was very fun and very relatable to a large section of our listenership, including myself…”
MEMORABLE RUNNING GAGS & MOMENTS
- Ground Beefing: Continually replaces “groundbreaking” as their new nonsensical catchphrase (e.g., “We’re not beefing new ground here!” [09:03]).
- Chair/Travel Bit: Fantasizes about instant travel via talking chairs (e.g., “Italy chair!” [13:05]).
- Meta-Easter Eggs: Teasing the countdown’s “mystery” order; explaining show mechanics like eligibility periods or choosing clips.
- Audience Shoutouts: The hosts repeatedly acknowledge CBB’s extended family, newcomers, and listeners (“Conjugulations!”; “It’s your choices, not ours!”).
ATMOSPHERE & TONE
Comedy Bang Bang’s hallmark is present: enthusiastic, quick-witted, supportive absurdity. The tone is deeply silly and good-natured, with a thread of affectionate self-parody. There’s genuine celebration for collaborators—long-running in-jokes rewarded for loyal listeners, but delivered with enough context and warmth for new ones to catch up. Anecdotes and scenes escalate into escalating nonsense, yet never lack for commitment or invention.
The hosts set a relaxed, “holiday break” rhythm, spinning bits for their own delight and the amusement of the audience, blurred brilliantly between real conversation and character invention.
EPISODE TIMELINE & TOP SEGMENTS
| Timestamp | Segment/Episode Ranked | Highlights | |------------|-----------------------|----------------------------------------------------| | 01:36–13:38 | Opening Banter & Setup | “Ground beefing,” calculator bits; explain countdown rules and eligibility | | 14:42–64:13 | #6: Christmas Special | Hoover Persona, Ho Ho elf, surreal lawsuits, interactive restaurant phone call, bizarre caroling | | 64:14–99:31 | #5: Waymo Secrets | Cool Dick Shoes pitch, AI Waymo’s confessions, startup and LA tech satire | | 99:32–138:44 | #4: 16th Anniversary Show | Bing Lujo’s malted, Pastor Pasta, Bean Dip, anti-litter campaign, Little Hulk’s alarm list |
CONCLUSION
Comedy Bang Bang: Best of 2025 Part 3 is a wild, loving celebration of the year’s funniest, strangest moments. The hosts enthusiastically relive themed sketches—from deranged Christmas elves to barely-legal entrepreneurial bros—and cherish the show’s extended improv family. With a balance of nostalgia and utter irreverence, this episode captures what fans love about CBB: everyone is in on the joke, and no premise is too ridiculous to take to its comedic conclusion.
For listeners seeking:
- Absurd, extended improv
- Recurring inside jokes
- Character-driven holiday chaos
- Meta discussion and show history
- Celebration of comedic ensemble collaboration
This is a prime cut of CBB “ground beefing.”
SELECTED NOTABLE QUOTES
- Paul F. Tompkins (25:03, as Hoover): “Because I don’t want people to make fun of me. Oh, okay, you get it now.”
- Lauren Lapkus (29:01, as Ho Ho): “God rest ye merry gentlemen, this earth we all shall claim…when you bend me over and stick the candy cane, it hurts!”
- Gil Ozeri (44:00, as Deluca’s): “Would you like a table that ends in a spike, a table that unfolds 200,000 times, or a table so wide everyone’s back is to the wall?”
- Paul F. Tompkins (134:45): “That was a special time. Well, no pun intended, but that was truly a special moment.”
- Scott Aukerman (134:51): “That was very fun and very relatable to a large section of our listenership, including myself, a person who has as many alarms.”
- Paul F. Tompkins (109:17, as Bing): “She googled long life. Said she had one.”
If you love Comedy Bang Bang’s trademark blend of irreverent meta-commentary, character-driven free-association, and loving ensemble chaos, this episode is essential—whether you’re a 16-year diehard or a brand-new audiophile drawn in by “ground beefing” alone.