The Toy Department – Episode 439

In Episode 439, Madden and Kolsky get started with Derek issuing the dreaded short-show curse before a futile attempt to break it while discussing:

  • The last pre-final episode of The Challenge: Vets & New Threats (1:15) where Nany’s determination to play the game “honorably” got the best of her, leaving a stacked field for TJ’s Final…
  • The return of Landman on Paramount+ (22:05) and how it’s one of the most enjoyable and well-written shows available, whatever you might think about its oil politics…
  • Netflix’s documentary Being Eddie (27:15) and whether the filmmakers managed to get deep enough with the enigmatic and private Eddie Murphy…
  • Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein (44:15) and how it utterly failed to reach either of our hosts…
  • Derek finally watched Sinners! (51:00) He didn’t love it.
  • Homework for TWO weeks from now [we are off for Thanksgiving, and a HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU] (58:50), including: a final report on The Challenge: Vets & New Threats, Netflix’s Claire Danes show The Beast in Me, Peacock’s missing child drama All Her Fault, the Cumberbatch/Coleman film The Roses (available on Hulu), Netflix’s historical drama Death By Lightning, and the second season of A Man on the Inside…

The Toy Department – Episode 371

In Episode 371, Madden and Kolsky totally forget to wish each other (or you) a Happy New Year and instead discuss the elastic nature of time before getting into:

  • A more eventful episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion (3:10) that nevertheless failed to improve the entertainment value of an increasingly frustrating season…
  • The new Dave Chappelle special The Dreamer (23:20), his addiction to touching the third rail and enjoying a comedian without loving all of his jokes…
  • The utterly confounding film Saltburn (31:30) and the very specific (and wildly bizarre) visionn of Emerald Fennell…
  • The new Alexander Payne film The Holdovers (41:15) and how it’s just a really damn good movie and you should all watch it…
  • Season two of Dr. Death (44:50) and how one of our hosts is just a hard out on this type of show…
  • Homework for next week (55:20), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion, finishing the Hulu series Murder at the End of the World, and two Netflix properties — the Zack Snyder movie Rebel Moon and the new Michelle Yeoh series The Brothers Sun…