How Comedy Bang! Bang! became the ‘SNL’ of podcasts for funny performers who act on their feet

The vibe is part family reunion, part business meeting as “Comedy Bang! “I think it is kind of every improviser’s dream to play with people that are just perfectly, as equally mentally ill as you are.” Scott Aukerman could be called the Lorne Michaels of character improv. There were a certain amount of parents who brought their kids with them who are also fans — like, generational fans — and just a lot of 20-year-olds.” Still, Aukerman admits he was feeling nostalgic this year, so he brought back Bob Ducca — a dysfunctionally paternal character that Seth Morris has been playing on the show since 2010 — and Nick Wiger singing his hysterically obscene parody of “Monster Mash,” a longstanding Halloween tradition. Bang!’ Universe.” Aukerman, who is far more chill and subdued than the heightened and slightly belligerent “Scott Aukerman” who hosts the podcast, has weathered massive changes in the entertainment ecosystem: when he started “CBB” no one even knew what podcasts were, or else they didn’t consider the form legit; then the viral likes of “Serial” captured all of the attention; now, seemingly everyone has a podcast and the biggest shows are celebrities interviewing other celebrities. Many other alums have populated writing rooms and casts of TV shows and films; Ego Nwodim — who plays unhinged nuts like “Entrée PeeE Neur” on “CBB” — is a current member of the cast of “SNL.” If anything, many of Aukerman’s comedy carnies — including Nick Kroll and Tim Baltz — become too big, or at least too busy, to stay a regular.