The Wild, Unhinged Ride of Maximum Ride

[@multipleSpiders]

trout population meme but it says “i hope this will not affect the krelp population”

[@Crowcaller]

I needed a pinned comment probably and you win it. I hope the Krelp are ok

[@nananamamana3591]

@@Crowcaller 😔🙏 1 Like = 1 prayer 🙏😔 #Pray4Krelp

[@timfrank7461]

I need this as merch plz Are the krelp ok

[@gabriellebertrand3054]

Honestly, as a Black girl who loved the Maximum Ride books and manga as a tween, it wasn’t the pale lips that bothered me about Nudge’s character design. Like, darker skinned black women do often have paler lips than the rest of their skin tone. And I always interpreted the manga art as her wearing a pale lip gloss, since she was the one most interested in fashion. What annoyed me in the manga was HER HAIR!!! Like, HOW is it straight??? Did the scientists at The School take her out of her cage to a salon to get her hair relaxed?? Did Nudge carry around a flat iron in her pocket as they flew around and camped out in the woods?? It’s not like she has loose curls, she had straight flat hair. How?? Explain!!! Also, it was the 2000s, so the manga artist had access to the Internet and could have looked up hairstyles for Black girls. Drawing braids on a Black manga character is not difficult 🙄

[@cottontaelle]

ugh i remember that in the original book 2(?) makeover scene they definitely said smn abt “taming” her “frizzy/wild” hair by straightening it, & that whenever it wasnt straight theyd say things of a similar tone about it, which is pretty bad

[@kyleek6152]

oh my godd i remember that that was such a weird choice

[@niomi.p8288]

LITERALLY❗️i was nudges age when i read the manga and i loved her character sm, but god did i envy her hair. if it was more than 70 degrees my hair would turn, meanwhile nudge can FLY and hair still look fresh pressed

[@joiford251]

Even though it's rare, it is naturally possible for black women to have straight hair nothing wrong with it. To each their own, I guess😂

[@diurnarius8722]

It could have been straightened or a wig. Plenty of black girls do that, especially in the 2000s. Like 75% of the 2000s TV shows I can think of had black girls with straight hair. While I do like curly hair representation, it’s not even rare now to see black girls with straight hair. I’m a bit confused why you’re acting like this is an insane idea.

[@EerieGrey]

I also love in the feral seagull bit Fang pleading, "I'm one of you!" as if there is some kind of bird code against birds attacking other birds, as if that isn't something that happens in nature all the time. If there was some kind of code of bird solidarity, seagulls would definitely ignore it.

[@lilithium3940]

It really accidentally highlights how they are much more human than they think. It is very human to expect animals to treat you some sort of way as if many species don't attack their own indiscriminately to ensure territory distribution and population numbers. If they were as bird as they saw themselves as, they'd have that innate self preservation instinct some of them clearly lack 😂

[@error-try-again-later]

Seagulls would definitely choose to nuke every other bird species (including other gulls) just for the lols.

[@lilithium3940]

@error-try-again-later headcanon the 'school' scientists were part seagull and that's how they maintained an absolute lack of empathy

[@a_sea_of_serpents]

That scene cracked me up. This edgy, smooth talking ripped emo boy gets taken out by a fucking seagull.

[@ThespiansCreed]

The parking lot at the local mall is a gang battleground. The two opposing parties are the pigeons and the crows. They will literally form groups and jump each other FOR FUN! I think the crows are winning by the way.

[@deliwoman3720]

I dressed as Max for Halloween when I was about 13 and no one on God's green and plentiful earth had any clue who I was. This series had me in a CHOKEHOLD.

[@boi-condrift5129]

Omg same I still remember the confusion on peoples faces 😂

[@loremipsum5023]

Cosplaying book characters is hard, Will from rangers apprentice was my 13th Halloween costume

[@bad.raptor]

oh my god yea i feel this. i cosplayed max at megacon when i was like 14/15 and no one knew who i was or they thought i was castiel from spn 😭😭

[@sunflower2187]

I was convinced I was Max 😂

[@catboygremlin]

oof, I never went as any of the mr characters but I did go as Alanna from Song of the Lioness (Tamora Pierce) in 5th grade and got asked if I was a hooker.

[@mossalto]

This series is written like a fanfiction that gets updated twice a year max because the author decided on a whim they wanted to write a high school AU and couldn't be bothered to start a new fic. On another note, I never read these but I remember seeing the covers in bookshops and in my head it was a series about time travelling flying motorbike riders???

[@mothlee]

NO BUT why did I also think this was about time traveling flying motorbike riders??? that's so specific but so funny

[@mossalto]

@@mothlee on the one hand that's hilarious and reassuring that it wasn't just me, but on the other I'm now obsessed with tracking down why we thought that. Was it the UK covers? Is there another series about time traveling motorbikes that I got the titles mixed up with? I have such a specific vision in my head that it has to be a real thing! EDIT: TIMERIDERS! I knew it was real!

[@commitinsurancefraud]

This just made me laugh so hard 😂

[@auranizharu]

Well, it is a fanfiction of two of his earlier works, lol.

[@ajpotts4327]

Hey that sounds badass tho

[@benosick8542]

Maximum Ride is the first time I remember sitting on the bus home from school and realizing that the book I was reading was genuinely bad.

[@Crowcaller]

So many people feel this way!!!

[@Late_Night_Mozzarella]

Man, mine was warriors i think As a youngin, I tried to read maximum ride and immediately got bored. Guess I dodged a bullet? Honestly, sounds like the core memories this series gave people was worth it though

[@paranormeow]

@@Late_Night_Mozzarellawarriors was fun. maximum ride just made me feel stupid

[@churasannoo]

this comment makes me extra embarrassed because I genuinely thought it was good at the time 😅

[@Rathanii]

​@@Late_Night_Mozzarella I went back as an adult and read warriors, as I came across every book as I was moving. The first series was pretty cool, honestly. Had some really adult themes and some good, well-defined characters, motivations, and arcs. Overall I'd say it was one of the better book series for children

[@MsSmallVictory]

I always believed Total is a human- I imagined Angel finding him in a cage and the only word written on the cage being “total”, as in “total transformation into an animal”. That was the only thing that made sense to me!

[@spacecadetkaito]

I always thought "Total" was supposed to be a spin on "Toto", because they say he looks like Toto from the Wizard of Oz a few times, but yours is actually a pretty good idea

[@cranktherider4302]

PQNLD?

[@vraimothra]

thats actually a genius idea and i dont think james patterson deserves the credit for it

[@SebastianSeanCrow]

I never thought of it like that but honestly it makes sense

[@GummyDinosaursify]

A correction with the Patterson thing: _HE_ doesn't write most of the books you see. His earlier works were all him, but generally now he'll just submit a general plot (or just look over the first draft) and have another writer write it. You can see this on most books now with that secondary author actually being the author while he has very little work in the story, despite top billing. This isn't a hidden thing, he's done interviews about it and outright admitted he doesn't even really write much of anything anymore (I think either Women's Murder Club or Alex Cross was the exception for a while, but no longer). His name sells regardless if he's writing it or not, so he actually doesn't even need to write the books. He's been better at putting other author's names on the books lately (whether this is for legal or moral reasons, we will probably never know). He also now has a publishing company that puts "James Patterson Presents" at the top of the book, despite having absolutely ZERO involvement in the book outside of his company publishing it. Source: I am a Librarian, who has to deal with 3-5 new Patterson books per month. I'm almost happy that Colleen Hoover got bigger then him only because I needed variety.

[@Crowcaller]

Noooo hoover is like. Way more toxic lol

[@bettyunicorn6132]

@@Crowcaller sacrifices need to be made for variety crow

[@BlueScarabGuy]

Yeah, it's VERY clear that the first three Maximum Ride books were written by the same author (whether or not it was actually Patterson is anyone's guess, but it's The Original Author) and then there was a hard left turn.

[@morganwentworth2041]

One of the first things I learned in library school was just how much JP goes into libraries

[@GummyDinosaursify]

@@Crowcaller I didn't say I liked the books. I personally will never touch her books, but it's just nice to be able to purge the two entire bookshelves of Patterson books lol

[@Froggsroxx]

I just remember they went to a global meeting and said "polluting is bad" and all the governments were like "hmm yes good point" lmao

[@Crowcaller]

And yet it had no impact at all ://

[@rainbowlack]

​@@Crowcallerjust like real life!!

[@quinintheclouds]

@@rainbowlack OOF

[@Catglittercrafts]

@@rainbowlackfrfr

[@veronicafoxx8590]

Hearing you go through all of this, it really seems like a D&D game that went absolutely off the rails, mostly because the players wanted to screw around and not follow the plot. The DM finally gave up even trying and left. Someone else took over and wanted to run a new game, but the players still wanted a resolution, so the new DM had to bitterly finish a campaign that they wanted no part of and just made it ever more horrible in order to make them hate it enough to let it die. It also reminds me of reading the Hitchhiker's Guide series; a lot of fun, mostly unconnected and nonsensical, that all ends in tragedy, depression, and disappointment.

[@camdensnyder8894]

Now I want someone to write a fanfic with this concept. Like, the conversations between the players and stuff. It could be absolutely hilarious.

[@daniellespencer5026]

Oh my gosh 😂 it's true

[@umbra4540]

you cannot convince me that jeb didn't just want a giant wolf man for a son, it's the only motivation that makes sense

[@LowResCatExplosion]

That's sick af now I want a werewolf son

[@sa.moss4410]

I was raised in a cult so i wasnt really able to read any popular ya or see any of the movies or anything, but i DID secretly roleplay a lot online in the 2000s, and i was obsessed with genetic experimentation/lab experiment stories. I would join every edgy, overly-grim lab experiment rp i found lmao. I ended up accidentally joining a maximum ride rp, thinking it was an original world, and only later finding out that everyone else in the rp was a hardcore fan of this book series that apparently existed. I desperately wanted to read it and gleaned what information i could from the internet, but i never got to read it. It holds a weirdly nostalgic place in my heart for something i literally never read. Funny to find out a decade later that its trash LMAO

[@Crowcaller]

I want to know your life story chief

[@AmbassadorKat]

Seconded!

[@universal_stupidity]

I feel like you're the only one who should read it because you need the entire trip it is to heal your childhood mind (this is a joke and also I had a similar childhood experience)

[@ChemicalPenguinn]

@@Crowcaller I think all of us reading this want to :)

[@shannon9993]

a thing doesn't have to be quality for it to give you something you needed, and I'm glad you had a community.

[@nickybeansnunya9956]

a VERY specific thing that stuck with me is every single goddamn time i move my shoulders when i am wearing a jacket i think of them moving their wings under their windbreakers its been like fifteen years when will i know peace

[@Crowcaller]

Hey. Me. Me too buddy. Max ride had a serious "I can imagine having wings" influence on me

[@0meAcat1]

Fighting a very serious urge to append "when will I know peace" to every comment

[@kimberlycaritas]

I think it cemented in my mind the idea of having to slash clothing to fit wings through. Any other piece of media that includes wings always makes me wonder where/if they slashed the backs of their jackets, and I only just now made the connection to Max Ride 😂

[@treelicker]

I had a similar thing where I'd imagine them flying just over the treetops along the sides of the road as I was watching out the windows. I still do this occasionally as an adult 😂

[@margotpreston]

@@treelicker I do the same, but with bending; usually waterbending; from Avatar the Last Airbender.

[@amnesicshellfish]

My favorite thing about the flock being immune to this supposed "doomsday virus," is the idea that bird genetics would somehow make you immune to the avian flu?? Like even if you ignore the fact that a constantly mutating virus would very likely become a threat sooner or later, or how it's already been modified to the point of resembling a hemorrhagic fever more than any strain of influenza, the idea of bird kids being completely immune is so funny when the first result for "symptoms of avian flu in birds" is literally sudden death 😭

[@simplesimply3753]

You have to remember this was written before bird flu took over. So at the time there was very little information about how interconnected viruses could be.

[@amnesicshellfish]

@@simplesimply3753 i kinda disagree, as while information about viruses wasn’t as widespread in 2012 as it is today, it was definitely still available, you just had to do a bit more research. that being said, i don’t actually care too much when fictional diseases don’t make any sense lol. especially considering that a supposed species-ending virus, at least in humans, is pretty much impossible irl (or, at the very least, would have to be something completely different from anything that already exists). i just think it’s funny how they chose to pick a disease that notoriously infects both humans and birds, and then made the part-bird part-human kids immune lol

[@eliontheinternet3298]

lmao I never even put that together but you're so right

[@sunnysides9691]

there is SOOO much in maximum ride that stuck with me even as i got older and fell off the series after fang, but i do think the scene early on where max has a breakdown trying to dig the microchip out of her arm and the flock dynamic briefly switches to them trying to comfort and take care of HER despite being the oldest and parental figure is sort of a core memory for me in terms of scenes that made me go... wow. that is a genuine piece of emotional writing that resonates with me.

[@ashleyannie6756]

As a librarian, I have to say James Patterson is the bane of my existence. 😂 He has infiltrated every section of the library at this point, even the board books. We all collectively groan when another one of "his" books comes out. I will say, however, that I have fond memories of the early books in this series, but felt even as a teen that the plot was meandering and had no clear end point. Thanks for this fun dive into my reading past. ❤

[@Nike_on_a_bike]

OH MY GOSH I am right there with you. The fiction section alone has a whole shelf dedicated to him and every release of "his" books it spreads like a cancer into other shelves because we simply don't have space for it. The worst part is we can't cull it because most of those books are very popular 😭😭 I think the only author who could even compare to his shelf space would be Danielle Steele but at least she keeps it to adult fiction 😅

[@mushroomsdoingthefoxtrot9296]

Gosh yeah. Used to work in a book store and all "his" books would ship in on the same day. It was awful.

[@sendborbs2146]

I work in a secondhand book store and pretty much the entire crime/thriller section is just Patterson

[@ImaginaryAlchemist]

As a bookseller I know what you mean. He's inescapable. You can find him in just about every section. The bestseller shelf almost always has something with his name on it. It's honestly a bit frustrating

[@wolftitanreading5308]

Lol just need the James Patterson section and leave it there

[@ohnonotthemagain7088]

jesus christ, book nine was brutal, and it feels like a mean-spirited fanfic. like, the kind you write when you hate a character and just want them to die brutally and alone. i cannot believe that it's official.

[@Crowcaller]

Yeah, it super does. Like. It's insane to actually read

[@merrittanimation7721]

I don’t know must have ghostwritten the last couple books but they must have HATED this series

[@baffledpancake4764]

If fairness Patterson used to have ads in the books of a contest to litterally write sections of the later sections of the books. So I bet accurate description of the last book most likely opposed to just bad ghost writers

[@anniejankovic8056]

I'm with you in your "Total is actually just a human man" propaganda. Multiple of those quote reads + comments had me laughing out loud

[@Crowcaller]

I don't trust him

[@daaara]

@@Crowcaller Total is just Danny Devito in dog form

[@0meAcat1]

He's a man! He's a human man!!! 💀☠️ it gets me, every time

[@Lxurelxi]

“He’s a grown man and he should not date that dog!” God what has this series brought us to say out loud 😭

[@mpan7376]

Christ, I was obsessed with this series. The fact that Dylan was 'genetically modified to be her perfect match' made me SO MAD

[@Kaynighthood]

ME TOO! I was like! Fuck you dylan go awayyyyttt

[@PredictableEnigma]

Yes! Especially after Max and Fang had finally worked thier shit out and were in a stable relationship and were each others rock. Immediately ripped up as the writers decide that Max , the character that has trust issues and puts her family above all else, WOULD maybe rather hang out with this pretty boy she just met.

[@TheRealKingDedede]

I’m in a discord server for fans of the book and there’s an entire channel dedicated to hating on Dylan (who has been renamed Dave in the server and only in that server for completely unknown reasons I’ve asked so many times they don’t explain)

[@KILLV0ID]

@@TheRealKingDedede CAN I PLEASE HAVE A LINK

[@user-iq1rq2ur9k]

I'm so happy i never got far enough to know dylan, that plot sounds awful.

[@amandad8922]

Idk how I repressed the fact that I used this series in my maladaptive daydreams for YEARS but I somehow remember all of the plots vividly even though it feels like I'm learning it all for the first time. This series is a wild (maximum) ride

[@lrae9519]

I love how you never leave me hanging, very clearly calling out when something won't matter, won't come up again or won't be resolved. I can't keep track but always have immediate questions so I appreciate how I can just throw out useless bits as fast as I take them in.

[@Crowcaller]

Max ride is about impossible to track, especially if you haven't read the books, so in general I tried to just straight up mention whenever there's a dropped thread. Most of the books are that. And I bet it's more confusing as a viewer to the vid!

[@SpecialInterestShow]

​@@CrowcallerI always thought it was confusing because I started out of order, so it's SO fucking funny to hear that, no, it's just... Like That™

[@SpartanXVII]

One of my top favourite phrases since starting this video has been "we're then introduced to X, which is never explained, and won't be mentioned again."

[@gregjayonnaise8314]

Honestly the story makes more sense if you interpret Itex as a death cult with warring factions who are all conflicted on what to do with their mutants, which is why there are so many differing priorities with Max and the others. Jeb and some others want Max and the Flock to survive the apocalypse, others want NO life to survive, others still want some of the world’s population to live, and others want mutants to rise above the rest. And some just want to sell mutants to warring countries and let them bomb each other to the Stone Age.

[@Sunny-zd8qm]

My brother passed away recently and he had sooooo many opinions on maximum ride and hush hush lol. This reminded me of our middle school book ranting sessions. It was nice :) thank you

[@dashacastillo1377]

i’m glad u were able to enjoy the video! wishing you love and healing

[@lenabj]

My brother was the one who got me to read maximum ride, it was super rare for him to enjoy reading. I’m so sorry for your loss ❤

[@elnic_kai]

"Fang then emails every child in the world." "Max flies to Dr. God's house, which they find on Google..." 'Stop making giant wolf-men to be your son!' "Geb and his army of sons..."

[@theeveningcallsforfairies5246]

I’m convinced that the events of Maximum Ride aren’t even real. I think the books are actually the story of a game of pretend played by a bunch of kids from the kids’ perspective. The total lack of understanding of how the world functions, all the fake out twists, retconned plot points, and dropped threads, everyone constantly gaining new powers and then forgetting them, all the nonsensical villains, and all the drama about Max’s parents in the first trilogy - all of this sounds EXACTLY like a childhood game of pretend.

[@shinyumbreon696]

This series holds such a special place in my heart as the first time I ever put down the last book in a series and said "Wow, that was TERRIBLE." I think it genuinely gifted me with critical thinking skills. Like, "This man is a professional author and he wrote that god-awful, completely unhinged ending. That just happened. That's a thing that CAN happen!"

[@StitchChicksRule]

Me too!!! It was the first time I ever got to a point is a series where I was absolutely sure that 5 people tag-teamed writing a book and the name on the cover wasn’t one of them.

[@TigeriPlaysGames]

ayy, same! my entire friend group in middle school was obsessed either these books and I still stopped reading by around Fang or Angel because it was just getting so terrible with no sign of looking up

[@KamenSentaiMetalHero]

​@@TigeriPlaysGamesI personally stopped at Max. The series became way to focused on the teen romance at the expense of a plot.

[@PredictableEnigma]

Everyone has to encounter their first piece of media that teaches them that things can be bad

[@Flareontoast]

Also, as a certified "I had a short lived special interest in snow dogs" person I have to point out that if the kids are supposed to have hollow bones like birds, they'll be quite brittle, and Malamutes are considered large dogs and can weigh up to 170ish pounds sometimes. If a big dog like this FELL on a CHILD with BIRD BONES from a HEIGHT. That child has to be extremely lucky to not get hurt by this incident.

[@alexisventura7191]

I mean, Max also randomly found her half-sister and then accidentally her bio mother by pure and insane luck pretty much, so "extreme luck" clearly came with the list of bird mutations jahahah -its probably just the author forgetting what bird bones are tough-

[@madisonlacourse8798]

Genuinely surprised that through all of the wild details to pull out of the book, you left out the fact that in book 2, when the child asks for Ari's autograph thinking he's Wolverine, they were at Disney World. Max and the flock visited the land of Michael Rodent. Also, how can Ari sign Wolverine's name "with flourish" but can't spell or write his own name🤔

[@sendborbs2146]

I'm just very sadly imagining him signing with a scribble and trying to make it look like words

[@Kaynighthood]

I remember this part in the series and I just felt so bad for ari. The poor baby

[@elizabethblue1523]

in the manga, he dips his claws into paint and uses that instead of an autograph. this part really endeared me to ari, he's really just a kid.

[@danl5086]

Absolutely wild. I can't believe I forgot about this detail.

[@missybarbour6885]

For some reason the Disney trip is one of the few things I remember from this series, like, when Angel begs for the flock to go to Disney World on their way to Florida and Max thinks "We just HAD to fly right over that mouse ear water tower..." already the "We have McDonalds at home" parent at age 14 lol

[@TheFlinchyDinosaur]

Learning that there were more books after book 9 is like a knife to my heart. It's like an old enemy rearing it's ugly head for the first time in a decade.

[@SpecialInterestShow]

Pro tip for beating imposter syndrome about being a good writer: your story probably at least makes more sense than Maximum Ride!

[@CloudsAndDays]

This is genuinely how I encourage my partner to write. We read a lot of shitty YA novels. And whenever we finish, we go ‘If they can get away with writing this, so can we!’

[@HasturTheGhost]

Genuinely, this is how I got into writing. I'm not even kidding.

[@SpecialInterestShow]

@@CloudsAndDays if Colleen hoover can be successful I sure can!

[@bashbashfulsson4540]

I dip into the Sword of Truth series whenever I need to fight the imposter syndrome.

[@jazzy4830]

The real way to beat imposter syndrome is to pretend you are a scheming villain, an intentional imposter, your praise is deserved by virtue of you duping those hapless fools. Cackle manically instead of crying about it.

[@Eeeklizabeth]

Maximum Ride has such a weird place in my personal history. I’ve basically never loved anything so much only to end up utterly disappointed in the end. I’m only half an hour in but already I’m remembering things I must have repressed, like The Voice.

[@Topdoggie7]

The Voice just gets yeeted and I liked it but I hated it post Toto.

[@Crowcaller]

Man. The voice lives so strongly in my head because it was one of the most important pieces of new nonsense that helped me realise the books were going downhill

[@froginatub]

This was exactly my relationship with the series. Probably the first pieces of media I ever remember falling *out* of love with.

[@Eeeklizabeth]

@@Crowcaller I’m totally questioning how I managed to forget because now that you’ve reminded me it’s like oh, wow, yeah, that was absolutely wild. 😂

[@0meAcat1]

​@@froginatubimportant coming of age event, ah youth

[@jovindsouza3407]

You read NINE BOOKS FOR ONE VIDEO?? DAMN THAT IS DEDICATION.

[@Crowcaller]

If I wasn't being lazy frankly I should have read 11! 9 was me going a bit easy XD

[@Astrotorical]

Those most glorious words after 3 hours of raw footage "... Which I'm not going to read" Praise be Doctor God!

[@kahlimarie3230]

She said she read 8 of the books. I've watched the whole thing and it went from 9 to 8, which I don't blame you for not reading every book. They just get worse and worse with each new release.

[@rustkitty]

Wait, they can't make more viable bird kids, but they can make identical clones of the bird kids they have already made? How does this work?

[@LondonIsNotACity]

Case in point; why create Max’s clone when she’s already, well… Max is just herself?

[@sophiaisoutofservice]

actually you know what they did clone Max and they cloned Fang i think but they were like evil and it was so wack in the books but it was a whole plot line and the og fang liked the clone max better and yeah and then i think they killed them off but i don’t really remember

[@Fanghur170]

@@sophiaisoutofservice I don't remember them cloning Fang but I think there was basically a cameo of a clone!Nudge and clone!Angel at the Itex headquarters in book 3. Clone!Max later called Maya did get killed off, though

[@sophiaisoutofservice]

@@Fanghur170 yes!!! maya omg!!! yeah idk about Fang but i do remember nudge and angel being cloned as well.

[@the.axolotlgirl]

Maybe the clones just didn’t have that much potential to become better than the originals or they could break down or certain things were wrong like their bones

[@RecilaRotten]

I remember three things from this series. One: A very specific scene of Ari stealing a game boy suddenly and violently unlocking my will to analyze characters, scenes, books, and series as a whole. I still have that! Two: It, along with Animorphs, definitely shaped my fascination with body horror and general lab experiment / lab horror, the former of which is basically formative at this point. Three: I stopped at... Either Fang or Angel? with an unshakeable and absolute confidence, that the only ride we were going on from there was straight down, and I was just fine with keeping the ones I had read. I don't remember WHY, but I also can't wait to see how many sharp lefts were on the way down!

[@sendborbs2146]

omg THE GAME BOY SCENE that honestly hit me so hard, like it was such a harsh reminder that he was just a little boy

[@geraltrivia9565]

I loved his side scenes in book 2 they were so good especially when he was at Disney workd

[@the.axolotlgirl]

Yeah they gave a good look into his character and how he has to deal with maturing fast but still wanting to be a child

[@nikadeitch7118]

Theres actually a strong argument for Jeb having been physically abusive as well. In the first book at least they discuss jeb sparring with them at full intensity for training and reading between the lines it doesnt sound like the way a trusted adult would teach self defense

[@alinagrinseit]

i didn’t know anything about this series but boy am i glad to learn everything

[@Topdoggie7]

Imagine two really good books and then suddenly they stop being mature Rats of NIMH and discussing death or swearing and become Dora the Explorer.

[@Crowcaller]

You wmay learn too much. Watch out

[@ecyor0]

There it is, there's my entire relationship with booktube summed up in a single sentence.

[@BaeCat872]

It really is jarring looking at Nudge in the manga now because she was my FAVORITE when I read them as a kid. I was obsessed with how scene her design was, she was truly the fashion it girl of my childhood

[@Crowcaller]

It's funny because nudge in the manga is kinda a cute design! It's just how they colour her lips and the fact her design makes her look way older than say, 11, and consistently avoids giving her natural hair despite her most of the series having it. The artist is talented, it's just very unfortunate when you grow up and think about the choices more

[@13Exxal]

"Maximum Ride is the kind of book that will just LIE TO YOU" omg, I can't even tell you how hard that made me laugh! XD

[@MaxAvan]

Thank god. I haven't even started the video. But this book series is such a core part of my identity. When I came out as nonbinary I chose the name Max, PRIMARILY because of this book series. I'm so god damn excited to watch all four hours of this because oh my god this is truly THE video essay I have been waiting to see. Thank you for your effort, it is appreciated at least by this lil weirdo.

[@Crowcaller]

And I appreciate YOU max

[@MaxAvan]

@@Crowcaller Alright well three hours later and I'm done now and my god. I read Nevermore and I knew of Forever's existence but oh my god I'm glad I never read it. What an absolutely depressing book to read. Even if the deaths were fake that would have been just awful to read. Also while I do love these books I have not read them in over a decade and it's always fun to visit these childhood nostalgia series and see all the incredibly messed up crap in them. "Chad: The country of AIDs and poverty". And somehow Dylan as a character completely left my mind. The entire flock, Ari, Jeb, Dr Martinez, Total the weird ass little man dog, all of them were still in there but every single scene you described with Dylan was completely scrubbed and absent from my mind, what a nothing character. All that said, thank you for this trip down memory lane, I'm excited to check out some of your other videos now that this one has brought me into the fold!

[@tired7795]

I'm not nonbinary (I think) but this book was also the reason I choose to go by Max in online spaces and as my username on video games and such. Funny (and endearing) to see that I'm not the only one lol

[@LondonIsNotACity]

I’m all over the map so ik that feeling (not with Max, but Fang), trust me, really, altho cant imagine being your identity instead of mine (all over map yet sometimes I decide only agender). Also gave myself the nickname Fang, as somewhat resemble him IRL, and I’m different more reasons than that. Max also has significance, to me, for more reason than Fang does.

[@LondonIsNotACity]

@@MaxAvansomehow w/dissociation ive mostly always managed to remember Maya (or maybe I didnt, at this rate, who knows), anyway she seemed she would turn out to help Fang, but i thought this was bc Maya and ‘Fang’s Gang’ would ally with the flock

[@ribbonquest]

For every mention of Erasers, I imagine pink rubber erasers. Terrifying.

[@rx500android]

Same😭 just a simple stationary attack

[@merrittanimation7721]

I read these books all the way through as a kid and I couldn't never take them seriously because of this (also because they're no threat)

[@yukikanegawa7470]

Pink rubber erasers shaped like thumb thumbs from Spy Kids

[@geraltrivia9565]

I thought they were actually giant erasers as a kid

[@Remytheabsoluterat]

Max and Dylan's bodies "fitting together like puzzle pieces" and throw up brown eyes have haunted me- great video as always!

[@Crowcaller]

I can and will defeat Dylan

[@merrittanimation7721]

@@Crowcaller It is your destiny

[@billuraral1870]

Dylan reads like a self-insert OC (nothing wrong with them as long as they're not in the sixth book of a published series): Suddenly shows up and is best at everything in-universe, he's the handsomest guy ever, he also has wings despite the Flock being only of their kind, has bunch of superpowers, is an awesome fighter despite had been born of a test tube few months ago, and oh yeah, he's totally soulmates with the MC, forget her canon boyfriend!

[@bj71000]

One summer, in 90 degree(Fahrenheit) heat, I walked 5 hours to Barnes & Noble to buy books 4-7. They were terrible but I couldn’t admit it at the time. 10 years later and I’m finally free to speak my mind.

[@bhaddcommie]

I’m so sorry 😭 ik that had to hurt at the time

[@bj71000]

@@bhaddcommieI didn’t have enough cab fare to get all the way home, but I reckon the cab driver knew these books and felt sorry for me.

[@littlemadster]

that last book was insane!!! I don't think i realized i had kept up with the series all the way to book 7 as a kid, because i always used to make fun of the later plot choices. specifically how the characters were never actually saving the world, just saying that they would over and over. I have to say though that this series captured the sensation of having wings and flying so vividly, it really shaped my mind. i used to be able to lucid dream i had wings for yearssss after i read maximum ride

[@Crowcaller]

Yeah........ The fact they never do hell to save the world and it JUST ENDS is wild

[@364-unbirthdays8]

Seeing this video made me remember how crazy I was about Fang. I actually have a taste in anime emoboys now and I'm like 90% sure Manga Fang was what spawned it. Thanks, Maximum Ride

[@ivorymoonwolf4721]

Fang was my biggest book crush. It was insane. I would carry around the books with me everywhere I went with his face on the cover just to stare lovingly at it and wish he was real lol. I hated how the author kept trying to kill him off.

[@zanite8650]

I liked with Fang he was this kind of brooding badass to Max, but then we get his chapters and he's just frantically thinking " Max, no!" only to be non-verbally answered by Max doing the wildest shit.

[@paranormeow]

manga fang unconsciously affected how I design characters. So many of mine have his exact pre makeover manga hairstyle with the long ponytail and it all comes back to HIM

[@mdg245]

There is something very funny about the series that takes a hard turn into climate activism has their flying bird characters take so many private jets

[@bucca2]

I just HOLLERED out LOUD. FOUR HOURS OF CROW CALLER talking about one of my nostalgic childhood book series?!

[@Crowcaller]

HOOT AND HOLLAR FOR ME IT IS THE TIME OF MAXIMUM RIDE

[@remyvalker]

I was obsessed with Maximum Ride when I was younger. I had the books and the manga but stopped reading after Angel despite owning later copies. I’m still nostalgic for the first couple of books but boi the last ones… sure are there.

[@Crowcaller]

SAME HAT. I was a huuuuuge fan, and Angel was also my stoping point

[@sharonburns1731]

Me to. Like I read the first 6 out of order due to library things, then angel came out and I just. Couldn't.

[@maiaeliana888]

okay ive only gotten through your discussion of the original trilogy, and i have to say, i hadnt thought about maximum ride for like easily 10 years before this popped up in my recommended, but once i started listening to you talk about it, i remembered at least these three books (and unfortunately the presence of dylan) so viscerally it kind of hurts. the director n*zi lady being part galapagos turtle is something that i had forgotten but definitely now remember showing my mom and being like "shouldn't that make her look old then? turtles are all wrinkly" thank you for your service in forcing yourself through all these books, you're a true hero

[@greengrendel]

I feel like this series came up hard against "why would you resolve any conflict when you can just fly away", lol. Also yes, it's a week later and i'm still slowly going through this, lol.

[@phoenixfritzinger9185]

I remember reading one of those books and loosely explaining what it was about to my dad and he ended up showing me his big boxes full of old 70’s-90’s X-Men comics I’m pretty sure that was an act of mercy because I decided to go read those X-Men comics instead of finishing Maximum Ride

[@PredictableEnigma]

Blessed by cool dad. Thanks, dad.

[@RiaJaize]

"These books lie to you." I love that observation.

[@cherryscottage6801]

God, I remember this series. The debate of who the voice actually was and the amount of "plot twists" revealing it. I can't believe the authors decided to go with Angel, and then make her like a pseudo leader? Still can't wrap my head around that

[@gregcourtney751]

Agreed. How many times did she go evil or play star scream before this? For all his aloofness, fang is a better choice.

[@frannie4310]

Thank you for talking about Nudge so much! She was always my favorite and was sad that she got so much less attention. Also this series is so much crazier and inconsistent than I remember. Thank you for rereading it so I didn’t have to.

[@SingOutLoud518]

“Everything can overlap if you’re a very determined extremist” I DIED thank you for your service making this vid😂

[@whatsmoothbeast5177]

Never been so grateful to be part of the Animorphs generation.

[@Topdoggie7]

Animorphs didn't let us down.

[@obiwan-in-a-pudding2909]

Imagine having read all of both series and how much that would fuck a kid up.

[@MrCheeze]

@@Topdoggie7 A little iffy during the ghostwriter era, but completely nailed the ending.

[@notlurking2128]

​@@obiwan-in-a-pudding2909that was me! I hunted for every animorph book in second hard stores (and got up to like 40 of them) AND I read every maximum ride book from my school library. Yes I am deeply fucked up.

[@obiwan-in-a-pudding2909]

​@@notlurking2128 i inherited my Animorphs books from my older brother.

[@ghostlyhonks]

MAXIMUM RIDE MY BELOVED. I've wanted to rewrite the series starting after the like 3rd book, it lives rent-free in my mind I'm so happy you're covering it!! I've been planning on rereading it myself, so I'm so glad this came out before that!!

[@Crowcaller]

I love max ride. As much as I am obviously dunking on it, I really loved rereading the first trilogy. It was so key to me as a kid. After that? Well

[@ghostlyhonks]

@@Crowcaller YEAH, that is the experience of being a Maximum Ride fan lmao. The original trilogy holds a very special place in my heart, but man, the books after them sure were some of the books of all time!

[@simplesimply3753]

I’d loved if you could rewrite the books with better ending.

[@Topdoggie7]

Oh thank you so much for addressing Nudge's mistreatment as well as how racist that James Patterson is. It's no secret that multiple of his books treat African Americans like they are not human or you go into them to have them prone to rage and aggressive behavior. I've read over fifty of his books and every time it is nasty. It is so racist and this man with his manga that makes her look like that really upset me with how Nudge is portrayed. She deserves better.

[@arin2747]

To add to your important call out of his racism, I read one of his adult mystery/thriller books once (not by choice, I was bored in an Airbnb for a family reunion and it was one of the only books available). There was a lot of sex, but when the hero detective has consensual sex with his wife it just says "they made love, end of chapter" but when the villain r*pes the victim, it's described in erotic detail. Having the only arousing depictions of sex being non-consensual and horrifying for the victim really really bothered me and I will not be reading another of his books, even if I'm bored and its the only option

[@Topdoggie7]

@@arin2747 Please tell me which book that is.

[@gregcourtney751]

A geniniue question. Does the racism crop up in the portrayal of Alex Cross? Tbf I always assumed he was white, only to learn Patterson made his most popular protagonist black. It wouldn't make up for racism elsewhere to be clear.

[@Topdoggie7]

@@gregcourtney751 Okay so NO he didn't make those characters African American. People who wanted to ADAPT them did and then HE DID. So if you read them, you'll see him tweaking it to match the African American media portrayal. It's racism still, but him trying to chase those dollars.

[@arin2747]

@@Topdoggie7 Don't remember exactly, whatever book the owner of an airbnb 3 years ago had. Does "Swimsuit" sound familiar?

[@fionacheng7868]

I'd love for you to cover Patterson's other "big series" to me, Daniel X and Witch and Wizard. I remember really liking both as a kid but after skimming them again as an adult I realized that Witch and Wizard opening basically halfway through an existing story wasn't as cool as I thought and Daniel X basically has all of Maximum Ride's problems but worse.

[@evilangel7821]

I loved Witch and Wizard for like a book and a half until it became super romantic, I think that was the reason I dropped it. But Daniel x was my favorite.

[@goldenthyme13]

The ninth book sounds like the ghost writer read Gone and was like "Oh I want to write that instead of Maximum Ride"

[@Sheblet]

i used to be genuinely obsessed with these books and i probably read the angel experiment a million times. but they were an absolute hot mess and i can’t wait for this trip down memory lane

[@Crowcaller]

I cannot count how much I read the series when I was younger, book 2 was my fav but like. I read them soooo much

[@adkeq8051]

Me too!!! I was so obsessed

[@willscarashatfitthroughthe4049]

Omg, yes. Maximum Ride was a book series my older sisters read when they were coming out and then discouraged me from reading for various reasons. At first i believe it was because they thought it was more mature, but later when i asked them about their shelf with a collection of the books they essentially told me it ended up long-winded and crazy, and shared with me anecdotes from their experience. I'm thus very excited now to watch this Crow Caller deep dive to finally find out what i missed out on, by golly.

[@Crowcaller]

Oh man. I guess I'm now your older sister because like. Boy. Let me tell ya a story

[@billuraral1870]

Ah, Maximum Ride. The book series that taught me what "seasonal rot" is without even having a TV show. Even to this day, I get a sense of dread whenever one of my fave series get a new season (p.s. fellow OFMD fans, are you scared and pumped as I am?)

[@botchboy4237]

Now that I think about it, yeah this was probably the first time I could feel a series I was into going downhill as a kid, and I never even finished the whole series.

[@franklyfrancis3462]

Hey! Well-phrased; I couldn’t agree more. I, too, always worry (and sometimes delay watching or neglect to entirely) when a new season or iteration of a beloved product comes out. I ADORE OFMD, and so does my mother and grandparents, but I am terrified about the next season 😭

[@char_the_shark]

I have a special place in my heart for this series, not only for the nostalgia, but because it's the series that introduced me to fanfiction. Gotta love catching up on a series only to have to wait for Nevermore to be released, so you change the course of your life forever by reading (1) fanfiction.

[@catboygremlin]

lmao max ride fanfic is what put me off fanfic for almost a decade because the first one I clicked on had one of my big phobias in it with no warning.

[@arloelowyn8529]

maximum ride also introduced me to fanfiction lol. i was obsessed with "max leaves the flock" types of fics

[@susannahlewis8464]

Maximum Ride was my first experience of going from loving a book series to wanting to throw the books across the room.

[@a_Saga_in_progress]

This brings back memories… I was in love with the concept of winged humans when I was a kid, and I wanted really badly to like this series. The concept is amazing-a found family flock of winged kids on the run? Amazing, I’d read that any day. I even read a fanfic based on Maximum Ride for another fandom, and it was really good. Unfortunately these books are terrible? There was plot point after plot point that just disappeared, and what was with the motives of their father figure? He betrayed them, then was good again, then betrayed again? I hate how they wasted such an interesting premise, but it was fun to hear about the craziness in this video!

[@avryantoinette]

Ohhhhhh putting other characters/fandoms with better stories into the Maximum Ride recipe is a great idea.

[@SomeoneYouDontKnow16]

This is insane because I clicked on this vid thinking “oh I read like the first two or three books.” Turns out, I read the first seven and I retained very little of any of them. Wonderful video, by the way! I love these long videos

[@leiakasta7602]

You listing off their ages at the start of the first book absolutely blew my mind. Like. Wow I always assumed they were older. You know, now that I think about it maybe the reason I thought they were older wasn’t just the various horrors they went through but also they often feel written as older and more mature at times. Like for example, Max and Fang’s romance arc never felt like something that would happen to 14 year olds to me.

[@Infindox]

That's something that pulled me out of the "immersion" a bit. Max and some of the others talk way too well for their age, and espically for kids who probally do not have much schooling. You could try to put up an argument that testing made them smarter but that's a weird idea tbh.

[@Lara-mx4cd]

I think this is mostly because enough adults don't know how kids act and what's the difference between 12 and 15. Also I feel the same about the children in Game of thrones, they're not acting their age.

[@AHiddenShadow]

I vaguely recall Jenna referencing working on maximum ride during an interview saying ‘it’s kids with wings what’s not to love’ or at least something along those lines. Very strange that it wasn’t referenced in any vlogs by julien at the time, fairly certain it would’ve been during his daily vlog era. For one of my most formative book series, I sure did repress at lot 😂

[@AHiddenShadow]

I found it, it was her interview with Larry king: kzbin.info/www/bejne/emrHm2iNn6t9fLc

[@nxctem]

I read some of the books, most of the manga and watched the movie. Despite this, I cannot recall a single thing that happens in these books because it made no sense to me 💀. I’m thankful the writing was so bad that I didn’t bother to read the rest out of curiosity.

[@vincentstrangewaes]

i love mutant kid books i would absolutely read the book/s if you wrote it/them! i grew up isolated (rural property, very limited internet, and my parents were super antisocial so we barely ever saw anyone - it was just me, my brother, and my parents), autistic, queer, and neglected, and the whole vibe of "mistreated and inherently unusual kids escape horrible situation and manage to fight their way into the world and scrape out a supportive found family environment and go on to help others" always resonated with me because that's what i wished would happen to me (i am 25 now and it's been about a year and a half since i managed to get out, and i have safe, stable housing, found family, three cats, and since recently my brother has been safe too)

[@thefoxandthehound81]

SAME !!!!!! but i’m 14 and have no found family (yet, hopefully?)

[@vincentstrangewaes]

@@thefoxandthehound81 the way i found a safe home and a real family was one that I never could have seen, so stay hopeful, take care, and keep looking forward to something better. you got this 💚

[@KIMIsheep]

woah this resonates with me so hard ;-;

[@kyokunskitty]

I'm actually shocked that you mentioned Where The Wind Blows and The Lake House, because I feel like I'm the only one who read those lol! I was in fifth grade, years before the Maximum Ride series came out, and snuck them off my mom's bookshelf because I'd basically read every book in the school library. They're very, uh . . . Horny. Horny is definitely the right word. The original series ends with Max, who is still a minor (honest to fuck I think she's only 12 or 13, there's a whole bit where she says she ages faster than humans) laying eggs after doing a whole mating ritual in an earlier chapter with the "Fang" of that series (Ozymandias), who between said bird dance and egg laying, gets shot and killed. The bullet goes through the homemade stick-and-poke tattoo he did over his own heart of Max's name. When the Maximum Ride series came out years later when I was in highschool I remember being really confused over the fact that it was a reboot and also significantly less horny.

[@katierasburn9571]

bro WHAT

[@friendofdragons763]

I read those too! Horny is a very good description

[@SpecialInterestShow]

😬 E-excuse me?

[@elifishwhat]

yes!! i read The Lake House as a kid and just forgot everything that happened until now, its really as crazy as you describe it

[@rainbow-chan6468]

Holy shit this unlock a memory I wish had stayed repressed.

[@Ravenwinds]

I’m pretty sure at least one of James Patterson’s ghost writers have come forward saying they’ve ghost written for him and talked about how that went. Patterson has also some awful takes about diversity in publishing. I still remember him deciding his imprint should stop publishing other authors and instead should now only publish his own books.

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

I remember having the biggest guffaw when he said "there's no more room for guys like me anymore." When 1) His books can still be found anywhere from the lowliest used bookstore to the most international of airports. 2) It's an open secret that he hasn't personally written anything in over a decade.

[@error-try-again-later]

​@@TheNumnutRandomness "no room for me" = "I refuse to participate unless I'm getting special treatment"

[@TheNumnutRandomness]

@@error-try-again-later "no room for me" = "someone with a round-the-clock team of ghostwriters and basically has a spot reserved on every NYT Bestsellers list"

[@ElaineAlwaysMS]

these books love to gaslight us and just be like "lol that didn't happen" it drove me crazy as a kid haha

[@user-hb8rk8oy4o]

i'm breaking my rule to never ever create a youtube channel exclusively to thank you for making this video-- i wished this same week that someone like you would unpack this series that ruled my childhood and haunts my adulthood. angel/winged special interest-havers rise up!!!

[@changelingsys]

i never even read these books nor did i know the plot and yet i’ve been fixated on winged/animal mutant lab experiments for over a decade. seems pretty likely that the rp forums i frequented were inspired by max ride but were removed enough that i never knew lol

[@bashbashfulsson4540]

​@@changelingsysthe first two are worth reading, even paying for if you just get them as ebooks or something. Books three, four, and five aren't worth paying more than charity shop prices for, but if you really enjoy the first two then you should take a look if you can get them from a library or something. After that... I don't think it's worth continuing. Write your own ending for the series.

[@rat8907]

before I start watching this: I read this *entire* series as a child, it altered my brain chemisty is weird and fucked up ways, and I'm excited for this four hour look into it! One notable thing I remember from when I read it was getting really annoyed by how.. circular the plot was. one book theyd be with a parental figure who dupes and abuses them, then they find another parental figure who does the same, repeat three more times, go back to the OG abusive parental figure, and then just keep doing that for... however many books there were. It went in some weird directions and if I remember I'll edit this comment as I watch and remember more from the box I shoved all of those memories into!

[@rat8907]

ok, about 15 minutes in, here are my thoughts: -Angel. f**king Angel. Goddamn Angel. so much happens with her and I cant even remember if she turns out fine or if she ended up turning evil but I do know a good chunk of the later plot is specifically about Angel. I think they mess with her eyes? -Ari and the erasers. Jesus those bring back memories. Ari is so fucking tragic, and Jeb is a piece of.. work... But that poor kid went through so much for no real reason, and he was just a child! -also, jeb, the best man at playing both sides, genuinely, and consistently. Doesnt he flip between helping the flock and hurting them like... 20 times? -Also I remember that in like the last couple of books (they had a matte rubbery finish on these ones, I remember, I hated it) that there was this whole thing about clones and trying to hook Max up with this other mutant named Dylan or something. There was genuine talk about her and him literally being made for each other and to have kids if I'm right -Also Iggy supremacy, he was always my favorite

[@rat8907]

28 minutes: -not much to comment, but that cat and the uhh... the random mutant bird boy Max meets like later in the series that cant talk and has stronger wing muscles have always kinda stuck with me too. Also the scene where either Max alone or the entire flock were strapped down to tables and their trackers were either torn out or put in, I cannot for the life of me remember, but that is very vivid in my mind

[@rat8907]

38 minutes: -"Fang starts a blog" Oh boyyyy does he ever. I dont think I ever really noticed that until like.... once it became genuinely plot relavent later down the line

[@Crowcaller]

I appreciate this live react so much

[@Crowcaller]

Yeah, I had to edit on the first mention as I ignored it until suddenly it was super keen and the focus of his character

[@sarae1250]

I was a maximum ride girlie but even as a little kid I was able to realize that the books were getting worse and we're definitely not written by the same person. I remember getting nevermore as a gift and even though I had already given up on the series at the point I decided to give it a read. My disappointment was immeasurable

[@MH-jn5cm]

Thank you so much for talking about the crap treatment of Nudge, I loved the manga and her character in it but I was always kinda uncomfortable with how they drew her

[@porkybunns4829]

I loved the Manga and the art still love the artstyle but I really wish they gave Nudge a significantly better design than what she got...

[@PurpleBadger14]

This video is such a delight, i cackled at all of the off the rails stuff i forgot. Krelp? Dog wedding?? ROBERT THE LIZARD BOY???????? I read this series in middle and high school and i remember being so let down by it, for the first time with a series i loved so much. I feel like a lot of the YA books at the time were trending towards BIG MEANINGFUL THEME ABOUT SOCIETY, a la hunger games, and it felt like halfway through my guy JP was just like "oh, the teens love dystopia? Maybe i should make this about (googles "issues in society").... global warming. Yeah". And i was an eco-obsessed head-of-my-high-school-environmental-club kind of girlie, and even i was like YOU CAN'T JUST DO THAT? SIR????? HOW IS THIS THE MESSAGE?????????

[@Crowcaller]

It really as someone also who was super into raising awareness of climate change, extremely eye roll worthy, the sudden global warming plotline

[@royce6485]

Im mad about the Itex confusion. I could let every other plot hole slide, but you need to have the entire reason for the Flock’s existence to make sense!!!!! This video makes me remember that I stopped reading because the plot didn’t make enough sense. As an adult I wouldn’t have continued after the 2nd book lol Edit: in general im pissed at james patterson for getting praised for these goofy ass books and for getting famous off of writers whose names will never see the light of day

[@GrassJelly101]

I can't imagine how much time, brainpower, and sheer will it took for you to keep track of the actual plot through all the plot holes, inconsistencies, and retcons! I recall reading up to Angel and also being absolutely weirded out by Total and getting extremely annoyed with Dylan being shoved into the flock. Grats on the adorable plushie, and don't worry about the hair; it looks great! Thanks for summing up this crazy series and delivering a nearly 4-hr dose of nostalgia!

[@runawaygemm5397]

Maximum ride was and still is one of my favorite books in the “made for and intended to be consumed by children but also horrifically violent and dark” genre. I loved them, and bullied (exaggerated) my middle school librarian into getting them all for me. They’re insane, but also very very fun. Also, Pattersons’ net worth is somewhere around EIGHT HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS

[@yelena86]

Your channel is such an underrated gem. I can say I’ve been here since Lightlark😂 You deserve more views and subs ✌️🙏❤️

[@Crowcaller]

Thank you! I'm surprised I'm at 20k. But hey, I'm working at it!

[@TheGhostieZone]

Right? I found CC by accident and once I finished the backlog I wanted to find more people similar and I honestly just can't find anyone who talks about these kinds of books the same way. I'm so glad I found CC a few months ago.

[@ribbonquest]

@@TheGhostieZone Truly! Booktubers who talk positively (or even neutrally) about these weird old gems are so rare. Love every minute of it.

[@itsgreyfaayy]

I remember loving the first few books as a tween but then hated the final warning so much that I angry-read the last few books in blind rage.

[@DParkerNunya]

Same

[@ivorymoonwolf4721]

Maximum Ride was my favorite book series growing up. I loved Max as a protagonist and she was such a big role model for me. Fang was my biggest book crush ever(and ooh boy his manga version was so hot) and I was so mad that as the books went on they kept trying to kill him off, Angel becoame more and more annoying and backstabbing(I hated her in the Fang book, omg!), Ari kept coming back and Dylan was introduced. The books just kept getting worse.

[@staysterling]

Funniest core memory I have unlocked of maximum ride is seeing the manga and being so mad that Fang had long hair instead of the emo boi cut I was expecting that I didn't read them (Looking at the design now I think it suits him 😅)

[@ronaldreaganhater6982]

I had a fight with my friend over the Manga because they didn't think that Fang was a girl because of his hair

[@songweretson1513]

Your videos are reassuring me that the pickiness of my youth was actually a good thing, and the fact I didn't read many of these big name YA books is a net positive.

[@Crowcaller]

it really was probably a wise thing. I get kids just don't have a good sense of quality fiction, but..... boy

[@Topdoggie7]

James Patterson markets half his stuff towards kids then mocks them for liking it. He's a ruiner of childhoods.

[@nekoprankster2184]

Oddly I've had the opposite effect. As a kid I thought myself better for being picky and looked down on other series and the fans of those series, but then a video like this comes out and proves younger me wrong, that I was just as susceptible and just didn't notice at the time 'cause callouts for my stuff didn't exist back then.

[@KairiMorin]

Same.

[@nitebreak]

same

[@azzihazzi]

This series did irreparable damage to me and my story writing style/interests--- I adored these books so much and was kind of my first foray into dark subject matter as a kid. I still write things inspired by it to this day---

[@Crowcaller]

I really do feel like. I feel like I could nail this premise now lol. I have Ideas

[@FireseekerArts]

Maximum Ride was one of my biggest inspirations as a writer. I have my own story that uses a similar premise as Maximum Ride but still has its own elements and themes to it. I hope to one day make a comic with it.

[@thatonefangirl]

The executive producer reveal for the movie took me out 💀

[@katurtle979]

This video brought back soooo many memories. My friends and I were OBSESSED as kids. Had OCs and everything. Absolutely insane how bad it got. The last book was so bad I dumped my books rip. I don't think I've quite experienced a series fall from grace as bad as this one. Apparently the sequel series is pretty bad too.

[@savannahjackson2917]

you’re my favorite book reviewer on youtube and you’re reviewing my most cherished (derogatory) YA series i have been truly blessed

[@destrious8133]

I will never forget how i read three of these in one night, fueled only by pure childhood energy and wanting to finish it, and then just...the utter disappointment of the finale and how it ended in general. What a strong start tho Edit: man i just realized how much that style of writing influenced me for sure, especially the first one

[@TheFarinsqarin]

I remember theses book. Stop reading after book 5 because it’s started to get very creepy with the wolf brother, and its out the dad is alive, and angel is evil???? Idk , my last memory was the story failing apart.

[@Topdoggie7]

Ari is a love rival and her half-brother but Fang is also her brother too technically so it's pretty fucking wack but Patterson writes so much worse.

[@Crowcaller]

Yeah. Book 4 is the main turning point, but book 5 really is the point it transitions into sucking hard

[@TheFarinsqarin]

Sucking hard is too kind of word for the ending of this series . Especially now that you have taught me that everybody in the flock dies except for Max and Fang . Good lord what an overblown ride.

[@Topdoggie7]

@@TheFarinsqarin Except they don't. It was a second hallucination!

[@llsilvertail561]

9:45 It's been so long since I read this that I forgot that "Erasers" were a group of people and you weren't talking about like, erasers you use to erase pencil marks, so at first I just kinda pictured an eraser being thrown at her head hard enough for her head to snapped around. And then I pictured Fang just kinda fighting a person sized one.

[@Evan_L_Rodriguez]

I very much enjoyed this James Cameron-length video about a book series I’ve never heard of, it was well worth the wait. Probably one of your best videos to date and I commend the thorough effort. Also, given how during the last mass extinction, a lot of the water-dwellers held up pretty okay, the Krelp are probably chilling.

[@merrittanimation7721]

The Krelp shall inherit the earth

[@andydandy5894]

Okay, new viewer, 90 mins into this video… so many thoughts. I was in high school when these books came out (the same age as Max) so the original trilogy was huge for me. Writing fan fiction levels of huge, lol. I, like many others in this comment section it would seem, repressed quite a bit from Book 3. I almost couldn’t tell if I’d read it until you mentioned Max fighting an “Omega” with a bunch of mutants in the audience. That scene leapt back into my brain with such clarity. And then all the disappointment in the “end of the trilogy” came flooding back. I guess I’m glad I stopped with the series when I did. Silly mention, but all I can think when you’re mentioning the ethics of Total marrying a dog, is Jenna Marbles’ wedding of her own dogs. Her name coming up in the film adaptation was such a fun surprise.

[@elvhenapostate6145]

the unbridled joy i get when I see you've uploaded a LONG video of a book series i have never heard of is unreal. Thank you so much for this!

[@katsucurry8357]

This is a fantastic deep dive, on the level of Jenny Nicholson’s Vampire Diaries video. You should be really proud of this

[@thesetwofloofs5397]

I know that one and love it too :) want some recs for some more videos in the same vein?

[@cartoondogler2688]

have not watched the vid yet, but i remember reading these books as a kid! i quit like 5 or 6 books in, because i was starting to get confused on what fucking book i was supposed to read next, and it made me mad. excited to watch a 4 hour long video of you discussing this bizarre series!

[@maymaecat5149]

Right I got to the Fang book and got really confused on what book I was supposed to read next, and it didn't help that my library didn't have all of them

[@Nebulaeyes]

The dragon plushie introduction was my favorite part, has a very jenny nicholson vibe, you should hold your designer plushies more for relaxation

[@madisonheckert5415]

I kid you not Ive been WAITING for someone to cover this series in-depth since I was convinced I stopped at The Final Warning in maybe 4th grade after being complete infatuated with the series. it turns out I finished the series and 100% repressed the last 3 books bc it devastated my little 4th grade heart so badly. so glad I found your channel and looking forward to the rest of your content!