Dr. Corbin

Dr. Dante Corbin (nickname Doc) is a respected biochemical researcher at Elysium Life Sciences Inc. He is extremely passionate about his work and is admired as a leader who truly cares about everyone in the organization. Recently, the company went through a hostile takeover by Mt. Olive Holdings, ousting Doc’s mentor and former CEO, August D'Amato. Mr. Hector used Dante to get information and now threatens to destroy his career if he leaves. Doc blames himself for the resulting layoffs, worsening working conditions (now they deal with some very dangerous chemicals), and deterioration of the company’s culture. His research used to be focused on maximizing food production for self-sustained small communities but now it relates to death, decomposition, and how to transform organic materials into other types of matter and energy. This new focus is clearly related to Hector’s main business, the Elysium Fields After Life Services Inc. The man controls all the death in the city and he makes sure that everyone is accounted for to receive a proper funeral and obituary registration.

Dante feels a mixture of hate and fascination for the ruthless and charming Hector. He hates what he has done and how he used him, but at the same time, he admires this man’s strong presence and sense of duty to his work and vision. Hector clearly enjoys Dante’s company and admires his work, but there is uneasiness and tension in the air when they are together. Deep down Dante decided to stay because he believes he can get through Hector’s shields and stubbornness to advocate for the employees and his research. August despises Hector and he believes he is the only one responsible for the company’s fate. He tries to convince Dante that the only one to blame is Hector and he offers him a job at the university, but Dante pushes him away due to guilt. August also starts to express romantic interest in Dante, which heightens the tension among the trio.

Doc was the first one to graduate in a poor farmer family. Dante’s father blames him for his wife’s death (she died during his birth) and used to say “You are a curse Dante. A curse upon God’s green earth” whenever there was death on the farm. In fact, funerals, accidents, and death seem to be constantly present in Doc’s life. On a deep level, he thinks he is actually cursed which leads him to have a hard time processing grief, as he escapes into a problem-solving and analytical mindset. Despite this, he is a truly happy and joyous person. Wherever he arrives it feels like spring, which brings smiles to people’s faces. Doc is also a strong-willed, spunky, and idealist person who seems like he has something to prove all the time. He loves to bring people over to his small property for feasts, to enjoy his gardens, and to play with his many animals.