's Cardboard Box

Questions about The Maxx That Have Been Answered

Why is it that Julie sometimes claims she's broke, but then she has enough money to help people out and remodel her apartment building?

As Jewel (JJCNJ@aol.com) points out, perhaps she's broke because she helps people out and remodels her apartment building.

Why does Mr. Gone alternately try to help and kill Julie and Maxx?

He's not trying to kill Julie. After a talk with Maxfatal@aol.com, I agree that what he's trying to do is get her to see the truth, but not so much all at once that it damages her. Of course, he's doing this in his own twisted Mr. Gone way. At one point he does try to shoot her with a poison dart, but it is not clear that the dart would have killed her. Jewel (JJCNJ@aol.com) suggests that Julie may be Mr. Gone's only way to reach his daughter.

He is trying to kill Maxx, however -- at least at first. Maxx doesn't understand that Mr. Gone is trying to help Julie (and certainly doesn't trust him) and keeps getting in Gone's way.

In issue #4, why isn't Julie at all freaked out by Maxx's killing the Is-carjackers and seeing them turn into little blue-black things when they die? Sara certainly is. And to our knowledge Julie hasn't (consciously) seen Isz before.

Duh. As Maxfatal@aol.com pointed out, yes, she has seen Isz before. They kidnapped her at the beginning of #2. Mr. Gone told her all about their camouflage ability.

Did Maxx choose the mask, or did Julie put it on him, or both?

Both. Julie put it on him, unknowingly, and Maxx accepted it, also unconsciously. At some level Julie was looking for someone in this world who could protect her, and Dave was at some level looking for a way to do good in the world while hiding his identity.

Did Julie hit Maxx three weeks after she was attacked (#19), or many years later (#20)?

I'm fairly sure it was only three weeks.

Why did the CIA agents fail to kill Artie? What did he do to them? They were really there, because they left their guns and their urn behind, but where did they go?

He turned them into the bugs in the jar. In #22 he calls one of them Mattox, which was the name of one of the agents. However, when the bugs reappear in #32, one calls another "Mattox," so apparently he didn't kill them.

Who is Norbert? Why does he know Sara, why does he think he and Sarah have to talk, and why does Sara try to ignore him? Could he be Sara's Maxx?

He is Sara's Maxx, and he's here to tell her about Iago, and hopefully to stop him.

Who is Steve? Why does he sit around staring at a glass of water all the time?

Steve is Sara's roommate. He keeps letting his ex-girlfriend Skye push him around. He thinks he has paranormal powers (and he may, to some degree), and he stares at the glass because he's trying to move it with his mind.

What's the solution to the cryptic crossword clue, "Divert executioner (4,3)?" The third letter is "A." Do we reverse or scramble a word meaning "executioner," or do we cut the front off a word meaning "divert?" Or something else? Any ideas?

Gary D. Snyder (gds@bnc89gds.bently.com) sent me an answer that has to be the right one; it makes too much sense not to be. The solution is "head off." "Head off" is a synonym for "divert," and an executioner cuts the victim's head off. Note the reference to the first story; Julie cut Mr. Gone's head off in #2 (and on various other occasions as well). Also, Artie did divert the executioners who came for him. This crossword clue is a very clever touch.

How long had Mr. Gone had that underground "vast complex of evil" in Julie's Outback?

Apparently ever since Julie went to college. Her parents gave Artie a bunch of her stuff to store, and Artie put it in one of the storage bins in his power spot. From there he could enter Julie's Outback at will, and since he seemed to like it there he must have set up shop there, harvesting Isz to help him in the real world.

Precisely when did Mr. Gone stop wearing his yellow Uncle Artie suit and start wearing his black expandable cape? Was it the same time Maxx got his costume?

The black Gone cape seems to go along with his rape and murder spree. Whenever he started that, that was when he started being Mr. Gone and dressing in black.

When Maxx leaves (in #20), is he going to take off the mask and costume? Nobody likes face-eating masks.

Yes, he does take off the mask and costume. When we see him again in #27, Dave is dressed normally.

Who is trying to kill Sara's dad? Who gave the order to the CIA agents to assassinate him?

In #32 one of the bugs-who-used-to-be-agents says that Major Irwin Rosteval, the ghost, was the one who wanted them to do it. We still don't know whether he issued the order before or after he died.

Who is Gaynor?

Artie met Gaynor when he went to a battered women's shelter, looking for help. He told her everything about himself, and she accepted him for who he was. She is obviously a remarkable person. She does not, however, appear to be from Australia, despite her "Hell-o-ee."

How much of what Artie told Sara (in #21) was the truth, and how much was a lie?

It's now fairly clear that almost everything he said during that first conversation was a lie. (Or a story idea invented by Alan Moore that didn't fit into Sam Kieth's picture of things.)

What determines who's on Iago's list and who isn't?

It could be that these are people Sara still has bad feelings about. Sara feels bad about calling the child welfare people and having Mark taken away from Julie, so she feels she let Julie down, so Julie's on the list. Anybody she has unfinished emotional business with, Iago is going to finish.

Why does Iago keep saying all these motivational things to himself?

Besides being a bunch of Sara's negative feelings rolled into one entity, he was also squished together with a motivational tape.

Can Sara only use her powers when she's asleep and dreaming, as she did in #22?

No. She can also use them when she's awake, although she doesn't know enough about them to be able to deliberately use them without guidance. She can lash out with them in times of stress (as in #24), and she can be guided to use them (as in #28).

In #25, why would the fairies have digested the larger body parts first, leaving the smaller ones? Why wouldn't the smaller ones dissolve first? It's just a fact that small things dissolve faster than large things.

Jewel (JJCNJ@aol.com) suggested the only answer that makes sense to me: perhaps they ate the biggest pieces first, so the smaller ones haven't been inside them as long.

In #30, what relevance does the "Fred Flower And Uncle Italian Moose Show" have to the greater story? I like it; I'm just wondering.

Jewel (JJCNJ@aol.com) once again has come up with an answer that makes sense: it is an allegory for the relationship between Maxx and Julie. Just as Fred Flower forced Uncle Italian Moose to work in the factory to support them, Julie forced Maxx into her Outback to protect her. Like Uncle Italian Moose, Maxx tries to protect Julie but just winds up screwing up and getting hurt. Regina and Sister Murray may represent Sara and Artie.

What movie is this that Megan likes to watch, in #31?

"Rebecca" (1940), based on a novel by Daphne Du Maurier. It was remade as a TV miniseries in 1978 and was very recently redone as a TV movie starring Diana Rigg (as the evil Mrs. Danvers) and Faye Dunaway, among others.

From #31: When did Sara ever tell Julie that whatever's behind the door has to be soaked in water?

Jewel (JJCNJ@aol.com) points out that Julie says in #30 that she's been hearing Sara's voice.

What do the Isz represent?

Nathan Nelson (natenelsen@sprintmail.com) emailed me an interesting idea that's so simple it might be true. To paraphrase: Perhaps the Isz are symbols of the small trials and tribulations of life. Minor things, like forgetting change or losing your keys. Individually they don't amount to much, but left unchecked they can run rampant and bring your life to a halt. If ignored, they may fester and grow teeth.

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