Todd Brotzman

**Todd Brotzman** is a main character in the television series *Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (BBC America).*

He is an average guy with an unsatisfying life that suddenly goes haywire one day when all manner of unexpected things begin happening.

## Biography

### Early life

Todd Brotzman was born around or on November 15, 1981 (according to his Most Wanted profile. He has a younger sister, Amanda Brotzman. Their aunt Esther had Pararibulitis, which ran in the family for five generations.

Todd was lead singer and guitarist of a punk band Dirk Gently Recap As Told By Dirk on the Mexican Funeral.

While attending college, Todd began failing all of his classes and decided to drop out to spend all of his time on his band, the Mexican Funeral. Lying to his parents that he dropped out as a result of pararibulitis, he began to use the disease as an excuse to get money for his supposed treatments.

Using the money for his own personal gain, his parents soon became broke and were unable to pay for his sister, Amanda Brotzman's treatment when she inherited the disease. Todd, feeling remorse for his lies, told his family he was cured of the disease, and decided that it was his duty to pay for Amanda's treatment himself by any means necessary. This includes stealing his band's equipment to sell as well as stealing rent back from his landlord.

### Season 1 (A Completely Lost Dog)

#### Meeting Dirk Gently

At work, Todd discovers the murder of Patrick Spring and is fired for being a person of interest in the case.

Returning home, he encounters Dirk Gently, a holistic detective, breaking into his home and declaring him his new assistant in the Patrick Spring case. Dirk gives Todd a ride to sister Amanda's house but when they return to Todd's apartment, they are attacked by the Rowdy 3 who wreck the place. Dorian, Todd's landlord, becomes aggravated by the disturbance and tries to shoot Todd but ends up accidentally killing himself.

Following further police questioning, he sees a corgi walking alone for the second time that day and decides to return it to it's owner, Gordon. Upon arriving at Gordon's house, he discovers the missing Lydia Spring. *Horizons*

#### Finding Lydia Spring

After breaking into Gordon's apartment to confirm the Lydia Spring sighting, Todd and Dirk escape with the dog and discover that the soul of Lydia Spring is actually trapped inside of it. Gordon, having previously kidnapped Dirk's acquaintance Farah Black, arranges a meet up to get his dog back. Todd and Dirk make it out the encounter alive and with Farah in tow. *Lost & Found*

#### Requesting Police Help

With the newfound information that Gordon is involved in Patrick Spring's murder, Todd tries to go to the police department but Estevez and Zimmerman are more interested in his involvement than Gordon's. Now accepting that the police won't help him, he moves Amanda into his apartment and continues to work with her, Dirk, and Farah. Together they are able to find a power grid map with their neighborhood in the center. *Rogue Wall Enthusiasts*

#### Navigating the Springsborough Maze

Todd is convinced by Amanda to accompany Dirk and Farah to the power grid entrance. After Dirk accidentally opens a secret entrance, the two are forced to navigate an underground maze using the Everbulb. Together they are able to pass several deadly trials: escaping a room before it crushes them to death and using their bodies as a human circuit to open a secret entrance. In the final room they find several computer monitors and are able to uncover a second map. The room begins short circuiting and they are soon rescued by the Rowdy 3. Amanda then uses a vision she previously had of the room to bring the map back up. *Watkin*

#### Digging Up Zackariah Webb's Machine

Dirk and Todd follow the map and are able to dig up several machine parts that fit together to make a machine. They are attacked by the Men of the Machine but Dirk uses the kitten-shark as a defense mechanism. While patching up Dirk's wounds, Todd admits to never having Pararibulitis and only lying about it to guilt his parents into sending him money. Following Dirk's advice, Todd agrees that he needs to tell Amanda the truth. *Very Erectus*

#### Admitting the Truth

Todd returns from the trip and comes clean with Amanda about faking his Pararibulitis. Upset, she locks herself in the bathroom declaring that he is not the brother that she knew. She begins to suffer from a hallucination but Todd is preocuppied trying to calm down Estevez who has barged in with a gun demanding answers. He eventually convinces Estevez to open the door and the two carry Amanda out to seek help. After the Rowdy 3 save her, Todd continues to try and apologize but Amanda leaves with the Rowdy 3. Todd is then electrocuted and capture by some Men of the Machine who were waiting outside of his apartment.

Todd awakens next to Dirk in the Animal Transfer Unit where they are questioned by Gordon Rimmer on their involvement in the case. Dirk declares that he solved the case and that they need to get to the machine. Using the brass knuckles that Farah presented him with earlier, Todd and Dirk are able to escape from their confinements and make it into the room. In the scrimmage, Todd acquires Rimmer's fur coat, completing the outfit that he saw himself wearing at the hotel on the day of Patrick Spring's murder. Dirk activates the machine and they are sucked a week into the past. *Fix Everything*

#### Traveling Through Time

After being transported back in time to the day of Patrick Spring's murder, Todd and Dirk witness the soul swapping of Lydia and Rapunzel along with the murder of several Men of the Machine at the hands of an armored man. When he man confronts the two, Dirk explains that he solved the case and that the armored man is Patrick Spring from the past, avenging the death of his wife. He also concludes that Patrick Spring, Edgar Spring, and Zackariah Webb are all the same man. Determined to stop Patrick Spring's death before it happens, Todd and Dirk travel through the zoo and steal a vehicle along with a gorilla and giraffe mask.

While on the way to the hotel, Todd begins making several connections in the case and becomes convince that they can fix everything before it even begins. Before heading into the hotel through a back entrance, he finds a lottery ticket on the seat of the stolen car and sticks it in his pocket. Todd leads Dirk to the employee's locker room and they steal real-time Todd's master key and enter the penthouse. After witnessing past Patrick inadvertantly kill his future self, the three of them exit the hotel, running into real-time Dirk in the process. Realizing that Dirk lied to him about not knowing the details of the case, Todd becomes upset and declares that he never wants to see Dirk again after the case is over. They return to the time machine and return to their rightful time line where they are immediately electrocuted by the Men of the Machine. *Weaponized Soul*

#### Solving the Case

Todd wakes up to Farah assuring him that everything will be okay but is soon imprisoned alongside Farah and Dirk by Estevez who is still unsure about their role in the case. Todd explains that Patrick, Edgar, and Zackariah are the same person and convinces Estevez to let them out so that they can return Lydia to her body. They travel to the Spring Mansion and Todd is able to properly use the soul exchanger to soul swap Lydia and Rapunzel back. Before they are able to fix the machine to send it back to Zackariah Webb and restart the time loop, two Men of the Machine arrive and try to stop them. Lydia threatens to break the machine but Bart and Ken arrive and Bart is able to easily defeat the men before once again departing.

Todd, Lydia, and Dirk successfully send the machine back in time to Zackariah but are knocked out by the subsequent blast of electricity. Sometime later, Todd awakens to find Amanda in his apartment. She explains that the Rowdy 3 rescued them and Estevez took Dirk to the hospital. When Todd exclaims that Dirk ruined his life, Amanda comments that Todd has become a better person since meeting Dirk which convinces him to reconcile his relationship. He goes to the hospital to intercept a newly released Dirk and the two of them meet up with Farah for lunch where she informs them that she'd like to make an investment in a detective agency for them. Todd excuses himself to go to the bathroom and is phone by a panicked Amanda who pleads with him for help as she feels from Backwing. Before he can do anything, he has a Pararibulitis attack and is left screaming on the floor. *Two Sane Guys Doing Normal Things*

### Season 2 (The Middle of Everywhere)

#### On the run

After the Spring case Todd was a fugitive on the run and on the FBI Most Wanted list, noted as a felon. He had been traveling with Farah, evading the law and looking for Dirk and hints of Project Blackwing. Todd had more Pararibulitis attacks since the first, and was taking medication from Amanda's prescription pill bottle.

Todd's Most Wanted profile remarks: "T. Brotzman is wanted in connection with vandalism and fleeing authorities, may be armed. Suspect in a recent arson as well as kidnapping. profiles on Most Wanted list in *Space Rabbit*

In Bergsberg County, while Farah was meeting her brother, Todd was spoken to by Sherlock Hobbs; Todd then had a pararibulitis attack, and Farah picked him up and left in their car, leaving behind the pill bottle. They got a room at the Cardenas' Family Motor Inn. ... . *Space Rabbit*

... *Fans of Wet Circles*

## Character

Todd has brown hair and blue eyes, and is 5'6" tall. He wears short hair and a short beard.

In season 2, he has dyed his hair darker as a disguise.

## Behind the scenes

* Todd Brotzman is portrayed by actor Elijah Wood.
* Todd is referred to as 33 years old in season 1 by Amanda. this would have him born around ~1983. The pilot script describes Todd and Amanda as 30 and 27 years old, and as 13 and 8 years old in a flashback scene. His season 2 Most Wanted profile gives his birthdate as November 15, 1981, which is the same year as his actor's.
* The development of active Pararibulitis had been aided by the multiple electrocutions he had suffered during the previous days (in episodes 1.04 by ghost rhino, 1.06 by cattleprod 2x, 1.07 by crossbow), 1.08 by machine.

### Appearances

* Season 1 (BBC America)
	+ Horizons
	+ Lost & Found
	+ Rogue Wall Enthusiasts
	+ Watkin
	+ Very Erectus
	+ Fix Everything
	+ Weaponized Soul
	+ Two Sane Guys Doing Normal Things
* Season 2 (BBC America)
	+ Space Rabbit
	+ Fans of Wet Circles