Do you like Deadpool but he’s just not violent or crazy enough for you? Marvel has the answer, Deadpool Max.

In the same vein as Marvel’s other recent Max books, this issue has more violence, more sex, more graphic pictures and situations, and more swears. If you’re looking for those things in your comics this one does it passably well. If you don’t have some deep-seated need to see an undercover agent subjecting himself to anal rape and beatings to maintain his cover then this title is probably as unnecessary for you as it is for me.

I don’t want to deride the writer, David Lapham, but Deadpool Max #1 just seems to have no purpose. Deadpool is an awesomely violent, psychotic character and he’s very fun. This book actually seems to take some focus away from Deadpool, and instead focuses on the weird depravity of those around him. Wade Wilson does show up occasionally, and is even vital to the plot sometimes, but mostly his segments seem like non-sequiturs. Instead the story focuses on Deadpool’s undercover handler, Bob. Without counting I would say the title character has somewhere between six and twelve lines the entire book.

Contrary to the regular Marvel universe, where Deadpool is tolerated and entertaining but full of foibles, this “Merc with a Mouth” has an almost legendary status. He’s unstable, but his history with the military as a one-man army or stealth assassin is almost like a tall tale: “[The Yakuza] tattoo his image on the dicks of their soldiers so they never forget to be vigilant.”

The story about a two man team (Deadpool and Bob) taking down Hammerhead’s crime syndicate has some good elements; but the details feel deliberately shocking, like so many other parts of the Max line. Everything from making the imprint of a key in human shit to having Hammerhead’s servant staff wear only bikinis (men and women) could have been done cleaner and applied to a more mainstream title. This is not to say I’m opposed to sadomasochistic homosexuality in my comics. I’m a fan of any element needed to tell a story. I’m not a fan of finding an over the top offensive element and then writing a story around it.

For everything the story didn’t do for me, the art tried to make up for it. Kyle Baker’s art shines in this comic. I’ve always enjoyed art that doesn’t force outlines. The inking is very subtle, with plenty of soft lines that seem to create more natural bodies and backgrounds. Hammerhead is especially well done as he fills the scene in all of his panels. The chief villain seems a little darker and more defined, whereas his henchmen or other minor characters blend in to the background like you see in movies.

My two favorite panels are both of Deadpool. The first is Wilson slaughtering mobsters and it feels like a shot from a ’70s exploitation film, a la Machete. The second is Deadpool as an Asian demon (see Yakuza quote above).

Being that I’m reviewing the book, I guess I should give it a rating. I’d like to give two out of five regenerated limbs because it feels so unnecesary and forced. But I’m going to give it a third because I’d like to have a copy without the dialogue and just look at the pictures. If you’ve been a fan the Marvel Max series of books and all the depraved sex, f-bombs, etc. that it entails you’ll probably enjoy this one. If you don’t need to see a naked cop in an abusive relationship just skip it.