Mighty Max

The title of my summary pretty much covers my review.

This is to me what Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was to someone 5 years older. While I missed out on that little pop-culture wave, I embraced the toy line and t.v. series that was Mighty Max with both arms.

You wanna know how into this I was? I went as Mighty Max for Halloween.

Thank God for the internet. Thanks to Demonoid, last week I was able to watch this great show from my childhood for the first time in over a decade.

I'm watching this right now, having just been blown away by recognizing Rob Paulson of Animaniacs, and am also loving the celebrity humor in "Tar Wars". 4 minutes in, and they have already mentioned, By NAME: Clint Eastwood, Governor Arnold, Dustin Hoffman, John Wayne, AND Ace Ventura. Hells yeah.

Damn, it is only upon writing this that I realize there is NO WAY IN HELL I can give this series anything less than a perfect score. Any imperfections have been lost in the fog of time.

This Is My Childhood. This Is Awesomeness. This Is The Mighty One.

I discovered this as an adult, but, amongst the wasteland of cheesy toy commercials, it shone like a supernova. It was the usual limited animation, but there were was actual intelligence on display in the writing. (Quality writing appears to be less expensive than quality animation, in regards to this show, and many others. Too bad there isn't more of it around.) I really fell in love with it, when an episode showed up, that incorporated aspects of the Cthulhu mythos, only the 2nd cartoon I've ever seen do so. (the other was "The Real Ghostbusters", where Peter Venkman and crew, faced off against Cthulhu itself!). I always appreciate Lovecraft overtones, but this had so much more, even touching on the Arthurian mythology. A good blend of ideas and action. Put my vote in for a revival on "Cartoon Network", "Boomerang", or anybody that could show it. We Want Max!

--Judex.1--

This show was not one of those not funny and lame shows, Mighty Max did not have the best animation, but the writing was excellent. Far above that of most children shows. It was great from start to finish. I really like the series finale, taking the show back to the beginning.

Of all the short-lived cartoons I enjoyed, this one takes home the gold. Along with Road Rovers, Batman Beyond, and Godzilla: The Series, this stands up there with them. Each episode details an actual plot and a rather kick-ass theme, be it science-fiction, fantasy, action-adventure, or horror. And you know what? It worked.

We get Rob Paulsen (of Animaniacs), Richard Moll (of Night Court), and the late but great Tony Jay (of Sierra's King's Quest VI and Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame) as the main characters. If any cartoon in this day and age deserves a reboot this should be on the list. A few years ago I watched some clips of the show on YouTube and it's just as good as I remember it. And the guest stars are so outstanding too. You've got Jim Cummings, Charles Adler, and even Tress MacNeille and Frank Welker. What a mix! And a little of Kath Soucie too. What else is there to say? Give it a chance. You might be pleasantly surprised.

'Mighty Max' was a surprisingly well-made and, though based on a quaintly narrow concept, very well written and animated journey. Max, the young 'Cap Bearer' is accidently and unwantedly bestowed with the age-old responsibilities of protecting Earth from the diabolical Skullmaster and his army of minions who try desperately to emerge from the planet's depths [The Skullmaster yearns for the cap so he can gain ultimate control and mobility] while the boy just wants to maintain a normal life. Supporting characters like the ancient, wise [yet retrospectively out-of-date], owl, Virgil and sworn bodyguard, Norman, give Max's naive quest against the Skullmaster both a chance and comedic action as each episode begins with a multitude of interesting ways for summoning Max to his current mission [i.e. Virigil slipping the message into nearby objects and such - unexpectedly interrupting his fun times. I recommend, though I have yet to find it in local syndication, that if this well-done program becomes available again, to give it an unobjective chance and stick around for the finale which makes the whole program complete in a spectacular finish. It's not just another 'kid's show,' but rather another classic example of good sci-fi production subjected to stereotypical myths.