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…
In Episode 311, Madden and Kolsky have an uncomfortably specific discussion about the Kolsky family’s recent bout with hand-foot-mouth disease before shaking it off and diving into:
A few thoughts on the ending of AMC’s Better Call Saul (6:55) and what a truly spectacular show it turned out to be…
Apple TV+’s new offering Black Bird (13:55) and how Paul Walter Hauser is a uniquely dynamic performer, particularly in the sort of creepy role he inhabits here…
Netflix’s forgettable film offering The Man from Toronto (20:45) and just what exactly is going on with the remarkable quality of bland content on that service…
Amazon’s new League of Their Own show (24:05) and how it’s watchable and not bad, but just doesn’t quite come together how one might hope…
This week’s episode of The Challenge USA on CBS (29:00) and how Leo deserves some flowers (and also maybe some sympathy for his failing businesses?) plus thoughts on the latest twist in the game…
Homework for TWO Fridays from now (41:50), including: HBO’s new Game of Thrones show House of the Dragon, Amazon’s new Lord of the Rings show The Rings of Power, and Netflix’s Manti Te’o doc Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist, plus the more of The Challenge USA on CBS…
In Episode 307, Madden and Kolsky get re-acquainted after a pretty long break before returning to what they love best and talking pop culture:
The finalé of The Challenge All-Stars 3 (11:55) and what it represented for the show, the overall Challenge franchise and the two big winners…
The newest entry in The Challenge franchise: The Challenge USA on CBS (18:35) and how it isn’t yet enough to grab one of our hosts, but definitely seems to have some potential…
A check-in on the tremendous final season of Better Call Saul (46:05), the story arcs that have reached their end and what treats are still to come…
Homework for next Friday (59:00), including: the new Nathan Fielder show Rehearsal on HBO Max, the Peacock comedy Bust Down, Issa Rae’s new project Rap Shit! on HBO Max and the Netflix action movie The Gray Man, plus the next episode of The Challenge USA on CBS…
In Episode 301, Madden and Kolsky are dealing with the world in their own ways and also by focusing on the toy department of life, specifically:
The return of the Kids in the Hall (2:25) and how their stuff is just as good and funny as it was the first time around…
A check-in on Better Call Saul (10:55), the guys’ reactions to the first half of the final season and expectations for the final six episodes…
The Hulu series Conversations with Friends (23:50) and how it is from the same vein as Lenny Abrahamson’s previous series Normal People, which is to say very deep and interesting…
The latest from The Challenge: All Stars 3 (35:30) after an epic elimination and an unwelcome addition to the cast…
The penultimate episode of Top Chef: Houston (51:00) and the incredibly high level of cookery that has characterized the last few weeks…
A few thoughts on the NBA (59:55) as we head towards a likely Finals matchup between the Celtics and Warriors…
Homework for next Friday (1:13:00), including: the finalé of Top Chef: Houston, more of The Challenge: All-Stars 3, the Rhys Darby stand-up special Mystic Time Bird on Amazon Prime, the HBO Max show Our Flag Means Death and Disney+’s new Obi-Wan Kenobi show…
In Episode 297, Madden and Kolsky have been extremely busy since we last spoke, but managed to find time to watch:
The start of the final season of Better Call Saul (2:55), its continuing tremendous qualities and just how thrilling the show has become…
A few thoughts on the controversy surrounding the HBO Max show Winning Time (12:50), and specifically the unhappy reactions of the people the characters are based on…
Some thoughts on two different season 2’s — Netflix’s Russian Doll and Hulu’s Woke (21:43), how one is more successful than the other and why…
HBO Max’s new Ansel Elgort vehicle Tokyo Vice (28:25) and how it is a surprisingly interesting and compelling show about a very richly drawn early-2000’s Tokyo…
Apple TV+’s latest show ROAR (34:10) and how it’s a really well-executed set of feminist fables starring some of the best women in acting right now…
Top Chef: Houston’s restaurant wars (39:55), featuring a chef who only tastes salt and arguably the greatest restaurant wars restaurant in Top Chef history…
A few early thoughts on a WIDE OPEN NBA Playoffs (55:20) after a few games in the first round…
Homework for TWO Fridays from now (59:30), including: more Top Chef: Houston, along with the return of The Flight Attendant on HBO Max, the return of Barry on regular HBO, the new David Simon show We Own This City (ALSO on HBO), Showtime’s new show The Man Who Fell to Earth and Hulu’s Jon Krakauer adaptation Under the Banner of Heaven…
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…
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…
In Episode 137, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are either one or two days late, depending on your perspective, and Madden is miserable in the Minnesota weather, but they still manage to squeeze in chats about:
The Jimmy Butler drama (2:55) with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and just who is at fault in this situation…
A wrap-up discussion on Amazon’s Forever (14:30), which sparks a significant disagreement between the two hosts…
A wrap-up discussion on Netflix’s Maniac (29:30), which sparks a less significant disagreement between the two hosts…
A sad breakdown of The Cool Kids (39:10) on Fox, and what a typically bad network sitcom looks like, despite having a star-studded, hope-inspiring cast…
The start of Season 2 of Netflix’s Big Mouth (47:20) and the standout star power of Maya Rudolph as the Female Hormone Monster…
The season finale of AMC’s Better Call Saul (56:30) and how it was the best show on television all summer, thanks in large part to the incredible performance by Rhea Seehorn…
Homework for next week (1:06:55), including: heading to the movie theaters to see A Star is Born and Bad Times at the El Royale, checking out a couple episodes of the new NBC drama Manifest and watching the series premiere of Camping on HBO, plus possibly a check-in on The Deuce…
By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes/Stitcher/Google Play/etc. you can just click on the link below the player (and don’t forget to leave us a review!!)… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.
In Episode 133, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky open with a digression into the greatest mistakes in Oscars history before focusing in on:
The return of NFL football (6:50) and Derek’s non-financial-contributor philosophy for the season, plus some early returns…
A mid-season check-in on AMC’s Better Call Saul (16:25) which is one of the best shows going and has really ratcheted up the intensity without losing anything in the acting and writing…
Showtime’s new show Kidding (24:00) starring Jim Carrey and directed by Michel Gondry, and how the pilot does a good job of setting up a show with a ton of potential…
The return of The Deuce (31:00) on HBO, and how both guys trust it to come through despite an oddly stagnant time jump…
A wrap-up discussion on Season 6 of Orange is the New Black (36:30) and how truly exceptional it can be in its best moments…
Homework for next week (49:10), including: several new shows — Forever (starring Maya Rudolph and Fred Armisen) on Amazon Prime, The First (starring Sean Penn) on Hulu; plus the return of American Vandal on Netflix…
By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes/Stitcher/Google Play/etc. you can just click on the link below the player (and don’t forget to leave us a review!!)… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.
In Episode 129, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky return for a varied pop culture discussion covering:
Two returning HBO shows — Insecure (1:35) and Ballers (9:50) — and how not much has changed with either show, though that means very different things for each…
The new Spike Lee joint BlackkKlansman (12:15) and how it successfully creates a vibe and feeling from a different era that says a lot about today…
Another new film, Eighth Grade (29:10), written and directed by Bo Burnham, and how it took both Kolsky and Madden back to the turbulent times and emotions of that period in their lives…
The return of AMC’s Better Call Saul (42:15) and how it continues to build on its sturdy foundation, heading towards the inevitable crash before the start of the Breaking Bad timeline…
Madden confronts Kolsky over a golf tweet (49:00) before challenging his enjoyment of golf with a variety of alternative sporting events…
Homework for next week (1:06:20), including: the first few episodes in the new season of The Sinner on USA (starring Carrie Coon), plus whatever else Madden and Kolsky come up with during the week…
By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes/Stitcher/Google Play/etc. you can just click on the link below the player (and don’t forget to leave us a review!!)… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.
