Dear OLTL, can we talk? I know people are screaming for the head of Stacy Morasco, but I have a more long-standing death wish…for Todd. Look, I know he has fans, and this is not a slam on Roger Howarth or Trevor St. John, both of whom have played the character exceedingly well. This is just me, Mala, saying that I wish somebody would shove Todd into a woodchipper or run him over repeatedly with a car or beat him to death with his own shoe.

See, just when I think I’ve managed to box up this rage of mine and put it away in a safe place, you remind me why I so vehemently advocate his demise. I mean, if you really must keep Todd around, just don’t put him in scenes with Marty. It’s that simple. Because when you do put him in scenes with Marty and he does asshattish things like asking her to help him out with his newfound daughter, Dani, a red haze drops over my eyes, I cease to think coherently, and I’m generally useless at my job for a few hours.

If you’re trying to convince us that Todd is a decent guy who just wants to be a good parent and a good spouse, having him stroll into his rape victim’s office acting like she owes him any kind of help is a bad idea. He was so dismissive, so blasé, as if he just gave Marty a paper cut and she should be over it by now. Just the act of him telling her, “Now, look, I know that what I did was wrong, but…” completely undermined Todd having any kind of believable sincerity. There IS NO BUT. He led her gang-rape in college, he raped her all over again by taking advantage of her amnesia. What he did was wrong period.

I get that Todd is a valuable character, a favorite character, and there has to be constant work to keep him a viable leading man, husband figure, father figure, etc. But to do that effectively, you have to properly reconcile that he is a rapist and there is no excuse for that. I don’t care HOW committed he is to making Dani trust him. He’s already violated the trust of not just Marty, but several women. (Remember, she wasn’t his only victim.) You can’t just have him shrug it away like all he did was cut somebody off while driving.

I love you, OLTL. You know I do. You’re a favorite. But I’m pleading here. Do something about Todd! If a woodchipper isn’t in his immediate future, then at least put to death his pretension and arrogance with Marty. Kill their scenes together…because they really murder my soul!

Originally posted on soapoperaweekly.com