Podcast Summary: How Did This Get Made? – Babes in Toyland LIVE! (HDTGM Matinee)

Date: December 23, 2025
Hosts: Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael, Jason Mantzoukas
Location: Live at Largo, Los Angeles

Episode Overview

In this special live episode, Paul, June, and Jason reunite at Largo (their first live show back) to dissect the 1986 made-for-TV fever dream Babes in Toyland, starring a young Keanu Reeves and Drew Barrymore. Exploring its Cincinnati propaganda, musical missteps, terrifying costumes, and the existential crisis at its core, the trio delivers their trademark blend of sharp analysis and off-the-rails hilarity. The episode also features live audience Q&A, a surprise cameo from Drew Barrymore herself, and a deep dive into why a sled may or may not be the ultimate Christmas present.

Key Discussion Points & Segments

1. Return to Live Shows & Paul’s “Cincinnati Propaganda” Opener

• [02:34] Paul: “...the biggest piece of Cincinnati propaganda ever produced. Leni Riefenstahl would look at this and say, wow, how can I get on this train?”
  • Intros the movie as a surreal Wizard-of-Oz-for-TV, with odd adult-teen romantic subplots and a bizarro Toyland.
• [05:12] Jason: Expresses mixed feelings about being back in person: “I missed you, but boy, do I wish we weren’t here.”

2. What Even Is This Movie?

• [07:20] June: Describes her process (watching movies for the show last-minute) and confusion: "This is not a Christmas movie. This is a Christmas nightmare.”
• [08:11] Jason: “This movie is 100% a Jacob’s Ladder scenario.”
  Discusses the opening, Drew Barrymore’s possible demise, and harrowing TV movie tropes.

3. Production Oddities & Musical Weirdness

• [08:41] Jason: Points out Keanu isn't driving a Jeep—it's a Suzuki Sidekick.
• General consensus: the “Cincinnati” opening song is torturous propaganda and goes on way too long.
• [11:06] June & Paul: Digress into casting mix-ups (Eileen Brennan vs. Ellen Burstyn), watch parties surrounded by parents, and the oddity of having to watch strange children’s movies in public.

4. Why the Songs Are All So Terrible

• [22:00] Jason: “This movie has too few songs to be a musical, but too many songs to be a movie.”
• [22:53] Paul: Notes the original cut was 145 minutes (with even more songs), slashed to 94 minutes.

5. What’s Canonical Babes in Toyland…and What’s Going On?

• Attempts to compare this film to the 1903 operetta and previous adaptations; confusion reigns over which elements (e.g., Mother Hubbard's shoe) were original.

6. The ‘Sled as a Gift’ Debate

• [27:38] Paul: “Sled is a gift you get like the normal part of the year. Don’t give that to me as a gift.”
• [28:21] June (incredulously): “…nothing is more fun and childlike and free…”
  • The group launches into a hilarious argument about the merits of sleds as Christmas gifts, referencing “Rosebud” from Citizen Kane, and Paul’s childhood with actual horse-drawn carriages.
• [84:23] June: Stands by the sled as a great and loving sibling gift.

7. Drew Barrymore’s Character & the Loss of Childhood

• [31:12] June: “She’s not a kid anymore.”
• [32:31] Jason: “The dad is sled not present. The mom is not engaged…the sister has to go to work and Drew is doing the lion’s share of work.”
• [72:44] June: “That’s devastating... I always wanted to be a kid.”
  Explores the film’s theme about children forced to grow up too fast—a direct (and darkly comic) mirror to Drew Barrymore’s own real-life celebrity childhood.

8. Toyland: Scenic Nightmares, Bizarre Costumes, and Haunting Details

• [36:54] Jason: “Toyland, which is the most monstrous place that you could ever possibly go.”
• Critique of horrifying Sesame Street-level costuming, non sequitur mascot characters, and unsettling world-building.

9. Audience Q&A: The Live Atmosphere

• Notables:
  • [65:16] Audience Q: Is there a weird innuendo about child brides?
    • Jason: “It is not subtext. It is text.”
  • The Berlin Wall falls, literal roaches in the cookie factory, questionable cookie-economy logic, and double Nosferatus.

10. Special Cameo: Drew Barrymore Does Second Opinions

• [88:49] Drew Barrymore: Reads glowing online reviews, recalls filming in Munich for six months, and celebrates the audience’s love—or bemusement—for this oddity:
  • “I had no idea that anyone knew about this movie. It’s exciting to see that anybody gave it a five star review.”
• Hosts are genuinely touched and a little starstruck.

11. Morals, Bizarre Endings & The True Christmas Message

• [72:17] June: “Don’t grow up too fast” is the intended moral—but it’s muddled by the protagonist’s lack of agency and home life.
• [95:22] June: “What we are believing in [should be] what children can make up in their own minds.”
• Final consensus: The real-world coda lacks impact—Drew’s character doesn’t get a true catharsis or a changed life.

12. Should You Actually Watch It?

• [97:26] June: “I would.”
• [97:28] Jason: “I absolutely would.”
  • All agree: It’s an absurd, occasionally magical, frequently nightmare-inducing oddity—essential group watch, preferably with friends and/or substances.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [02:34] Paul: “It’s the biggest piece of Cincinnati propaganda ever produced. Leni Riefenstahl would look at this and say, wow, how can I get on this train?”
• [07:55] Jason: “This is like a haunting fable…I’m almost positive in the opening scene, Drew Barrymore’s character perishes.”
• [22:00] Jason: “This movie has too few songs to be a musical, but too many songs to be a movie.”
• [27:38] Paul: “Sled is a gift you get like the normal part of the year. Don’t give that to me as a gift.”
• [32:23] Jason: “The dad is sled not present. The mom is not engaged…the sister has to go to work and Drew is doing the lion’s share of work.”
• [65:20] Jason, on child brides: “Let me be clear. It is not subtext. It is text.”
• [88:49] Drew Barrymore: “I give you guys, June and Paul and Jason, five star.”
• [92:13] Jason: “The movie is absurd and an absolute cavalcade of nonsense. But it’s watchable because they are so good.”
• [95:10] Paul: “The tagline is kind of a clunker. ‘You must truly believe in toys.’ Which kind of gives away the ending…”

Timed Segment Guide

• **[02:24] Welcome and intro to the live audience & movie slate
• **[07:17] June’s method of watching the movie and first reactions
• **[15:35] Playing "Cincinnati" from the film and surviving the song
• **[22:00] Is this a musical or not? Song count and original runtime debate
• **[27:20–30:00] The Great Sled Debate
• **[31:12] Discussion of Drew Barrymore's “old soul” character
• **[35:03] The villain’s (Richard Mulligan) “monsterpiece” song
• **[36:54] Toyland as a “monstrous place,” costumes, and scenic oddities
• **[42:15] June’s kids actually love the movie (the real target audience?)
• **[65:16] Audience Q&A: child brides, Berlin Wall, perpetual daylight, cookies-as-currency
• **[88:49] Drew Barrymore’s Surprise Cameo: Reads five-star reviews, offers BTS stories
• **[97:26] “Should people watch it?”—hosts say yes, especially to demand a release of the longer cut

Final Thoughts

• Babes in Toyland is a fever dream of a Christmas movie, at once full of retro charm and deeply unsettling. Its blend of Cincinnati boosterism, clumsy musical numbers, and truly bizarre world-building makes it a must-watch for fans of cult oddities—especially when dissected with the unhinged insight of the How Did This Get Made? crew.
• Drew Barrymore and Keanu Reeves’ charisma gives the film a counterintuitive charm, even as the movie’s “Christmas” messaging, narrative logic, and production design collapse around them.
• In closing, the hosts rejoice in the weirdness, the live audience, and the strange sort of magic only movies like this (and podcasts like HDTGM) can provide.

Quick Reference Table:

| Timestamp | Segment | |-------------|------------------------------------------------| | 02:24 | Opening banter, intro to Babes in Toyland | | 07:17 | June's confusion, not a Christmas movie | | 15:35 | "Cincinnati" song and city boosterism | | 22:00 | Musical/not musical? Runtime antics | | 27:20–30:00 | The Sled Debate | | 36:54 | Toyland’s costumes and uncanny valley | | 42:15 | June’s kids love the movie | | 65:16 | Audience segment: child brides, wall metaphors | | 88:49 | Drew Barrymore cameo on Second Opinions | | 97:26 | Should you watch? Recommendation round-up |

Original Tone & Language

The episode is overflowing with the irreverent, joke-heavy, self-deprecating banter the HDTGM hosts are known for: affectionate ribbing, deep-dive pop culture digressions, and delight at cinematic chaos. No punches are pulled; when the movie veers into creepiness or nonsense, the trio call it out—often with an incredulous laugh or deadpan zinger.

“I like fucking weird. Like, this is a kids movie…they will never make a movie this weird again.”
— Paul Scheer ([98:27])

“The movie is absurd and an absolute cavalcade of nonsense. But it’s watchable because they are so good.”
— Jason Mantzoukas ([92:13])

Verdict: WATCH IT—but only if you’re ready for holiday cheer gone totally off the rails.