“The Consultant,” Regus Patoff, walks into the office without any prior notice, and from the moment of his entrance until he leaves, the entire office becomes enveloped in a foreboding atmosphere. Elaine Hayman and Craig Horne, who are two hardworking employees, become curious to learn more about this peculiar man. Craig is a game designer who is constantly trying to think of new ideas, while Elaine is a creative liaison of the company and a very smart, dependable employee who meticulously plans her future steps in order to keep her position at the business. But, when Patoff arrives, they are both uncertain of how to live up to his expectations while still attempting to explore the mystery behind him.
The two key persons who are troubled by Regus’ peculiar behavior are Elaine and Craig. Craig, though, becomes conscious after seeing Patoff’s encounter with Rosie in the pub, Elaine readily gives in to Patoff because, no matter what his identity was, Elaine had a fixation on upgrading her position, which she believed would be possible with the assistance of Patoff. She was typically the boss’s assistant and was prepared to go above and beyond to solidify her place in the organization. She was one of those opportunistic people who took things slowly. She doesn’t compete with the other employees for personal office space as they do; instead, she waits and draws Patoff’s attention with her exceptional knack for getting things done. We first saw a kind Elaine when she assisted Iaine by switching their offices, but after becoming comfortable in the chamber, Elaine revealed that she had always had a self-serving side beneath her outward generosity. In reality, she chose to kidnap the baby elephant on Patoff’s orders, even though she had the option of refusing to do all of these things and leaving the company as soon as possible. We have observed her using every trick in the book just to complete the task and maintain Pattof’s impression on her. She ultimately succeeded in the process and assumed the position of CEO.
Craig, meanwhile, was not only a diligent worker like Elaine, but he also had a creative mind. He felt hatred toward Sang since he had never paid attention to his suggestions, but after Patoff arrived, he became the first to acknowledge them. At that precise moment, Craig didn’t even mind working for a potential killer, which he had been suspecting Patoff of being all the while. When Patoff enjoyed his newly proposed concept of “Upskirt Jungle,” Craig chose to dismiss Elaine’s concerns and skepticism about Patoff killing Sang’s mother. Yet, it wasn’t until the end of the night at the pub that he had the realization that he was actually working for a psychopath. Craig became conscious of Regus, as now he knew exactly what this guy was capable of.
Craig’s idea was given a new name—”Mr. Sang’s Jungle Odyssey”—and without even a proper trial, the game had already been released and had unexpectedly become the most popular game in the entire world. However, Craig didn’t take pleasure in this because he wasn’t happy with the fact that the game had been released without his approval and without appropriate testings. In such a situation, when someone like Craig is so competent and accomplished, he should step down and look for better options in other companies, with at least a boss who is less dangerous than Regus. However, instead, Craig developed the undying curiosity to uncover who Regus really was. We notice him as being less committed to his life or career than Elaine.
Like the series’ storyline, Craig also got sidetracked at times. He had the propensity to make grand decisions without considering the consequences, such as when he told Patti he was Catholic just to marry her when he actually wasn’t. Even I’m not sure what these lies were for because when Patti was under Patoff’s control, he didn’t even bother looking for her, preferring to find relief elsewhere, even approaching Elaine for a casual makeout. So, in every aspect of his life, he is trapped in something that he does not need to be in. All he needed to do was get out of the company and the relationship, in which he wasn’t even invested, but he chose to do neither. Craig’s insatiable curiosity eventually led him to do the right thing, which was to reveal the golden bone from Patoff’s toe, revealing that he was merely a humanoid made of gold.
If we are to speculate as to why Patti was hypnotized by Regus, we can say that she was only an ordinary lady who had hopes of starting a family with a man who could accommodate her demands. She was unaware, however, that her relationship was based on lies. A couple with such stark differences couldn’t coexist, which is something neither Patti nor Craig was willing to accept. Both of them chose to act passive-aggressively rather than talk things out, which led Patti to decide to cheat on her fiance. It was simple for Regus to take control of Patti’s mind and make her distrustful of Craig because she was at a very vulnerable time in her life when she couldn’t decide whether to call off the marriage or to stand by her liar fiancé.
Even though each of these characters had serious flaws, practically everyone around us could relate to them. People like Craig waste their potential and competency in corporations because they lack concentration and a clear goal, while those like Elaine are only concerned with gaining a position in order to have a prosperous career ahead.
