Doc is a very multi-dimensional character. Doc is a computer genius. True geniuses understand complex programs intuitively. They say Bach could “see” the music. Doc has the same ability where computers are concerned. This may seem far-fetched, but I had heard of such a fellow when I had worked at a computer store in Denver. The store sold Apple computers. There was supposedly a guy within Apple that could answer just about any question and provide corrective computer code without writing it down or testing it. You could read the code over the telephone to him and he would tell you where the problems were and how to correct them. Doc would possess similar abilities.
Doc knows he is a genius. He knows he is smarter than everyone around him. He is sure of it. Unfortunately most men can only master one skill. Doc doesn’t see it that way.
One indication of this is his fascination with poker. Poker is a math game. Good poker players know the odds of every hand. The goal is to always be in situations where the odds are in your favor. Over the long run, a good player will come out ahead. However, as Kenny Rogers says “You gotta know when to hold em and you gotta know when to fold em”. Doc can’t understand luck or reading other players. They also say in poker, to play the other player, not the cards. Doc ends up losing all his money because he can’t assimilate the luck factor. There is a rumor that Doc lost his shares of the company to Eric in a poker game.
As with most computer nerds, Doc has trouble interacting with other people. He finds Eddies awkwardness appealing and often entertains himself at Eddie’s expense. Eddie isn’t aware of this. He thinks it is just good-natured ribbing.
Eddie is someone Doc can relate to. He doesn’t possess Eddies gullibility, but he still considers Eddie to be a friend. He is Eddie’s only friend.
By the same token, Eddie finds a bond with Doc. They have similar intellects and interests. Doc is very cynical when it comes to women. He basically doesn’t trust them. He think’s Eddie is being used by his newlywed wife. He can’t understand her attraction to Eddie or Eddie’s infatuation with her. He feels she isn’t intellectual enough to be worthy of his interest.
A great deal of the story revolves around Doc and Eddie’s relationship. Eddie has never had reason to doubt Doc but as the story evolves, much of Doc’s story doesn’t make sense. On the other hand, Eddie has a natural mistrust of his boss, Eric. As in many hi tech companies, the “suits” are thought to be manipulative and dishonest and often not respected because they can’t write computer code yet run a computer company.
Doc doesn’t like or respect Eric and is quick to criticize him to others, notably Eddie. Eddie finds himself in situations where he must choose between what his friend Doc tells him or what his boss Eric tells him. Doc’s theories sound like outlandish fantasy conjured up by a paranoid schizophrenic and Eric explanations are believable scenarios based in sound logic and reasoning.
Throughout the story, Eddie is constantly faced with morality questions that are very much different from the morality he was taught as a Westerner. Is there an absolute right and wrong way to do things or are there just other options?