Tag Archives: HBO

The Toy Department – Episode 416

  By toyAdmin | March 14, 2025 - 10:40 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 416, Madden and Kolsky get into the transition from winter to spring and the many traps this season presents before shifting over to:

  • The season premiere of Top Chef (3:30) where it’s Destination Canada and they have the tuxedos to prove it…
  • The latest on The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals (24:25) where another team of heavy hitters heads home and the ladies of Era 1 seem to be in full control of the house…
  • The new documentary series Celtics City (38:40) and whether there’s a trick to watching great content about incredibly annoying stuff…
  • Hulu’s new comedy Deli Boys (46:35) and the abounding silliness therein…
  • A few thoughts on the upcoming (and uninspiring) Toy Department Derby (51:30) and our hosts’ respective Premier League teams…
  • Homework for two weeks from now (56:30), including: another two episodes of The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals, more Top Chef: Destination Canada, the new Netflix series Adolescence, the new Apple TV+ drama Dope Thief, the new Seth Rogen show The Studio and the new Netflix/Russo Brothers film The Electric State…

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The Toy Department – Episode 414

  By toyAdmin | February 21, 2025 - 11:19 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 414, Madden and Kolsky are pressed for time after missing last week, so it’s some quick pleasantries and right into:

  • Two weeks of action from The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals (1:15), the early leaders in the clubhouse and the unfortunate (for entertainment purposes) elimination of Ashley and Aneesa…
  • Our hosts’ thoughts on all of the SNL 50 content (22:25) from the past weekend…
  • A couple minutes on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (33:30) with Phish nominated for the first time…
  • The Oscar-nominated film The Substance (40:05) and the excellent performances at its core…
  • More spy-show fodder with Netflix’s The Recruit (50:00) and Apple TV+’s Prime Target (54:25) and how one of our hosts found a deeper enjoyment in one of them…
  • The return of White Lotus (57:25) and the excitement we all feel to have it back…
  • A reasonably unproductive discussion about the NBA All-Star fiasco (1:04:30) and the NBA MVP Award, which Derek is already furious about…
  • Homework for two weeks from now (1:18:40), including: two more episodes of The Challenge All-Stars: Rivals and a bunch of Netflix content — the new Olympic basketball doc Court of Gold, new limited series Zero Day and new comedy series Running Point…

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The Toy Department – Episode 407

  By toyAdmin | December 6, 2024 - 12:10 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 407, Madden and Kolsky return after an extended break and before another one, and now need to apologize to everyone who may be offended by a bumpy open and the loss of Kolsky’s primary microphone after approximately seven minutes, but nevertheless pursue conversations about:

  • The two most recent episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (2:50) and how the game is splitting across alliance lines as we approach TJ’s Final…
  • Netflix’s new thriller series The Madness (21:45) and its ability to speak to the zeitgeist while also presenting an engaging mystery…
  • Michael Schur’s new Netflix sitcom A Man on the Inside (26:25), whether it lives up to his standard and some thoughts on the remarkable and lovable Ted Danson…
  • The Ringer’s latest music documentary, Yacht Rock: A DOCKumentary (34:50) and whether it gives a new insight into a very specific genre of music…
  • Homework for next time, two weeks from now (52:10), including: the next two episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the new detective show Cross on Amazon Prime Video, the well-received WWII film Blitz on Apple TV+ and Anthony Jeselnik’s new stand-up special Bones and All…

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The Toy Department – Episode 406

  By toyAdmin | November 15, 2024 - 10:14 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 406, Madden and Kolsky spend a few minutes discussing mixtapes with an air of nostalgia before they lock into:

  • Another drama-filled episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (5:10), a lot of main character energy from Johnny Bananas and the exploits of the surprisingly persistent EliMichele…
  • The exceedingly weird and bizarrely sparse film Janet Planet (26:15) from Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker…
  • The much-ballyhooed Netflix film His Three Daughters (31:00) and the powerhouse performances from the three women at its center…
  • Peacock’s new action-thriller The Day of the Jackal (37:20) and whether it might be trying to do too much at once…
  • A few thoughts on the world of soccer (44:05) from the Chelsea-Arsenal draw to the USMNT’s uninspiring victory in Jamaica…
  • Homework for next time, three weeks from now (56:00), including: WHO THE HELL KNOWS, but surely a lot of Challenge talk…

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The Toy Department – Episode 402

  By toyAdmin | October 17, 2024 - 7:53 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 402, Madden and Kolsky discuss their great lost episode, and attempt to recreate some of the magic you missed last week as they cover:

  • The last two episodes of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (2:00), including the gladiatorial greatness of Derrick Kosinski and the age-defying dominance of Rachel Robinson…
  • A sprint through the un-aired conversations from last week about: the Pitt/Clooney film Wolfs (26:05), the new HBO comedy The Franchise (27:10) and Mark Duplass’ quietly impactful Penelope (30:15)…
  • The Netflix documentary Will & Harper (32:25) and how it walks a fine line between laughs and love to produce a tremendous study of America and friendship…
  • The NBA-focused docu-series Starting 5 on Netflix (38:55) and how it delivers watchability and entertainment even if it doesn’t deliver much basketball…
  • Apple TV+’s new big-ticket drama Disclaimer (54:50) and how it’s all twisted around and structured in a way that makes it difficult to process…
  • Homework for next week (1:05:30), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, the second season of Shrinking on Apple TV+, the new Ali Wong stand-up special Single Lady on Netflix and watching Game 4 of the WNBA Finals so you can try to find Derek Madden in the crowd…

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The Toy Department – Episode 400

  By toyAdmin | September 27, 2024 - 10:49 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 400, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s San Francisco escapades and marvel at the longevity of this silly podcast before getting into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (6:10) where Era I continues to burn to the ground, despite Rachel’s best efforts, and Era II continues to weather the storm that is Cara Maria and Laurel…
  • The baffling film Challengers (33:05) and what the people involved thought they were doing…
  • Netflix’s new action movie Rebel Ridge (38:45), the increasingly popular one-man-with-a-grudge format and the leading man ascension of Aaron Pierre…
  • A check-in on FX’s The Old Man (43:10) and whether the story of Jeff Bridges’ chaotic past is enough to carry a second season…
  • The Max/DC series The Penguin (45:50) and whether the gritty, gangster-noir style and transformative performance from Colin Farrell were able to draw in our resident comic skeptic…
  • Homework for next week (49:35), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, Netflix’s new Adam Brody/Kristen Bell series Nobody Wants This, the WWE documentary series Mr. McMahon (also on Netflix), and the film Killer Heat on Amazon Prime Video…

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The Toy Department – Episode 399

  By toyAdmin | September 19, 2024 - 9:44 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 399, Madden and Kolsky prepare to overcome a late recording time and Derek’s long week before diving into:

  • The latest from The Challenge: Battle of the Eras (1:50), CT falling, Laurel spiraling and whether the 40th season is living up to expectations so far…
  • The Alex Garland film Civil War (25:50) — how it is ultimately just a movie about photo-journalism and whether it leaves things on the table by not wading deeper into more significant themes…
  • Nicole Kidman and Liev Schreiber’s rote Netflix rich-people-and-murder drama (35:35) and whether its insignificance hurts its watchability…
  • Peacock’s Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist (41:50) and our hosts curiously split views on the end product…
  • The spectacular Alex Gibney documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos (46:55), all the wonderful tidbits it delivers on one of the greatest television shows of all time and the price of genius…
  • Homework for next week (57:50), including: another episode of The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, actually watching the film Challengers, Netflix’s new action flick Rebel Ridge, Max’s new DC Comics effort The Penguin and a check-in on the second season of FX’s The Old Man…

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The Toy Department – Episode 394

  By toyAdmin | July 18, 2024 - 9:53 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 394, Madden and Kolsky discuss Derek’s new fitness challenge and a radio contest involving Fred Durst before jumping into:

  • Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (7:40) and how both our hosts would prefer that he did something more interesting…
  • The equally unnecessary but significantly funnier Sausage Party: Foodtopia (17:20) and how a little bit of cleverness and thoughtfulness can go a long way…
  • The WTF sensation of Apple TV+’s Rashida Jones vehicle Sunny (24:15) and how both hosts are all in despite not really knowing what’s going on…
  • The Julio Torres movie Problemista (30:20) and how it’s a quirky good time…
  • Homework for a few weeks from now (4:05), including: the Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black (available to rent), the two new Apple TV+ series(es) Lady in the Lake and Time Bandits, plus whatever else Madden and Kolsky come up with in the meantime…

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The Toy Department – Episode 393

  By toyAdmin | July 12, 2024 - 1:38 pm | Uncategorized
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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…

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The Toy Department – Episode 391

  By toyAdmin | June 20, 2024 - 11:21 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 391, Madden and Kolsky are back from an unplanned hiatus (thanks to Derek’s unnamed coworkers) to dive deep into:

  • The last two episodes of Top Chef (2:05) including a cheese-and-fishy quickfire, great chefs cooking scared in the pre-final and a final cook that saw three great chefs do their thing…
  • The the end of The Challenge All-Stars 4 (22:40) including a purge, a rad paintball shooting challenge to kick off TJ’s Final, a friend-ly twist to end it and a big win for a bigger legend…
  • The HBO docu-series Ren Faire (36:05) and whether the Succession comparisons go deeper than the obvious surface narrative…
  • The intense and emotional Godzilla Minus One (44:00) and whether it transcends the standard monster-flick label…
  • Bob Marley: One Love (49:15) and the life and legacy of reggae music’s GOAT…
  • The Glen Powell/Richard Linklater team-up Hit Man (55:45) and what a winning rom-com it ends up being…
  • A few thoughts on the end of the NBA season (1:00:30) and the championship-winning Boston Celtics…
  • Homework for next week (1:10:55), including: Hannah Einbinder’s stand-up special (on Max), the documentary Brats on Hulu, Ophan Black: Echoes on AMC, Apple TV+’s Presumed Innocent, the Dev Patel feature Monkey Man (now on Peacock) and the return of The Boys on Amazon Prime Video…

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