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So Help Me Todd

So Help Me Todd s1

Credits

Cast

Network

Reviewer

Kristin Smith

TV Series Review

When Todd was 9, he read Louise Fitzhugh’s Harriet the Spy. From that moment on, he knew he wanted to be a private investigator. And he’s done pretty well since then. Sort of. 

He was a successful private investigator two years ago, but lost his license after his partner got into trouble and pulled him down with her. Now, he walks around grocery stores, stalking people being accused of insurance fraud. It’s not the best job, but it pays all the bills. Almost. 

Still, Todd might be content to live in his sister’s carriage house, barely paying rent and working a less-than-fulfilling job for the rest of his life–if it weren’t for his top-notch lawyer of a mother, Margaret. 

Margaret’s not about Todd’s freeloading, excuse-ridden self. She expects more of him. So she offers him something with more potential: a position as a newly licensed private investigator at her law firm. Todd accepts the offer, mainly hoping to get his mom off his back a little. And it kind of does. Turns out, Todd is actually really good at his job, however unconventional his methods may be. 

But most of his daytime hours require him to work alongside his mom, and that’s not the easiest thing for Todd to do.

If Todd and Margaret are to work together successfully, Todd will have to be OKwith following the rules a bit more carefully, while Margaret will have to realize that obeying the law doesn’t always help you solve the case. 

A Law-Full Family 

Viewers’ relationship with the CBS series So Help Me Todd may also be a bit strained..

The play on words found in the title really comes from Todd’s mother, Margaret, and her exasperated attitude toward her son and his choices. And to be fair, you might feel the same while watching the show. While Todd is a grown man, he often makes reckless decisions, such as spying on clients and listening in on confidential information without permission. And although the first episode doesn’t reveal too much, it seems he doesn’t have a high success rate with his personal relationships either. 

But neither does Todd’s mom–or any of his family for that matter. Todd’s father passed away when he was younger, leaving his entire family to fend for themselves while greatly feeling his absence. Margaret picked herself up and built a law firm, but just found out that her current husband fled the scene, wanting to get away from the controlling clutches of his wife. Todd’s sister, Allison, isn’t fully satisfied with her job in the medical field or with her husband. Todd’s gay brother, Lyle, is by far the most successful, but his success seems to come at the expense of his family. 

Certainly, no one’s perfect. Not Todd, not his family and not the clients that Margaret and Todd vow to help, however complex their cases may be. That’s sort of where this series stays–showing an imperfect family helping imperfect people while still trying to work through its own stuff. 

Language isn’t too heavy, although we do hear mild profanity on occasion. Gay and lesbian couples make appearances, but we don’t see any on-screen sexual content (at least not in the pilot episode), and violence is something we hear about but don’t really see. 

This seems to be a typical CBS-style show with “mild” content on all fronts (at least by today’s standards), with a plot that may or may not lure you to watch more.

Episode Reviews

Sept. 29, 2022 S1, Ep1: “Pilot”

Former private investigator Todd helps his mother and big-time lawyer, Margaret, solve a case and find out where her missing husband has gone. 

Todd’s sister, Allison, admits that she isn’t completely satisfied with her marriage and feels their mother negatively influenced many of her life decisions. We hear that Margaret’s father-in-law killed himself years before and that her current husband, Harry, has Parkinson’s disease. A mother accidentally shoots and kills the man who sexually assaulted her adult daughter. 

Two lesbians support one another during a difficult trial. Todd’s brother, Lyle, is married to a man and the two of them have a daughter together. A man says that he wants to lie “naked under stars.” 

Margaret’s husband secretly leaves her, lies to her and admits he wants to live the rest of his life alone, without her controlling presence. Men and women lie, steal, cheat and break the law to get what they want. 

God’s name is misused twice. Words like “h—,” “d–mit” and “b–ch” are heard once or twice each. Men and women consume wine on two occasions.

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kristin-smith
Kristin Smith

Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).

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