James Marsden – The Toy Department

In Episode 345, Madden and Kolsky have a Challenge final to discuss, so it’s right down to the business:

TJ’s Final for The Challenge: World Championship (0:45), the design of an intriguing final, how this CBS/Paramount+ version fits into the Challenge Universe and Jordan’s ascension among the all-time greats…
The double-elimination Wellington episode of Top Chef: World All-Stars (22:55) and how brutal it was on all of the chefs, and thoughts on how the competition stacks up heading to Paris…
Hulu’s Tupac docu-series Dear Mama (36:50) and how Allen Hughes has crafted a beautiful marriage of historical document and artistic film piece…
The Amazon Freevee show Jury Duty (44:25) and how James Marsden and a well-cast unknown centerpiece make this unique show entertaining…
Peacock’s new Pete Davidson series Bupkis (48:40) and how the weird state of TV criticism led to unnecessary criticism of a perfectly good show…
A couple minutes on the NBA Playoffs (54:20) after two games of each conference finals series…
Homework for next week (56:45), including: Hulu’s new White Men Can’t Jump remake (starring Jack Harlow), the Ben Affleck/Matt Damon film Air (available on Amazon Prime) and Shea Serrano’s new show Primo (on Amazon Freevee)… PLUS another week of Top Chef Season 20 (World All-Stars) on Bravo…

In Episode 334, Madden and Kolsky toy with the concept of a baseball discussion they are not yet ready to have before getting into today’s business:

The conclusion of The Challenge: Ride or Dies Reunion (2:50) and a look ahead to next week’s debut of The Challenge: World Championship…
The return of Party Down on Starz (18:40) and how it is just as laugh-out-loud funny as it ever was, with some exciting new guest appearances to boot…
The Oscar-nominated film The Woman King (23:00) and how — like most of this year’s nominees — it left our hosts wanting more and wondering if there was a standout film to be had in the bunch…
Amazon Prime’s incomprehensible thriller-comedy The Consultant (27:00) and whether anything has ever made less sense…
Homework for next week (34:55), including: the Oscar-nominated Women Talking (rentable for streaming), Hulu’s The History of the World Part II from Mel Brooks and company, and the fake-band bio-series Daisy Jones and the Six… PLUS the premiere of The Challenge: World Championship on Paramount+ AND the premiere of Top Chef Season 20 (World All-Stars) on Bravo…

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