Max Steel (2013 TV series)

Did You Know?

• The series was nominated for the BAFTA 2014 Kids' Vote television category.
• The second season never aired on Disney XD in the United States due to low ratings of the first season.
• Max Steel first broadcast on March 1, 2013, on Cartoon Network (Latin America).

Plot

A 16-year-old boy named Maxwell McGrath moves with his mother to the small town of Copper Canyon, where he begins generating a powerful blue energy called T.U.R.B.O. Energy. He joins N-Tek, a secret organization his father worked for, and meets a friendly ultralink named N'Barro Aksteel X377, called Steel. Together they link to transform into the superhero Max Steel. Forge reveals that Jim was the former Max Steel, and Max faces new and old enemies such as Toxzon and Extroyer. He gains new turbo modes, and a larger threat approaches Earth: the Makino Invasion. After Makino is defeated, his core processing unit seeks a new host, and Max must destroy him permanently. Max then confronts Morphos, a villain who replicates enemies' abilities. To defeat a stronger Morphos who copies powers from all of Max's enemies, Max teams up with Miles Dredd, Toxzon, Extroyer, and the Elementors to unlock his greatest power.

Characters

Maxwell McGrath, voiced by Andrew Francis, is a human-takion hybrid boy who discovers his uncle Forge Ferrus commands N-Tek. He meets Steel, an Ultralink that enables him to become the superhero Max Steel. Max wears a camouflage mode to hide his identity and generates Tachyon Unlimited Radiant Bio-Optimized (TURBO) energy, controlled with Steel's help. As Max Steel, he possesses superhuman strength, speed, and durability, along with numerous TURBO Modes including Base, Strength, Camo, Flight, Scuba, Super, Speed, Stealth, Cannon, Clone, Mimic, Heat, Rocket, Spike, Nova, Titan, Cannon Spike, Hydro Heat, Sonic Flight, Exo Strength, Hammer Claw, Prime, Hunter, and Mega. N'Barro Aksteel X377, voiced by Sam Vincent, is an alien Ultralink made of technology that functions only when charged by TURBO energy. His memory core is damaged, and he once served Makino before meeting Jim McGrath, with whom he became the first Max Steel.

N-Tek/Turbo arsenal

When Max and Steel link, they combine into powerful TURBO Modes. Base Mode consists of a techno-organic suit that harvests and focuses Turbo Energy, cannot be removed, and enhances Max's strength, speed, durability, agility, senses, and fighting capabilities. Strength Mode makes Max larger and stronger, able to lift over 200 tons and withstand a nuclear blast, though it decreases agility. Camouflage Mode lets Max blend in with civilians to protect his secret identity. Flight Mode allows rocket-like atmospheric travel with control and maneuverability, reaching altitudes beyond the stratosphere. Scuba Mode enables underwater movement, breathing, and agility, though it lacks power and speed. This was the first mode accessed by Steel using Mimic Mode.

Live-action adaptation

Paramount Pictures planned a live-action film adaptation of Max Steel, originally with Taylor Lautner in the lead role as Josh McGrath, but he dropped out in March 2010. After the 2013 series relaunch, Dolphin Entertainment began work on a film, with Christopher Yost writing and Stewart Hendler directing, following the reboot's plotline. Open Road Films distributed the film, originally set for 2014 but pushed to October 14, 2016. Ben Winchell was cast as Max Steel, Ana Villafane as Sofia Martinez (replacing Sydney Gardner), Andy Garcia as Dr. Miles Edwards, and Mike Doyle in an unspecified role.