The Three Christmases of Max Goof Part 3
“Now our next gift holds a story both wondrous and rare. About a father and a son, and the love that they share.”
Max Goof has appeared in three Christmas stories. A GOOF TROOP CHRISTMAS (1992), MICKEY'S ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS (1999), and MICKEY'S TWICE UPON A CHRISTMAS (2004). By their release date, these specials span the 12 years of Max Goof’s existence in the Disney world. Unlike other Disney Christmas specials, which only change the setting and situation but never the ageless Disney characters, the three Max stories are not so consistent. Each story present Max at three different ages: As a child, as a pre-teen, and as a young adult. Historically, the stories are also defining pieces in Max’s existence. MOUaXMAS is Max at his youngest while M2UaXMAS is Max at his oldest. Likewise, MOUaXMAS is the last portrayal of the young Max, M2UaXMAS is Max’s last appearance to date.
Most importantly, each story holds a different portrayal of Max’s relationship with his father Goofy. Based on GOOF TROOP, A GOOFY MOVIE, AN EXTREMELY GOOFY MOVIE, HOUSE OF MOUSE, and the two Christmas movies, the relationship of Goofy and Max can be categorized in two phases: Max’s childhood years where father-and-son were unwaveringly close, and the rebellious adolescent years where distance comes to the duo because of Max’s issues toward his father. MOUaXMAS portrays the first phase, M2UaXMAS happens in the second phase, with AGTXMAS happening in between.
Part 1 is in the IMDb board of MICKEY'S ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS
Part 2 is in the IMDb board of A GOOF TROOP CHRISTMAS
In the last Christmas we saw of the Goofs, Goofy and Max made a loving hug that was poignant in view of the coming storm. That coming storm is in the two movies. They emphasize the second phase of their relationship, where Max’s adolescence causes him to always see his father in a negative light, with Goofy’s constant attempts to bond aggravating him further. Part of Max’s problem is natural teenage behavior, but another source is Max’s refusal to be a Goof like his dad. To him, it makes him a laughingstock in his social life. Thus, he strives to have as normal an existence as possible, in hopes of gaining public acceptance. AGM deals with this problem, and resolves it with Max coming to appreciate his father and not caring what people think. However, the second film AN EXTREMELY GOOFY MOVIE restores the conflict to its nadir. This time both father and son come off unsympathetic, with Goofy’s obsessive parent-love vs. Max’s anti-dad attitude x 11. At the end of that movie, only Goofy develops in character, understanding that he should let his son go live his separate life. Max, on the other hand, still has his issues: after all the ‘I’ll always be your son’ praise, he reveals his hesitance about his dad hanging around some more. Although Max does mellow out a bit in the series HOUSE OF MOUSE (which strangely doesn’t include him in its own Christmas special), respecting his father (and actually asking for his help), it seems the issues continue up to the final Christmas story of this essay, the ‘Christmas Maximus’ piece in the CGI MICKEY'S TWICE UPON A CHRISTMAS.
The story opens with a pop-up picture of Goofy falling down, getting laughter from the public much to the despair of Max the kid. One can say this scene occurred during the time of AGTXMAS. The scene changes to 3-dimensions- literally in CGI- with an older Max at a train station with his new girlfriend Mona (this has gained much notoriety for MaxXRoxanne shippers). Because Max’s appearances are set to real time, it would be possible to deduce that four years after AEGM, Max is now about 22-23 years old. This Christmas, Max intends to introduce Mona to his father.
We find Goofy perfectly content, making a bunch of snow angels. Max, on the other hand, is a far cry from the AGM Max who willingly introduced his father to Roxanne. He still has his goof issues concerning his father, describing him as an accident waiting to happen, etc. And yet Max shows his own goofiness, accidentally spilling a drink on a fellow passenger, making different sleeping positions to the normal Mona. The sequence of the meeting is set to song: “Make me Look Good” which also changes throughout the story.
Sure enough, Goofy screws up in Max’s eyes. In a nod to AGTXMAS, Goofy’s house is still a tacky Christmas light show. When Max tries to impress Mona with pictures of his achievements (as a child, as a teenage football player and graduate), Goofy completes the series with a large framed picture of Baby Max in the nude. Then Goofy blows Max’s chance to kiss Mona. Eventually Max has his fill about what he sees as his dad’s humiliating him before Mona. His view is narrow: He doesn’t notice Mona is actually enjoying herself. He rejects Goofy’s following plans of celebration and walks out on him.
It’s interesting to note that Goofy’s sadness is downplayed here. Despite being down by Max, Goofy is next seen enjoying himself with Mona. This is a strong development from the Goofy who would despair from any rejection by his son in earlier times. Perhaps he has come to an understanding about the finite period of Max’s temper. So why worry about it? Max has always come around before, so Goofy is content that this latest problem will resolve itself. Max also has mellowed out as well. His frustrated "Please!" is the closest point of anger he expresses in this story; it is nowhere near the mean behavior he displayed in the two movies.
Feeling a chill, the lonely Max puts on the ill-patterned scarf his dad sent him. He stares at the patch 'Made by Dad.' In a nod to the photo present in AGTXMAS, this object has a similar effect on Max’s view of his dad. This scarf might not be perfect in looks, but it was made by a father’s love. His viewpoint changes, perhaps with a more solid ground. Last time Max came around to dad- in AEGM- it was out of necessity rather than remorse. This time Max’s change comes from his own feelings, as the song states, “Wish I hadn’t acted selfishly.” Many grown children look back at their earlier behavior with guilt. Perhaps Max remembers his actions in the earlier movies, and cringes to what a jerk he has been to his father. He turns back home. Through a window, Max’s face is serene as he watches his dad and Mona make popcorn. Though one could say the happy expression is for Mona, the song’s suggestion (“You’re my one and only dad and I’m so proud of you!”) is that it’s for Goofy. Thus, Max’s expression speaks volumes to the love for his father.
And then Max finally lets his hair down! When Goofy’s popcorn blender goes berserk, Max tries to fix things, only to have the popcorn pour out of his sweater. The house is spilled with popcorn but Mona is happy, and Max jubilantly laughs. The three make popcorn angels on the roof, Max praising his dad for a wonderful time. So much for wanting normal! Indeed, many of the times Max acted goofy or silly were when he was clearly happy. In AGM, he celebrates his victory in dating Roxanne by replicating his dad’s earlier-shunned Mambo moves. He does the perfect catch with his dad and Powerline. Later, he H-yucks when he kisses Roxanne. Embarrassing moments, but Max’s glee makes him beyond caring. Now it is time for Max to realize that if he just stops worrying about other people’s opinions and embrace the Goof in his father and himself, he’ll be happy.
So the song “Make Me Look Good” takes on a different meaning. It’s not about Goofy’s antics making Max look good by comparison. It’s about how Max learned to be good. Look at his virtues: his loyalty to his friends, his positive determination to succeed no matter the odds, the courage to do so, the sweet nature that won the hearts of Roxanne and Mona. One sees those traits in Goofy as well. That Max is able to express them is because of the love and support his father gave him in his upbringing. In short, Goofy made Max good.
The story ends with a vertical-slats-transformation picture of Max looking cross at his sad and rejected father. The picture slides into an arm-to-arm embrace of Goofy and his son in perfect harmony. The narration is a nod to one of their big bonding moments- the ‘I2I’ concert in AGM: “When a Father and a Son end up miles apart, they can see Eye to Eye if they act Heart to Heart.”
In Max's last scene, he joins the others to sing "We Wish you a Merry Christmas" (actually the same dub from MOUaXMAS). The scene changes from CGI animation into a pop-up book, and we see a change: Max's eyes have taken on the classic 'big eyes' look his father has regained since AGM. Is this an animation mistake, or is it a sign that Max has finally embraced being a Goof?
M2UaXMAS suggests that a new phase has begun in Goofy and Max’s relationship. If the first was of childhood love, and the second told of teenage rebellion & distance, then this new stage tells of a mature relationship where the only distance between father and son is in their living apart, never in the love they have for each other. Considering Max has not appeared since this movie, one can only hope that is the case.