Where conventional wisdom fails, The Spoon prevails! Rob, Allen Lulu, and Johnny Dam explain how politics are more than sport, how sports are surprisingly political, the upside of steroids, the downside of childlike enthusiasm, and why unusual attraction is often the most potent. Plus, the tsunami of crazy that is the Republic National Convention meets a real-deal hurricane, and Chris and Thom check in from their assignments in the field. Music by Trinket and Mark Fletcher

With so many cooks in the kitchen this week (Rob welcomes Dave Berges, Johnny Dam, and Bill Holmes to the mic, not to mention a boatload of callers, including Chris & Thom) you'd think the resulting dish might be unpalatable, but somehow the wheels stay on the wagon -- barely -- while topics fly past the windows with great velocity and ferocity, including the curse of Oliver, the idiocy of Akins, and the rapid depopulation of leather-helmet celebrity. Plus, poetry corner! Music by Walter Clevenger & The Dairy Kings

For all of those who argue that the Spoon is not educational, prepare to be proven wrong. While Thom vacations, Robbie, Chris and guests Dave Shalansky and Johnny Dam ACTUALLY cover all of the following topics: the art of pooping in cups, diarrhea and foreign medical care, anus tattoos, the refreshing taste of Coors Qatar, shameless Nice Guy Eddie promotion, 25 Years of Shark Week, abused wanna-be Olympians, who to consult when in need of Chinese food, the downside of midnight breakfast, Moms passing wind and dealing with the "swamp ass" that follows, urination at 10,000 feet, Yankees spoiler alerts AND the perks that come with Russian hotel rooms. You're welcome, Planet Earth... you're welcome. Music by Tin Cat, Matt Brown and Lazy Balls.

Rob & Chris are both away this week, but as it was decided long ago that The Spoon is bigger than any one man (or two men, for that matter) Thom finds himself alone at the wheel, wrangling a rogues gallery of guests (including Allen Lulu, Bill Funt, and Fletcher Rhoden) and teeing off on the news of the day. A Spoon episode unlike any other, yet tinged with the eerily familiar. Music by The Mockers, Tess Dunn, and Nice Guy Eddie.

Set momentarily adrift without their overhost, Chris, Thom, and special guest Eric D Boydston attempt to fill the Robbie-shaped hole in the show -- and our hearts -- with excursions into beverage science, apnea analysis, further tales of nerdy con culture, and a scintillating expose on... weather in the Midwest. How much more badass could things get? The answer is none. None more badass. Music by 3lb Thrill, Barely Pink, and Galileo.

This week, we bring you grievous bodily harm, alarming collisions with total strangers, and revolting imagery that will haunt your dreams for all time... and that's just Chris & Thom recapping Comic Con. (Ba-dum!) Also, learning to draw, scary books gone by, the lost art of the fade-out, and thoughts on changing the show's theme music. Music by Pride Of The Garage, Kyle Gray Young, and Let's Active.

As the title suggests, it is with no disingenuity (that's a word, right?) that we applaud Circe Link and Christian Nesmith for being delightful guests in a conversational capacity, bringing to the show new games to play and a wealth of topics ranging from to the underrated appeal of bodily musk, all while managing to share the same microphone in an example of adorable couplehood. They even go to the trouble of providing all of the music this week. How bout them metaphorical apples?

Travis Randall joins the show this week, and despite a touch of ennui, the topic-hopping quotient spikes considerably, from extolling the virtues of beef salads and fan-owned bands to warning of digital tissue and energy vampires. Also, medical advice that you absolutely should not follow, advice on pruning the un-awesome from one's life, and, just to spice things up... a last minute caller! Music by Cotton Mather, Adam Schmitt and The Beat Farmers.

We here at The Spoon (a joint venture of NDR and BobCo) live by a cardinal rule: the key to entertainment is to jump up and down on the tightrope until it snaps. What happens afterward... ah, that's the prize! As you'll hear in this episode, we tend to lead by example, while our guest Eric Dean Boydston absorbs the lesson and throws out a few choice kernels of his own wisdom along the way. Heads up, class! Music by D.L. Byron, Loveless, and Vader Vader.

Chris is back, Bill Holmes is in the 4th chair, and... ya' know folks, there are times when so much comedy and conversation gets packed into this show that it can't be detailed in a single paragraph description without collapsing on itself and becoming a gravitational singularity which would threaten the safety of all lifekind. This is one of those times. So do the universe a favor and just make with the listening, huh? Music by Paul Melancon, Jensen Bell, and Terry Anderson & The Olympic Ass-Kickin' Team.