The Toy Department – Episode 211

In Episode 211, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky literally discuss the weather and their pets before navigating through:

  • This week’s episode of Top Chef (2:20) and Leanne’s impressive cockroach impersonation…
  • This week’s episode of The Challenge: Total Madness (15:05) and the incredible level of danger this season’s challengers are facing…
  • Episodes 3 & 4 of the Michael Jordan/Chicago Bulls documentary The Last Dance (31:25) and the Bulls’ epic battles with Detroit…
  • The season finale of Jason Segel’s Dispatches from Elsewhere (47:10) and what to take away from a bizarre adventure…
  • Mindy Kaling’s new Netflix creation Never Have I Ever (54:10) and whether it distinguishes itself in a crowded landscape of high school-based entertainment…
  • A very special quarantine episode of Parks & Recreation (57:30) and how much fun it is to hang with the characters we love so much…
  • The HBO movie Bad Education (1:01:15) and whether good performances can elevate a story without a lot to like…
  • Homework for next week (1:06:45), including: new episodes of Top Chef & The Challenge, two more episodes of The Last Dance, Hulu’s new show Normal People, HBO’s new skater show Betty, and Upload on Amazon Prime, plus the return of Billions on Showtime…

The Toy Department – Episode 145

In Episode 145, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky deliver the usual senseless patter before focusing in on:

  • Creed II (1:45), the first of two films the guys watched this week, and how while it was relatively entertaining, it failed to deliver on the promise of the first Creed movie…
  • The Front Runner (15:55) and how it was not necessarily great but is certainly very relevant to our current political landscape…
  • Netflix’s new Narcos: Mexico (25:20) and how both guys are all in after watching the first two episodes…
  • A brief detour into the market saturation of the trailer for Vice (29:45) and how excited the podcast is to cover it…
  • A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships, the new album by The 1975 (34:45) and how both guys have become real fans of this band…
  • Anderson .Paak’s new album Oxnard (39:35) and how it doesn’t quite rise to the standards of his masterwork Malibu, but it is still very good and highly enjoyable…
  • Homework for next week (46:10), including: the return(s) of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon and Top Chef on Bravo, plus comedy on Netflix with Russell Brand’s stand-up special Rebirth and the Jeff Ross/Dave Attell collab Bumping Mics and some catch-up on Homecoming and Escape at Dannemora…

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes/Stitcher/Google Play/etc. you can just click on the link below the player (and don’t forget to leave us a review!!)… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.

The Toy Department – Episode 60

In Episode 60, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky kvetch about their various ailments like the couple of aging Jews that they are before jumping into deep discussions of:

  • The diverse television landscape (1:55) including chats about: FX’s The Americans & Legion (10:30), NBC’s The Good Place (12:45), the new Ryan Murphy series Feud (16:25), the new CW Archie adaptation Riverdale (22:10) and the reboot of Must-See-TV’s Will & Grace (27:45)…
  • A week at the movies!! Kolsky saw Logan (32:45) and gives a quick review before an in-depth discussion of the new horror darling Get Out (35:30) which both guys saw and enjoyed…
  • Cleaning up some old homework (49:40) as Madden failed to listen to the new Loyle Carner album but both guys are ready to discuss the new Cloud Nothings album Life Without Sound, which was the previous week’s homework assignment…
  • The World Baseball Classic (57:55) and exactly what the hell baseball is trying to do here… with a little bit of discussion about international sporting tournaments in general…
  • Next week’s homework (1:07:05) wherein Madden promises to listen to Loyle Carner and a couple of new TV shows will be back on the table as well…

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.