As the Commander of Outpost 31, Garry had a serious and no-nonsense attitude, making him a very adequate leader for a large group of men on a single base in the middle of nowhere in Antarctica. When the Bennings-Thing was discovered and killed, Garry was left shocked, as he had known Bennings for a long time. After everyone became suspicious of him, Garry became a lot more short tempered and willingly handed over his role as leader to any taker, which wound up being MacReady, someone he openly distrusted until the end of the film when the four survivors, including Garry himself, learned they would have to work together and most likely die if they wanted to stop the Thing, a sacrifice Garry was bravely willing to make.