Tag Archives: Oklahoma City Thunder

The Toy Department – Episode 424

  By toyAdmin | June 13, 2025 - 11:32 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 424, Madden and Kolsky are aiming for a short show, so it’s more or less right into:

  • A predictable but nevertheless emotional finalé for Top Chef: Destination Canada (1:30) and the remarkable run of Tristen Epps…
  • The Bong Joon Ho film Mickey 17 (15:35) and how it just never totally comes together or manages to live up to a very appealing trailer…
  • Amazon Prime’s new thriller The Better Sister (23:05) and streamers’ new obsession with the family-drama-murder-thriller niche…
  • A couple quick NBA thoughts on the way out (31:10) as the Pacers-Thunder Finals has been thrilling and surprising…
  • Homework for next week (38:45), including: the Amazon Prime film Deep Cover, the Netflix series Tires in its second season and the documentary Becoming Led Zeppelin (also on Netflix)…

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The Toy Department – Episode 423

  By toyAdmin | June 6, 2025 - 10:54 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 423, Madden and Kolsky make haste with pleasantries and hustle their way through:

  • The penultimate episode of Top Chef: Destination Canada (2:25) where one of Kolsky’s beloved Chicago chefs headed home from Milan…
  • The HBO Max film Mountainhead (7:25) and the Succession team’s take on the tech bro-pocalypse…
  • Hulu’s new 20-somethings-in-the-city sitcom Adults (16:35) and whether our hosts are too old to reasonably evaluate it…
  • Apple TV+’s frivolous new show Stick (23:35) and the ever-confounding question of what Apple TV+ is doing as a studio…
  • A few thoughts on the NBA Finals (29:40) after a remarkable Game 1 upset by Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers…
  • Homework for next week (40:20), including: the final finalé of Top Chef: Destination Canada, the Bong Joon Ho film Mickey 17 on HBO Max, a discussion on Sinners now that Derek can see it at home, and the thriller series The Better Sister on Amazon Prime…

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The Toy Department – Episode 422

  By toyAdmin | May 30, 2025 - 12:35 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 422, Madden and Kolsky have a quick Chelsea FC digression before they dive on in to:

  • A semifinal to remember on Top Chef: Destination Canada (4:05) and how the scenery and cookery combined with emotional moments for a tremendous episode of television…
  • The new Max show Duster (17:50) and how it makes you wonder why we haven’t seen more of Josh Holloway…
  • The disappointing new Guy Ritchie movie Fountain of Youth (22:50) and how it could have come to exist…
  • The enjoyable and well-executed Black Bag (28:40) and how Steven Soderbergh is always good for 90 minutes of quality…
  • Apple TV+’s new comedy Murderbot (33:40) and Alexander Skarsgård’s hilarious turn as an android with a television addiction…
  • Two more really good episodes of Black Mirror (36:35) featuring a tour de force from Paul Giamatti and a satisfying sequel to USS Callister…
  • Homework for next week (49:55), including: the finalé of Top Chef: Destination Canada, the new HBO Max film Mountainhead, the new Apple TV+ show Stick and Hulu’s new 20-something sitcom Adults…

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The Toy Department – Episode 421

  By toyAdmin | May 16, 2025 - 11:38 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 421, Madden and Kolsky return after too long of a break to get into a wealth of pop culture, some of it very excellent, at least whatever they can remember of:

  • The last few weeks of action on Top Chef: Destination Canada (2:55), where a top dog almost fell and the competition is fierce heading into the semi-finals…
  • The first of the week’s two mediocre action flicks, Havoc (16:25) and how it succeeds in little other than being extremely overly self-serious…
  • The second MAF, Viola Davis’s G20 (20:05) and how it at least understands what it is and wins within its limits…
  • Episodes 3 and 4 of the new Black Mirror season (24:00) and how they better fit the brief of the show than the first two did, much to Kolsky’s delight…
  • The second season of Andor (33:10), which places it among the best works in the entire Star Wars canon…
  • A check-in on The Last of Us (39:35), which has taken a couple of pretty dramatic turns over the course of the season…
  • The new season of Natasha Lyonne’s Poker Face (46:05) and what a joy it is to have her (and the guest stars) in our lives again…
  • The new Netflix series The Four Seasons (48:55) and how it made two aging men laugh and also think a lot about their lives and decisions…
  • Homework for next week (57:15), including: the semifinals on Top Chef: Destination Canada, the last two episodes of Black Mirror’s new season, the new JJ Abrams show Duster on (HBO) Max, the new Guy Ritchie movie Fountain of Youth on Apple TV+, the Steven Soderbergh film Black Bag on Peacock and the new Apple TV+ series Murderbot…

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The Toy Department – Episode 420

  By toyAdmin | April 25, 2025 - 12:48 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 420, Madden and Kolsky get into some dentistry (and periodontistry?) before circling around to:

  • The latest from Top Chef: Destination Canada (3:55), where Tristen Epps is absolutely clobbering the competition…
  • A check-in on season four of Hacks (19:10) which is just a genuinely great television show with two excellent leads…
  • Nathan Fielder’s HBO madness The Rehearsal (22:45) and how spectacularly it confounds Kolsky…
  • Another season of Black Mirror on Netflix (31:15)… or is it Black Mirror? The guys discuss…
  • A couple of quick NBA playoff thoughts (38:15) after a couple games in the first round…
  • Homework for next week (56:50), including: another episode of Top Chef: Destination Canada, some more of Black Mirror’s new season, season two of Andor and two action flicks: G20 on Amazon Prime and Havoc on Netflix…

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The Toy Department – Episode 419

  By toyAdmin | April 18, 2025 - 1:19 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 419, Madden and Kolsky are squeezing a taping into a naptime, so it’s right on into:

  • A couple of NBA Playoff thoughts (3:55) as we head into the first weekend of action…
  • The last episode of The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals (16:45), the appropriate winners and some thoughts on the season as a whole…
  • A surprising elimination on Top Chef: Destination Canada (27:00) and the stranglehold that Tristen seems to have on the competition even with the emergence of a new regular high finisher…
  • The new FX/Hulu series Dying for Sex (39:45), the tremendous lead performances and the overall quality of the network’s output…
  • Apple TV+’s latest offering Your Friends and Neighbors (43:20) and the difficulty of a generally detestable protagonist…
  • The HBO/Max sensation The Pitt (51:45) and Noah Wylie’s return to the emergency room…
  • Homework for next week (58:45), including: another episode of Top Chef: Destination Canada, a check-in on the latest season of HBO’s Hacks after four episodes, the first two episodes of Black Mirror’s most recent season and the second season of The Rehearsal…

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The Toy Department – Episode 388

  By toyAdmin | May 23, 2024 - 4:19 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 388, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s busy schedule before locking right into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: All-Stars 4 (2:45) where Killa Queen Kam is making moves and dominating political gameplay (not to mention a bouncy elimination challenge) as the show heads into the home stretch…
  • This week’s Savannah roller coaster on Top Chef Wisconsin (24:00) plus the dominance of Danny and what to expect from the second Last Chance Kitchen winner…
  • The utterly bizarre (and possibly sneaky Christian?) The Book of Clarence (39:50) and what exactly the cast and crew set out to do when they started this film…
  • The feels-inducing delight of Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza (47:30) and the incredible musical legacy of Perry Farrell…
  • A quick chat about the end of the Premier League season (1:07:10) and Chelsea FC’s Commitment to ChaosTM…
  • Some thoughts on the NBA Playoffs (1:13:30) with the conference finals in progress…
  • Homework for next week (1:23:10), including: new episodes of Top Chef Wisconsin and The Challenge All-Stars 4, the now-rentable The Fall Guy and The Big Cigar on Apple TV+…

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The Toy Department – Episode 387

  By toyAdmin | May 16, 2024 - 10:17 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 387, Madden and Kolsky are meeting up late night for some Toy Department After Dark to get into:

  • A new episode of The Challenge All-Stars 4 (3:35) that saw a very messy Brad season come to an end and a theatrical turn for Ace…
  • This week’s episode of Top Chef Wisconsin (23:05) where a competitive final eight had to deal with more changes to the game format in addition to a fascinating native foods challenge…
  • Apple TV+’s multi-versal Dark Matter (36:10) and whether it tells its story quickly enough to draw in its viewers…
  • Netflix’s Will Forte true-crime-pod-mock-umentary Bodkin (43:50) and whether it connects with its bizarre small-town mystery vibe…
  • The third season of HBO’s Hacks (47:30) and the brilliance of Jean Smart…
  • Some English Premiere League thoughts (51:15) as we head into the final weekend of the season…
  • Our weekly NBA check-in (1:02:10) mere hours after Minnesota’s utter dismantling of the Nuggets to force a Game 7 in Denver on Sunday…
  • Homework for next week (1:14:45), including: another episode of Top Chef Wisconsin, more of The Challenge All-Stars 4, the newly-on-Netflix movie The Book of Clarence, the Amazon Prime Video Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black and the Paramounnt+ documentary Lolla: The Story of Lollapalooza…

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The Toy Department – Episode 386

  By toyAdmin | May 9, 2024 - 11:08 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 386, Madden and Kolsky discuss the content of and response to the Tom Brady Roast on Netflix before diving into:

  • A thrilling episode of The Challenge All-Stars 4 (9:15) and where things stand as we pass the halfway mark of the season…
  • Top Chef Wisconsin’s Restaurant Wars (29:15) and some slight format changes, focusing on the challenges of staying consistent through a full night of service…
  • The much-discussed Netflix show Baby Reindeer (47:40) and the emotional intensity it delivers…
  • John Mulaney’s limited live Netflix series (57:05) and what exactly in the name of all things holy is even going on there…
  • Elisabeth Moss’s new Hulu spy series The Veil (1:04:40) and whether it has enough about it to stand out in a crowded espionage TV landscape…
  • A check-in on the NBA Playoffs (1:08:20) and the ascension of Ant-man as Round 2 rolls along…
  • Homework for next week (1:28:15), including: another episode of Top Chef Wisconsin, more of The Challenge All-Stars 4, Apple TV+’s Dark Matter, Netflix’s new true-crime-pod-mock-umentary Bodkin and Season 3 of HBO’s Hacks…

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The Toy Department – Episode 385

  By toyAdmin | May 2, 2024 - 11:00 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 385, Madden and Kolsky discuss the baking project happening in Kolsky’s house before locking in and moving through:

  • A baseball-themed team challenge on Top Chef Wisconsin (3:25) and an episode that ended with a classic good-food-goes-home moment…
  • A spicy elimination matchup on The Challenge All-Stars 4 (18:35), the perils of making enemies in the game and a format that takes some power from the winners…
  • The Lily Gladstone-starring series Under the Bridge (35:50) and whether it transcends a potential bad time TV designation…
  • The 80s-style thriller Love Lies Bleeding (41:00) and Kristen Stewart’s interesting career choices…
  • Some NBA Playoffs chatter (51:10) as the first round is beginning to wrap up…
  • Homework for next week (1:07:10), including: another episode of Top Chef Wisconsin, more of The Challenge All-Stars 4, John Mulaney’s “live” show on Netflix, the buzzy Baby Reindeer (available on Netflix) and the Elisabeth Moss series The Veil on FX/Hulu…

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