Veronica in “So Help Me Todd”: Here is the Devious Scoop

CBS’s latest foray into legal drama comes in the form of an odd — or should we say Todd — series based almost entirely on the crumbling relationship of a mother and son. In So help me, Todd, actor Skylar Astin plays the titular Todd, who loses his private investigator license when his ex-partner betrays him. The only place he can go is right into his mother’s law office, where she rules the courtroom with an iron fist. Todd, on the other hand, plays things a little faster and looser.

After dismounting to shadow people accused of insurance fraud, Todd’s fall from grace is riddled with half attempts to reconcile things with his mother (Marcia Gay Harden). In Episode 14 of Season 1, a blast from Todd’s past has returned to somehow make things even worse than they already are. Who is Veronica and what is her plan? Here’s what we know.

Veronica Caron (Eliza Coupe) certainly surprises Todd when she shows up at the law firm despite rumored to be in prison. That’s right, his ex-girlfriend/partner made a deal to get out and desperately asks Todd for help in episode 14. “Life is much harder outside,” she tells him. She’s made a lot of enemies who want her dead, but Veronica’s plan is to get on a plane to Rio. There’s only one problem: Veronica needs money.

Before heading to the big house, she stashed a ton of cash in the furnace of her old office and wants Todd to get it back because her enemies have no idea who he is. Sounds easy enough, but nothing is easy when it comes to Veronica. With the help of a woman who was already blackmailing her, Veronica managed to lure Todd into an illegal gambling operation run by a horrible crime family. Of course, his mother wasn’t far behind. Was this Veronica’s plan to put Todd and Margaret in a dangerous and deeply illegal situation?

Sure, sending Todd and Margaret up the river was a big piece of cake, but the icing on the cake was even sneakier. Veronica had a few deals with the aforementioned crime family that Todd would be at fault if they went sideways. See, she was able to get him to sign documents that laid the blame squarely at his feet, which means she was always after Todd. Everything about their relationship was wrong.

After being arrested at the bad betting exchange, the real gambling begins as Todd and Margaret find themselves across the courtroom facing charges of illegal gambling. Do you remember the documents that Todd signed? The district attorney has them, and they definitely point to Todd working with the crime family. Thankfully, Margaret and Todd were able to get Veronica to admit what she did while recording it. They quickly turned this over to the prosecution, but boy, is Veronica ain’t done!

Remember, if you will, the woman who blackmailed Veronica into taking Margaret and Todd to the illegal gambling site. Veronica has them wrapped around her fingers so tightly that this woman is willing to go to jail for her, and that’s what’s happening. So Veronica can run free or go rogue again another day.

So help me, Todd airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. EST on CBS and streams on Paramount Plus.