I started reading comics in the '80s, but The Maxx had this added cerebral quality to it. It's menacing, weirdly dark, and often funny. Seriously, a layered work that is so much better than the other Image Comics from that era.
Camille Paglia, feminist/ academic commentator who said Madonna "solved feminism" in 91 (but they don't like each other) and loved Revenge of the Sith for some reason.
The Maxx, Judge Dredd, and Gerber's Howard The Duck were probably some of the most important reading(s) of my youth and early adolescence. I love how the Maxx starts off as just a seemingly regular, run of the mill 90's comic and just morphs into this great drama about broken people trying to carry on with their lives, seemingly to their own detriment
First time I ever saw the Maxx was MTV's animated adaption. Very different than my usual style, but something was mesmerizing about it. It reminded me of some of the experimental stuff going on in comics in the 70's.
the animated shows Abby Terkuhle spearheaded at MTV are some of the most stunning works of American television from the last 3 decades: THE MAXX, AEON FLUX, DOWNTOWN, DARIA, THE BROTHERS GRUNT (OK, that one was made in Vancouver, B.C.), etc.
I was 14 when the maxx came out. The art was incredible. But the story went over my head. I felt like you needed a degree in psychology to understand it.
From 16:50, Camille Paglia was a kind of fashionable contrarian academic who sold a lot of books and made media appearances on the strength of being an anti-feminist feminist. She became very friendly with Rush Limbaugh, who used to joke that they had a lot in common because they both liked women and cigars, yadda yadda. It kind of fits with the character in a sad way, though I suspect Sam thought it was a positive.
Kieth is not the greatest writer, but THE MAXX is truly special due to the collaboration between him and William Messner-Loeb (who has struggled significantly in the industry, and has had a lot of financial problems due to having a physical disability). I wish there was a full omnibus of the entire series, and it was republished in 3 books by IDF, but those now go for a fortune. Maybe the impending live-action film, should it ever happen, can get a definitive book out on the marketplace. I definitely think it might be the best title that Image ever published.
The Maxx is such a bizarre book, but in ways that seem really true to life. It’s full of fantastical creatures and far-out (far in?) places, but at its heart it’s a book about trauma and family and the cyclical nature of hard choices.
The only letter I ever wrote to a comic was to The Maxx. I think it was published in issue # 6 (where he fights Erik Larsen's Mako). Mr. Gone calls the Maxx Br'er Lappin at the end of issue one, and I guessed that it had something to do with Br'er Rabbit from African American folklore (lapin is French for Rabbit) and that maybe the Maxx was some sort of giant rabbit, what with the prominent teeth and weirdly shaped legs and feet. Sam responded vaguely that I might be on to something... Anyway, The Maxx felt like a real puzzle to decode to a 13-year old who was starting to get bored with superhero comics.
I’m on a read through of The Maxx right now and just read your letter about 10 minutes before seeing this comment. The letters pages in The Maxx are really something!
What’s funny is that when I was a kid, I rescued a baby rabbit from our family dog and kept it in a shoe box under my bed while I tried to nurse it back to health. I went in one night to check on it and thought it was sleeping, but my parents told me it was dead. Can’t remember how long it lived. Feels like it was about a week, but must have been at least 3 days.
Oh, yes guys! Very nice - I am excited what you're about to tell me about one of my fav. characters... i know i posted that quite a few times already - take a look at uncle jerks comic channel. He is probably one of the biggest Sam Kieth fans out there and also made some great videos about the maxx
To this fucking day, I STILL don't know what genre the Maxx is. It starts off like "Oh, super hero Deconstruction" and then decided to go "....Buuuuuuuuuuut....." and this is ultimately, I think, one of the darkest of the Image comics early years where it's about some truly awful real life things and deals with psychological and sexual abuse. Mr Gones cape is like a rapist take of the Spawn cape where the tendrils of his cape just envelop people. Stuffs REEEEAL grim and mixed with the genuine insanity of Fleisher-esque big teethed cartoon blobs. I think I'm in the minority but I GENUINELY think that Sam Keiths art style (particularly his women) is most reminiscent of Vaughn Bodē mixed with Arthur Sudyam, Bill Watterson, Bernie Wrightson and Eastman & Laird in terms of rendering. He draws women with quite chunky proportions and in an obviously more cartoony fashion than most of the other Image creators at the time. There's elements in there of Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee, but judging from what I can see, Bodēs Cheech Wizard and Wattersons Calvin & Hobbes seem to be the BIG influences in terms of Keiths artwork. There's also the occasional moment where I see a touch of Corben in there too. The over emphasis of Shadows seems to be Chiaroscuro inspired, heavy emphasis on the darkness and the blacks. I think that's why Sam Keiths work feels very familiar to people who don't normally read Superhero comics but know about underground stuff
Paglia is an art and gender studies theorist and essayist. I think she has some pretty interesting insights regarding the interactions between two of the oldest and foundational traditions of humanity: art and gender. It’s just one lens through which to view art, and she is pretty polarizing, but her confrontational attitude just makes me like her more. She’s kinda punk and has some fun with pop culture.
Great pull! I'm pretty sure I have every single panel of the first six issues of this book committed to memory. This was a profoundly revelatory series for me as a young reader.
I'm very proud to have a near complete run of this, as well as his marvel comics presents run. You guys should really cover those as well. But the Sam Keith portfolio is top tier by all means. Need that Primer #4! First Sam and maxx
The ad at 13:26 is for Deathblow #1 which is backed by Cybernary #1 as if a double issue, which is distinct from the 1995 Cybernary series. I think Steve Gerber came in to help with the distinct Cybernary series after Manabat became ill. A lot of sources credit Manabat and Gerber as co-creators, but I've also seen sources credit it originally to Lee and Choi. It's murky, but this credit is specifically for the backup story to Deathblow #1 before Manabat got sick.
As far as I can tell Paglia is the key to who Julie is and how she processes her past sexual assault. I would suggest reading just enough Paglia to understand Julie's motivations but my understanding is Julie blames herself because of the writings of Paglia and Sam Kieth seems to be calling out Paglia through the character of Julie.
I really should re-read this myself. I remember loving it back then, it was so beautifully drawn and quite weird, I loved it, but I can't remember the story at all anymore. I'm a big fan of Ted McKeever myself, so after hearing him mentioned a couple of times here I have to ask, will you guys ever get to some of his stuff?
Bought most of the Image stuff in the first couple of years. The Maxx is the only series I still have and would ever read again. Like Twin Peaks, it was a cauldron of experimental weirdness available to a mainstream audience. Flaws and all, both remain seminal and beloved. Hope Sam Keith breaks his silence for you guys.
I just read this series again since I bought the issues way back in the 90s. I was a huge fan of Sam Kieth at the time but the Maxx never hit me the way his Wolverine work did. This time round I really enjoyed it on another level, and the art is a lot better than I remember.
Hands down my favorite. Sam kieth is my number one. My glow in the darķ #1 maxx is one of my favorite comics i own. Could talk about his stuff for hours.
Crazy! Only a couple weeks ago, I browsed my comic shelf for something to read and landed on The Maxx, which I hadn't read in years. I realized during this most recent read that it's one of my favorite comics of all time. I then wished for you guys to cover the comic and a couple days later, this was uploaded. Very cool, thanks!
I was a freshman in high school when Maxx came out. For intro to art class we were working with clay, and I wanted to sculpt a Maxx head. Unfortunately, I was out with pink eye for two weeks and my piece ended up a Venom ashtray (which got plenty use)
The Maxx is awesome! I think the panels look like broken windows, which mirror his mental breakdown and ego fragmenting. The psychology is surprisingly deep. It plays with Sigmund Freud's dreams and personality, and Karl Jung's shadow and collective unconscious.
The Maxx letter pages was a cool fan community, especially with Sam’s comments and the art submissions all over it. As for the art and story, I was just along for the ride, more so after the other Image characters stopped showing up randomly.
Thank you for this in depth look on issue #1 of one of my all time favorite series, by one of my all time favorite artists! Just like you dudes, I was scooping up all the initial Image runs as they came out from 92-94, but started high school in 95 and being into comics wasn’t “cool” anymore, so my Maxx run stopped at about #12 or so. When I got back into comics in the early 00’s, Pitt and Maxx were the two series that I dedicated myself to tracking down, and thanks to my local comic shop having a massive back issue warehouse, I was able to complete them. So glad I did, cause the later issues seem to be very rare these days. Please highlight any and all Sam Kieth books, he is a genius, and his art is breathtaking and super inventive.
The Maxx trading cards were interesting partly because they had some story bits on them and iirc, even some characters that didn't appear in the comics.
It happens in many books but the Maxx tpb's bothered me the most when pages are on the wrong side or next to the wrong page because they don't print ads/letters. That's a big reason for me for wanting original books
Darn, you mentioned the weird panels and asked if they go together in order to create something. I forget if it's in the letters or the fine print at the start, but Sam Keith said that they did and he would give a prize if someone cracked it. I never heard anything after that
My husband has asked me to ask you to when are you going to do some 2000AD or some judge Dredd? Your show is good but you need to travel overseas with your interests… 😄
So awesome. So bizarre. Love it. Hey, on 12:24 the transition from panel 1 to panel 2. What IS that? I thought it was a hand at first, now it's looking like a bearded guy who's beardf looks like a pointing hand to the next panel, wearing a really tall conductor hat or a bunch of them stacked or something?? Fascinating!
You guys cover a lot of original Image comics artists and their work, but when you gonna do Marc Silvestri? Cyberforce. Darkness. All that stuff. Forgive me if im wrong but i cant recall you guys talking about one of his books? Even as a marvel artist. I know you’ve mentioned him plenty. But, have you done an actual book of his?
Love The Maxx!! I am currently reading the series,issue 6 to be exact. It’s been hard trying to find the complete series,so if anyone has any extra copies hit me up!
This book was my training wheels to more adult work as a kid. And it still holds up! I still get so much inspiration from it.
I started reading comics in the '80s, but The Maxx had this added cerebral quality to it. It's menacing, weirdly dark, and often funny. Seriously, a layered work that is so much better than the other Image Comics from that era.
Camille Paglia, feminist/ academic commentator who said Madonna "solved feminism" in 91 (but they don't like each other) and loved Revenge of the Sith for some reason.
If you guys got Peter Chung , I hope you guys get Sam kieth on the phone too I know he’s like a unicorn in this space.
The Maxx, Judge Dredd, and Gerber's Howard The Duck were probably some of the most important reading(s) of my youth and early adolescence. I love how the Maxx starts off as just a seemingly regular, run of the mill 90's comic and just morphs into this great drama about broken people trying to carry on with their lives, seemingly to their own detriment
First time I ever saw the Maxx was MTV's animated adaption. Very different than my usual style, but something was mesmerizing about it. It reminded me of some of the experimental stuff going on in comics in the 70's.
the animated shows Abby Terkuhle spearheaded at MTV are some of the most stunning works of American television from the last 3 decades: THE MAXX, AEON FLUX, DOWNTOWN, DARIA, THE BROTHERS GRUNT (OK, that one was made in Vancouver, B.C.), etc.
The inevitable Sam Kieth Shoot Interview will be a 'stop everything' day for me. My god.
SAME
Rolling out of overtime at work, go to put on Kayfabe in the car, boom, this hits. Sick. And the Grand Design cover designs are amazing, Jim!
Someone below got Paglia right, so I’ll just point out Kieth’s architecture is inspired by Antoni Gaudi.
I was 14 when the maxx came out. The art was incredible. But the story went over my head. I felt like you needed a degree in psychology to understand it.
Agreed. Want that Sam Kieth shoot interview! Would be my #1 request.
I’d argue this was the best & still quite enjoyable from the foundation period of Image.
I'd argue it's the only foundational Image book that holds up.
From 16:50, Camille Paglia was a kind of fashionable contrarian academic who sold a lot of books and made media appearances on the strength of being an anti-feminist feminist. She became very friendly with Rush Limbaugh, who used to joke that they had a lot in common because they both liked women and cigars, yadda yadda. It kind of fits with the character in a sad way, though I suspect Sam thought it was a positive.
Sex, Art, and American Culture was a book by Camile Paglia, a prominent social/cultural critic.
I don’t have Saturday morning cartoons anymore I have Saturday morning Cartoonist Kayfabe thank you :)
Kieth is not the greatest writer, but THE MAXX is truly special due to the collaboration between him and William Messner-Loeb (who has struggled significantly in the industry, and has had a lot of financial problems due to having a physical disability). I wish there was a full omnibus of the entire series, and it was republished in 3 books by IDF, but those now go for a fortune. Maybe the impending live-action film, should it ever happen, can get a definitive book out on the marketplace. I definitely think it might be the best title that Image ever published.
@@essaywhu no clue. Channing Tatum optioned and developed the property
The Maxx is such a bizarre book, but in ways that seem really true to life. It’s full of fantastical creatures and far-out (far in?) places, but at its heart it’s a book about trauma and family and the cyclical nature of hard choices.
I never got to read the comics, but it's insane how exactly the show recreated it.
This should be the proper way to adapt comics.
The only letter I ever wrote to a comic was to The Maxx. I think it was published in issue # 6 (where he fights Erik Larsen's Mako). Mr. Gone calls the Maxx Br'er Lappin at the end of issue one, and I guessed that it had something to do with Br'er Rabbit from African American folklore (lapin is French for Rabbit) and that maybe the Maxx was some sort of giant rabbit, what with the prominent teeth and weirdly shaped legs and feet. Sam responded vaguely that I might be on to something... Anyway, The Maxx felt like a real puzzle to decode to a 13-year old who was starting to get bored with superhero comics.
I’m on a read through of The Maxx right now and just read your letter about 10 minutes before seeing this comment. The letters pages in The Maxx are really something!
What’s funny is that when I was a kid, I rescued a baby rabbit from our family dog and kept it in a shoe box under my bed while I tried to nurse it back to health. I went in one night to check on it and thought it was sleeping, but my parents told me it was dead. Can’t remember how long it lived. Feels like it was about a week, but must have been at least 3 days.
Oh, yes guys! Very nice - I am excited what you're about to tell me about one of my fav. characters... i know i posted that quite a few times already - take a look at uncle jerks comic channel. He is probably one of the biggest Sam Kieth fans out there and also made some great videos about the maxx
To this fucking day, I STILL don't know what genre the Maxx is. It starts off like "Oh, super hero Deconstruction" and then decided to go "....Buuuuuuuuuuut....." and this is ultimately, I think, one of the darkest of the Image comics early years where it's about some truly awful real life things and deals with psychological and sexual abuse. Mr Gones cape is like a rapist take of the Spawn cape where the tendrils of his cape just envelop people. Stuffs REEEEAL grim and mixed with the genuine insanity of Fleisher-esque big teethed cartoon blobs.
I think I'm in the minority but I GENUINELY think that Sam Keiths art style (particularly his women) is most reminiscent of Vaughn Bodē mixed with Arthur Sudyam, Bill Watterson, Bernie Wrightson and Eastman & Laird in terms of rendering. He draws women with quite chunky proportions and in an obviously more cartoony fashion than most of the other Image creators at the time. There's elements in there of Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee, but judging from what I can see, Bodēs Cheech Wizard and Wattersons Calvin & Hobbes seem to be the BIG influences in terms of Keiths artwork. There's also the occasional moment where I see a touch of Corben in there too. The over emphasis of Shadows seems to be Chiaroscuro inspired, heavy emphasis on the darkness and the blacks. I think that's why Sam Keiths work feels very familiar to people who don't normally read Superhero comics but know about underground stuff
i think you have nailed it re: how he draws women
Paglia is an art and gender studies theorist and essayist. I think she has some pretty interesting insights regarding the interactions between two of the oldest and foundational traditions of humanity: art and gender. It’s just one lens through which to view art, and she is pretty polarizing, but her confrontational attitude just makes me like her more. She’s kinda punk and has some fun with pop culture.
Great pull! I'm pretty sure I have every single panel of the first six issues of this book committed to memory. This was a profoundly revelatory series for me as a young reader.
Sam Keith makes the most beautiful ugly artwork that I've ever seen!
BTW, could you guys please enable the like function?
You guys deserve more likes!
I'm very proud to have a near complete run of this, as well as his marvel comics presents run. You guys should really cover those as well. But the Sam Keith portfolio is top tier by all means. Need that Primer #4! First Sam and maxx
The ad at 13:26 is for Deathblow #1 which is backed by Cybernary #1 as if a double issue, which is distinct from the 1995 Cybernary series. I think Steve Gerber came in to help with the distinct Cybernary series after Manabat became ill. A lot of sources credit Manabat and Gerber as co-creators, but I've also seen sources credit it originally to Lee and Choi. It's murky, but this credit is specifically for the backup story to Deathblow #1 before Manabat got sick.
As far as I can tell Paglia is the key to who Julie is and how she processes her past sexual assault. I would suggest reading just enough Paglia to understand Julie's motivations but my understanding is Julie blames herself because of the writings of Paglia and Sam Kieth seems to be calling out Paglia through the character of Julie.
I really should re-read this myself. I remember loving it back then, it was so beautifully drawn and quite weird, I loved it, but I can't remember the story at all anymore.
I'm a big fan of Ted McKeever myself, so after hearing him mentioned a couple of times here I have to ask, will you guys ever get to some of his stuff?
Sam Kieth shoot interview when?
Superb comic. Superb vídeo. Thanks both you guys for being the best channel around. Keep up the good work
I just found this beauty recently and i felt instantly in love
This would make the best live action Netflix series ever!
Being a former social worker, I can attest that we do take home our clients who sleep in boxes and get into wacky scenarios with them
Bought most of the Image stuff in the first couple of years. The Maxx is the only series I still have and would ever read again. Like Twin Peaks, it was a cauldron of experimental weirdness available to a mainstream audience. Flaws and all, both remain seminal and beloved. Hope Sam Keith breaks his silence for you guys.
I just read this series again since I bought the issues way back in the 90s. I was a huge fan of Sam Kieth at the time but the Maxx never hit me the way his Wolverine work did. This time round I really enjoyed it on another level, and the art is a lot better than I remember.
Camille Paglia is a feminist writer and social critic. The poster is advertising her 1992 book "Sex, Art, and American Culture".
I CANNOT WAIT for Jim’s Hulk Grand Design!!!
Hands down my favorite. Sam kieth is my number one. My glow in the darķ #1 maxx is one of my favorite comics i own. Could talk about his stuff for hours.
Crazy! Only a couple weeks ago, I browsed my comic shelf for something to read and landed on The Maxx, which I hadn't read in years. I realized during this most recent read that it's one of my favorite comics of all time. I then wished for you guys to cover the comic and a couple days later, this was uploaded. Very cool, thanks!
The Maxx is so so good. Sam Keith is also a legend
I was a freshman in high school when Maxx came out. For intro to art class we were working with clay, and I wanted to sculpt a Maxx head. Unfortunately, I was out with pink eye for two weeks and my piece ended up a Venom ashtray (which got plenty use)
The Maxx is awesome! I think the panels look like broken windows, which mirror his mental breakdown and ego fragmenting. The psychology is surprisingly deep. It plays with Sigmund Freud's dreams and personality, and Karl Jung's shadow and collective unconscious.
The Maxx letter pages was a cool fan community, especially with Sam’s comments and the art submissions all over it.
As for the art and story, I was just along for the ride, more so after the other Image characters stopped showing up randomly.
The teeth is the lamp in the room Maxx is daydreaming in.
Hope you can make him an interview, it would be gold
Thank you for this in depth look on issue #1 of one of my all time favorite series, by one of my all time favorite artists! Just like you dudes, I was scooping up all the initial Image runs as they came out from 92-94, but started high school in 95 and being into comics wasn’t “cool” anymore, so my Maxx run stopped at about #12 or so. When I got back into comics in the early 00’s, Pitt and Maxx were the two series that I dedicated myself to tracking down, and thanks to my local comic shop having a massive back issue warehouse, I was able to complete them. So glad I did, cause the later issues seem to be very rare these days. Please highlight any and all Sam Kieth books, he is a genius, and his art is breathtaking and super inventive.
The Maxx trading cards were interesting partly because they had some story bits on them and iirc, even some characters that didn't appear in the comics.
It happens in many books but the Maxx tpb's bothered me the most when pages are on the wrong side or next to the wrong page because they don't print ads/letters. That's a big reason for me for wanting original books
I think he confirmed its his middle fingers lol
I only have 3 of The Maxx books because that's all I could find at the shop. Really cool art.
Gotta check out the artist edition and the Jaguar!
5:20 Those Panel Boardes make me....wanna take my Passion and make it happen!
12:48 That Julieeeee
One of my favs... and I believe Jim is thinking of Don Martin when he's referring to the artist that influenced the look of Julie's client.
I love the MAXX! I wanna get into an epic tussle of a wrestle with the MAXX and then cuddle with the MAXX while watching cartoons...ist kayfabe.
All time fav. I am a Sam Kieth fan big time got to meet him only once bc he came to nycc. You got to get him on a shoot interview
The First good thing Image ever put out.
I have the Spanish version of this!.
Amazing work!.
Man you guys really cover so many of my favourite things
This and The Crow are my jam.
Could The Maxx be considered one of the first Isekai’s? We spend a lot of time in the Outback, if I recall.
Great Stuff.
Darn, you mentioned the weird panels and asked if they go together in order to create something. I forget if it's in the letters or the fine print at the start, but Sam Keith said that they did and he would give a prize if someone cracked it. I never heard anything after that
Man, I've been waiting for this one...
Not enough thumbs, again
Please give me more Sam Keith!!!!
Those Hulk comics look amazing
Camile Paglia is a feminist author. That is one of her book covers
My husband has asked me to ask you to when are you going to do some 2000AD or some judge Dredd?
Your show is good but you need to travel overseas with your interests… 😄
So awesome. So bizarre. Love it. Hey, on 12:24 the transition from panel 1 to panel 2. What IS that? I thought it was a hand at first, now it's looking like a bearded guy who's beardf looks like a pointing hand to the next panel, wearing a really tall conductor hat or a bunch of them stacked or something?? Fascinating!
Love maxx video and updates on you guys.
You guys cover a lot of original Image comics artists and their work, but when you gonna do Marc Silvestri? Cyberforce. Darkness. All that stuff. Forgive me if im wrong but i cant recall you guys talking about one of his books? Even as a marvel artist. I know you’ve mentioned him plenty. But, have you done an actual book of his?
Man I could not explain the premise of this to friends 🤣
One of my favorite comics of all time. Recently reviewed it. #EvilsComics
Need posters of the hulk grand design Monster and madness covers!..
Restroom cover posters also!
I see Terry Moore in Keith's women, and a little Corben.
Love The Maxx!! I am currently reading the series,issue 6 to be exact. It’s been hard trying to find the complete series,so if anyone has any extra copies hit me up!
Greetings guys Froom colombia south america
What are image doing with collected editions?
Get this shit and Spawn into some hardcover omnibuses, STAT!
Yesss the master!
More Maxx eps please
Yah! Maxx!