The Maxx

I knew I was going to need something good and strong to wash off "Snowed in at the House of Mouse" today, so I rented "the Maxx". I saw bits of it when Mtv aired it as a mini-series and was taken in by the excellent visuals and believable -almost pitiable- cast of characters. But before I gush, a little history is needed here.

Some time in the mid-90's, Mtv actually had a few good shows. No kidding. At the time it pained them to interrupt the music videos (!!!???!!!) for a while to show them, but that's another rant in itself. They had an animated mini-series block called "Oddities". One of these was the grotesque, overplayed "the Head" and the other was "the Maxx".

So what would you say if I told you now that this cartoon is darker, more complicated, and better written than any of the live-action movies in the new release shelves the past three weeks?

Go rent it tonight. This is going to stay with you for a long time.

I discovered this mini-series on a whim after I came across a clip from it on TikTok. Although the clip was just 8 seconds or so, I was instantly pulled in by the art style and the animation. I don't know why studios in the US today continue to shy away from animation like this because I must say, American animators were cooking in the 90's/early 2000's.

I feel like this is one of those shows where people will either "get it" or "not really get it." But no matter which side I think you'd fall on. This show is an absolute must-watch for fans of animation or fans of art in general.

At the time I viewed this, I was really going through some things, and I continue to go through things, but this show made "going through it" seem okay, and in fact almost necessary.

If I had to describe this show in one word, it would be "real". This show keeps it real. It's a show about broken people going through broken people things, simple as that. While there have been many pieces of media that explore the concept of "brokenness" none have spoken to me like this one has.

I loved this series! Having been a huge comic book fan, I had heard about Sam Keith's Maxx characters several months before they premiered on MTV's Oddities series. I was very impressed with the performances of the voice actors, especially Barry Stigler as Mr. Gone. Kudos to everyone involved, this cartoon got me so interested that I had to read the rest of the series in comic book format, and I was very disappointed that the second season never made it onto television. Hopefully, someday in the future, the first season will arrive on DVD or some other collectible format because this show deserves better than to just fade into obscurity.

Where do I start.. Maybe with the fact that The Maxx is purple? No that doesn't do it justice because that is but a small speck of a detail in the complete and utter psychological nightmare that is The Maxx.

I have seen this movie many times and still I feel utter despair when it's over. I mean it made me depressed for 2 days last weekend. One of my friends had to turn it off because it was too close to his own life.

But the story.. Well that's well dark. We have Maxx. He's this muscular guy in a purple suit with a rather strange mask with big teeth. He keeps shifting between the world of 'the city' and the 'real australia'("but not he Australia they teach you about in school etc...") as he puts it. He has no memory of his past.

Then there's Julie Winters. A Freelance social worker. She has a dark secret.

Then we have Mr. Gone. A Magician/serial murderer/rapist. All time bad guy. Somehow tho he knows something about Maxx and Julie's past. Something very important. "do you remember spirit-animals Julie?"

Then we have Sarah(she's my fave) a teenager who wants to become a writer. Outcast as she is she has some rather serious emotional problems. "luckily I don't get hurt anymore... yeah.. lucky me..."

these are a few of the basics for the story. It gets WAY more confusing as the movie progresses. And yet the story works. It's hypnotic, partly due to the very fitting animation, and completely sucks you in and gives your brain a thrashing and spits it out again at the end.

Dark, brooding and very depressing this is the perfect way to spend a dark evening. One word of advice though. As I have noticed with myself, do NOT watch this if you're very depressed. It will make it worse. MUCH worse.

One comment I'd like to make about the video release. They left out a few pieces that were shown on MTV because otherwise the video would be too long or something like that. The director didn't feel the parts they left out were fitting to the storyline. On some level this is true but they also left out some stuff about the Leopard-Queen which IS important to the story. Therefore I advice you to try to get a hold of the comic as well so you know what I'm talking about.

Okay I'm done for today. Needless to say I find The Maxx brilliant as it taught me a few things about my own personality and I hope others will also find it inspiring.

I tried watching one of MTV's newer....TV shows...if they can even be considered that. MTV had some awesome TV shows, Aeon Flux, Liquid TV, Beavis & Butt-Head, and The Maxx: a dark twisted trip into the psyche of a tortured girl trapped in the body of a woman. It was an original piece of work, and I absolutely loved it. MTV used to be about music and TV shows that were actually tolerable. Shame on you MTV!