The Toy Department – Episode 237

In Episode 237, Madden and Kolsky are back after a LOOOOONG Thanksgiving break with LOTS to talk about (after a brief recounting of Kolsky’s COVID test):

  • A preview of THE CHALLENGE: DOUBLE AGENTS (3:30) which premiere’s next week on MTV, and which this podcast will cover IN DEPTH…
  • The end of The Undoing on HBO (19:20) and how miserably, ridiculously bad it was…
  • Kevin Hart’s new Netflix stand-up special (24:40) and the difficulty of being funny while incredibly rich…
  • Showtime’s John Belushi documentary (26:50) and its exciting new insight into the personality and humanity of a complicated public figure…
  • Another new HBO Max series, I Hate Suzie (33:45) and its interesting genre-blending style…
  • The HBO Max series Two Weeks to Live (38:10) starring the irresistibly charming Maisie Williams…
  • The 2020 reboot of Saved By The Bell (41:20) and how impressive the execution is…
  • The bizarre intrigue of Netflix’s sword-making reality show Forged in Fire (46:05) and the fascinating question of WHERE DO THEY FIND THESE PEOPLE???…
  • Homework for TUESDAY of next week (53:05), including: the return of Big Mouth on Netflix, the new movie Mank on Netflix and HBO Max’s new Kaley Cuoco vehicle The Flight Attendant…
  • A few sports thoughts on the way out the door (55:20) with the NFL and college sports in full COVID swing and the NBA ready to start shortly…

The Toy Department – Episode 221

In Episode 221, Madden and Kolsky convene for a less tipsy but possibly more tired morning recording session to discuss:

  • The first part of the Challenge: Total Madness reunion on MTV (1:20), the many twists and turns of a fascinating season and what — if anything — is left for part two…
  • The new Peacock app show Brave New World (34:10) and how it falls just short of compelling…
  • The new HBO documentary Showbiz Kids (41:00) and how it presents perhaps the first complete look at the experience of being a child star…
  • HBO Max’s new series Expecting Amy (50:45) and how wonderfully candid and open Amy Schumer is about her pregnancy and marriage…
  • A couple pieces of breaking news about sports team names (57:35) featuring Seattle hockey and Washington, D.C. football…
  • Homework for next week (1:02:35), including: the final reunion episode of The Challenge, the beginning of the MLB and NBA seasons, the Marie Curie movie Radioactive on Amazon Prime, the W Kamau Bell show on CNN — United Shades of America and the return of Room 104 on HBO…