REVISED: Character Analysis: Max
Max Evans, in the science-fiction series, Roswell, New Mexico, unites the people of Roswell in various ways and exists to allow comfort for the viewers. With his siblings, Isobel and Micheal, Max serves as the glue. The psychic connection between Isobel and Max allows the two to understand each other's feelings and emotions. The connection of the trio doesn’t falter although Michael does not share the same connection as his two siblings. Not only does Max care for both of his siblings, but also for the town of Roswell. By serving as a police officer, Max enforces the law but also protects the people around him. The most important person to him, however, continues to be Liz. His love for her never falters and he remains protective over her in every situation throughout the show. Due to Max’s selflessness and caring nature, he serves as the patron of the town and safe haven for me during worrisome parts of the show.
In the very first episode, “Pilot”, Max protects Liz in the diner when shots fire through the window. Not only does he risk his own life by using his powers to save her, but also his siblings who would later be exposed due to Max’s decision. Although this causes tension between Max and his siblings in the first couple of episodes, he did the right thing by saving Liz, his one true love. Max religiously gives his all to Liz, however, Liz fails to see how much Max loves her in the first few episodes. She assumes very quickly that since Max is an alien, he killed Rosa, Liz’s sister. Even though this is not the case, she resents Max due to her wrong assumption. Max proves his care for Liz when he trusts her with the information about his family’s past. He gives her this private information about himself, deals with the rage from his siblings, and then is faced with the fact that she ran to tell Kyle his secret. Even after being disrespected in this way, Max still continues to care for Liz. Similarly, Max also goes through another difficult point of forgiveness when he finds out that Isobel sent Liz away when Rosa died. Not only does Max quickly forgive Liz for telling Kyle his secret but then has to quickly forgive his siblings for keeping a huge secret from him for almost ten years.
Since Max “cared too deeply” for Liz, his siblings decided to use Isobel’s mind compulsion to send Liz away so that Max did not have to see Liz in such a depressive state of mind. Additionally, they both hid this fact from Max for years, making him believe that Liz abandoned him. Although this broke Max when he found out, he forgave his siblings and continued to protect them especially when Isobel lost sight of her own identity. Being the protective big brother that he is, Max continued to prove his love for Isobel in every possible way. At her darkest point, Isobel sought help, and Max, of course, was there for her. Growing up with only Isobel and Michael as family, Max was required to step up as the “father figure” and provide comfort for his siblings. In season one, episode eight, viewers see Isobel get violently ill. As soon as Isobel injected herself with Liz’s serum, Max felt “cold.” Isobel, believing that she diminished her powers for good, began to feel ill causing this “cold” feeling in Max. As soon as he knew something was wrong with his sister, he came to her rescue. Despite making himself sick, Max continued to try to heal Isobel with all the power he contained. In this process of attempting to save Isobel, the viewers undergo every emotion that Max also endures. Although this moment leaves viewers stressed, Max’s presence provides a sense of security because of how loyal he remains to others in the show. In this, we are constantly relieved to see Max on the screen because he continuously helps with his powers instead of hurting.
Born to heal, Max continues to use his power only to assist others, proving his loyalty to the town of Roswell and its inhabitants. In order to protect his family, however, Max would have to take things out of his comfort zone. In episode six, “Smells Like Team Spirit”, glimpses of an overwhelmed and heartbroken Max appear when he is forced to use his powers to cover up “Isobel’s” murder of Rosa and her two friends. Not only does Max express immense regret but also floods his mind with thoughts of Liz and how badly his actions would one day hurt her. Although we see quickly how Max goes above and beyond for the people he loves, he continues to do the most for his family. While experiencing intense and heavy blackouts Max remains by Isobel’s side and risks it all to provide her comfort and security. In the episode “Songs About Texas” when Isobel is in the pod and Liz is working hard to provide an antidote for her symptoms, Max goes daily to read to his sister. In times of despair, I find Max in order to feel better about the situation at hand. Although Max’s loyalties lie with his siblings, Isobel and Micheal, as season one progresses, the stress of finding out “the killer’s” identity consumes Max, causing him to act out towards his siblings.
Due to Max’s desire to keep him and his sibling’s ultimate secret, Micheal feels as though “hiding” from the truth of who they truly are suppresses his identity. This tension between the brothers causes Max and Micheal to lash out at one another as we see clearly in episode eleven, “Champagne Supernova”. Max says, “No one made you follow my rule Micheal. I’m not your dad.” This line indicates passive aggression towards his brother and proves that Max feels hurt by Micheal’s unappreciativeness towards him when he simply meant to protect his family. Micheal then follows Max’s aggression with, “You sure as hell been acting like it all our lives.” This interaction highlights the ongoing resentment that Micheal has developed for Max over the years following Max’s lead. As the scene continues, Max finally breaks and expresses how he has always felt guilty for being adopted and having a real family. Finally, Max confesses how he continuously pushed away his mom and resented her for not also adopting Micheal. The sad and long-awaited truth comes out when Max tells Micheal that he has always been his top priority. On top of all the family stress, Max endured he also has not stopped searching for the killer. This breakdown shows Max falling into an overwhelming state of anxiety as he tries to mend the bond with his brother while also managing to solve the mystery of the unknown killer. Ultimately, in an attempt to kill Noah, the “unknown” killer, the tension between Max and Micheal will be their demise.
Not only does Max grow more confident throughout the season, but also more aware of his own identity. As he becomes more conscious of the danger he and his siblings are in, he takes control of his emotions and uses his anger toward Noah to take revenge. The toughest version of Max comes out in episode twelve, “Creep”, when Isobel, Liz, and Max interrogate Noah. Instead of having the “nice guy” act on, he turns into someone Noah fears and this is exactly Max’s plan. In the end, Max proves to be the hometown hero and essentially saves Roswell from Noah and his malicious intentions. Max not only uses an excessive amount of power to kill Noah but also to bring back Rosa. This action clearly indicates his immense love for Liz and is proof of his selflessness. He does both of these things for the people he loves and ends up killing himself.
Throughout the entirety of season one, Max stayed true to his morals and is loyal to his people. Although this immense love for others killed him, he died doing what he knew was right. In dying, he saved someone special to the person he loved most, Liz. Potentially not having Max is a terrifying thought for the future season but his character will always live on in the viewers’ hearts. Max served as a comfortable character for many and viewers always could count on him to make the right decisions for others.
janainaart
izzy806
yousharknotpass
ellievsbear
dededos
kianamaiart