Author Archives: toyAdmin

The Toy Department – Episode 326

  By toyAdmin | December 30, 2022 - 2:43 pm | Uncategorized
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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…

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The Toy Department – Episode 325

  By toyAdmin | December 23, 2022 - 2:54 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 325, Madden and Kolsky try to figure out what day it is before locking into this year-end-style episode covering:

  • The latest episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (5:30) and the tragic mismatch of Team Fessy v. Team Moriah, plus thoughts on trivia and Amber’s underrated career…
  • Each of the guys has their Top 20 Pop Culture Things of the Year (21:45) and they make their way through, including a whole bunch of honorable mentions…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:27:35), including: MOVIES!! Specifically — Amsterdam and The Banshees of Inisherin on HBO Max, along with Glass Onion (A Knives Out Mystery) and Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio on Netflix… and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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The Toy Department – Episode 324

  By toyAdmin | December 16, 2022 - 2:44 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 324, Madden and Kolsky missed each other deeply but equally deeply they long to discuss the two weeks of Challenge action on the docket so it’s straight into:

  • Two action-packed weeks of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (1:20), whether that name still fits the season and all the various strategic fallout from the game’s big twist(s)…
  • Showtime’s George & Tammy series (24:20) and how neither of our hosts much enjoy the country music but one of them definitely enjoyed this show more than the other…
  • The second season of Apple TV+’s Slow Horses (29:55) and how it remains a highly entertaining spy drama with some really excellent characters and a fantastic lead performance from Gary Oldman…
  • A few World Cup thoughts leading up to Sunday’s final (36:30), from the beauty of Messi to the messiness of Fox’s coverage…
  • Homework for next Friday (50:00), including: the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies… AND NOTHING ELSE!! Because it’s going to be Best of 2022 Week!! But feel free to get started on Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio, which Derek forgot to watch this week 🙂

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The Toy Department – Episode 323

  By toyAdmin | December 2, 2022 - 3:36 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 323, Madden and Kolsky discuss Kolsky’s upcoming vacation and the challenges of parenthood before locking into pop culture to cover:

  • The group stage round of the World Cup (5:00) and some thoughts on the USMNT’s overall performance…
  • The Netflix documentary series FIFA Uncovered (16:50) and the rampant corruption that has polluted the soccer world’s governing body…
  • The Netflix documentary film Stutz (30:45), which was a terrible experience for one of our hosts and an intriguing experience for the other…
  • Hulu’s new series Welcome to Chippendales (39:35) and how it takes a couple episodes but becomes an awful lot of fun with some excellent acting performances…
  • Tim Burton’s new Netflix series Wednesday (44:15), whether its charm is enough to carry it and some thoughts on Burton’s poor record with actors of color…
  • The last two episodes of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (50:05), what the guys think of this season’s format after hearing some criticism, the many bad decisions of Nelly T and a look forward to the coming twist…
  • Homework for TWO Friday’s from now (1:17:50), including: the new Paramount+ rom-com show The Flatshare, season two of Apple TV+’s Slow Horses, Guillermo del Toro’s stop-motion Pinocchio on Netflix, Showtime’s George & Tammy series and OF COURSE the next TWO episodes of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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The Toy Department – Episode 322

  By toyAdmin | November 18, 2022 - 12:33 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 322, Madden and Kolsky discuss the Kolsky-family-induced pivot in their recording situation before transitioning seamlessly into:

  • The new Hulu/FX show Fleishman is in Trouble (2:15) and how engaging the story and acting performances are…
  • Sylvester Stallone’s new show Tulsa King (10:20) and what a surprising delight it turned out to be…
  • The Sam Rockwell film See How They Run (18:30) and how our hosts have VERY different views of the movie, plus thoughts on the recent trend of colorblind casting…
  • The definitely not good Don’t Worry Darling (33:05) and how it fails to do justice to an extremely talented cast…
  • The latest episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (40:40) including the incredible performance of Jordan and the emotional display from Laurel, plus the idiocy of Jay (and Michele)…
  • Homework for TWO Friday’s from now (1:04:05), including: the Netflix documentary Stutz, the new Hulu show Welcome to Chippendales, the Netflix show Wednesday from Tim Burton, the FIFA Uncovered documentary on Netflix and OF COURSE the next TWO episodes of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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The Toy Department – Episode 321

  By toyAdmin | November 11, 2022 - 10:28 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 321, Madden and Kolsky are fighting the clock again, this time thanks to Kolsky’s mediocre parental planning, so it’s straight to the important business of the day:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Ride or Dies (2:55) after a Laurel-heavy episode filled with embarrassingly bad strategy from many of the less-experienced players…
  • The new Apple TV+ movie Causeway (31:40) and whether Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry’s performances are enough to carry a very quiet, rather simple film…
  • Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (36:35) and how Daniel Radcliffe’s incredible commitment to the Weird Al role combined with a wildly silly but quite clever script makes for a heck of a fun time…
  • The new Netflix sitcom Blockbuster (43:40) and whether it’s even possible to make a sitcom that’s creative and original…
  • A few thoughts on the World Cup (47:25) with the tournament less than two weeks away and the US roster recently announced…
  • Homework for next Friday (53:35), including: the new Hulu/FX show Fleishman Is In Trouble, HBO Max’s new Sam Rockwell vehicle See How They Run, the new Sylvester Stallone show Tulsa King on Paramount+, the movie Don’t Worry Darling (now available on HBO Max) and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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The Toy Department – Episode 320

  By toyAdmin | November 4, 2022 - 4:15 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 320, Madden and Kolsky rush into things (because Madden has places to be!) so it’s right off the bat with:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Ride or Dies (1:15) where there was some TERRIBLE daily challenge strategy and some really interesting bigger game strategy to break down, plus the MVP and Burn of the week…
  • The Netflix film The Good Nurse (26:20) and how well it is executed… but also whether it’s worth the misery it induces…
  • The Stranger, also a film on Netflix (33:50), and how it is ALSO deeply depressing and largely a miserable time, though perhaps not quite as well-executed as The Good Nurse…
  • The return of HBO’s White Lotus (35:35) for a season two that has an awful lot of potential after an opening episode that’s heavy on set-up…
  • The BBC series Inside Man (39:40), which is available on Netflix, only four episodes long, and pretty excellent after two of them…
  • Homework for next Friday (41:10), including: the new sitcom Blockbuster on Netflix, the film Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (available FREE on The Roku Channel), the movie Causeway on Apple TV+, and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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The Toy Department – Episode 319

  By toyAdmin | October 28, 2022 - 3:30 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 319, Madden and Kolsky have a few not-so-spooky Halloween thoughts before they circle back to pop culture and get into:

  • The new Apple TV+ film Raymond and Ray (7:50) and how enjoyable it is to watch a fun, quirky movie for adults (particularly when it features such enjoyable performances)…
  • The limited Netflix series From Scratch (17:45) and how it’s a perfectly good romance novel on screen if that’s the sort of thing that you’re into…
  • Netflix’s The Watcher (23:00), complete with explosive acting and very creepy vibes…
  • Kolsky’s experience with Top Gun: Maverick (27:45), whether it’s a “good movie” and whether that even matters in this case…
  • The week’s episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (38:55), featuring some rookie upstarts, Messy Fessy (whether he likes it or not) and an epic elimination…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:14:30), including: the movie The Stranger on Netflix, the return of The White Lotus on HBO, the BBC series Inside Man (now on Netflix) and the film The Good Nurse (alo on Netflix!!), plus OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies… and maybe a quick check-back on House of the Dragon for Kolsky to be upset about it again 🙂

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The Toy Department – Episode 318

  By toyAdmin | October 21, 2022 - 1:15 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 318, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s work trip to the casino before locking in on:

  • The latest episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (1:55), Turbo’s heel turn and the ace strategy from the game’s newest veterans, the notorious Johnny Bananas and his incomparable partner Nany Gonzalez…
  • Netflix’s Redeem Team documentary (35:15) and how it was an enjoyable and entertaining watch despite its somewhat hegeographic tendencies…
  • Apple TV+’s new show Shantaram (46:00) and how Charlie Hunnam makes for an incredibly engaging and watchable center for a show that transports you to 1980’s Bombay (for some not entirely known reason)…
  • The return of Documentary Now! on IFC (50:10) and how the first mockumentary of this season is entertaining and pretty spot-on, but not necessarily enough to suck one of our hosts in…
  • A season wrap-up on FX’s Welcome to Wrexham (59:30) and how the show works on so many levels, ultimately becoming one of the year’s best…
  • A few thoughts on the not-so-inspiring House of the Dragon (1:11:30) and how it so far fails to live up to its predecessor…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:14:40), including: the new Netflix show The Watcher, the new film Raymond and Ray on Apple TV+, the limited series From Scratch on Netflix, and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies… plus Kolsky will watch Top Gun: Maverick so the guys can finally discuss it!

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The Toy Department – Episode 317

  By toyAdmin | October 13, 2022 - 2:46 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 317, Madden and Kolsky have a new season of The Challenge to get to, so no time to waste before diving right in to:

  • The premiere of The Challenge: Ride or Dies (1:00), including thoughts on the Episode 1 surprises, the rookies, the quantity of absentee teams and all the intricacies of the complicated new game design…
  • The new Paramount+ film Significant Other (50:25), and whether its strange blend of thriller, comedy, sci-fi and horror hit home for our hosts…
  • Homework for next Friday (1:05:00), including: the new Apple TV+ show Shantaram, the start of a new season of Documentary Now!, a check-in on Welcome to Wrexham, the Netflix documentary The Redeem Team and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

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