Clay Puppington's physical rigidness and conservative, 1950s attire serve as a desperate mask for his severe internalised homophobia and deep self-loathing. He projects an image of strict, hyper-heterosexual masculinity to hide his true attraction to men, a repressed side of himself that tragically shatters during the Season 3 episode "Alone," where he engages in a closeted, emotionally agonizing affair with the town's gym teacher, Coach Stopframe. Unable to accept his sexuality due to his religious fundamentalism and his abusive upbringing, Clay channels this immense internal conflict into severe alcoholism and violent, projection-based outbursts against his own family.