Why is Max Mute in Max and Ruby?

Watching energetic series is an essential part of one’s childhood. These series can play a significant role in a child’s cognitive development, equipping them with crucial life managing skills that might come in handy in their adult life. For grownups, animations can be a breath of fresh air as it helps them reminisce about their childhood and act as a stress reliever.

One of the most loved and popular cartoon shows among kids, especially preschool age, was Max and Ruby. It was first aired on Nick Jr. in the United States. The date of its airing was October 21, 2002. It is a Canadian Origin animated show based on the books written by Rosemary Wills. She centered this book series on her kids and portrayed the dynamics of a typical sibling relationship convincingly. 

Background of ‘Max and Ruby’

Over the years, it has somehow become a practice to associate kids-friendly television shows with sinister theories. This pattern persisted in the case of our childhood beloved show Max and Ruby as well when the audience got curious about specific unanswered questions, like where are their parents? – a more pressing one being why Max is mute in Max and Ruby. The show recently got featured on Netflix and became a focus of debate all over again.

Many unanswered questions resurfaced, and numerous fan theories made their way to several social media platforms, some of them being very dark and gloomy. The series revolved around a bunny duo consisting of Max and Ruby, who lived with their grandmother. Max is a three-year-old bunny who is playful but a chaotic troublemaker.

Ruby is Max’s elder sister and another of the main characters of the show. Her personality is quite the opposite of that of Max. She is an ambitious seven-year-old who is very well-mannered, organized and might come across as bossy sometimes while taking care of her younger brother.

So Why didn’t Max Speak in Max and Ruby?

The first prevalent theory among the masses also answered another of the most speculated questions: where are Max and Ruby’s parents? Children of such a young age depending on their parents to deliver their needs and provide shelter, so why were these kids spending an unhealthy amount of time themselves?

This question led to the notion that the bunnies might be orphans. Their parents got in a car crash while they were going to pick Ruby from the Bunny Scouts.

Max happened to be in the same car as them. He survived but got a brain injury. It might have been the reason that Max barely speaks in the show. If you pay a little bit more attention, you can see that Max is playing with toy Police cars and ambulances most of the time. As the lone survivor of the crash, Max must have seen police cars and ambulances on the incident scene, explaining his obsession with them, hinting that this theory might be true.

Disclaimer: Max is Not Entirely Mute!

Occasionally, he is seen walking up to his sister and repeating a single word here and there. He might have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), interfering with his speaking capability. Is a child severely traumatized on seeing his parents die before him the actual reason for him going mute?

Staying faithful to the tradition of bracketing kids’ friendly shows with ominous theories, certain dark rumors arose as to why was Max always mute in Max and Ruby.

Some speculated that the duo might have killed their parents, whether intentionally or by accident. And it might be the reason why Max has gone mute due to the shock. Fans theorized that the urn featured on the show might contain their ashes several times to support this theory.

A Dark Reason Explaining as to why Max Never Spoke in Max and Ruby

If you want to preserve the sweet memories of your childhood, do not read ahead, as it can be triggering for some people. Do you ever wonder why Max is always playing with the ‘Super Bunny,’ a superhero who is a figment of his imagination?

It might have a psychological basis, a dark one. It was cited that Max’s grandmother molested him in his childhood. It traumatized the little bunny to such an extent that he became mute, consequently explaining the creation of the ‘Super Bunny’ character in his head to shield him from his traumatic past.

Final Thoughts

People had different perspectives deciphering the query as to why Max was mute in Max and Ruby. But these just fan theories. Nothing in this article can be ruled out as absolutely true or false. The most basic explanation for why Max didn’t speak in Max and Ruby could be that Max is shy. He is only three.

It is usual for a three-year-old kid to play with toy police cars and ambulances and not talk much. A potential justification for why his parents weren’t around could be that they might have long work hours. Also, as this series was based on the creator’s kids, she wanted to focus more on the kids, their relationships, and how they solved their crises and disputes when the adults were not around. So this finally explains the mystery.