Tag Archives: Meryl Streep

The Toy Department – Episode 239

  By toyAdmin | December 15, 2020 - 2:25 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 239, Madden berates Kolsky for prioritizing a mediocre baba ghanoush over the podcast recording time before jumping into:

  • HBO’s first special episode of Euphoria (5:55) and the tremendous performances by Colman Domingo and Zendaya…
  • The Steven Soderbergh/HBO Max film Let Them All Talk (12:15) and what it has to say about life and relationships…
  • The highly acclaimed new film The Sound of Metal (25:50) and how the strength of Riz Ahmed’s performance carries it…
  • The Rachel Brosnahan film I’m Your Woman (34:30) and how it subverted both hosts’ expectations to great effect…
  • Homework for of next Tuesday (52:10), including: our 2020 BEST OF lists — a breathtaking thrill ride, even this year — and the show Wayne on Amazon Prime (recommended by an intrepid listener)… and DON’T MISS our coverage of The Challenge: Double Agents on Thursday!!!

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The Toy Department – Episode 188

  By toyAdmin | October 31, 2019 - 11:26 am | Uncategorized
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In Episode 188, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky dive directly into:

  • The new Netflix film Dolemite Is My Name (1:35) starring Eddie Murphy, and how it’s nice to have Eddie back in our lives…
  • The other new Netflix film The Laundromat (10:55) from the mind of Steven Soderbergh, and how it finds focus and a pointed message in a last-minute twist…
  • The return of The Kominsky Method (22:10) and why the guys still enjoy Chuck Lorre’s Netflix comedy…
  • The return of HBO’s Silicon Valley for its final season (24:30) and how it feels as it heads for the finish…
  • HBO’s new show Mrs. Fletcher (33:00) and the enduring appeal of Kathryn Hahn despite the show’s overly pilot-y opening episode…
  • Some thoughts on why and how the Golden State Warriors should tank their season (37:05) following the unfortunate injury to Steph Curry and some other NBA considerations…
  • Homework for next week (54:25), including: His Dark Materials on HBO, Season 2 of End of the Fucking World on Netflix, the Ed Norton film Motherless Brooklyn, a re-up on MTV’s The Challenge and a discussion about the end of HBO’s The Deuce…

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The Toy Department – Episode 175

  By toyAdmin | July 24, 2019 - 4:08 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 175, Derek Madden finds Matt Kolsky STILL on paternity leave and STILL without a high quality microphone to record into, but nevertheless they persist with:

  • The conclusion of the second season of Big Little Lies (1:55), and whether the HBO drama had enough to justify coming back…
  • HBO’s teen drama Euphoria (14:15) and how it’s a unique and impressive work of prestige television…
  • Toy Department hits the movies, as Madden saw Stuber (25:05) and Kolsky saw the new Lion King (27:50)…
  • Hulu’s surprise early drop of the fourth season of Veronica Mars (36:15), and how it takes us right back to that Veronica Mars place in our hearts…
  • The new album Help Us Stranger by the Raconteurs (39:45) and how the influence of Brendan Benson tames the genius of Jack White in an appealing way…
  • Homework for next week (48:40), including: the premiere of Bachelor in Paradise, the return of Orange is the New Black on Netflix, and the new Amazon show The Boys (from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg)…

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The Toy Department – Episode 170

  By toyAdmin | June 12, 2019 - 2:42 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 170, Derek Madden travels and Matt Kolsky braves a heat wave with no noisy fan so they can discuss:

  • The conclusion of Season 4 of Showtime’s Billions (3:10), a wrap discussion and some thoughts on where we are heading…
  • The start of Season 2 of HBO’s Big Little Lies (13:05), with thoughts on the tremendous Meryl Streep and the direction of the plot…
  • Netflix’s new season of Black Mirror (18:30), whether the show retains its ability to shock and some more excellent acting performances…
  • Some NBA Finals thoughts (39:00) after the crushing blow of Kevin Durant’s achilles injury…
  • Homework for next week (58:10), including: the conclusion of the NBA Finals, actually catching up with AMC’s new supernatural series NOS4A2, starting Euphoria on HBO and City on a Hill on Showtime, and checking out When They See Us on Netflix…

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The Toy Department – Episode 108

  By toyAdmin | February 27, 2018 - 2:20 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 108, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky preview their Oscar discussion unnecessarily before diving into the following (in order):

  • The first three episodes of the new NBC sitcom AP Bio (4:15), and whether it stands out from the pack of network comedy…
  • Derek’s experimentation with the Season 4 premiere of iZombie (8:50) and how it probably is a show that requires starting from the beginning…
  • Kolsky’s experimentation with Season 15 of Top Chef (16:50), some of its most engaging characters, and how it really does provide the best of reality TV…
  • A run-down of the Oscars (35:50) and predictions for the actual winners (along with pleas for the real winners) heading into this weekend’s show…
  • The long list of shows returning or premiering in March of 2018 (57:55) and what of it will be worth watching…
  • Homework for next week (1:04:50), including: the first two episodes of NBC’s new dramedy Good Girls and the Season 2 premiere of FX’s Atlanta…

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.

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The Toy Department – Episode 102

  By toyAdmin | January 16, 2018 - 5:49 pm | Uncategorized
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In Episode 102, Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky are a few minutes late and spent a few minutes discussing Kolsky’s new job situation and bad television commercials before jumping into:

  • The new Netflix show The End of the Fucking World (4:25) and whether or not its lead female character is charming or off-putting or a combination of the two…
  • Kolsky’s experience with Making a Murderer (10:20) after finishing the binge last week…
  • The final two episodes of the newest season of Netflix’s Black Mirror (21:15) and whether the show has maintained its high level of execution…
  • The new Steven Spielberg/Meryl Streep/Tom Hanks collab The Post (31:35) and its resonance in 2018 America…
  • The much-ballyhooed film Call Me By Your Name (41:55) and its basic unremarkability despite the efforts of its cast…
  • A quick chat about the NBA (52:50), including the Rockets’ attempted assault on the Clippers and the universal appeal of free t-shirts…
  • Homework for next week (1:04:05) including: the return of American Crime Story (The Murder of Gianni Versace), the return of HBO’s Pete Holmes-created show Crashing, and the movies I, Tonya and Mudbound, if Madden and Kolsky can work up the nerve for the latter…

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.

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The Toy Department – EMERGENCY OSCAR PREVIEW

  By toyAdmin | February 24, 2017 - 9:23 am | Uncategorized
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This un-numbered episode finds Derek Madden and Matt Kolsky scrambling to a recording device to talk Oscars before Sunday’s ceremony… after tragically forgetting to mention them in the regular weekly pod. Enjoy!!

By the way, if you like this podcast, TELL A FRIEND!! And if you want to subscribe via iTunes you can just click on the link below the player… Some other links down there as well… And if you want to contact the Toy Department, it’s easy — find us at ToyDepartmentPod (at) gmail.com… or tweet us: @MaddenOnAir & @thekolsky.

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