WELCOME TO MAX BLEU, A FREE TO READ COMIC BOOK SINCE 2019
How it's made
What's the story about?
The World of Max
If you are interested in the medium and style used to produce this comic book look here.
The World of Max
Can I get it in print?
The World of Max
Observe the characters in Max's world. Read over the character bio's.
Can I get it in print?
Can I get it in print?
Can I get it in print?
Would you like printed pages of the comic book "Max Bleu"? Content coming soon.
The Creator of Max Bleu
MAX BLEU GENESIS
EVERY STORY HAS A BEGINNING
Just above this is a picture I drew which was supposed to be the first page of the first issue of Max Bleu. After special consideration it became one of the last three pages of issue No. #1.
It is fitting that this page be presented here.
It has been an exciting and adventurous three years here at Max Bleu Comics bringing four issues onto the site for audiences to read and enjoy.
My family and I want to express our gratitude to all the Max Bleu patrons who came by every month for all the new content and stroyline. You are awesome!
If, you ever made time to read what the story of Max Bleu is about on the homepage you would have made note that Max Bleu is central to a four-part story.
That said, it is time to begin the next substory in this epic tale of Max Bleu. This also means the tale of Max will be on hold while the next amazing piece of the saga is told in the pages of "Cat's Eyes", where a new heroine Catherine will take her place in the panels of our plot.
While the first issue of "Cat's Eyes" is being created the Max Bleu Comics site will remain open for all to read.
Max fans, be sure to come right back here as often as you would like but, in the fall of 2024 be on the lookout for the release of "Cat's Eyes", an extraordinary experience back in time forty years as the daunting explorer Cat ignites the comic book pages!
Oh yeah..., Max Bleu still remains free-to-read and without advertisements.
Sincerely,
Gregory
What this comic book is about
The Epic Adventure of Max Bleu
Employed by wealthy clandestine affiliates special investigator Max Bleu doesn't ask questions when his services are rendered. The daughter of a well-connected theoretical physicist is abducted. The father overcome with grief reaches out to those connections deep into the esorteric underworld where good and bad are one and the same. Max prepares for a typical extraction, and heads north into the mountains
As things go from normal operations to paranormal anomalies Max realizes he's outmatched and up against something bigger than he can imagine.
The clues don't lead where he presupposes instead bating him from one end of the world to another and down the spiral staircase of what is real and what is fabricated.
Max has never been one to put others before himself but, if suspicions prove true then consequences of apocalyptic proportions could come down to what he now knows.
Max will have to make a choice whether to forget everything this mission has brought to light or, jeopardize everything and everyone he knows to get the truth out.
However, there is more to this story.
For Max to navigate through this mystery he contacts an old friend of the family Allen Mazur nicknamed Streets. Well educated and worldly Streets reluctantly offers guidance to Max. In so doing an alternate vista of history is made known and a new adventure begins through the eyes of an antecedent heroine named Catherine.
In order to fully appreciate the comic book story of Max Bleu a break in it's pages must be interjected. "Cat's Eyes" is a sub story in the pages of Max taking place in the late 1970's where Catherine a young archaeologist has immersed herself in black market antiquities. Catherine or, Cat is at the vanguard of looting unlicensed excavations at archaic sites which, has obvious perils. After some time in the lucrative but, nefarious trade of antiquities Cat questions her employer's motives. When things get complicated, she calls her uncle Allen Mazur, employed in those days as an adjunct history professor, for help.
And here is where things get convoluted.
Turning our attention back to the story of Max we begin to see some parallelism between Cat and Max and their connection to Streets. After prodding around in his own side investigations while trying to hold focus on the task of his employers Max finds himself at odds with several foes each with unique skill sets, influence and power. It's a good thing for him he's not alone and maintains tight relationships with some tough crews. He'll need all the aid he can get as he rises up against a gambit of forces from international crime syndicates to supernatural entities.
But before he can take down those vile shot callers, he's got one more thing to learn and this will explain everything.
"By the Order of Melchizedek" is the second sub story in Max Bleu Comics which reorganizes the scenery to circa 2300 B.C.E. This story is narrated by Streets as he unveils the mystery behind the construction and destruction of the ancient celebrated Tower of Babel.
King Melchizedek commissions three skilled warriors on a covert quest of uncertainty to the acclaimed tower. Tasked with the extraordinary these three warriors will unknowingly take part in what will one day unfold the story that is "Max Bleu."
And if you thought that was all, you assume much.
These three stories of a present day special investigator, a black market trader of antiquities and three ancient warriors on a holy quest will together articulate a clear synopsis of a past and present hidden from the world for millennia.
"Oculus" is the final installment of the limited series graphic novel "Max Bleu" which takes place in a not so distant future utopian world where nothing is what it seems.
Who is Max Bleu?
Where did Max come from
Max Bleu was created by me near the age of 10 during the 1980's and was patterned after the character David Addison played by actor Bruce Willis on the television show "Moonlighting." In 2018 I wanted to make a comic book. I knew what the story was but, I didn't know how to tell it. I went through old sketches I had kept over the years and pulled out the characters I wanted to use for the comic, Max became the catalyst for the overarching storyline.
Max is a special investigator specializing in extraction of lost people.
He has a brief military background as well as some time in law enforcement. He owns and operates self-defense training programs across the US for steady income while aquiring most of his monetary assets through extractions. He is a bureaucrat with a strong desire for adventure. He is shallow and arrogant but, has a soft spot for the all those close to him. He is stubborn and rude and has over the top ambitions. He is also the best at what he does. He also believes he knows exactly how the world works but, as his adventure continues all that will change.
How it's made
What medium is used
I like old fashioned comics and the way the medium represented each panel. Comics that came out when I was much younger were pencilled, inked, lettered, colored and then sent to print. A lot of people were involved in the process to produce the books effeciently. Max Bleu was created during those years and I think to tell this story effectively a little old mixed with a little new presents his story the way it was meant to be.
I first script a few pages out, then thumbnail or, sketch out the panels and word balloons. Next, I pencil the 14" X 17" paper working within a 10" X 15" space with 2H to HB pencils. Some are mechanical but, most are wood depending on how I think the lines are best used. I begin now to finalize dialogue of the characters and narrator using either a parallelograph or, ruler.
If, the pencils suffice I follow up inking the page with pigment ink pens, Pitt artist pens and Sharpies. After inking the entire page the first process of color begins.
Using alcohol markers the page is first layered with differing tones of grey. I find this makes the next several layers of color less vibrant. The more grey the less vibrant. Coming next is the next layer of color moving from lightest to darkest the page is layered with alocohol markers blending along the way. There is no set number of layers I am a strict believer that the page is done when the page is done.
The next step belongs to the colored pencil where I make use specifically of Prismacolors. Again, I start with the lightest color which matches up with the layers of alcohol marker and move to the darkest.
The second to last step I go over any inked lines that have lost integrity during the color process. It's redundant and meticulous but, it matters.
Lastly, and the most gratifying moment for sequential artists the the highlights. I use several different items for the highlights depending on the circumstance. I will use anything from a white gel pen to a hilighter I tend to think of this a "no-holds-barred" moment.
And that is the process and mixed-media I use to produce Max Bleu.