Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Toy Department – Episode 406

  By toyAdmin | November 15, 2024 - 10:14 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 406, Madden and Kolsky spend a few minutes discussing mixtapes with an air of nostalgia before they lock into:

  • Another drama-filled episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (5:10), a lot of main character energy from Johnny Bananas and the exploits of the surprisingly persistent EliMichele…
  • The exceedingly weird and bizarrely sparse film Janet Planet (26:15) from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker…
  • The much-ballyhooed Netflix film His Three Daughters (31:00) and the powerhouse performances from the three women at its center…
  • Peacock’s new action-thriller The Day of the Jackal (37:20) and whether it might be trying to do too much at once…
  • A few thoughts on the world of soccer (44:05) from the Chelsea-Arsenal draw to the USMNT’s uninspiring victory in Jamaica…
  • Homework for next time, three weeks from now (56:00), including: WHO THE HELL KNOWS, but surely a lot of Challenge talk…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 405

  By toyAdmin | November 7, 2024 - 10:41 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 405, Madden and Kolsky are on the clock and in their feelings, so it’s a sprint through:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (1:15) where everything continues to come up Bananas and Tori is making a run at the proverbial Championship Belt…
  • The return of Lioness on Paramount+ (31:55) and the remarkable productivity of Taylor Sheridan…
  • The distinctly dad-focused stand-up of Seth Myers (42:25) in his new special Dad Man Walking…
  • The politically-tinged stand-up of Hasan Minhaj (45:35) in his new special Off With His Head…
  • A clash of the titans upcoming this weekend (50:45) as Derek’s Arsenal and Kolsky’s Chelsea do battle at Stamford Bridge on Sunday…
  • Homework for next week (54:40), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the new show The Day of the Jackal on Peacock, the Netflix film His Three Daughters and the Annie Baker-directed Janet Planet on Max…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 404

  By toyAdmin | November 1, 2024 - 10:09 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 404, Madden and Kolsky hit the ground running after an off-air election conversation with a little Halloween recap before getting into:

  • The twists and turns on this week of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (5:20) and how sides are being taken as the season careens towards what promises to be an incredibly competitive final…
  • The new documentary Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara (26:40) and the deeply disturbing violations of the singers’ privacy that continue to this day…
  • The new film Woman of the Hour (38:30), an impressive directorial debut from Anna Kendrick and the spin-shiver-inducing true story it’s based on…
  • Apple TV+’s new drama/thriller Before (46:25) and Billy Crystal taking on a big dramatic role…
  • Homework for next week (50:50), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the new film Emilia Perez on Netflix, the return of Lioness on Paramount+ and the new Seth Myers stand-up special Dad Man Walking…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 403

  By toyAdmin | October 25, 2024 - 11:45 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 403, Madden and Kolsky briefly address their respective levels of exhaustion before jumping right into:

  • A big-time Bananas episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (1:10) and what the “activation” of the ‘Nanaman means for the game moving forward…
  • Ali Wong’s new stand-up special Single Lady (31:30) and the talent to turn a divorce into an hour of comedy…
  • The return of Apple TV+ pod favorite Shrinking (37:40) and where season two seems to be taking our beloved cast of characters…
  • A smorgasbord of sports as the WNBA season ends (46:10), the NBA season begins (54:05) and the inevitable clash of Madden & Kolsky’s Premier League teams draws closer (57:50)…
  • Homework for next week (59:30), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, Anna Kendrick’s directorial debut Woman of the Hour, Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara on Hulu and the new Billy Crystal drama Before on Apple TV+…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 402

  By toyAdmin | October 17, 2024 - 7:53 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 402, Madden and Kolsky discuss their great lost episode, and attempt to recreate some of the magic you missed last week as they cover:

  • The last two episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (2:00), including the gladiatorial greatness of Derrick Kosinski and the age-defying dominance of Rachel Robinson…
  • A sprint through the un-aired conversations from last week about: the Pitt/Clooney film Wolfs (26:05), the new HBO comedy The Franchise (27:10) and Mark Duplass’ quietly impactful Penelope (30:15)…
  • The Netflix documentary Will & Harper (32:25) and how it walks a fine line between laughs and love to produce a tremendous study of America and friendship…
  • The NBA-focused docu-series Starting 5 on Netflix (38:55) and how it delivers watchability and entertainment even if it doesn’t deliver much basketball…
  • Apple TV+’s new big-ticket drama Disclaimer (54:50) and how it’s all twisted around and structured in a way that makes it difficult to process…
  • Homework for next week (1:05:30), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the second season of Shrinking on Apple TV+, the new Ali Wong stand-up special Single Lady on Netflix and watching Game 4 of the WNBA Finals so you can try to find Derek Madden in the crowd…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 401

  By toyAdmin | October 4, 2024 - 10:30 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 401, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s work-cation and his exclusive property on Haven’t-Seen-Harry-Potter Island before locking in on:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (7:00) including the rapid demise of Era 1 and whether or not strategy dictates finishing them off or shifting focus…
  • Netflix’s enthralling WWE docu-series Mr. McMahon (29:15) and how to reckon with the broader cultural impact of professional wrestling…
  • The ripped-from-Kolsky’s-heart rom-com Nobody Wants This (43:10) and how Netflix has constructed a show that’s hard to imagine not loving…
  • The film Killer Heat on Amazon Prime Video (48:00) and the comfort of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s face and propensity for voice-over…
  • A few random sports thoughts (52:25) as Kolsky eulogizes his baseball fandom…
  • Homework for next week (57:45), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the Pitt/Clooney movie Wolfs on Apple TV+, the Mark Duplass show Penelope on Netflix, the documentary Will & Harper (also on Netflix) and the new HBO comedy The Franchise…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 400

  By toyAdmin | September 27, 2024 - 10:49 am | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 400, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s San Francisco escapades and marvel at the longevity of this silly podcast before getting into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (6:10) where Era I continues to burn to the ground, despite Rachel’s best efforts, and Era II continues to weather the storm that is Cara Maria and Laurel…
  • The baffling film Challengers (33:05) and what the people involved thought they were doing…
  • Netflix’s new action movie Rebel Ridge (38:45), the increasingly popular one-man-with-a-grudge format and the leading man ascension of Aaron Pierre…
  • A check-in on FX’s The Old Man (43:10) and whether the story of Jeff Bridges’ chaotic past is enough to carry a second season…
  • The Max/DC series The Penguin (45:50) and whether the gritty, gangster-noir style and transformative performance from Colin Farrell were able to draw in our resident comic skeptic…
  • Homework for next week (49:35), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, Netflix’s new Adam Brody/Kristen Bell series Nobody Wants This, the WWE documentary series Mr. McMahon (also on Netflix), and the film Killer Heat on Amazon Prime Video…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 399

  By toyAdmin | September 19, 2024 - 9:44 pm | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 399, Madden and Kolsky prepare to overcome a late recording time and Derek’s long week before diving into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (1:50), CT falling, Laurel spiraling and whether the 40th season is living up to expectations so far…
  • The Alex Garland film Civil War (25:50) — how it is ultimately just a movie about photo-journalism and whether it leaves things on the table by not wading deeper into more significant themes…
  • Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber’s rote Netflix rich-people-and-murder drama (35:35) and whether its insignificance hurts its watchability…
  • Peacock’s Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist (41:50) and our hosts curiously split views on the end product…
  • The spectacular Alex Gibney documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos (46:55), all the wonderful tidbits it delivers on one of the greatest television shows of all time and the price of genius…
  • Homework for next week (57:50), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, actually watching the film Challengers, Netflix’s new action flick Rebel Ridge, Max’s new DC Comics effort The Penguin and a check-in on the second season of FX’s The Old Man…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 398

  By toyAdmin | September 5, 2024 - 10:25 pm | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 398, Madden and Kolsky are doing it after dark again, with LOTS to catch up on, beginning with a recap of their IRL meetup for a Pearl Jam concert, but moving on to:

  • Two episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (7:50) and dealing with the fact that heavy hitters (or at least major characters) will be headed home on a weekly basis…
  • Jeff Goldblum & Co.’s interpretation of Greek mythology in the Netflix show KAOS (41:15) and whether our hosts could deal with the chaotic nature of the show’s storytelling…
  • FX’s new comedy English Teacher (46:05) and what a high-quality sitcom looks like in 2024…
  • The return of the undeniable Slow Horses (51:35) and the many joys of Jackson Lamb…
  • Homework for next week (57:50), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the Peacock show Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, Nicole Kidman’s new Netflix effort The Perfect Couple and checking out the film Challengers, now available on Amazon Prime…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS

The Toy Department – Episode 397

  By toyAdmin | August 21, 2024 - 10:04 pm | Uncategorized
Leave a comment

In Episode 397, Madden and Kolsky are staying up late again, so it’s right on into:

  • An absolute banger of an episode in Season 40 of The Challenge (1:05) with wall-to-wall physical eliminations that delivered some classic battles and some intriguing upsets…
  • Vince Vaughn’s new Bill Lawrence-created show Bad Monkey (43:20) and whether we finally have an official “gourmet cheeseburger”…
  • A few thoughts on Chelsea and the English Premier League (51:30) after Derek drags Kolsky into the conversation…
  • Homework for two weeks from now (1:00:05), including: two more episodes of The Challenge Season 40, Netflix’s new Greek mythology dark comedy KAOS, the return of Slow Horses on Apple TV+ and the new FX show English Teacher…

Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | RSS