Overview of Fan Favorite Episode 294: Will Sasso
This episode is a loose, highly improvised comedy conversation featuring Brian Callen, Will Sasso, and dog trainer Nate Shomer. The first half centers on dogs—especially protection breeds like Belgian Malinois and Presa Canarios—along with police K9 training, bite work, obedience, and how dogs’ behavior can be shaped through reinforcement. From there, the show veers into fight talk, current events, movie/news reactions, and a philosophical closing rant about religion, ideology, and the danger of rigid “one truth” thinking. The tone is mostly playful, absurd, and intentionally over-the-top.
Main Topics Discussed
Dog training and protection breeds
- Nate Shomer explains dog training concepts in practical terms:
- Border Collies are often cited as the smartest breed.
- Belgian Malinois are praised for drive, trainability, and protection work.
- German Shepherds are described as strong “off/on switch” family/protection dogs.
- Presa Canarios are discussed as powerful but less predictable and not ideal for inexperienced owners.
- He explains how protection dogs are trained:
- Reinforcing confidence and bark/alert behavior.
- Teaching dogs to associate commands with specific responses.
- Using shaping and reward-based methods to build behaviors step by step.
- A memorable anecdote: Nate describes training a dog to press elevator buttons and turn lights on for a disabled woman.
Protection dogs, police K9s, and bite work
- The group talks about how bite work is more of a game for many dogs than a hostile act.
- Will and Brian share stories about military/police dogs and how intense they can be in controlled settings.
- Nate explains that police K9s are trained differently from sport dogs, often with emphasis on holding the bite and avoiding dangerous redirects.
- A recurring point: a well-trained dog is a major deterrent, but a powerful dog can also become a liability if the owner isn’t experienced.
Fight talk and masculinity/comedy banter
- The episode is full of joking chest-thumping, mock alpha-male energy, and exaggerated tough-guy talk.
- Brian and Will riff on:
- Boxing and MMA
- Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor
- Bill Goldberg and other physically imposing figures
- The idea that panic or real contact changes how “trained” someone is
- The physical comedy escalates into absurd threats, fake bravado, and mock arguments about who would win fights.
Current events and pop culture
- Brief discussion of the Mexico earthquake and collapsing buildings.
- A reaction to Terminator 2 news, with Linda Hamilton returning and praise for her iconic role.
- A story about a couple who lost an engagement ring and later had it recreated on Jimmy Kimmel, which leads into jokes and a song parody.
- The episode also touches on Hamilton and theater, with Brian describing it as a “masterpiece.”
Philosophy, religion, and “truth”
- The final stretch turns into a surprisingly serious, then immediately comedic, conversation about:
- Religious conflict
- Protestant vs. Catholic history
- The dangers of ideological certainty
- How humans form teams, factions, and rigid belief systems
- Brian gives a long explanation about the Reformation and how “truth” can become weaponized.
- Will caps the segment with the recurring joke/philosophy:
- “Be a good shit.”
- That line becomes the episode’s absurd moral thesis: be decent, don’t be an ideologue, and don’t take life too seriously.
Notable Moments and Running Jokes
Will Sasso’s late arrival
- A long-running bit is built around Will being late.
- His entrance turns into a chaotic comedy routine with fake aggression, teasing, and improvised dominance games.
“Diamonding” the podcast
- Will jokes about trying to reduce the audience to one “diamond listener” for the 10 Minute Podcast crossover universe.
- It’s framed as a bizarre, exclusive reward-based listener challenge.
Absurd animal imagery
- The episode repeatedly escalates into ridiculous imagery:
- “Woolly moose”
- Polar bear hunting
- Bears being trained to thumb their own “shitter”
- Dogs as if they were supernatural weapons
- These are clearly comedic exaggerations, not literal claims.
“Be a good shit”
- This becomes the main takeaway line of the episode.
- It’s used as a simplified life philosophy after all the chaos, politics, and arguing.
Key Takeaways
- Dog training is presented as a mix of confidence-building, reward timing, and handler skill.
- Powerful breeds need experienced owners and structured training.
- Much of the episode is improvisational comedy built on exaggerated masculinity, absurd threats, and running gags.
- The last section shifts into a broader reflection on belief systems, tribalism, and how people turn ideas into weapons.
- The episode ends on a deliberately simple ethic: be a good shit.
Tone and Style
- Fast, chaotic, and heavily improvised
- Equal parts animal training discussion, fight-game chatter, and surreal comedy
- Frequent interruptions, character voices, and mock aggression
- Philosophical in the loosest possible sense, but always filtered through humor