Tag Archives: comedy

The Toy Department – Episode 456

  By toyAdmin | May 20, 2026 - 11:28 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 456, Madden and Kolsky discuss their mutual inability to drink alcohol like in the good ole days before snapping their focus to:

  • Netflix’s documentary Untold UK: Jamie Vardy (4:10) and the absolutely incredible story of his rise to the Premier League and eventual league title with Leicester City FC…
  • Amazon Prime’s heist thriller Crime 101 (15:20) and how it’s a fun and pretty great version of a certain sort of movie…
  • A quick show detour to discuss the totality of HBO’s DTF St. Louis (20:55) and how it was a long journey to get there, but it ended up in a pretty solid place…
  • Netflix’s Martin Short documentary Marty: Life is Short (29:35) and how it does a great job of covering the public life of a venerated comedy entertainer…
  • This week’s relatively underwhelming episode of Top Chef (37:15), the ascension of Sherry and Seiger, and wondering whether we’ll ever leave the Carolinas…
  • Homework for next week (48:35), including: the next episode of Top Chef, Apple TV+’s new Tatiana Maslany show Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, the new Netflix show The Boroughs and the new hit Nemesis (also on Netflix)…

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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 438

  By toyAdmin | November 14, 2025 - 1:16 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 438, Madden and Kolsky get right down to business to avoid Kolsky’s scheduling conflicts:

  • The last two weeks of action on The Challenge: Vets & New Threats (1:11) where the latest episode featured some delightful high drama, continuing rookie behavior from a vet and a fascinating new elimination… and we are set up for a heck of stretch run!
  • Tracy Morgan’s new Paramount+ sitcom Crutch (23:25) and how it is really for people who love the old-school, traditional sitcom format (and apparently the show The Neighborhood with Cedric the Entertainer)…
  • The new HBO Max comedy I Love LA (26:30), Derek’s developing distaste for Rachel Sennott and an interesting comparison to a long-running and beloved show in a different city…
  • Netflix’s new Colin Farrell film Ballad of a Small Player (30:25) and how our hosts wish the movie was better, because Farrell’s performance is typically awesome…
  • Vince Gilligan’s new Apple TV+ show Pluribus (35:25) and how Rhea Seehorn should be in everything and we should cherish our television masters while we have them…
  • A few thoughts on Victor Wembenyama (55:15) and the place of dynasties in sports…
  • Homework for next week (1:04:05), including: another episode of The Challenge: Vets & New Threats, the Eddie Murphy docu-series Being Eddie on Netflix, the return of Landman on Paramount+ and Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein (also on Netflix), plus MAYBE season 2 of A Man on the Inside (time permitting) and Sinners (Derek-watching-it permitting)…

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The Toy Department – Episode 436

  By toyAdmin | October 24, 2025 - 11:41 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 436, Madden and Kolsky must address Derek’s continued truancy at the movie theater before they can get deeper into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Vets & New Threats (4:35) where there are increasingly fewer vets (especially on the men’s side) but plenty of threats all over…
  • The Shane Black film Play Dirty (20:50) and the joys of watching Lakeith Stanfield, plus a spoiler that we forgot to pre-alert, so look alive 😂…
  • The Hulu documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery (26:15) and the importance of the festival, in retrospect, plus Kolsky’s irrational distaste for Sarah McLachlan…
  • Colin Hanks’ documentary John Candy: I Like Me (36:10) and the relative ambitions of a bio-doc versus an event doc…
  • The new Naked Gun movie on Paramount+ (43:45) and how Liam Neeson & Co. did well to capture the essence of the franchise but could have provided a few more laughs…
  • A handful of sports thoughts (48:20) from gambling in the NBA to Arsenal’s spot atop the EPL favorites…
  • Homework for next week (1:10:00), including: another episode of The Challenge: Vets & New Threats, actually making Derek get to the theater to see One Battle After Another, plus Season 2 of Nobody Wants This and the new Kathryn Bigelow movie A House of Dynamite, both on Netflix…

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The Toy Department – Episode 435

  By toyAdmin | October 17, 2025 - 12:28 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 435, Madden and Kolsky return from an extended absence with Derek running on fumes to discuss:

  • Three weeks of The Challenge: Vets & New Threats (4:15) which featured lots of content but maybe not a whole lot of action…
  • The Chair Company on HBO (26:05) and why both of our hosts are all the way out on Tim Robinson…
  • Hulu’s football comedy Chad Powers (33:35) and what it looks like when a movie star is in a middling TV comedy…
  • Netflix’s new period drama House of Guinness (38:05) and whether it will pick up enough to draw one of our hosts in…
  • Mae Martin’s new Netflix thriller Wayward (43:25) and its extremely chaotic energy…
  • Derek’s failure (49:30) to watch One Battle After Another…
  • Homework for next week (51:30), including: another episode of The Challenge: Vets & New Threats, actually getting to talk about One Battle After Another, the new Naked Gun movie on Paramount+, the new Shane Black movie Play Dirty on Amazon Prime Video, the Hulu documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery (despite Kolsky’s sexism) and the Colin Hanks-directed documentary John Candy: I Like Me on Amazon Prime Video…

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The Toy Department – Episode 412

  By toyAdmin | January 24, 2025 - 10:18 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 412, Madden and Kolsky have a quick chat about vacations and the city of New Orleans before focusing in on:

  • The conclusion of a lackluster reunion for The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (4:20) and a look ahead to the hopefully much more entertaining All-Stars 5…
  • The Oscar-nominated Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown (16:30), some big-time acting performances and the impact of Dylan going electric…
  • The Amazon Prime film Unstoppable (27:50) and what a classic high-quality true-story drama looks like…
  • The return of Apple TV+ sensation Severance (35:05) and what Ben Stiller & Co. are driving at with this bizarre and stylized show…
  • Peacock’s goofy new comedy Laid (44:25), the irrepressible charm of Stephanie Hsu and the absolute wheelhouse of Zosia Mamet…
  • A touch of sports talk (49:30) as we careen towards the end of both the NFL season and the soccer transfer window…
  • Homework for TWO weeks from now (1:04:05), including: the first two episodes of The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals, the new Hulu show Paradise, the return of Netflix’s The Night Agent and Oscar contenders Anora and A Real Pain…

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The Toy Department – Episode 405

  By toyAdmin | November 7, 2024 - 10:41 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 405, Madden and Kolsky are on the clock and in their feelings, so it’s a sprint through:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (1:15) where everything continues to come up Bananas and Tori is making a run at the proverbial Championship Belt…
  • The return of Lioness on Paramount+ (31:55) and the remarkable productivity of Taylor Sheridan…
  • The distinctly dad-focused stand-up of Seth Myers (42:25) in his new special Dad Man Walking…
  • The politically-tinged stand-up of Hasan Minhaj (45:35) in his new special Off With His Head…
  • A clash of the titans upcoming this weekend (50:45) as Derek’s Arsenal and Kolsky’s Chelsea do battle at Stamford Bridge on Sunday…
  • Homework for next week (54:40), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the new show The Day of the Jackal on Peacock, the Netflix film His Three Daughters and the Annie Baker-directed Janet Planet on Max…

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The Toy Department – Episode 402

  By toyAdmin | October 17, 2024 - 7:53 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 402, Madden and Kolsky discuss their great lost episode, and attempt to recreate some of the magic you missed last week as they cover:

  • The last two episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (2:00), including the gladiatorial greatness of Derrick Kosinski and the age-defying dominance of Rachel Robinson…
  • A sprint through the un-aired conversations from last week about: the Pitt/Clooney film Wolfs (26:05), the new HBO comedy The Franchise (27:10) and Mark Duplass’ quietly impactful Penelope (30:15)…
  • The Netflix documentary Will & Harper (32:25) and how it walks a fine line between laughs and love to produce a tremendous study of America and friendship…
  • The NBA-focused docu-series Starting 5 on Netflix (38:55) and how it delivers watchability and entertainment even if it doesn’t deliver much basketball…
  • Apple TV+’s new big-ticket drama Disclaimer (54:50) and how it’s all twisted around and structured in a way that makes it difficult to process…
  • Homework for next week (1:05:30), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the second season of Shrinking on Apple TV+, the new Ali Wong stand-up special Single Lady on Netflix and watching Game 4 of the WNBA Finals so you can try to find Derek Madden in the crowd…

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The Toy Department – Episode 393

  By toyAdmin | July 12, 2024 - 1:38 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 393, Madden and Kolsky discuss their canned-champagne problems (including Kolsky’s urgent need of a plumber) before conversations about:

  • The third season of Hulu’s flagship dramedy The Bear (4:35) and whether it stands up to the incredibly high standard set by its first two seasons…
  • The Dakota Johnson film Am I Ok? (19:15) and the text message Derek sent to Kolsky while he was watching it…
  • The sickle-cell-superhero show Supacell on Netflix (33:15) and the cultural value of message-driven shows in this particular genre…
  • The stand-up comedy of Ali Siddiq (39:50) and his recent four-special series about his life…
  • A few thoughts on the state of USA Men’s soccer (48:25) as they seek to replace Gregg Berhalter…
  • Homework for next week (1:13:05), including: the Rashida Jones show Sunny on Apple TV+, the new film Problemista on Max, Eddie Murphy’s return in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F on Netflix and the new Sausage Party show on Amazon Prime Video…

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