The Toy Department – Episode 417

In Episode 417, Madden and Kolsky get right down to business because Kolsky has important activities to get to (specifically a 3-year-old’s dance performance):

  • Two weeks of Canadian cooking on Top Chef: Destination Canada (1:20) including some distinctly north-of-the-border challenges and a couple of understated standouts…
  • Two weeks of action on The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals (9:15) including some legends falling and setting the scene for an imminent final…
  • The deeply mediocre Netflix/Russo Brothers film The Electric State (20:00) and what its remarkably bad critical reception says about the state of movie criticism…
  • Seth Rogen’s new Apple TV+ show The Studio (25:55) and how it’s failing to find its footing through two episodes…
  • Netflix’s deeply disturbing and ambitiously shot family drama Adolescence (31:05) and how British TV seems to have settled on a specific model (or two) for its shows…
  • Apple TV+’s crime drama Dope Thief (37:05) and the sheer magnetism of Brian Tyree Henry…
  • Homework for next week (40:35), including: new episodes of The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals & Top Chef: Destination Canada, the SZA/Keke Palmer movie One of Them Days, the Paramount+ series MobLand and the action sequel Den of Thieves 2: Pantera…

The Toy Department – Episode 321

In Episode 321, Madden and Kolsky are fighting the clock again, this time thanks to Kolsky’s mediocre parental planning, so it’s straight to the important business of the day:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Ride or Dies (2:55) after a Laurel-heavy episode filled with embarrassingly bad strategy from many of the less-experienced players…
  • The new Apple TV+ movie Causeway (31:40) and whether Jennifer Lawrence and Brian Tyree Henry’s performances are enough to carry a very quiet, rather simple film…
  • Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (36:35) and how Daniel Radcliffe’s incredible commitment to the Weird Al role combined with a wildly silly but quite clever script makes for a heck of a fun time…
  • The new Netflix sitcom Blockbuster (43:40) and whether it’s even possible to make a sitcom that’s creative and original…
  • A few thoughts on the World Cup (47:25) with the tournament less than two weeks away and the US roster recently announced…
  • Homework for next Friday (53:35), including: the new Hulu/FX show Fleishman Is In Trouble, HBO Max’s new Sam Rockwell vehicle See How They Run, the new Sylvester Stallone show Tulsa King on Paramount+, the movie Don’t Worry Darling (now available on HBO Max) and OF COURSE the next episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies…

The Toy Department – Episode 149

In Episode 149, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky lament the ever-increasing speed of the passage of time before discussing:

  • Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (3:10) and how it’s an interesting idea that ultimately falls short in terms of story and character…
  • The new film Vice (20:25) and how despite a non-linear plot and rather unlikable characters it very much succeeds as a film…
  • Ellen’s new standup special Relatable (31:10) and how Madden and Kolsky are very much split on how funny it is…
  • The Netflix film Private Life (36:40) and how much both guys enjoyed the honesty of its storytelling and the tremendous performances of its lead actors…
  • Barry Jenkins’ new movie If Beale Street Could Talk (42:55) and how it is a cinematic masterpiece that should be appreciated far more than some lesser but over-appreciated Oscar contenders…
  • The start of the NFL Playoffs (58:25), covering Kolsky’s Bears feelings and a Wild Card Weekend slate that looks tantalizing…
  • Homework for next week (1:07:45), including (but not limited to, because the guys gotta do some research on what to consume): watching the aforementioned NFL Playoffs and the film The Favourite, plus Restaurant Wars on Top Chef…