Doug Graner was the Head of Security on the Severed Floor at Lumon Industries and one of the company's primary enforcers.
History[]
When Petey went on the run from Lumon, Graner was sent to track him down. After Mark Scout ran into Petey at Pip's, Graner drove into the parking lot and watched the restauraunt, presumably following a tip from Cobel.[1]
When Helly R. attempted to leave the severed floor with a written message for her Outie, the elevator's Code Detectors were triggered, quickly summoning Graner to the scene. Before he could take Helly away, Mark S. stepped in and vouched for her, trying to frame Helly's attempt as a trainee mistake regarding data-smuggling rules, and he was responsible. Graner sarcastically congratulated Mark on his recent promotion, then escorted him to the Break Room. When Mark called in sick to work the next day, Graner found the timing suspicious.[2]
Helly later made a second data-smuggling attempt by smashing her way through the stairwell door's window, but this was also unsuccesful. Graner casually collected her and escorted her to the Break Room as punishment.[3]
When Graner learned of Petey's death, he asked Cobel if she'd heard from the Board yet, which she said she hadn't. He attempted to reassure her that her that Petey's death wasn't her fault (or his) and the Board would be sympathetic. When Cobel talked about Petey reintegrating, Graner cut her off and reminded her that the Board has never acknowledged reintegration. Cobel then said they needed to get Petey's chip, so Graner told her his body was set to be cremated after his funeral on Sunday.[4]
When Graner learned that Helly had attempted suicide by hanging in the elevator, he ran to it to stop her, where Mark had already found her and was holding her limp body up. Graner untied her noose and crudely tried to fix up the elevator, before ordering a reluctant Mark to get in and leave.
Graner delivered Petey's severance chip to Cobel, having run the diagnostics to prove "full synaptic coupling," meaning his memory was fully reintegrated. He suggested they celebrate, assuming she would have taken a beat before informing the Board, especially in light of Helly's suicide attempt. He then realized that Cobel had kept the Board completely in the dark. She ordered him to find source signatures on the chip, but he offered it back as a gift since the data was already saved. She then told him to find the one responsible for Petey's reintegration, intending to present all evidence to the Board collectively.
When MDR began wandering the floor, Graner questioned Cobel, wondering how many departments she'd allow them to find. She quoted Kier, saying that "the surest way to tame a prisoner is to let him believe he's free." He made a snide remark about the abundance of Kier quotes and says that "Upstairs" wouldn't be happy with her plan, but she dismissively told him he could talk to her when he figured out who hacked Petey's chip.[5]
Once the data from Petey had been run, Graner called Cobel to tell her that ex-Lumon surgeon Asal Reghabi's signature had been detected. She had managed to crack reintegration. He promised to find her and bring her in. Later, after Mark took his team to O&D and delivered a rebellious speech to the workers, Graner wordlessly arrived and once again escorted him to the Break Room.
That night, Graner came to Cobel's house and told her he'd found Reghabi, though he was amused by her colourful pyjamas. He received a tip from a campus cop at Ganz College that someone was holed up in one of the lab buildings, but security was told to look the other way by the dean. Certain it was Reghabi, Graner invited Cobel to join him, but she dismissed this and sent him off, ignoring his question about her career outside Lumon.[6]
Arriving at Ganz College, Graner searched the premises for Reghabi, but unexpectedly ran into Mark Scout instead. He questioned why Mark was there, reassuring him that he was a "friend" from the Severed Floor. Reghabi suddenly ambushed him from behind and whacked him with an aluminium baseball bat thrice, cracking his skull open and killing him. Reghabi cleaned up the scene and disposed of Graner's corpse, but not before taking his all-access security card and giving it to Mark.
The Board soon learned of Graner's death, but the rest of the Severed Floor were unaware for a time, until Natalie revealed his fate to Cobel. She also informed Seth Milchick, stating that "Mr. Graner sits with Kier now." In his absence, Milchick took over security on the floor.[7]
Mark S. discovered Graner's keycard in his pocket during Helly's Music/Dance Experience, revealing it to the rest of MDR when they discussed hijacking the Overtime Contigency Protocol. Mark would use Graner's card to leave MDR and then enter the Security Office with Helly.[8] Later, when the group resolved to use the OTC to make contact on the outside, Mark gave Graner's keycard to Dylan G. in order to access the Security Office and enable the protocol.[9]
When Mark S. was on the verge of completing the Cold Harbor file, Graner was added to a massive painting/mural of everyone Mark had met in his short life, titled The Exalted Victory of Cold Harbor.[10]
Personality[]
Doug Graner was a stern, quiet, and loyal Lumon worker, thoroughly committed to his position as security chief. Graner was uncongenial and dismissive to most, highlighted especially in his treatment of Innies on the severed floor: uncompromising, silent, and barely treating them like human at all.
Graner's absolute loyalty to Lumon is questionable, as he does not display the same kind of fanaticism to Kier as many of his other co-workers, even sounding slightly sarcastic when remarking, "There's a Kier quote for everything." That being said, Graner was obviously committed enough to perform off-the-books work for Cobel outside of Lumon, suggesting that while he is a diligent worker, he is not brainwashed by the company's cult-like worship of Kier. Graner also seemed to fear repercussions from "Upstairs" (presumably meaning the Board) as a result of the numerous incidents under Cobel's watch.
Physical Description[]
Graner is a tall and physically intimidating man, far larger than everyone he encountered by a margin.
He wore a dark Navy blue suit on top of a white button shirt and identical blue coloured trousers. He also wore a silver clip on his tie and a small pin of the Lumon Industries logo attached to his suit's lapel.
Relationships[]
Harmony Cobel[]
Graner and Cobel had a peculiar relationship. Their conversations implied a history together, but in most interactions, Cobel is rude and dismissive of him, though Graner seems unbothered by this behavior. Strangely loyal to Cobel in spite of her attitude, Graner often performed more cloak-and-dagger work outside of Lumon, such as his hunt for the reintegrated Petey Kilmer, and was even willing to hide critical news (such as Helly R.'s attempted suicide) from the Board.
Quotes[]
"The Grim Barbarity of Optics and Design"
- Graner: "There's a Kier quote for everything."
- Graner: "She-- What the fuck are you wearing?"
Notes and Trivia[]
Gallery[]
Appearances[]
| Season 1 | |||||
| #01 | "Good News About Hell" | #04 | "The You You Are" | #07 | "Defiant Jazz" |
| #02 | "Half Loop" | #05 | "The Grim Barbarity of Optics and Design" | #08 | "What's for Dinner?" |
| #03 | "In Perpetuity" | #06 | "Hide and Seek" | #09 | "The We We Are" |
References[]
- ↑ Good News About Hell, 1x01
- ↑ Half Loop, 1x02
- ↑ In Perpetuity, 1x03
- ↑ The You You Are, 1x04
- ↑ The Grim Barbarity of Optics and Design, 1x05
- ↑ Hide and Seek, 1x06
- ↑ Defiant Jazz, 1x07
- ↑ Defiant Jazz, 1x07
- ↑ What's for Dinner?, 1x08
- ↑ Cold Harbor, 2x10