Do you have pity for Maxwell?

[Strangerdanger101]

Random question.

For maxwell, it's kind of hard to explain. I both do have pity and dont have pity.

When it comes to his backstory, i have a bunch of pity for him.

When it comes to what he did to Wilson and a few other things, i don't have pity. Listening to a voice on the radio was kinda a dumb thing to do, but who knows how many times he has failed with science stuff or something.

[Percival]

no.

 

@Willette GAS THE MAXBIRDS!

[Maximum124]

Yeah I got pity, but just because he has a tragic past doesn't excuse some his actions-

 

but then there's the question of whether or not his morality has been warped, which would excuse his actions some? but I guess thats for another day and another thread.

[Plague Mouse]

"All cruelty springs from weakness"

 

I don't judge him at all.

It's true that all this started from his greed and lust for power. He was a pathetic sick man, probably failed magician with debts accumulating and no recognition. The book showed him how to get everything he was so constantly denied to. But even in his "Maxwell the great" smugness he still cared about people, he worried about Charlie, he despised the idea of her finding out of his darkness, so he was still conscious about the bad things which means he is not a psychopath.

 

As far as everything he did in the DS world, we don't know how much influence They have over him, so it's hard to say he is an evil bastard or just another pawn.

[Battal]

I will light him on fire.

 

Right now.

[Warden]

I am rather indifferent to Maxwell. I don't feel pity for him nor do I hate him for what he has done.

 

If you were in his position of being strapped to a throne in absolute darkness while being forced to listen to ragtime for all eternity and having some degree of power and know how to use it, your morals and sanity might become questionable.

 

Perhaps he brought others to the world of Don't Starve simply because he was lonely and wanted someone else to share his suffering or be something to take out his frustrations on. Either way, the only one I truly feel bad for is Charlie. She suffered a fate far worse than Maxwell's binding to the throne.

 

She was merely a victim of circumstance, though I don't know why she would remain with Max after learning his dark secret and the possible consequences tied to them, even if she did have a thing for him.

 

Max was toying with powers he didn't fully comprehend and they both paid the price.

[mrtwoface]

I like to compare Maxwell to Darth Vader from the Star Wars films. He attempted to harness powers beyond his control and as a result doomed the one he cared about the most, and was then used (in their minds, deservedly) by a higher evil (The Emperor/Them) for sinister purposes.

 

It's only fair for me to feel sorry for Maxwell if I felt sorry for Vader in the end, which I did. Maxwell has a chance to get on another path after he escapes from the Throne, however, unlike Vader who only saw the light at the latest possible moment. Maybe there will be an Adventure Mode ll someday that will involve you teaming up with Maxwell to defeat Them and permanently escape the Island. 

 

For now, I just like to play Maxwell in the game and pretend that he sits by the campfire at night thinking about all the things he has done and where it has got him. 

[oCrapaCreeper]

 I'm kinda in between; while it was unfortunate what happened to him, it was his fault for trying to control and exploit a group of creatures much more powerful than humans. I came up with this a while back:

 

Maxwell would pull shadow creatures out of Codex Umbra for entertainment of others during his magic shows; so perhaps he was forced to pull out people of his own kind to entertain Them as payback; hence why Maxwell refers to them as his puppets.

 

I remember an old line that Maxwell used to say before Klei changed his nightmare throne quotes to be more descriptive: "All of my puppets... are They still watching?" 

 

I did not make that kind of connection when I first read that line since Maxwell had almost no backstory then, but today that line seems to somewhat tie up with my theory. The world of DS is Maxwell's "stage" that he created, and each of the characters are his "puppets", and then They simply watch.

 

A lot of the things in this game as well as the lore seem to be scary-close to my theory, such as the world generation animation screen looking like a stage setup. I'm not sure whether it's simply a coincidence or not.

[emerphish]

 I'm kinda in between; while it was unfortunate what happened to him, it was his fault for trying to control and exploit a group of creatures much more powerful than humans. I came up with this a while back:

 

Maxwell would pull shadow creatures out of Codex Umbra for entertainment of others during his magic shows; so perhaps he was forced to pull out people of his own kind to entertain Them as payback; hence why Maxwell refers to them as his puppets.

 

I remember an old line that Maxwell used to say before Klei changed his nightmare throne quotes to be more descriptive: "All of my puppets... are They still watching?" 

 

I did not make that kind of connection when I first read that line since Maxwell had almost no backstory then, but today that line seems to somewhat tie up with my theory. The world of DS is Maxwell's "stage" that he created, and each of the characters are his "puppets", and then They simply watch.

 

A lot of the things in this game as well as the lore seem to be scary-close to my theory, such as the world generation animation screen looking like a stage setup. I'm not sure whether it's simply a coincidence or not.

Mind blown.

[Crown_king]

I think we should all calm down and have some bacon!

[Willette]

no.

 

@Willette GAS THE MAXBIRDS!

I don't have the pity for idiots that pay for their mistakes. And genetically modified birds have nothing to do with this dork! Leave them alone, Pecy!

[Stormrider1138]

Guessing by how Maxwell cared about Charlie in the back story, I guess that everything he did on the throne was done because he had no other choice. The guy was forced to create a play for Them to watch, a play in which the main star (you) may actually survive, if he did not do as ordered he was punished, probably beyond the limit of a normal human being. So all in all I do have pity for Maxwell.

I also thank him sometimes, because on the nineth day he could be sending 10 hounds to attack me, but no, only three hounds come to attack.

The guy is also kind enough that when he places you on the Island, he places you in a small haven filled with the basics for survival.

So yeah.... Maxwell is a good guy that definitely deserves your pity..... and maybe your thanks as well.

[ZoupGuide]

I feel bad for him, that chair looks uncomfortable.

[Scrimbles]

Try being stuck on a chair, in a pitch black room for 100 years without finding the same ways to entertain yourself, you will likely come to the same conclusion.

[The Letter W]

I just want to pat him on his receding hairline and go "IT'S GONNA BE ALL RIGHT" 

[Knight of Stars]

I do have pity for Maxwell. I think he was being manipulated for thousands of years by the shadow demons or old gods or whatever the heck those things are. I would love a DLC that makes us go deep, deep, deep (Like a level 11) into the caves so we can destory those jerks. It would be one heck of a challange and an adventure to go down that far into the caves. Think of all there nightmarish possibilites and all the bosses not being giant. (Giants are still fun and awesome) Like a fight with charlie or an acutal flesh and blood nightmare monster and not an illusion.

[Rocky Springs]

I do have pity for Maxwell. I think he was being manipulated for thousands of years by the shadow demons or old gods or whatever the heck those things are. I would love a DLC that makes us go deep, deep, deep (Like a level 11) into the caves so we can destory those jerks. It would be one heck of a challange and an adventure to go down that far into the caves. Think of all there nightmarish possibilites and all the bosses not being giant. (Giants are still fun and awesome) Like a fight with charlie or an acutal flesh and blood nightmare monster and not an illusion.

 

Erm. Maxwell got captured in 1906. DS takes place between 1920-1925, so 'thousands' of years is a bit, um... a bit.

 

 

 

You know, it's a difficult question. I'd tell you more -- it's a question I already asked myself a few years ago. It concerned Murdoc from Gorillaz back then. To put it short, he's a lot like Maxwell -- a guy who sold his soul to **** for glory and fame. And later paid for it. Quite a few fans agree that he behaves like a total jerk at times, and that he deserves all the trouble he's been into. But even then all of these people know about the terrible past that he had and that a place in Beelzebub's army was probably the only way to survive. However, thinking carefully, I understand that a person, if they are strong enough, could manage to go without it. Murdoc failed. Which means he's probably weaker than he seems to be.

 

And that's what I wanted to say, actually. Maxwell COULD have gone without it. He wanted to be a world-famous magician, he could have put more effort in it. He preferred a quicker and more dangerous way -- so the outcome is tragic, but logically predictable. Pity for him -- I have. Setting him free to take his place -- never.

 

[The Letter W]

Erm. Maxwell got captured in 1906. DS takes place between 1920-1925, so 'thousands' of years is a bit, um... a bit.

 

 

 

He mentions a different time flow. So twenty years real time could be like... 100 years in the DS world. Or it could be reversed. who knows really. 

[oCrapaCreeper]

He mentions a different time flow. So twenty years real time could be like... 100 years in the DS world. Or it could be reversed. who knows really. 

I believe someone actually did the math comparing a real world time of 20 years and DS time and got some ludicrous amount of years that seems reasonable with Maxwell's perspective.