[country music playing]
♪ It's a new day Gettin' out the bed ♪
♪ Shake your bones 'Cause you need it ♪
♪ Play songs on the radio ♪
♪ Shout it out and let it go… ♪
[Antoni] We have left the city.
This is Canyon Lake.
We are out of Austin proper.
-We are in the country, honey. -[laughing]
I did see several cows that had, like, huge horns.
Texas Longhorns.
[Jonathan] Oh, you are so right.
Also a name of a chain of steakhouses.
And the name of a football team, I think?
-A tractor! A tractor! -[all] Oh!
-[theme music playing] -♪ Oh! ♪
♪ All things just keep getting better ♪
♪ Oh! ♪
[Antoni] Okay, so this week we're meeting Todd Maddox.
"Todd is 67. He's from Canyon Lake, Texas."
Hey, bud. What's happening? Say hi.
"He's also the owner and operator of Plookys Cajun Boiling Pot,
his family-owned restaurant best known for their East Texan seafood."
"The building was purchased by couple Todd and Jodie 20 years ago."
It is a typical Cajun boil.
I always said, "You come in a customer."
"You leave as a friend."
-Antoni, you ever went to a crawfish boil? -Yes, I love crawfish.
They're sweet. They fall apart when you suck the brains out.
-[gagging] -[gagging]
"His nominator is Kaci, his daughter."
-Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. -I'm gonna do the potatoes first.
-So they're on bottom. I got it. -[Todd] Okay.
Growing up in Plookys with my dad and my mom was the best thing.
People were packing this place,
and we're running all over the place as a family, all chaotic,
laughing and saying, "How crazy was that?"
And it's still that, but not in the same way.
There's laughs that are missing there.
"After Jodie passed away ten years ago,
Todd has upheld her memory by keeping the original decor."
[all] Aww!
[Antoni] "Not much has changed since."
[Kaci] When you move a frame on the wall,
it's got the residue around it where it hasn't changed.
It probably looks a little dingy, having not changed in 20 years.
Moments of nostalgia is one thing, but a time capsule's quite another.
[splutters] You better preach, Antoni. Come through!
-Who's this? -Who's that?
-It's Antoni! -You better work! Okay.
"So Todd loves dressing comfortably
and can be usually spotted behind the counter in slaps, aka flip-flops."
[Todd] I wear slaps, go-aheads, overseas, thongs or whatever.
Uh, not underwear. The shoes. [laughs]
[Antoni] "Todd sports a long ponytail
that his daughter Kaci affectionately calls a skullet…
[chuckles] …a bald man's mullet."
It's a skull mullet.
It's like a rat crawled up in the back of the hat.
He doesn't spend any time on himself.
I'm supposed to be retired right now,
but my life is about this restaurant.
[Kaci] He needs help getting back in the swing
of normalizing his life again,
doing things that make him feel good and that are fun.
Atticus is in school, what do you do?
I watch Netflix.
I watch my TV.
[Kaci] He does nothing but be here at this restaurant
surrounded by my mom's ghost,
and he needs the Fab Five to come in here to Ghostbusters.
Dad, I hate to say it, but, you know, get moving on.
Time to bring some joy back in this man's life.
-Yeah! -[Karamo] Right?
"So, our mission, let's help this lovable widower find a new lease on life,
bring his restaurant into the future and take Todd from a simmer to a boil!"
[all] Yeah!
[rock music playing]
♪ You can run out ♪
♪ Yeah, run out that door… ♪
[Karamo] We in the middle of nowhere, y'all.
♪ Grab your babies and tell your friends ♪
[girl] What's that in the distance?
I spy with my little eye something yellow or orange.
Is it the sun?
Yeah.
-[Karamo] This the thing? Oh, gosh. -Oh, my gosh!
Does that say "BYOB"?
-[Bobby] It does. -[Karamo] Bring your own Bobby.
[Kaci] I think they're here.
-Wow, she is Texas! -Wow! [laughs]
This little girl's got cowboy boots on! [laughs]
-[Jonathan] Hi! How are you? -[Karamo] Adorable.
-How are you? -[Jonathan] Nice to meet you!
-I'm Kaci. -[Tan] Hi, Kaci!
Hi, buddy. Jonathan. What's your name? How are you?
These are Atticus and Lenny. My dad's inside.
-Let's go! -[Kaci] Come on, Lynyrd Skynyrd.
Dad! I brought some friends with me!
-Hey, hey, hey! Oh, my God! -[Karamo] Todd!
-This is my dad! -Oh, my God! Oh!
How are you?
Todd looks like Surfer Santa
that brings you crawfish for Christmas instead of coal.
-It's so cute! -[Bobby] Hey, all right!
[Antoni] Plookys is very much…
"Vintage" is definitely a word I would use, but I kind of love that.
But it's definitely, um, weathered.
There's definitely history at Plookys.
-So nice to meet you. -It smells so good in here!
Are you cooking up something? It smells delicious!
I appreciate that. I've got something cooking right now.
-Crawfish and corn, potatoes and shrimp. -Yes! Yes! Yes!
Yes! Is this literally the kitchen?
-Can we see the place? I wanna see around. -Come on!
You serve a whole restaurant from this tiny kitchen?
-[Todd] Yes! -[Tan] Wow.
-Is it only you who cooks? -No, Kaci does too.
It's, like, a generational thing. Yeah.
[Tan] What's in-- Is it just water and--
-What's in there? -[Todd] Spices.
The attire is a little… troublesome.
Unless you're going to a pool,
I don't really see why there's a need for flip-flops,
especially when you're running a restaurant, preparing food.
-We're gonna look around. -[Antoni] Let's go have a look everywhere.
-[laughing] -[Karamo] What is this?
Is it… What?
This is a computer system. He's trying to act young. He ain't young.
I just finished doing my taxes.
-[Antoni] But this is cute! -You do your taxes on this?
-Software will do that for you now. -And that one-- No.
-No, software doesn't do this. Look. -[Bobby laughing]
I write down the orders.
At the end of the month,
I have to take all these. I have to add 'em up on that.
There's a better way.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Not to take a hard right, I am so curious about what is brewing
up underneath this hat, honey.
Oh, my word, honey, look at all this pretty hair.
Last haircut I got, they kind of missed up here.
-They cut a bunch. -I've had that problem before too.
[Jonathan] I'm not trying to be a nightmare,
but his scalp does look like a block of Parmesan cheese.
[Todd] Jodie and I used to go to the boiling pots down
in Corpus and around,
and we both said, "Oh, I do this since I was a kid."
She says, "Oh, I do it too," you know.
"I'm gonna open one of these someday."
I'm like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure you are."
-But then the time-- -Wait. This was her dream?
-Uh-huh. Yes, this was Jodie's idea. -[Antoni] Aww.
And we planned to do this as a family restaurant
and to keep Plookys going.
[Antoni] She had a vision.
-She did. -[Antoni] It's remained unchanged since.
[Karamo] I just wanna keep looking around.
There's an old crawfish there, just hanging out.
Welcome to Plookys. My name is Tammy Van Ness. I'm here to take your order.
Tanny, do you want some potatoes? [laughing]
[Tan] My God, I'd love a potato.
How many do you want?
-Five crawfish. -All right.
-Some crab. -All right.
-And a big beer, please. -All right, you hold on one minute.
Yes, Tammy. I love me some Tammy.
[Antoni] Tan, let's go exploring outside.
[both shouting]
-[Antoni] Come here, Tanny. -[Tan groans]
-Oh! -[groans]
[Antoni] Tanny, I have something special for you.
[Tan] Oh, my God, they're alive! No, no! Please don't!
No, no, please don't. Is that the crawfish?
Crawfish.
[laughs] I have literally no idea where crawfish come from.
-Grab one. You have to face your fears. -No. No, no, no.
I actually do love the taste.
I just truly had no idea what they look like when they're not deshelled.
Crawfish taste gorgeous.
Crayfish 101.
They're also known as craydids, crawdaddies, crawdads, mountain lobsters.
Mudbugs. Not my favorite, but hey, it works.
Crayfish are basically freshwater crustaceans,
resembling little baby, adorable, cute lobsters.
-Hey, come here. -[laughing]
Not for me, thank you very much.
So, tell me about the decor.
Decor is, uh, hmm. What about "old surfer dude"?
[Bobby laughs]
-That's 'cause I'm an old surfer. -I love it.
One of the things that stands out to me the moment I walked into Plookys is
all the cool stuff everywhere, but it feels dated.
It feels a bit depressed, and it feels like it's living in the past.
So, this is Jodie up here, eh?
Yeah, this is my Jodie.
There's Jodie and me.
[Bobby] Aww.
[Todd] Everything has a story. Everything has a memory.
But, Bobby, I'm very anxious about change.
Uh, I can't move on from Jodie.
And this is gonna help me.
[Bobby] What do you think Jodie would say about this?
[Todd] It's not like her wish not to change.
She'd be all for it.
So, I leave it in your capable hands.
-You're on board with me? Okay. -I'm open.
[Kaci] They were perfect for each other.
He was the funny one without trying to be funny.
And she was the loud one that made you feel like your mama when you walked in.
-Like, "Get over here, gimme a hug." -[laughs]
So, when she passed away, everything changed for us.
[Karamo] Was your mom's death sudden?
Yes, so she had a brain aneurysm that we didn't know about…
and, um…
she comes out here to feed the deer and water them. That's what she did.
And all of a sudden she comes back inside,
and it's a hot day like today, and she's saying,
"I have a really bad headache, and I can't see."
And an ambulance won't get here fast enough.
We're rural, so we had to drive her in.
[voice breaking] The last thing that she said to me…
to me was, "Keep my restaurant open, Kaci…
and take care of your dad." [sobbing]
So, after that, I've been trying really hard to do that,
but I'm just one person.
Did she say that same thing to your father?
Yeah, he used to have friends. He used to have activities,
and now it's just me, the kids and this place.
-[Jonathan] Oh, gosh. -[boy laughing]
[Jonathan] Be careful!
-What are you doing? -I was just about to try something.
-Ooh! -[Todd] Get me some paper, baby.
-[Antoni] That's perfect. -I'm gonna make you your own little--
-Wait, what? -Yeah.
-[Antoni] Cocktail sauce and horseradish. -[Kaci] Horseradish.
-That's not mustard. -[Kaci] It's butter.
Look at that crimson red on those crawfish.
Wow.
This is insane.
-This menu hasn't changed in 20 years? -[Todd] Mnh-mnh.
Are there dishes on the menu that you or anybody else would have the opinion
that maybe are not necessarily working and that you'd like to work on?
That's Kaci's pet peeve, is she doesn't like my gumbo.
[Kaci] Number one, vegetables are your key in gumbo.
You need spices.
It tastes like there's no love in it.
-[Antoni] It doesn't have soul. -Yes!
[Kaci] I have been more in the kitchen now than he is.
If I'm gonna be in the kitchen, why can't I church it up?
[Antoni] Wait, "church it up"?
So, like, when you're going to church, you know how you dress yourself up nicer?
In your Sunday attire.
With food, I say, "I'm gonna church it up, like, I'm gonna make it a little nicer,"
and I know it's, like, a chore to do those steps,
but he doesn't understand. It's more for me.
-You're the future of this place. -[Kaci] Right.
-He needs to start trusting you. -That's it!
[Jonathan] So, this is years of hair.
This is almost ten years.
Since Jodie passed, I stopped cutting it.
Do you feel connected to yourself with your beard and your hair?
[Todd] I look and go, "Who's that Santa Claus-looking fool?"
-You know? -You're not a fool. You're gorgeous.
'Cause in this picture, look at this beardless man.
[Todd] Mm-hmm.
When's the last time you felt, like, attractive
and, like, confident about the way you look?
It's been a while.
-Really? -Yeah.
When you're dealing with this type of grief, it doesn't ever fully leave you.
You just learn how to deal with it and bear it,
and his hair is a symptom of his sadness.
[Southern accent] There's a sexpot in here who's screaming to come out, frankly.
You know that's true, 'cause my Blanche Devereaux came out.
-Who? Huh? -[laughing]
[Karamo] I notice, like, a fishing pole. I notice surfboards.
You know, this has a very beachy water vibe.
-I wanna know what makes you happy. -My grandkids. That's my life.
-That's my love. That's my heart. -Yeah, yeah.
What do you see for the rest of your life? 'Cause you still got some life to live.
I… I do not, uh, envision that anymore.
Jodie was my life partner.
You… you have someone to share it with.
Yeah, yeah.
I… I lack that in my life.
But when the bad things happen, I don't dwell on 'em.
I'mma call a little BS.
You are dwelling on it and not being able to move on.
Because I've gone for ten years… in pain.
[Karamo] Hmm.
And she's never coming back.
It's just like what you're used to, especially when you get older like me.
It's too easy to exist
and too hard to live.
[Karamo] Hmm.
So, Todd, how are you feeling about the fact that
this is the last time you're gonna see Plookys in its current form?
Uh, mixed emotions, you know,
but I'm ready to start a new future with you guys' help.
-Yeah. -And Kaci's help.
-Take a good look, one last gander. -[soft rock playing]
♪ Remember all those moments? How could I forget? ♪
♪ You are out there with me It's like you never left ♪
[vocalizing]
♪ Pictures and the memories will show ♪
♪ In my heart, I'll never let you go ♪
-[rock music playing] -♪ All right, yeah! ♪
♪ Well, you can share Your broken heart with me… ♪
[Jonathan] Changing his look doesn't mean that he is not connected
to Jodie anymore.
It doesn't mean that he can't hold Jodie in his heart.
So I'm excited to spend some time with Todd
so we can take some of that pressure off his shoulders
and show him a different way.
[Tan] I want to bring Todd back to life with his wardrobe.
I want him to be reminded of why he used to make an effort
and that his clothes can help him with moving forward
and getting back out there.
[Antoni] Todd and Jodie opened Plookys over 20 years ago,
wanting to create a family business.
And they've done it successfully, and it's survived.
We just came along to make sure that it makes it to the next generation.
[Karamo] Todd's life is wash, rinse, repeat, and that's a problem.
If you have some breath in your body, that means you still have the ability
to live your life and start doing the things you love.
He doesn't have to keep living in the past to keep Jodie's spirit alive.
I wanna make sure I make a beautiful spot to remember Jodie,
but that Jodie isn't the focus of the restaurant.
I want it to be that nice social media moment,
everyone can take their picture every time they go into the restaurant.
Crawfish on a surfboard does it.
And make this a place where Todd and his family can move forward.
♪ Oh, yeah, all right! ♪
[upbeat music playing]
-After you. -Thank you.
That cocktail sauce with the horseradish and the butter.
-[Todd] I saw you kicked it up a notch. -I'm so stealing that.
-Kaci showed me reviews. -[Todd] Mm-hmm.
You have a gold star on literally every single dish on that menu,
except the gumbo.
-You love your gumbo. -Mm-hmm.
-Kaci, it's no surprise-- -Hates it.
Hate-- I was gonna say she has different opinions about it.
-You're using word "hate." Strong word. -She hates it.
Change is a lot, especially when we do the same thing, the same way…
-Right. -…all the time.
But this isn't a you business. It's a family business.
-Yes. -Right? This is important to Kaci.
-And she's part of this. -Right. Correct.
We want her to feel like she's part of it, 'cause you want her to feel supported.
Very much.
I don't wanna be the Polish-Canadian New Yorker
teaching you how to make gumbo. Like, that's just not right.
But I do have a couple of tricks that I use for mine,
and I want you to take what you want, leave what you don't.
-So we're on the same page? -Yes, we are.
-Excellent! -We're reading the same book.
-Perfect. -[laughs]
Okay. So, the base of any gumbo is a roux.
A roux is a mixture of fat, typically butter and flour,
that's used as a thickening agent for sauces, soups and stews.
A dark roux has more depth of flavor than a light roux.
It's fantastic for things like gumbo. I understand. You're in a restaurant.
Dark roux takes quite a bit of time to prepare.
-Right? -Yeah.
This is an excellent little hack.
Once a week, on a sheet pan, if you take flour and if you bake it,
you can have toasted flour so that it's already brown.
This is gonna speed up the process of making your roux.
-So we get that nice, dark, rich color. -Right.
So we can put in our flour and then put in our stick of butter.
So they're gonna incorporate.
On another pan here, andouille sausage.
We're gonna have this crisp up a little.
Our roux is really nice and dark, and it's ready.
Here we have our "Holy Trinity," right?
-Onion, green bell peppers and celery. -Yes.
And I don't know if this relates, but Kaci was talking about churching things up.
-Yes. -Church. Holy Trinity.
-[Todd laughing] -Okra.
Searing it just for a couple of minutes gets rid of that sliminess.
Okay, I didn't know that.
You put tomatoes with green chilies in yours too, right?
-Yes. -Is this very different than your process?
[Todd] Uh, a little bit.
You've already got some tips in there that I'm gonna run with.
Good. Try them out with Kaci, see what she says.
-[Todd] Oh, yeah! -[laughing]
Oh, yeah! [laughs]
[Antoni] So now we can put in our okra.
Must be challenging thinking, like, you've ran Plookys for such a long time.
Are you ready to maybe have that conversation with Kaci
about kind of, like, taking the helm?
Uh, that's what Jodie and I both wanted together when we started,
was that out of our families, that someone was gonna step up.
-Wow. -And Kaci apparently wants to too.
-Yes. -She really does love the place.
[Todd] Yes.
Which is so nice to have in a family business.
-[Todd] Mm-hmm. -Some chicken stock, slowly pour that in.
Seasoning. What seasonings do you typically put into your gumbo?
Salt, pepper, cayenne.
How do you feel about bay seasoning?
I haven't tried that. I have this other stuff that I use. Yeah.
Okay, why don't we try it?
-And we see how we like it? -Yes, okay.
Change can be terrifying,
because you don't know what's on the other side.
It's so colorful.
-It is. It looks great. -[Antoni] Oh!
With something as simple as one recipe,
you realize that it's actually not that scary at all.
Do you put corn in yours?
-[Todd] No, I don't. -Kaci apparently likes corn.
-That's something she wanted in it. -Uh-huh.
[both] Let's put corn.
-We're trying something new and I'm… -Try it. There you go.
Todd not wanting to change the gumbo
is kind of a symbol for his resistance to not really wanting to let go.
Because it lets Kaci know that part of that restaurant is actually hers.
And then finally, filé is--
-It's a thickening agent. -Thickening agent, but it's local.
-It's, like, a very North American thing. -Mm-hmm.
[Antoni] It really does thicken it up really nicely.
-Are you ready to taste this? -You bet.
[Antoni] This is your gumbo.
I want you to pepper it as much as you would.
Little bit of rice.
Thank you.
-[Todd] Mmm! Mm-mm-mm! -Whoo!
-Make you wanna slap your grandma. -[laughs] Makes you wanna…
I guess in Texas, that's a compliment.
I'll take it.
Be honest with me with. Is there anything that you like about yours better?
No, night and day. I… I like this much better.
-Here's to that. -Cheers.
-[Antoni] Mmm! -Mm-hmm!
[pop music playing]
♪ Wait, let me fix my crown ♪
[Tan] Have you been here before?
-No. -Oh, that makes me happy.
-I like surprises. I'm excited. -[laughs] Okay, good.
-I'm like, "Boots, all right!" -Follow me.
I've got a plan for you that I hope you're gonna love.
-[Todd] Yes. -[laughs]
We are going all out.
We are getting a full wardrobe.
So you've had a pair of cowboy boots before.
I have once before, yes.
[Tan] Why are these always the go-to?
These are comfortable. These are easy.
-Slip 'em on, go. -[Tan] Yeah.
Let's start with covering up those feet. [growls]
I'm gonna say something incredibly hurtful.
-Um, your toes are not flip-flop ready. -[laughs]
-All right, understand. -[Tan] They just aren't.
-No. Right. -They are not.
Now that we are wanting to find a way to get you out of work every now and then,
I would like you to have options that you really feel good in.
-'Cause these don't make you feel sexy. -No.
[Tan] Which ones do you like?
I like these.
[Tan] It's similar to a pair I was going to choose.
I wanted to go for something simple and brown.
Can you give me, like, your best cowboy walk, please, sir?
Hit me with it.
You can do better than that.
[laughing]
Clearly, he is not ready to give me a Tyra walk.
This is gonna take some work.
-Do they feel comfy? -Little tighter.
-I'll get you tighter. No worries. -Half size.
But the look is gorgeous.
It's gonna go nicely with a jean. It's gonna look sophisticated.
-Should we get 'em? -I think so.
Let's do it.
Throughout the rest of the day, I'm gonna make sure we build up
this confidence, this excitement, this joy.
So, next up, clothes.
-This is where we're going. -All right.
I know that we can find some wonderful things that draw out Todd's personality
without being too in-your-face or gimmicky.
Is something catching your eye?
-The blue shirt I like. -[Tan] Shocker.
It looks quite similar to the blues you've got on right now, with, uh, paler colors.
-[Todd] Uh-huh. -I do actually love Hawaiian print.
I love how fun you are with your clothes. You're playful.
It's what I wanna convey.
Yeah, but!
I wanna find a more refined version
and to show you another option, as opposed to just a Hawaiian.
-Yay? -Yay.
[Tan] For work, I would like you to have
a slightly more sophisticated version of a flip-flop.
I actually had a pair that were like this when I first met Jodie. She loved 'em.
[Tan] And what do you think Jodie would think about this whole experience?
[Todd] She would want this for me.
-Yeah. -She would want me to go on.
[Tan] Yeah, 'cause you're only 67. [chuckles]
[laughs] Yeah.
Hopefully, you're gonna have many, many, many more years ahead of you.
-And you wanna enjoy your life. -Exactly.
[Tan] And part of that is feeling good about yourself,
to be able to look in the mirror and think, "I'm wonderful."
Yeah. You gotta like what you're looking at.
-Yeah. Good. -Yeah.
-[Tan] Come out and show me, my love. -Certainly.
[Tan] Already, we have an improvement.
Tell me what you think.
-[Todd] I like that. -Good.
I like the colors, the stripes. It's something I would wear definitely.
-That makes me so happy. -And feel good in.
I'm gonna have things tailored.
For example, this is quite long on you,
and when you wear something quite long, it's gonna make you look shorter.
That side makes you look a little-- your legs look a little bit longer.
-Can you see what I mean? -Oh, yeah. Yeah, I like that.
-[Tan] Oh-whoa-whoa! Okay. -[chuckles]
The shirt is actually the same style of shirt. We call it the Cuban shirt.
But instead of having all the print, we've gone for texture instead.
My buddy Juan used to wear these kind of shirts.
-[Tan] Oh, did he? -Yes.
-And did you like them? -Oh, yeah.
[Tan] I love it with the boot.
It all goes with the boots.
-So nice. -This is looking good.
-Feelin' good. -Good.
Finally, I'm seeing a little excitement.
Kaci gave me a little info. Do you wear glasses? Do you need glasses?
I don't wear them. I need them.
So we're gonna go get some glasses.
Is it my goal to give Todd a Pretty Woman experience?
And get him from store to store, bag to bag?
Absolutely.
-Ready to try on some glasses? -[Todd] I'm ready.
[Tan] So, these are your prescription.
These were my favorite ones for you. Can you see clearly through them?
-Yes. -[laughs] Okay, good.
-At first, it's, like, wonky. -Yeah.
Until you get used to 'em. Like you're drunk.
You do this, and everything's like, "Whoa, I'm surfin'."
[chuckles]
These make me look like I'm a college professor.
-Yes. -I think you look fantastic.
I agree.
[Tan] These are also prescription.
Oh, yeah.
I like that guy.
I think I might be ready.
-You're helping me break out of that. -[Tan] Good.
And he's also gonna help you break out of this.
-This is Karamo. -Hey! Karamo!
Look how good you look!
-Already! Oh, my God. -[laughing]
You already look great. Can I get a spin?
-Yes, you can. I know you can. -[Todd laughing]
-Okay. -Listen, you know what a zaddy is?
I know "Who's your daddy?"
-Zaddy. -It's a sexier version of daddy.
-Okay. -[Tan] Yeah.
[Karamo] Hey, Zaddy.
[rock music playing]
The lake usually, when it's not overcast like this,
it's just got a beautiful blue.
A large part of Todd's identity is wrapped up in things that he and Jodie did,
and he's forgetting who he is as an individual.
He used to have fun. He used to surf. He used to go out with friends.
That guy is still in you, and it's time to bring him out.
-I know you love water. -[Todd] Uh-huh.
And I know you like to fish. so I figured we could do this together.
-But I don't know how to fish at all. -[laughing]
This is where the roles reverse
and the straight guy teaches the gay guy, because I'm gonna tell y'all something,
if the zombies came today, and I had to fish to survive…
Brown would be dead in two minutes.
Zaddy, I might need your help.
[Todd] All right, put your thumb on the line.
-Oh, on the line. -On the line.
-When you get about here… -Uh-huh.
…you let go and it'll go out.
Good one.
-All right! -There we go. There you go.
-[Karamo] Can we take a seat and fish? -We can.
I'm loving this so far.
-Thank you for teaching me. -You bet.
I took you out here because living is getting out every day and doing stuff.
Right.
Your own words, it was easier to exist but not really live.
-Correct. -What was living like with you and Jodie?
What did you all like to do? Like, what fun did you have?
A lot of times we'd just be cruising, and I'd go,
"Hey, where are we going?" "I don't know."
"You ever been down this road?"
"No." "Well, let's go. Let's see where it goes to."
-Just have an adventure. Yeah. -Adventure. Yeah.
Because you never know where you're gonna end up.
But if you sit at home, you're going nowhere.
-You know? -Yeah, yeah.
And that's kind of where you're at right now.
Oh, yeah.
-I don't have my partner. -Yeah.
-Don't have my buddy. -Yeah.
It's gonna be ten years this July.
And to some people, that's a long time.
To me, it was yesterday.
[Karamo] Yeah.
What people don't realize when it comes to grief is that
they think it's a process that's just overnight,
because it's been a year or two years.
All of a sudden you're supposed to be better.
But to the person who's experiencing it, it's yesterday.
Right.
I know, maybe, uh,
if I did find another Jodie,
another…
person who's my everything…
Yeah.
-A lot of this would go away. -Yeah.
But I'd feel like I'm cheating on Jodie.
[Karamo] I'm telling you here, I'm not rushing you.
It's about taking that step to still live your life.
It's steps.
First of all, you just have to find some time just to hang out.
-Mm-hmm. -Outside of your daughter.
Yeah. True.
How often do you actually try to seek out new friendships or old friendships?
Uh…
not often at all.
And Jodie'd be the first one to go up and go…
-[Karamo chuckles] -"Live!"
-Yeah. -"What's wrong with you, Todd?" You know?
[Karamo] Mm-hmm.
"Keep Plookys open."
-That was her ask of you. -Yes.
Do you ever take time to realize that you honored her by doing that?
It's like you just said, Jodie would be right there to clunk you in the head.
-Oh, yeah. -You can honor Jodie.
But you gotta just live your life.
Todd needs to realize, "I don't have to be stuck in ten years ago."
"I can appreciate the memories I had in the past,
but still continue to make new ones with friends and family members
who love me and are still around."
[Todd] Mm-hmm.
[Karamo] My granny used to say to me, "Broken crayons can still color."
[Todd] There you go. That's a good one.
And I feel like though losing the love of your life did break you…
[Todd] Mm-hmm.
…you got so much vibrancy and color in you… [laughs]
…and the world needs it.
-[Todd] I can still color. [laughs] -You can still color.
-[chuckles] You can still color. -[man] Can anybody join this party?
-[Todd] Uh-oh. -[man laughing]
[Karamo] You know that voice!
I invited some of your friends to come join us and fish.
What's going on?
-[laughs] How are you? -[man 1] How you doing, Todd?
-[Todd shouts] -Good to see ya.
-[Todd] Hey! -[man 2] Having fun?
Somebody told me this was a good place to go fishing.
Caught anything yet?
-[Todd] Just rocks. -[laughing]
-[man] Rocks? -[all laughing]
Seeing Todd with his friends brings me so much joy.
[laughs]
[Karamo] Start hanging with your boys more.
-And have fun outside of the restaurant. -Have fun outside of the restaurant.
I'm gonna leave you all, so y'all can have a good time.
-Feeling good? -[Todd] I'm feeling great.
Good. That's all it's about.
This is what he's been missing. Having a beer,
sitting by the water, enjoying life.
[Todd] Well, it's called fishin' for a reason, not catchin'.
[all laughing]
He's been trapped in the same routine and pattern,
but no more.
Todd, what are you gonna do all next week now?
[all laughing]
[rock music playing]
♪ Ooh, stray trouble ♪
Looking good, Garrett, looking good.
Plookys is like Todd.
It's got good bones, but it's got a skullet.
So we need to run in, and we need to clean her up.
Good job. I love it.
-♪ I like tequila on the rocks ♪ -♪ Oh-oh! ♪
♪ Do you wanna get free like me? ♪
♪ It's okay to daydream nonstop ♪
♪ All that talk, talk is cheap Come on, show me what you got… ♪
-Thank you. -Yes.
-Hi! -Hey, guys. How you doing?
-[Jonathan] Nice to see you guys. -Hi.
-This is Todd. Todd, this is Edgar. -Todd, good to meet you.
He is going to hook us up today. He's an amazing barber.
So, can we go on in?
-Yes. -Thank you!
♪ The party don't stop Show me what you got ♪
[Jonathan] Okay.
So, Todd, you've been growing this hair out since 2012-ish.
[Todd] Mm-hmm.
-[Jonathan] Two administrations ago. -[laughs]
[Jonathan] We wanna do a change.
And I'm seeing a really handsome man who just needs to be unleashed.
Starting a new chapter, starting a new moment.
Todd's hair is more of, like, a mirage.
You think you see this oasis of hairy water, but it's a lie.
It's just scalp.
I love that story, whatever makes you confident.
But Todd is not selling confidence.
And so this is the time to be bold.
In the words of Elizabeth Warren, "We need big, bold policy changes!"
-Kind of want you to be like a sexy zaddy. -Yeah, I learned that new word yesterday.
-[Jonathan] You did? -Yeah.
-I'm not the first to break this news. -Karamo was.
[laughing]
Do you really wanna take this beard, like, way down?
I'm actually ready to go barefaced again.
We can always take it more off, but we can't put it more on.
You know? So I'll just see how it goes.
The first thing we need to do is approach this hair.
Are you ready to take this hair quite short?
[Todd] It's a big deal.
This is a major transformational experience.
This is, you know, kind of a manifestation of some grief, of some loss,
and we want to turn over a bit of a new chapter.
-[Todd] I trust y'all. -You ready? This is still--
-Jonathan, it's hair. -Yeah.
-If I want to, I can grow it back out. -[Jonathan] You'll grow it back.
Okay, so we're ready.
I like to say with barbering,
"If someone can do it better, I like for that to happen."
In this case, I think he can do it better.
So I'm gonna be here for moral support, but can I do this part?
-[Todd] Certainly. -[Jonathan] Really?
Three, two, one.
Bye-bye, buddy.
[Todd] Bye, buddy.
[Jonathan] I just need a slow-motion hair flip, please!
I don't have it anymore.
-Oh, you do, though! The bob! -[laughing]
[Jonathan] Wow! So let's do this haircut.
-♪ I got a sweet desire… ♪ -Bye, wig.
♪ To make it all away… ♪
-Let's take his beard down. -[whirring]
Now you're giving me, like, Letterman with your beard right now.
Yes! Work that, honey.
Yes!
So, honestly, I really like this look,
but I wanna show you.
The jaw is kind of strong. It's kind of a sexy shape.
You haven't really had that shape.
Yeah, hmm, I'd rather it be gone.
[Jonathan] This is so about your confidence.
I'm into it. Let's take it down.
Ooh!
♪ Nothing gonna stay ♪
♪ Heading in afraid But I'll take my chances ♪
♪ No sweat, I don't need nobody now 'Body now… ♪
Yes!
♪ 'Body now! 'Body now! ♪
Hot damn! You look amazing. I hope you like it.
You ready to see the new you?
[Todd] No. [chuckles]
-It's happening. Ready? Three, two, one. -[Todd] Okay.
Come up here and look at this skin.
I want it a little longer.
[Jonathan] When you do, like, a big, physical change, it can be really scary.
This looks more strong, confident, "I'm not trying to hide anything."
It's gonna take some getting used to.
-It's a huge change you just did. -Oh, yeah.
What I feel like Todd has experienced is just a permission.
He's given himself permission to change things in his life,
to change things in his business.
And he is definitely, like, processing.
The other thing is tonight, I treated you to the presidential suite…
-Wow. -…at your hotel.
Oh, my God.
So you can really relax, take a bath,
take care of yourself.
[rock music playing]
[vocalizing]
[Tan whispering] Come on. Come.
Get the door for me.
[accented] Room service!
-[Todd] Coming. -What was the accent?
-I don't-- -[Tan] We're not German.
Oh.
-Hi! -[Todd] Hey!
-[Jonathan] How are you? -I'm good.
[Jonathan] Look at this gorgeous room!
-[Tan] Hello, my dear. -[Todd] I know.
-Wow! Look at that! -[Tan laughs]
-You're giving me president in this suite. -Hi, Todd. Oh, my gosh!
-[Todd laughs] -I wouldn't have even recognized you.
-Come stand next to me. -[Jonathan] Look at him!
And look at this skin.
[Tan] All right, shall we get you ready?
[Jonathan] Look at this baño!
-That's "bath" in Spanish. -[Todd laughs]
Okay, so what I brought today
is really some more of the stuff that we used yesterday.
I have these little things in here chilling for us.
Cold is a really powerful tool to enliven your skin.
-Keep rubbing. -Oh, last… last night I got out.
Did anyone compliment how cute you are?
Oh, yeah.
-What did they say? -They just said I was a handsome guy.
-Get out of… here. -Uh-uh.
Oh, my God.
[Todd] Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
So, after cleansing and after doing what we just did, we would do our toner.
Pat that into your face and neck.
Now, at nighttime, what I'd live for you to do
is to come home, wash your face and do what?
-Put that on. -And what is it?
-[Todd] The serum. -No, it's a toner.
-Toner. -Toner. Say it again with me.
-Toner. -Toner.
Yes, honey. Okay.
-[Todd] Toner. -Yes.
And you are ready to partay!
Look at you!
It's definitely a new me. [laughs]
I wanted you to have a printed shirt that actually has your branding on it.
I love, love, love it!
[Tan] Look at Atticus'!
[Todd] Oh, man!
-[Tan] Isn't that so cute? -[chuckles] That is so cute!
[Tan] So, all of you have matching uniforms.
That's… wow!
[Tan] I do want you to have options.
Instead of wild prints, they've got texture instead.
And still color.
Still color. So it still feels like you?
-Yeah. -[Tan] Good.
-Enough talking. Do you wanna try? -You bet.
Okay, Todd.
-[Todd] Yes. -Come out for me.
I mean, you look damn spiffy. That's for sure.
-I feel spiffy. -[Tan laughs]
-Jonathan, will you join us for a second? -[Jonathan] Yes, Tanny.
[laughing]
-Come take a look. -Oh, my God!
-Now-- -Close, but it's Todd.
[Tan laughs]
[rock music playing]
♪ Hey! Hey! ♪
♪ Hey! ♪
♪ My fallen angel, yeah, yeah, yeah… ♪
-[Jonathan] Oh, my gosh. -[Tan] Okay, get the guys?
-[horn honks] -[Jonathan] And it's happening!
This is exciting!
-I'm ready to see you, Zaddy! -[Bobby laughs]
Zaddy's here.
-[Karamo] Hey, Zaddy! -[Bobby laughing]
[Antoni] Your face! I love it!
[Karamo] Look at you, you handsome man.
-Slap your grandma, Todd looks amazing. -[Jonathan] Doesn't he look good?
-It doesn't look like the same person! -[Antoni] It is night and day, y'all.
I just used "y'all" very authentically. Very proud of myself.
-100%. -Let me get a look at you, Zaddy.
-You look good! Oh, my God! -Yes!
[laughing]
I can't get over this.
You ready to see it?
Oh, man!
-Are you shitting me? -[laughs] There we go.
-[Todd] Oh! -[Bobby] There's the reaction I wanted.
[Todd] Wow.
Oh, my God.
-Oh, my God! -[all laughing]
-[Bobby] Keep going. -Wow.
Look at the pictures.
Oh, man!
Jodie, my love.
-How cool! -[Bobby laughing]
[Todd] Wow!
-What do you think? Pretty cool, huh? -Oh!
-Very cool! I love it! -That's the statement piece in here.
[Todd] Yes!
-You did great! -Got rid of the nets.
-But added some nice grass ceilings. -[Todd] Uh-huh, yeah.
I had some trepidation he was gonna take Jodie out
or replace Jodie or something, and…
[exhales]
-Beyond anything I could imagine. -[Karamo laughing]
You have given me a new, fantastic restaurant.
[all] Yay!
-[Todd] Thank you. -[Karamo] That's what our Bobby does!
[Todd] Yes.
-Glad you like it. -[Antoni] Hey!
-Let's go weigh things on the new scale. -[all laughing]
-[Todd] Man, man, man! -[Bobby] There's your surfboard.
I wanted to do kind of a light, beachy feel with the white,
but I also wanted to keep it darker on the bottom.
Because since it's a restaurant, people bang their chairs into the wall.
How do you think Jodie would feel about this right now?
I don't know how she could be more excited than me at this point,
but she'd probably manage to up it a few notches.
Wow.
I asked you before, "What do you see for your future?" You didn't have an answer.
What do you see for your future now?
I see Kaci getting more involved in this place.
-[Karamo] Wow. -I'm ready.
-Good. -[Todd] Life is so brief.
Enjoy it. Embrace it.
-[Karamo] Yeah. -Grab it with both hands.
Oh, my gosh!
Wow!
Oh, my gosh! This is great!
This is beautiful, you guys!
-[Bobby] Little different, huh? -Oh, my mom would have loved this!
[sobbing]
Honey, we have one more gorgeous surprise.
-Oh. -[Tan] Three, two…
[Antoni hums fanfare]
-Dad! Holy… -[Fab Five laughing]
I didn't even recognize you! You look so good!
Oh, gorgeous!
-Oh, the hair is gone! Oh, yeah! -[laughing]
[Kaci] Yay!
Oh, my gosh!
-Damn it, you got me crying. -[laughing]
-I am so, so proud of you. -And look, there's us.
There's Jodie.
[Kaci] Oh, Dad.
I'm sensing, I can just feel something about…
There's a Michelin star in this future, honey.
-It's gorgeous. -I think so.
But you know what? We're only gonna get there
if I take you two to the kitchen and show you a couple of things.
-Ready? -You're gonna be excited about that.
-[Kaci] Oh, wow! -[Todd] Go in there.
-[Kaci] There's a functioning kitchen! -Functioning!
[Kaci] That I can breathe in!
[Todd] Look at this!
[Kaci] Oh, yes!
[bangs sink] I love this.
I mean, this is really churched up now.
And the last thing that I wanna show you is your new POS system.
You have basically anything that you wanna order over here.
Everything is kind of streamlined into one thing,
but I feel like this is more of a conversation with Kaci than you.
Yes, it is.
It looks really easy, and it's got everything all ready.
-Crawfish and shrimp orders. The drinks. -Totally.
[Todd] This is the cream on top of the cake, man.
I know you told me sort of an idea you had,
but what do you think the future of Plookys is?
-[Kaci] I'm not bossy today. -You're gonna start steering this ship.
-I am? -[Todd] Mm-hmm.
-I'm gonna be the cruise director. -[laughing]
-I like that! -[Antoni] I love that for you.
-Tan, change the wardrobe immediately. -[laughing]
And we'll just keep this going.
And keep her dream alive and keep it and keep it and keep it rolling.
I made her a promise, and I fully intend to keep it.
A part of fulfilling that promise in the long run
is kind of giving back to yourself a little bit,
allowing for some help to come in to support you.
He seems a lot different.
You guys did something very good.
-Now that we're on that subject… -Right up the rope. We did her beautiful.
I want to tell you, Jonathan,
thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you've done for me,
because it does make me feel beautiful.
-[all] Aww! -Todd!
Oh, that was sweet!
Karamo, thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me to realize
that I'm the one holding me back.
You know, you've all helped me in your own ways.
It's so cool how y'all as a group can take somebody like me…
and turn me into somebody that's a zaddy!
-[Fab Five cheering, laughing] -That's right!
[Kaci] He learned a new word.
Yeah! He's a zaddy now.
[Kaci] Oh, Lord. I'm never gonna stop hearing that.
I think there's a misconception sometimes that change is about forgetting.
-And it really isn't. -[Fab Five] Bye!
[Kaci] They're the sweetest little human beings in the whole world.
Aren't they?
We can never forget the people that we've lost,
but it doesn't mean that you still can't move forward.
This is in honor of Todd and Plookys!
[all cheering]
We are all going to grieve something, someone,
so giving ourselves permission to feel that
is, like, really the most human thing that we're ever gonna do.
[laughing]
I was just very surprised that he was as open
as he was to allow me to change Plookys.
Todd, it's so nice to see you. How are you?
Good to see y'all. I'm doing good.
[Kaci] We hired two new people.
[all] Wow!
[Bobby] I hope that Todd finally realizes
that moving forward with his life and finding happiness
is much more of an honor to Jodie's memory than living in the past.
Todd thriving.
That's what will keep Jodie's spirit alive.
Wow! Look at that!
-We love that! -[Bobby] You keep living life!
♪ Fare thee well, Godspeed and goodbye ♪
[Bobby] To a good job!
-[Karamo] To a good job! -[all] Yay!
[Karamo] Spirit fingers!
-[dance music playing] -♪ Choo-choo! ♪
♪ Baby, the funky train's coming… ♪
Got a beard, but not a lot of time?
The one thing you can always do is to grab your trimmer and clean up that upper lip
to keep the beard looking fresh.
-Come on, Bobby. -[whirring]
The first thing we do when we see somebody is we look at their mouth.
And who doesn't love to look at a gorgeous pair of lips
not covered up by a whole bunch of hair?
Thanks, Johnny.
Keep it looking gorg.
[rock music playing]