August 2019 – The Toy Department

The Toy Department – Episode 180

In Episode 180, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky mince a minimal amount of words before discussing:

A couple of new albums — Sleater-Kinney’s underwhelming The Center Won’t Hold (1:05) and the triumphant Little Brother return May the Lord Watch (7:35)…
Dave Chappelle’s new Netflix stand-up special Sticks & Stones (12:40) and how it didn’t land great by Chappelle standards…
The new Showtime drama On Becoming a God in Central Florida (27:00) and the greatness of Kirsten Dunst…
The Australian comedy The Let Down (34:55) and how it’s only a comedy if you can identify with the infant parenting experience…
Homework for next week (40:00), including: the new season of MTV’s The Challenge, the new Tool album Fear Inoculum, the new Netflix show The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (plus Kolsky watching the original Dark Crystal for the first time), the new Travis Scott concert film, also on Netflix, and a little NFL preview discussion…

In Episode 179, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky exchange pleasantries and childcare thoughts before shuffling through:

The new film Good Boys (3:15) and how producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg have once again made a delightful film of a very specific type…
Another Rogen/Goldberg joint, Amazon’s The Boys (13:05) and how both guys feel after the conclusion of its first season…
The premiere of The Righteous Gemstones (26:10), another deeply Danny McBride-ish dark comedy on HBO…
The return of Netflix’s Mindhunter (33:45) and some of the things that make it one of the best TV shows going…
Homework for next week (50:10), including: the new Showtime series On Becoming a God in Central Florida, Dave Chappelle’s new stand-up special and The Let Down (an Australian dramedy) on Netflix, plus two new albums — Little Brother’s May the Lord Watch and Sleater-Kinney’s The Center Won’t Hold…

In Episode 178, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky discuss the weather in their respective climates before hustling through:

The new show BH90210 (2:55) and how interesting the idea behind it is, even for someone who didn’t watch the original 90210…
The return of HBO’s Succession (10:25) and how it picks up right where it left off with high-stakes billionaire family drama…
The end of the first season of HBO’s Euphoria (18:05) and what an incredibly unique and well-acted show it was…
The return of Netflix’s GLOW (27:25) and how it remains one of the most enjoyable shows to spend time with…
AMC’s Lodge 49’s second season premiere (34:50) and what exactly it is that Kolsky finds so charming about this show…
A few random thoughts on the Raiders (42:00) and Antonio Brown as Hard Knocks continues…
Homework for next week (46:10), including: the new movie Good Boys, the return of Netflix’s Mindhunter and the premiere of The Righteous Gemstones on HBO, plus whatever else they come up with during the week (including hopefully finishing Amazon’s The Boys)…

In Episode 177, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are trying to get Madden to a baseball game on time, so jump right in to:

The first episode of Hard Knocks (2:25), and how much fun this season’s time with the Raiders looks like it will be…
Quentin Tarantino’s newest masterpiece, Once Upon A Time in Hollywood (15:25) and all the wonderful things that both guys appreciated about it…
The return of Dear White People (36:50) on Netflix, and how even though there’s nothing really new here, it’s still good TV…
HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show (41:55) and how it has its moments, but Kolsky still struggles to get down with sketch shows…
Kolsky’s first experience with Bachelor in Paradise (46:00) and whether he’s ready to hang in there for the full season…
A few thoughts on a funny Netflix stand-up special from Whitney Cummings (56:55) and appreciation for her commitment to a bit…
Homework for next week (59:25), including: the new Beverly Hills 90210 reunion BH90210, the conclusion of HBO’s Euphoria, plus the returns of GLOW on Netflix, Succession on HBO and Lodge 49 on AMC…