Ebon Moss-Bachrach – The Toy Department

The Toy Department – Episode 393

In Episode 393, Madden and Kolsky discuss their canned-champagne problems (including Kolsky’s urgent need of a plumber) before conversations about:

The third season of Hulu’s flagship dramedy The Bear (4:35) and whether it stands up to the incredibly high standard set by its first two seasons…
The Dakota Johnson film Am I Ok? (19:15) and the text message Derek sent to Kolsky while he was watching it…
The sickle-cell-superhero show Supacell on Netflix (33:15) and the cultural value of message-driven shows in this particular genre…
The stand-up comedy of Ali Siddiq (39:50) and his recent four-special series about his life…
A few thoughts on the state of USA Men’s soccer (48:25) as they seek to replace Gregg Berhalter…
Homework for next week (1:13:05), including: the Rashida Jones show Sunny on Apple TV+, the new film Problemista on Max, Eddie Murphy’s return in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F on Netflix and the new Sausage Party show on Amazon Prime Video…

In Episode 364, Madden and Kolsky exchange only brief pleasantries before diving into the week’s homework:

A head-spinning week of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion (1:20) and another remarkably terrible deliberation speech from the ultimately eliminated competitor…
Netflix’s new British thriller Bodies (30:45) and its unique time-jumping framework…
The Jennifer Lawrence-led Netflix comedy No Hard Feelings (41:45) and the charm of its leading lady…
Homework for next week (49:25), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle for a New Champion, the movie Quiz Lady on Hulu, the Apple TV+ movie Fingernails and the new Netflix series Neon…

In Episode 351, Madden and Kolsky get right into things after some apologies for not completing their homework, covering:

Netflix’s new mediocrity The Out-Laws (1:10) and how the new Netflix creative model seems to be flailing at best and outright failing at worst…
Marvel’s new series Secret Invasion (9:35) and how, once again, one of our hosts liked the Marvel stuff better than the other (lol) along with a discussion of Disney+ and its major properties…
A rave review for season two of The Bear (26:00) and just how few TV shows are operating at that high of a level…
A wrap-up of season six of Black Mirror (32:45) and how the new season doesn’t quite follow the traditional Black Mirror formula, to varying degrees of appreciation from our hosts…
A few minutes on The Challenge and Top Chef (49:30), the two show favorites that will be returning relatively soon…
Homework for TWO weeks from now (55:30), including: the new Negro Leagues documentary The League (available to rent digitally), the Wilt Chamberlain doc Goliath on Showtime/Paramount Plus, the BJ Novak movie Vengeance on Amazon Prime Video, the return of Justified on Hulu and the Wham! documentary on Netflix…

In Episode 350, Madden and Kolsky discuss the moving process for Kolsky’s family and the generally unsettled nature of his life before zeroing in on:

Whether or not it’s worth slowing yourself down (3:50) and savoring the shows you love, even if they are available all at once…
Season 2 of Hulu’s The Bear (6:40) and how absolutely excellent it is, thanks to the incredible narrative tension and wonderful acting throughout…
The return of Black Mirror on Netflix (14:00) and how it’s not quite the Black Mirror you might remember, but remains quite effective…
Boots Riley’s new Amazon Prime show I’m A Virgo (23:15) and how it is pretty direct and even heavy-handed with some of its thematic messaging, but also fantastical and enjoyable and really very funny…
Idris Elba’s plane thriller Hijack on Apple TV+ (31:30) and the delight of high-quality popcorn programming…
The television industry’s need for better decision-making on which shows to make binge-able (35:20) and how our hosts are available to fill that need if necessary…
Homework for TWO weeks from now (40:20), including: finishing Black Mirror on Netflix and also The Bear on Hulu, the new Marvel show Secret Invasion on Disney+, the return of The Afterparty on Apple TV+ and the new Netflix film The Out-Laws…

In Episode 305, Madden and Kolsky begin with some personal sadness before moving on to the beautiful distractions of:

A totally unacceptable ending to this week’s episode of The Challenge: All-Stars 3 (3:10) and all the drama that would have made it a great episode if not for that travesty…
The new Netflix comedy God’s Favorite Idiot (21:25) and how it charmed both of our hosts and seems like a real keeper…
The two spy drama/thrillers The Old Man and Slow Horses (25:35), how they are both good but The Old Man seems to stand above and apart…
The 30-minute restaurant drama The Bear (35:00) and how its uniqueness and attention to detail make it a tremendously interesting show…
A few thoughts on the NBA Draft (42:45) and the disappointing television coverage thereof…
Homework for next Friday (50:05), including: potentially the finalé of The Challenge: All-Stars 3, the new Disney+ film Rise about the Antetokounmpo brothers, the new movie Beavis & Butthead Do the Universe on Paramount+, the return of Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building and the new Maya Rudolph show Loot on Apple TV+…