The Toy Department – Episode 68

In Episode 68, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky discuss the latter’s fragile mental state before going television-heavy on the pod… Unfortunately, time constraints prevent a detailed accounting, but topics discussed include:

  • Kolsky’s progress on HBO’s The Leftovers…
  • The uncomfortable failure of Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why…
  • A weird and wild episode of FX’s Fargo…
  • The NBA Playoffs and the seemingly inevitable Cavaliers-Warriors matchup…
  • An ugly draft day for Kolsky’s Chicago Bears…

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player (and don’t forget to leave us a review!!)… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.

The Toy Department – Episode 49

In Episode 49, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky jump right in off the top rope to discuss:

  • NBA basketball – specifically the Warriors’ recent run of impressive offense (2:05) and their head coach Steve Kerr’s take on marijuana in sports (8:00) and how it helps advance the conversation about responsible medication for athletes…
  • The season finalé of HBO’s Westworld (19:50) and how it projects forward to the eventual second season of the show…
  • The new film Moonlight (33:15), which both Madden and Kolsky enjoyed… They attempt to preview and review it without spoiling it for you…
  • The Season 3 finalé of Netflix’s Black Mirror, Hated in the Nation (42:20) and how it reinforces the fact that Season 3 is relatively distinct from the first two seasons of the series…
  • The Toy Department Considers A Classic again, as they talk about last week’s homework – the Beastie Boys album Paul’s Boutique (52:20)…
  • A look ahead to homework for next week (1:02:35) which includes two albums in Childish Gambino’s Awaken, My Love! and Metallica’s Hardwired… to Self Destruct, plus one television show in the TBS streaming effort Search Party…

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 29

In Episode 29, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are living in a Post-Game-of-Thrones-Season-6 World (and Kolsky is on the phone from his car) but they still manage to soldier on with a podcast discussing:

  • Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Golden State Warriors — from where he might live in the Bay Area (1:45) to how the W’s and the league will look in the coming season (4:00) to the many haters and whiners in the aftermath of Durant’s free agency (17:05)…
  • Madden’s experience at the Adele concert (31:30) and just what it is about the “diva” singer that makes her so overwhelmingly popular…
  • Last week’s homework assignment (39:25) wherein Kolsky watched the first two episodes of the TV show Roadies so that Madden would have somebody with whom to discuss it…
  • And then of course there’s this week’s homework (49:00) which YOU should also do — watch the new HBO miniseries drama The Night Of…

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 27

In Episode 27, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky open with a quick NBA finals recap/react before some deep dives into the very latest in non-essential topics:

  • Sunday’s penultimate episode of Game of Thrones Season 6 (6:15) which, with its battle scenes and intriguing interpersonal interaction, was much more up Madden’s alley than the previous episode…
  • Team USA Men’s Soccer (24:35) and their ugly loss to top-ranked Argentina in the Copa America semifinal, plus some general discussion of the team’s future prospects…
  • ESPN’s OJ Simpson docu-series (53:55) and just how wonderful a job that it did in placing the remarkable OJ story in context…

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 24

In Episode 24, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky open up a shorty episode with a brief recounting of Kolsky’s dreamless sleep. Then they discuss:

  • The fact that the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Finals both feature teams from the Bay Area (2:00)…
  • A deeper look at the NBA Finals (5:40) and the storylines therein, including the issue of judging players by rings (13:40)…
  • Copa America and the strange behavior of soccer haters, especially radio’s Mike Francesa (25:00)…

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 21

In Episode 21, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky dive into the sports world early with a discussion of Steph Curry – his ridiculous playoff comeback, his MVP award, and just his greatness in general – which leads naturally into a broader discussion of the NBA Playoffs (8:30) and some of the officiating issues (12:00), and a quick chat about the outdated notion that players want to go to New York or LA teams (15:05). The podcast shifts to music for the guys to review Radiohead’s new album – A Moon Shaped Pool (21:00), and then to TV for a check-in on Game of Thrones (32:15) and a celebration of the delight of this year’s season of Silicon Valley (41:40).

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 15

In Episode 15, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky follow up on the music they talked about at the end of last week’s pod (Thao & the Get Down Stay Down and Kaleo) which leads to a discussion of how we listen to and find new music in the modern age (5:00). Then TV takes over for an in-depth discussion of Better Call Saul (9:20) which features only a couple of small spoilers, before the boys jump back to music (22:20) with a chat about big stadium concerts in light of the upcoming Metallica show at the new Vikings’ stadium. Today’s sports segment (32:00) focuses on the ongoing NCAA Tournament and the fact that neither of our alleged sports fans can really stomach college basketball (so it inevitably turns back to the NBA, around 42:40, with some Wolves/W’s talk and some thoughts on Steph Curry). Things wrap up with some recommendations for your spare time (53:00) as Madden assigns homework.

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 13

In Episode 13, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky show up a day late… But doesn’t that just mean their thoughts are that much more well-considered?? The boys start with some Oscars talk, breaking down Chris Rock’s performance and some of the award-winners, then shift to hating on Duke basketball (18:30). Then, once the topic is basketball, it’s only natural to talk about the greatness of Steph Curry (26:50). The show closes with some music talk – breaking down the Foo Fighters’ “Band Announcement” (40:20) and talking a little about putting Dave Grohl’s career into context (45:00).

Oh, and if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com.

The Toy Department – Episode 3

In Episode 3 of The Toy Department, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky follow a standard intro with a dive into this week’s biggest pop culture phenomenon — STAR WARS!!!! Then they slip in some sports with a discussion of Steph Curry and the Warriors, and their effect on pop culture and basketball (12:00) before turning to broader cultural concerns by discussing Google’s most trending topics from 2015 (28:30). Then Madden gives Kolsky a 2015 Pop Music Lyrics Quiz (39:30) with a brief discussion of Drake afterwards (49:30) that alludes to additional future processing of the Drake phenomenon. Finally it’s a brief discussion of general issues and future plans (51:00) before saying goodbye (possibly for the last time in 2015… POSSIBLY)!

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