The Toy Department – Episode 294

In Episode 294, Madden and Kolsky briefly address Derek’s disappointment with US Soccer before moving through:

  • Reaction to last night’s Top Chef: Houston episode (2:30), the remarkable technical skills needed for the doppelgänger challenge and who’s in the driver’s seat moving forward…
  • The absurdity of the psycho-erotic thriller Deep Water (25:25) and just how little sense the whole messy mess made…
  • The wonderful and rightfully Oscar-nominated CODA (32:15) and how this little movie charmed it’s way to big success…
  • HBO Max’s new Jake Johnson showcase Minx (41:50) and what a fun ride it is…
  • The Big Mouth spinoff Human Resources (46:40) and how it’s funny enough to watch but missing a lot of the original’s best features…
  • The latest in real-life-entrepreneur-gone-bad television, Hulu’s The Dropout (49:35), and how Amanda Seyfried’s phenomenal work is not enough to suck in one of our hosts…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:02:30), including: more Top Chef: Houston, along with the return of Donald Glover’s Atlanta on FX, the new Hulu show Life and Beth (starring Amy Schumer and Michael Cera), and HBO Max’s new limited series DMZ (starring Rosario Dawson and Benjamin Bratt)…

The Toy Department – Episode 291

In Episode 291, Madden and Kolsky return from a Kolsky-forced hiatus to celebrate (or denigrate) all the pop culture they consumed while away, specifically:

  • The premiere of Top Chef Houston (2:25) and who the guys fell in love with in the first episode, plus thoughts on the first elimination and potential favorites to win…
  • The second season of The Righteous Gemstones (23:15) and how Madden is enjoying a slight shift in content…
  • The end of AppleTV+’s The Afterparty (24:55) and how ultimately it’s just a really good hang, even if it’s not always laugh-out-loud funny…
  • Season two of Euphoria (29:00) and how both hosts love this completely insane and wildly unbelievable show…
  • A quick take on The Girl Before (45:30) and how its particular brand of psychosexual melodrama is less than totally appealing…
  • A few thoughts on the Oscar-nominated film The Power of the Dog (47:00) and how neither host found it enjoyable, but for very different reasons than Sam Elliott…
  • Netflix’s new sensation Inventing Anna (52:15) and how it’s a very Shonda Rhimes show with some great acting and a fascinating story to tell…
  • The utterly “meh” Soderbergh joint Kimi (53:30) and how somehow it’s an empty enough effort to make both hosts indifferent towards Zoe Kravitz…
  • Potential future homeworks (55:30) Superpumped: The Battle for Uber and the Apple TV+ show Severance, directed by Ben Stiller; but those go on the back burner for now because we have…
  • Homework for next Friday (57:10), including: HBO’s Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, the Oscar-nominated movie Nightmare Alley, the return of the original Law & Order and the new Prime Video cartoon The Boys Presents: Diabolical…

The Toy Department – Episode 290

In Episode 290, Madden and Kolsky get straight into the content because Derek is having a tough day and Matt doesn’t want to make it worse:

  • Netflix’s new Aziz Ansari stand-up special Nightclub Comedian (2:50) and how it has it’s hilarious moments but isn’t particularly personal or essential…
  • Hulu’s new show Pam & Tommy (19:30) and how it is incredibly well-cast and highly entertaining but seems to be focused more on the specific story of the sex tape than the relationship in general…
  • The new Netflix series Murderville (35:35) and how mileage may vary but Marshawn Lynch is spectacular…
  • The Amazon series Reacher (45:25) and how it’s a hell of a good time…
  • Some NFL prop bets (49:30) to prepare you for Sunday’s big game…
  • Thoughts on the NBA trade deadline (1:06:35) especially the James Harden/Ben Simmons trade…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:24:00), including: getting into some Oscars content with The Power of the Dog on Netflix, plus the new HBO Max show The Girl Before, the new Soderbergh film Kimi (also on HBO Max) and the new Netflix series Inventing Anna (starring Julia Garner)…

The Toy Department – Episode 289

In Episode 289, Madden and Kolsky have a somber philosophical rumination about dogs getting old before snapping out of it and getting into:

  • The film The Last Duel (4:25) and the difference between the hosts’ opinions on whether it’s worth watching…
  • Apple TV+’s new comedy The Afterparty (17:55) and how the deep roster of comedy talent makes for a great time…
  • The new Freeform sitcom Single Drunk Female (25:15) and how the first couple episodes really lean on the charm of the lead actress…
  • Netflix’s new Kristen Bell-led satire The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window (29:15) and whether it is caught in-between parody and satire…
  • A check-in with The Book of Boba Fett (33:50) and how the Disney+ series seems to be leveling up in its last couple of episodes…
  • Some NFL talk (43:00) as the league goes through multiple scandals at once…
  • A few quick thoughts on USMNT soccer (1:12:05) and the decision to play in freezing cold Minnesota…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:17:25), including: the new Aziz Ansari stand-up special Nightclub Comedian, Hulu’s new show Pam & Tommy, the new Netflix series Murderville and the new Reacher series on Amazon Prime…

The Toy Department – Episode 288

In Episode 288, Madden and Kolsky have a little laugh about the sadness of missing The Challenge before getting networky with:

  • The underwhelming How I Met Your Father on Hulu (2:20) and how it’s super networky, despite being a streaming-only show, and mediocre-at-best…
  • The more enjoyable Abbott Elementary on ABC/Hulu (8:25) and where it succeeds, though mileage may vary person to person on really loving it…
  • Fox/Hulu’s Pivoting (13:15) and the irrepressible charm of its cast…
  • The new Duplass joint Somebody Somewhere on HBO (20:25) and how nice it is to have the brothers back in their sincere, heartwarming wheelhouse…
  • The beginning of the final season of Netflix’s Ozark (29:00) and how the stakes just keep getting higher on a really great TV program…
  • Some thoughts on arguably the greatest weekend of NFL playoff football ever (40:55) and where we’re headed now that it’s down to the final four…
  • Homework for next Tuesday (59:15), including: Single Drunk Female on Freeform/Hulu, the film The Last Duel (now on HBO Max), The Afterparty on Apple TV+ and Netflix’s new Kristen Bell show The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window… plus hopefully another great weekend of NFL Playoffs!!

The Toy Department – Episode 287

In Episode 287, Madden and Kolsky are BACK (at long last!) to cover a MYRIAD of pop culture topics… and don’t worry, we cut out most of the COVID conversation so it’s basically straight into:

  • Aaron Sorkin’s Amazon Prime film Being the Ricardos (4:35) and how it’s a poorly cast, oddly framed and ultimately kind of pointless look at Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz…
  • The Matrix Resurrections on HBO Max (8:35) and how it was a pretty enjoyable action flick but not really anything special or mind-blowing…
  • Disney+’s The Book of Boba Fett (13:10) and how it doesn’t live up to The Mandalorian’s high standard in the first couple episodes, but it probably deserves some time to achieve that level…
  • The Apple TV+ film Swan Song (15:00) and how tremendous performances from Mahershala Ali, Glenn Close and Awkwafina bring an incredibly subtle but deeply moving film to life…
  • The HBO Max post-apocalyptic series Station 11 (21:30) and how it really came together beautifully and is, in the end, a hopeful and uplifting version of the world…
  • The return of HBO’s Euphoria (33:25) and how it delivers the same beautiful cinematography and fascinating storytelling that you may remember from its first season…
  • The end of Season 1 of Showtime’s Yellowjackets (40:50) and how thrilling and entertaining and well-acted it was, plus some excitement over the potential for Season 2…
  • The end of The Challenge All-Stars 2 (50:10) and the new level we expect the Challenge’s senior circuit to hit with the quickly-coming Season 3…
  • A few thoughts on the NFL Playoffs (1:10:00) after a largely boring “Super” Wild Card Weekend…
  • Homework for next Tuesday (1:16:40), including: Abbott Elementary on ABC/Hulu, Pivoting on Fox/Hulu, How I Met Your Father on JUST Hulu and HBO’s new Duplass show Somebody Somewhere, plus the new season of Netflix’s Ozark… (and don’t miss the post-show out-take, we say the F word a lot 🙂

The Toy Department – Episode 286

In Episode 286, Madden and Kolsky are wrapping up another hideous year in style with a loooong episode, covering:

  • The best, most thoughtful and considered coverage of The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies (2:05) and arguably the greatest final in the tremendous history of the series…
  • Some thoughts on The Challenge All-Stars 2 (44:20) as the competition (hopefully) heats up heading down the stretch…
  • Best of 2021 lists!!! Madden and Kolsky share their favorites (58:40) from a weird year of pop culture content…
  • Homework for next year (1:31:40) as the boys will reconvene in January, including: Station 11 on HBO Max, the new film The Matrix Resurrections (also on HBO Max), the new Star Wars series The Book of Boba Fett on Disney+, the film Being the Ricardos on Amazon Prime and the Apple TV+ movie Swan Song… Happy Holidays everyone!!!

The Toy Department – Episode 284

In Episode 284, Madden and Kolsky spend a few minutes talking about a musician Kolsky just discovered before getting to:

  • Kevin Hart’s new Netflix series True Story (4:55) and how a lot of good acting is not really enough to save a mediocre plot…
  • The absolutely insane conclusion to Season 2 of Apple TV+’s The Morning Show (20:05) and how this sort of soapy silliness happens on the watch of so many great actors…
  • The new film King Richard (30:45) and how good Will Smith is in Venus and Serena Williams’ tribute to their incredibly unique father…
  • The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies (43:55) and just what the major elimination twist will be, plus the unbelievable career of CT and some informal player power rankings as we head into the final…
  • The latest from The Challenge All-Stars 2 (1:02:00), from the lovable insanity of Ayanna to the strange decision-making of Steve after an entertaining trivia challenge…
  • Homework for next Thursday (1:17:55), including: more of The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies, AND more Challenge All-Stars, the new Beatles docu-series Get Back, the new Amazon Prime show Harlem, the new HBO show Landscapers and the musician Jacob Collier…

The Toy Department – Episode 283

In Episode 283, Madden and Kolsky talk a little turkey in honor of the recent Thanksgiving holiday before turning their focus to…

  • The new Netflix film Red Notice (6:45) and how it’s a pretty good time despite lacking any sensible plot line…
  • The new Mindy Kaling-produced HBO Max show The Sex Lives of College Girls (11:50) and how both guys like the early returns as it tries to find its footing…
  • The latest HBO Music Box documentary Jagged (18:40) and how convincingly it makes the argument for Alanis Morissette’s great influence on the world of popular rock music…
  • The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies (30:20) after a strangely straightforward episode, and where things stand with the finalé lurking just past the next turn…
  • The latest from The Challenge All-Stars (43:55) and the impossibly poor tic-tac-toe strategy displayed by a bunch of 40-somethings…
  • Homework for next Thursday (1:06:00), including: more of The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies, AND more Challenge All-Stars, the new film King Richard on HBO Max, Kevin Hart’s new Netflix series True Story and a postseason wrap-up of Apple TV+’s The Morning Show…

The Toy Department – Episode 281

In Episode 281, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s morning drinks and Kolsky’s morning show appearance before remembering to talk about…

  • Tom Hanks’ new Apple TV+ film Finch (3:15) which is not a bad movie but forgettable enough that Derek can’t keep the title in his head for more than seven consecutive minutes…
  • The new Netflix western film The Harder They Fall (10:20) and how it’s a highly entertaining bit of popcorn cinema…
  • The return of Netflix’s treasured Big Mouth (23:00) and spoiler alert: it’s still great!
  • Another momentum-shifting week on The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies (27:40) as the Emerald Cell finally loses a daily challenge and faces infiltration via an overdramatic elimination starring Amanda as one of the great heels in show history…
  • The Season 2 premiere of The Challenge All-Stars (46:35) and how the episode was somewhat disappointing, but there’s still a lot of hope for a good season…
  • Homework for next Thursday (59:00), including: more of The Challenge: Spies, Lies and Allies, AND more Challenge All-Stars, plus Yellowjackets on Showtime, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on Disney+ and Mayor of Kingstown on Paramount+…
  • A few minutes on USA Men’s Soccer (1:00:45) ahead of a critical USA v. Mexico matchup in World Cup Qualifying play…