Thought Balloons by Don MacPherson "Maturity" So Marvel Comics is finally launching a mature-readers line. With the release of Alias #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos next week (on Sept. 6), Marvel's MAX Comics line officially gets under way. The imprint has been a long time in coming. Marvel abandoned its Epic division -- an independently and mature themed comics arm -- in the 1980s, and DC's been redefining what people consider to be mainstream comics with its Vertigo line for the past decade, leaving its chief competitor in the dust. The MAX imprint (Marvel never stops with the hyperbole... MAX is always spelled with caps only in all its promotional literature) has already been the focus of controversy. A printer in the southern U.S. refused to print Alias #1, and some have expressed surprise and disappointment that the initial MAX offerings were work-for-hire projects that were still so firmly rooted in the super-hero genre. Personally, I'm looking forward to checking the MAX comics out, especially Alias. I'm pleased to see Marvel lifting some restrictions on some creators, allowing for what might be compelling and more realistic storytelling. However, I take exception with the concept that this marks a new beginning for mature storytelling at Marvel. The "mature" label refers to rougher language and more graphic violence and sex. For me, profanity, violence and sex really has little to do with mature storytelling. In fact, in less capable hands, it can lead to immature storytelling. What we're talking about is what's appropriate for various readers. One could argue it deals with "protecting" children for content they're not ready for, or enabling parents to screen what's finding its way into their children's bedrooms. But age is no yardstick by which to measure maturity. I've known 15-year-olds that were far more mature than some middle-aged men I've met in my time. While I look forward to some of the various MAX books that have been announced so far, I do find I'm a little concerned how its "mature" tone will be applied. Given the comments of Marvel president and COO Bill Jemas -- you know the ones I'm talking about... how the "bad girls" of Marvel will serve as dates for the fanboys as they sit alone in their parents' basements -- I can't help but wonder if the edgier content allowances will steer some editors and creators to deliver gratuitous cursing, killing and humping. I don't believe this will be the case with Bendis's Alias. Sure, the inclusion of a graphic sex scene between two heroes has been hyped up the wazoo, but Bendis is not a gratuitous storyteller. And to be fair, Stuart Moore, editor of the MAX line, is not a gratuitous type either. Marvel's touting of its new mature comics is actually kind of redundant. Since Joe Quesada was installed as editor-in-chief, there's been a renewal of creativity at Marvel, and they've been publishing plenty of mature stories for a while now. X-Force -- under the direction of Peter Milligan, Mike Allred and Axel Alonso -- is certainly mature in tone, but not because it dropped the Comics Code approval seal or because of the sex and violence. It is its nature as satire, as a scathing look at the notion of celebrity, that makes it mature. Greg Rucka and Eduardo Risso's recent contribution to Tangled Web may have reminded some of The Sopranos, given the gangsters and the violence, but it was really about taking responsibility for the choices one makes in life. In Priest's Black Panther, the most important weapon in the title character's arsenal isn't his energy dagger or razor-sharp claws, but his keen intellect. He averts disaster with politics and economics. For me, mature storytelling is intelligent storytelling. It challenges the reader and educates. New perspectives are offered, and the reader is free to accept or reject them. Mull that one over, fuckers. Don MacPherson thinks life is too short to act mature all the time. Email Don MacPherson comments about this column, or discuss it on the Fourth Rail message board.