Tag Archives: Matt Kolsky

The Toy Department – Episode 206

  By toyAdmin | March 27, 2020 - 10:53 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 206, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are still surviving somehow, and find time to discuss:

  • This week’s episode of Top Chef (4:20) and its great Jonathan Gold-inspired LA food tour…
  • The new Hulu movie Big Time Adolescence (19:45) and how it turned out to be strangely moving…
  • AMC’s Dispatches From Elsewhere (24:30) and how its madcap plot and general insanity don’t hinder its charm…
  • AMC’s Better Call Saul (33:05) and the near-fever pitch it has reached as it builds towards a final season…
  • The new Amazon film Blow the Man Down (39:15) and the guys’ differing views on its enjoyability…
  • The old FX show Terriers (42:50) and how it makes a great binge during our time of quarantine…
  • Homework for next week (47:15), including: another episode of Top Chef, Tiger King on Netflix, the return of Netflix’s Ozark, the new season of The Challenge, the new Pearl Jam record Gigaton and a check-in with political comedy shows Last Week Tonight and Patriot Act, which should be very interesting given where we’re at as a world…

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The Toy Department – Episode 205

  By toyAdmin | March 19, 2020 - 10:50 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 205, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are still adjusting to our strange new reality as they hop through:

  • The challenges of living in a COVID-19 world (1:00) and the potential pitfalls of working from home…
  • The return of Bravo’s Top Chef (10:45) and thoughts on all the All-Star competitors in this year’s LA-based season…
  • The season four premiere of IFC’s Brockmire (28:30) and what a marvelous delight it continues to be, regardless of whether anyone seems to be watching it…
  • Season two of Black Monday on Showtime (35:30) and whether it stands out from the pack in a crowded TV landscape…
  • The first couple episodes of Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere (38:35) and what an interesting show it seems to be, though Reese Witherspoon treads familiar ground…
  • HBO and David Simon’s The Plot Against America (49:20) and how it’s really just an awful lot to digest at a time like this…
  • Homework for next week (54:40), including: another episode of Top Chef, the new Hulu movie Big Time Adolescence, the new Amazon Prime movie Blow the Man Down, check-ins on Better Call Saul and Dispatches from Elsewhere, and a quarantine streaming special — the old FX show Terriers, which is now available on Hulu…

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The Toy Department – Episode 204

  By toyAdmin | March 14, 2020 - 8:01 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 204, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are settling into life in a COVID-19 world and delve into:

  • Some thoughts on what life has been like over the last week (2:05) and what it may be like moving forward…
  • The season finale of HBO’s The Outsider (9:35) and what a great 10-episode run it had…
  • The series premiere of FX’s Hulu-specific series Devs (17:45), the mystery therein and a dramatic turn from Nick Offerman…
  • FX’s new series Dave (24:55) and how star Lil’ Dicky sucks you in and makes you laugh…
  • FX’s Better Things (28:10) and how it continues to soar as a shining example of great sitcom-style television…
  • Netflix’s I Am Not Okay With This (37:15) and the charmingly distinct style of its creator…
  • The Netflix-made Lil’ Peep documentary Everybody’s Everything (42:55) and how it’s probably more for the late rapper’s fans than the general public…
  • Marc Maron’s new Netflix stand-up special End Times Fun (49:45) and his apparent mastery of his craft…
  • The HBO Sports documentary Women of Troy (53:20) and how much each guy learned about some stars in women’s basketball past…
  • Homework for next week (1:01:05), including: the return of Top Chef, the return of Brockmire on IFC, the return of Black Monday on Showtime and David Simon’s Philip Roth adaptation The Plot Against America on Amazon…

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The Toy Department – Episode 203

  By toyAdmin | March 5, 2020 - 7:17 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 203, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky have MUCH to discuss, so dive right into:

  • The HBO Sports documentary Ali & Cavett: Tale of the Tapes (1:25) and how it adds something to the historical record on a well-covered sports titan…
  • Dwyane Wade’s documentary Life Unexpected (8:00) and how it is very much the Dwyane Wade version of the Dwyane Wade story…
  • PBS’ American Masters episode on Miles Davis, entitled Birth of the Cool (14:55) and what a complete picture it painted of a complicated man who was truly one of the great musicians in human history…
  • The return of Better Call Saul on AMC (24:00) and how it is probably the best show on television right now…
  • The new Amazon show Hunters (30:55) and the surprisingly understated performance of Al Pacino…
  • AMC’s new show Dispatches from Elsewhere (37:00) and how producer/writer/director/star Jason Segel has created a fascinating and exciting curiosity through two oddball episodes…
  • The new Netflix comedy Gentefied (44:55) and how it fails to really grab the viewer in its first couple episodes…
  • Pete Davidson’s Netflix standup special (48:10) and how he’s a promising young comedic talent…
  • Homework for next week (57:40), including: the return of Better Things on FX, the end of The Outsider on HBO, Devs on FX/Hulu, Dave on FXX (it’s an FX-heavy week), the Netflix Lil Peep documentary Everbody’s Everything, Netflix’s I Am Not Okay With This, the HBO Sports documentary Women of Troy and Marc Maron’s new special End Times Fun…

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The Toy Department – Episode 202

  By toyAdmin | February 20, 2020 - 11:04 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 202, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky discuss their feelings about camping before jumping into:

  • The new Tame Impala album The Slow Rush (4:30) and how it hit the ears of each of our hosts…
  • The new film The Photograph (16:05) and where it falls a little short of its potential…
  • The new Hulu show High Fidelity (23:10), the charm of Zoë Kravitz and when the series really locks in, plus thoughts on Hulu’s mediocre interface…
  • A check-in on TBS’ Miracle Workers (30:45) and what makes it entertaining as it really gets into its new premise…
  • The latest season of Brooklyn 99 (34:50) and how it has grown (or not) over its life as a series…
  • Homework for TWO weeks from now (39:45), including: Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes, the end of The Outsider on HBO, the new show Hunters on Amazon Prime, the new comedy Gentefied on Netflix, the return of Better Call Saul on AMC, the Dwyane Wade documentary Life Unfiltered on ESPN and PBS’ Miles Davis doc Birth of the Cool…

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The Toy Department – Episode 201

  By toyAdmin | February 13, 2020 - 11:05 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 201, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are on the clock, so skip the pleasantries in favor of discussing:

  • The new film Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of Harley Quinn) (1:20) and the two hosts’ disparate views on its success…
  • The new Netflix film To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (11:20) and how it retains all the charm of its predecessor…
  • Andy Greenwald’s new show Briarpatch on TBS (19:20) and whether it is worth diving into…
  • Green Day’s new album Father of All Motherfuckers (24:40) and whether it delivers on their promise to revive rock and roll…
  • Homework for next week (31:55), including: Brooklyn 99’s return, the new High Fidelity show on Hulu and the new film The Photograph in theaters, with a potential revisit to Miracle Workers on TBS…

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The Toy Department – Episode 200

  By toyAdmin | February 6, 2020 - 11:35 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 200, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky eschew a special ceremony to celebrate their longevity in the interest of discussing:

  • A run-through of the major Oscars (1:50) and who the guys expect and want to win…
  • HBO’s new docu-series McMillions (25:40) and how it turns out to be a delightful tale of the most charming criminal conspiracy…
  • The docu-series Cheer on Netflix (31:45) and how appealing so many of its characters are…
  • Amazon’s new film Troop Zero (37:10) and the difference of opinion between the hosts on its worthwhileness…
  • Season two of the anthology show Miracle Workers on TBS (39:55) and whether it’s worth getting back into…
  • A few words about The Outsider on HBO (43:35) and how much both guys are enjoying it…
  • The series finale of The Good Place (46:30) and how we will never see its like again…
  • The Andrew Wiggins/D’Angelo Russel trade (56:40) breaks mid-recording and the guys discuss…
  • Homework for next week (0:0), including: Brooklyn 99’s return, the premiere of Briarpatch on USA, the new Netflix movie To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You and the new movie Birds of Prey in theaters…

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The Toy Department – Episode 199

  By toyAdmin | January 30, 2020 - 11:55 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 199, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky check in on Kolsky’s radio schedule and the mood in Minnesota in the run-up to Super Bowl LIV before sprinting through:

  • The new Aaron Hernandez docu-series on Netflix (3:25) and how it leaves a little something to be desired when compared to the golden age of documentaries…
  • Comedy Central’s Awkwafina vehicle Nora From Queens (12:20) and whether it has any really redeeming qualities…
  • Tiffany Haddish’s new Netflix stand-up Black Mitzvah (17:00) and how it’s always fun to laugh with Tiffany but there’s nothing special here…
  • Guy Ritchie’s new film The Gentlemen (19:20) and how both guys had a great time at the theater…
  • Season two of Hulu’s Shrill (27:20) and how it seems to be even more enjoyable than the first season…
  • A nice, big Super Bowl LIV discussion (34:20) with both a game preview and a nice prop bet breakdown…
  • Homework for next week (1:09:30), including: the new docu-series Cheer on Netflix, McMillions on HBO, Amazon’s Troop Zero, the new season of Miracle Workers on TBS, the series finale of The Good Place and of course a Super Bowl wrap-up discussion…

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The Toy Department – Episode 198

  By toyAdmin | January 23, 2020 - 11:10 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 198, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky address the reverb on Madden’s microphone before settling in to discuss:

  • The return of Netflix’s Sex Education (2:00) and what a delight it continues to be in its second season…
  • HBO’s new Armando Iannucci comedy Avenue 5 (17:20) and how both guys see the potential for a good show in its pilot…
  • The new HBO Stephen King adaptation The Outsider (21:55) and how it is spooky and gripping and is bound to get more and more intense and action-packed as the season goes on…
  • The film 1917 (32:05) and how it stacks up with other recent (and not-so-recent) war films…
  • Homework for next week (42:25), including: actually watching the new Awkwafina show Nora From Queens on Comedy Central, the new movie The Gentlemen, Tiffany Haddish’s new stand-up special, season two of Shrill on Hulu and perhaps the Aaron Hernandez docu-series on Netflix…
  • A few thoughts on the upcoming Super Bowl (50:35) and a preview of more football discussion next week…

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The Toy Department – Episode 197

  By toyAdmin | January 16, 2020 - 7:20 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 197, Derek Madden struggles to remember which host is which before properly identifying Matt Kolsky and jumping into:

  • A conversation about Oscar nominees (1:40) where the Academy did well and where they’re screwing the pooch…
  • The new Netflix comedy Medical Police (22:25) and how well it executes its particular brand of stupid comedy…
  • John Mulaney’s Netflix special The Sack Lunch Bunch (26:35) and how it artfully parodies a weekend children’s special…
  • Leslie Jones’ new standup special (31:15) also on Netflix, and how she’s very funny even if this is not necessarily a standout stand-up set…
  • The film The Last Black Man in San Francisco (35:05), currently available on Amazon, and what an oddly beautiful movie it is…
  • Homework for next week (41:40), including: Avenue 5 and The Outsider on HBO, the film 1917, the new Awkwafina show Nora From Queens on Comedy Central and season two of Netflix’s Sex Education…

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