The MAX Comics imprint is not Marvel's first effort to feature explicit content in their titles. The company'sEpic Comics imprint in the 1980s and early 1990s often featured stronger content than their mainstream imprint. However, the MAX Comics imprint is the first time Marvel has specifically produced comics with uncensored content.
The first series to be published under the Max imprint wasAlias, written byBrian Michael Bendis.[3] Several limited series were then created specially for the Max imprint, such asApache Skies andHaunt of Horror, but the majority of its publications were based around existing Marvel characters, such asHoward the Duck andDevil-Slayer.
One Marvel character who was revived by Max wasRawhide Kid[4] who in 2002 became the first openly homosexual Marvel comic book character to star in his own magazine.[5] The first edition of the Rawhide Kid's saga was calledSlap Leather. According to a CNN.com article, "The new series pairs the original artist,John Severin, now 86, with Ron Zimmerman, a television writer. Making the Rawhide Kidgay was Zimmerman's idea."[5] The character's homosexuality is conveyed indirectly, through euphemisms and puns, and the comic's style is campy.[5] Conservative groups protested the homosexual take on the character, which they claimed would corrupt children, though the covers carried an "Adults only" label.[6]
Since 2012, the new works under the MAX imprint have been limited to thePunisher series. Marvel now portrays MAX as a rating indicating mature content, rather than a separate brand. The latest MAX issue (Get Fury #6) was published in October 2024 (cover date).[7]
While some works such asAlias have received acclaim, the imprint has attracted controversy, with some critics considering some of the titles to be gratuitous in its use of mature or vulgar content. Former Marvel president and chairmanStan Lee openly criticized the Max imprint. Referring to an incident of strangulation with intestines in the 2001Fury miniseries, based on the characterNick Fury, whom he co-created, Lee said, "I don't know why they're doing that. I don't think that I would do those kinds of stories".[8]
MAXAnt-Man andDeathlok miniseries were both solicited, but were cancelled before their release.
Some of the titles such asAlias,The Hood,Wisdom,Thor: Vikings andApache Skies are considered part ofEarth-616, the mainMarvel Universe, while others likePunisher MAX,Wolverine MAX,Fury,Deadpool MAX andFoolkiller take place in alternate universes.
