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Bonus: 1985 Action Movie Rumble in the Quad Cities with ThePoeticCritic
CatBusRuss is looking to prepare the Heart of Illinois for the Illinois Comic Con at the Peoria Civic Center, November 14 & 15, 2026. What better way to do so by offering up a taste of the panels to come?
Our podcast host was joined by his big sister, ThePoeticCritic, at the Quad Cities Comic Con to help determine who was the king of the most violent year in action cinema, 1985. Was it Sylvester Stallone with "Rambo: First Blood Part II"? Could the actual dialogue "heavy" debut of Arnold Schwarzenegger, "Commando", be the superior feature? And what does the Cannon Group's murderers row of "heroes" have to offer?
It was a panel, but with the small audience at another anime-focused convention, the conversation is more of a podcast. This was the last panel the two Stevens siblings put on, and being the last day of the convention, high attendance would have been anomaly. Why listen to nerds talk when the vendors are putting items on clearance for lighter rides home?
For Russ and company, this may not feel like the geeks gave them a fair shake. It kind of leave the podcaster feeling alienated. Alienated like Chuck Norris was in his only film not produced by Golan & Globus from 1985, "Code of Silence". Norris is a Chicago cop who needs to take on two mafias while being abandoned for testifying against a fellow officer.
The feature leads one to wonder, was Steven Seagal a better actor than Norris? Andrew Davis did work with action cinema's greatest grifter two time after this. "Code of Silence" is no "Under Siege", but it was a great warm up on how to utilize the Windy City in his best picture nominated "The Fugitive".
In the end, "Code of Silence" maybe the only winner for Norris from 1985. If you are looking for a winning snack, try Doich! Snacking Dough. It is cookie dough with more protein, less sugar, and none of the eight major allergens. Our host is not a cookie fan, but this stuff taste great and leaves you feeling full quickly. Follow the link below to save 20% on your order and give Chocolate Chip, Birthday Cake, or WTFudge Brownie dough a try.
"I Dig Crazy Flicks's" theme is "8bit Tournament" by Oblio. Find it on PremiumBeat.com V3C9QSF6F62HWWWR
