Tag Archives: Cleveland Cavaliers

The Toy Department – Episode 455

  By toyAdmin | May 13, 2026 - 2:06 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 455, Madden and Kolsky navigate a new recording system as they meander through:

  • A fish-themed episode of Top Chef (1:40), the danger of a simple error and the race to the finish with a good collection of chefs…
  • The brilliance of The Bear’s new mini-movie Gary (25:40) and how the show’s creators continue to build beautiful, vibrant stories…
  • BBC’s Lord of the Flies adaptation on Netflix (31:35) and how it feels like a direct page-to-screen printing of William Golding’s book…
  • The Noah Kahan documentary Out of Body (38:25) and how it does nothing to explain the Noah Kahan phenomenon…
  • Sports talk (44:05) with a bit of Premier League and some NBA playoff thoughts…
  • Homework for next week (1:00:30), including: the next episode of Top Chef, the Amazon Prime movie Crime 101, the Martin Short documentary Marty: Life is Short on Netflix, Untold UK: Jamie Vardy (also on Netflix), and—naturally—more playoff hoops…

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The Toy Department – Episode 454

  By toyAdmin | May 6, 2026 - 1:45 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 454, Madden and Kolsky poo-poo Derek’s birthday before hustling through:

  • The latest from Top Chef: Carolinas (1:45) where there was too much mayo for one of our hosts and too much heat for some of the chefs…
  • Netflix’s new action show Man on Fire (19:50) and all the things it gets right…
  • HBO’s new drama Half Man (21:15), from the creator of the highly-acclaimed Baby Reindeer, and how it’s very well done but relentlessly traumatic…
  • Apple TV+’s new show Widow’s Bay (34:10) and whether it can truly be called a mystery or whether it’s a comedy or what the heck is generally happening here…
  • NBA Playoff thoughts (43:10) after a wild first round and a big upset at the start of the second round…
  • Homework for next week (1:08:35), including: the next episode of Top Chef, GARY (Hulu’s surprise drop from The Bear universe), BBC’s Lord of the Flies adaptation on Netflix, and the new Noah Kahan documentary Out of Body (also on Netflix), plus—of course—more playoff hoops…

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The Toy Department – Episode 453

  By toyAdmin | April 29, 2026 - 1:21 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 453, Madden and Kolsky react to another missed show countdown before diving right into:

  • The long-awaited and pretty weird Restaurant Wars episode of Top Chef: Carolinas (1:15) and the outlook for the remainder of the season…
  • Netflix’s new series This Is A Gardening Show (24:05), which is DEFINITELY a gardening show, but also a Zach Galifianakis show, and rather delightful if you’re into that sort of thing…
  • The new Sandler Family comedy Roommates (29:00) and how it’s a pretty good version of a particular type of Netflix fodder…
  • Glen Powell’s The Running Man (35:15) and how it’s a little more self-serious than our hosts would hope, particularly from director Edgar Wright…
  • A few sports thoughts (46:20) as the NBA rolls along through the first round of playoff action…
  • Homework for next week (56:30), including: the next episode of Top Chef, the new HBO show Half Man from the creator of Baby Reindeer, the new Apple TV+ show Widow’s Bay, Netflix’s new Man on Fire series, and much more playoff basketball…

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The Toy Department – Episode 452

  By toyAdmin | April 22, 2026 - 12:25 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 452, Madden and Kolsky are HAVING A WEIRD DAY, independently and also together, complete with technological difficulties as they attempt to fully attend to:

  • The most recent episode of Top Chef (1:05), featuring weird departures and weirder returns and the weirdest quickfire challenge…
  • The return of the Netflix series Beef (23:30) for its second season, and what distinguishes the anthology-style series from its first go-round…
  • Apple TV+’s new Elle Fanning vehicle Margo’s Got Money Troubles (28:15), its somewhat unexpected delights, and how Apple seems to be doing much of its best work in the complicated comedy zone…
  • Sports thoughts—on Chelsea and Arsenal competing in Premier League misery (34:35) and a so-far-so-good first round of NBA Playoff action (42:25)…
  • Homework for next week (47:00), including: the next episode of Top Chef, the new Netflix series This Is A Gardening Show (with Zach Galifianakis), the new movie Roommates (also on Netflix), Glen Powell’s The Running Man on Amazon Prime, and much more playoff basketball…

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The Toy Department – Episode 451

  By toyAdmin | April 15, 2026 - 6:46 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 451, Madden and Kolsky are up late for a special after-dark edition, so don’t worry if everyone sounds a little punchy as they chat about:

  • The latest from Top Chef (2:45) where a BIG BBQ challenge brought out the best in the chefs and there’s a hanging mystery heading into next week…
  • The Netflix doc UNTOLD: The Death and Life of Lamar Odom (24:10) which has a fascinating subject but doesn’t entirely come together as a documentary…
  • The new Jonah Hill-directed movie Outcome (32:15) on Apple TV+, where the camp is high, the ambitions are relatively low, and one of our hosts is very annoyed…
  • Netflix’s new Dan Levy comedy Big Mistakes (41:50) and how the frantic nature of the whole thing makes it tough to enjoy…
  • A hard pass on talking soccer (47:30), but a few thoughts on the NBA as we head into the playoffs…
  • Homework for next week (53:35), including: the next episode of Top Chef, the Apple TV+ series Margo’s Got Money Troubles, the return of Netflix’s show Beef (as an anthology series) and a WHOLE LOT of playoff basketball…

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The Toy Department – Episode 121

  By toyAdmin | June 12, 2018 - 2:18 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 121, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky whine about their jobs briefly before discussing more interesting fodder, including:

  • The conclusion of the NBA Finals (3:25) including thoughts on LeBron’s hand injury and a look ahead to the offseason and beyond…
  • The new film Ocean’s 8 (16:40) and why it falls flatter than the guys hoped and expected…
  • Season 2 of Netflix’s Dear White People (26:45) and just how excited and hopeful both guys are for a potential Season 3…
  • The Season 3 finalé of Billions (31:20) and how it has risen to the top of current television options…
  • A quick return to Dear White People (41:00) to highlight the exceptional Episode 9 of the second season…
  • The new 4-episode documentary Evil Genius (44:20) and how it stands up in Netflix’s wave of documentaries…
  • Homework for next week (52:10), including: finally getting around to Lost in Space on Netflix, and Kolsky getting into MTV’s The Challenge…

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.

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The Toy Department – Episode 120

  By toyAdmin | June 5, 2018 - 2:35 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 120, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky return after a week off to break down:

  • A few thoughts on Kanye West’s new album (3:20) and whether it’s really worth getting into…
  • Some closing thoughts on Killing Eve’s first season (11:30) and where the show might be headed for its second season…
  • Madden goes iso to talk about the series finalé of The Americans (21:15) and pleads for people to watch it…
  • Some final thoughts on the FX series Trust (34:45) and how it was an excellent single-season television effort that seemed to achieve all its goals…
  • HBO’s new series Succession (42:15) and whether a very pilot-y first episode did the job of getting the guys excited for the full run…
  • A few quick thoughts on I’m Dying Up Here (49:30) and how it’s a fun show hitting its stride…
  • An NBA Finals discussion (51:50) covering how long the series will last and the greatness of LeBron James…
  • A brief World Cup preview (59:40) as we head towards a tournament without the USMNT…
  • Homework for next week (1:07:05), including: the Netflix documentary Evil Genius, a wrap-up conversation for Dear White People (also on Netflix) and maybe even a chat about Lost In Space (once again – Netflix)…

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.

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The Toy Department – Episode 119

  By toyAdmin | May 21, 2018 - 4:06 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 119, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky actually managed a semi-shortened episode, despite the topic list growing far beyond its original purview to include:

  • Some on-air pre-production (0:55) re: next week’s plans for a Killing Eve pop-in…
  • A brief discussion about the best shows on TV right now (2:30) and just how good Showtime’s Billions is…
  • Kolsky’s new Cheers habit (8:50) and what a delightful tv comfort food that show makes…
  • The news that Barack and Michelle Obama have partnered with Netflix (16:05) on a new production company that will make a variety of different things…
  • The final mini-season of New Girl (22:10) and whether it was worth having…
  • Ali Wong’s new comedy special on Netflix (29:30) and the apparent lack of growth in her comedy since her first special…
  • Homework for next week (35:05), which will be an even SHORTER episode: just the Season 1 wrap-up for Killing Eve and a topic list for the following week…
  • Some quick NBA thoughts (36:05) at the midway point of the conference finals…

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.

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The Toy Department – Episode 118

  By toyAdmin | May 15, 2018 - 2:20 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 118, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky share their plans for the evening before focusing in on:

  • Some thoughts on FX’s Atlanta (2:35) after the finalé of its second season, with an aside on Donald Glover’s upcoming appearance in Solo…
  • The season finalé of Barry on HBO (10:55) and whether the writers have painted themselves into a corner for Season 2 with the way the first season ended…
  • David Letterman’s Netflix show (20:05) and whether it maybe should have just been a podcast…
  • The Arctic Monkeys new album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (33:00) and how much of a tonal shift it represents for a band that broke out in popularity after their previous record…
  • A check-in with the NBA Playoffs (44:10) and an argument about whether either of the teams who lost Game 1 of their conference finals series still has a chance to advance to the NBA Finals…
  • The announcement of Netflix/ESPN’s new 10-hour documentary about Michael Jordan’s Bulls (1:00:55), how it’s time to remind the world of Jordan’s greatness and how Kolsky can barely contain his excitement…
  • Homework for next week (1:12:40), including: including Ali Wong’s new standup special on Netflix and the series finalé of the sitcom New Girl…

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.

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The Toy Department – Episode 116

  By toyAdmin | May 1, 2018 - 1:21 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 116, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky ignore the small Venezuelan woman knocking on the door of Kolsky’s room and get right into:

  • Kanye West’s apparent Trump support (6:20) and whether it changes the receptiveness to his music…
  • The season 2 premiere of The Handmaid’s Tale (14:45) and whether the guys are prepared to depress themselves for another season of television…
  • The return of IFC’s Brockmire (25:55), how much fun the show is and how hopeful both guys are for the future of this season…
  • Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Crashing (33:15), an originally British show that is now available on Netflix and brings some filthy fun to the table…
  • FX’s Legion (43:05) and whether things have gotten too insane to handle for either of the hosts…
  • The second round of the NBA Playoffs (52:50) including thoughts on LeBron, the 76ers, the Celtics and the Raptors…
  • Homework for next week (1:03:15), including: Dear White People on Netflix, checking in on Westworld, Billions and Atlanta, the return of Showtime’s I’m Dying Up Here, the new Janelle Monáe album (plus the movie she released on YouTube along with it) and John Mulaney’s new Netflix stand-up special…

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.

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