The Toy Department – Episode 441

In Episode 441, Madden and Kolsky are in a REAL time crunch, so after briefly addressing Kolsky’s predictable failure with a specific (Jeff Buckley-sized) portion of the homework, it’s right into:

  • The 50 Cent-produced Sean Combs: The Reckoning () on Netflix and whether it paints a complete picture of the monster that is Puffy/Diddy/Whatever you wanna call him…
  • George Clooney’s excellent performance in the Noah Baumbach Netflix film Jay Kelly (13:50) and whether the movie around him stands up to it…
  • The Darren Aronofsky movie Caught Stealing (20:00) and how it’s quite a departure from his usual fare, in that it’s more just fun than weird or interesting…
  • The latest Knives Out movie, Wake Up Dead Man (22:30) and how there’s not much to complain about other than the length of it…
  • HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!! We don’t have HOMEWORK per se, but We WILL BE BACK in the New Year, some time in mid-January, to talk about a variety of pop culture goodness—likely including the Jeff Buckley and Counting Crows documentaries on HBO, the full season of Pluribus on Apple TV+ and some festive fixtures in the English Premier League…

The Toy Department – Episode 326

In Episode 326, Madden and Kolsky wonder whether Derek’s jinx powers are enough to bring about the end of the world before dismissing that danger and locking in on:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Ride or Dies (2:00), including the heartbreak of another Nelson loss and what might be in store as we head towards TJ’s Final…
  • The Banshees of Inisherin (24:00) and how it infuriated one of our hosts beyond belief…
  • The largely enjoyable sloppy mess that was Amsterdam (37:50) and how it was too convoluted to be particularly good…
  • The harmless fun of Glass Onion (42:50) and how it left the guys wanting a bit more…
  • The bizarre approach of Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio (47:30) and the needlessness of Nazis…
  • Homework for next Friday (55:05), including: the movie White Noise on Netflix, the documentary WOO! Becoming Rick Flair on Peacock and The Recruit (the Noah Centineo CIA show) on Netflix… and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…