Fury Road will either be a blockbuster or a bomb.

[kickherintheguts]

Maybe it's too early to talk about a movie that won't come out for another 15 months.

[DetritusMaximus]

I just don't understand this obsession with how FR fits into the MM timeline, or if the Bob is in it, Max wears a leg brace etc... None of these factors have the slightest bearing on if it will be a good or successful movie.

Roadwarrior was a near complete departure from Mad Max, MFP pretty much gone, existing setting left behind, Max a very different character, the Interceptor redundant for most of the movie, but it was still great. Thunderdome radically changed things again in almost every aspect.

None of the original movies contradicted each other, no matter how different they were. Even though they were drastically different, there was a very definite continuity in story and chronology. No reason to expect this movie won't fit into the structure set up by the original trilogy. Heck, the effort to replicate the Thunderdome jacket (and the BoB if it appears in the film) should be an indicator of Miller's intent to make this film fit with the others.
If it does contradict the originals and/or tosses out existing parts of Max's history, then why bother, just make a new film with a new character and call it something else. It could still be set in the same world, but there would be no constraints.

All the above is my opinion based on the photos and some rational thought, I don't get why people are so absolutely certain it is a reimagining or reboot or set between 1 and 2. Why is it so hard to accept the idea that it might just be set sometime after Thunderdome?

[MWFV8]

I can't tell if you are agreeing with me or putting forwarding a different view.

Everything you've said confirms what I was pointing out.

[kickherintheguts]

Why is it so hard to accept the idea that it might just be set sometime after Thunderdome?

It's hard to accept MM4 will be set after Thunderdome because it is generally thought of as the weakest film(by a longshot) of the three.

Pardon me if you will while I try to delve into the mind of George Miller. Okay, George Miller and Byron Kennedy were a great team that made the first two Mad Max movies. Then, tragically Kennedy died before the third movie so George had to go it alone without his visionary buddy. Of course, Thunderdome was vastly different from the first two Mad Maxes as it was from the mind of George Miller ALONE. Kind of like Pink Floyd without Roger Waters, which is they sucked. Kind of like Roger Waters without Pink Floyd, which is he sucked. So, George Miller without Byron Kennedy sucked when it came to Thunderdome.

So what I think is happening now is even though it's 30 years later George Miller is still George Miller without Byron Kennedy. I know, obvious right? So yeah, Miller STILL has all these ideas/concepts from the Thunderdome movie rolling around in his head. Therefore this explains why we've seen things like the Thunderdome jacket, the kids that look like Scrooloose, silly Thunderdome like vehicles, possible/probably plot-line similarities, the bungee guitar player*, and other Thunderdome references.

It just makes sense that Miller would stick to what he knows especially since he doesn't have Kennedy's voice in his ear telling him "No George, let's do the story this way"

And an obvious question would be "Why doesn't Miller use more ideas from the better MM and MM2 movies? and/or "Why not tie in Fury Road closely with the great MM2 more than anything?" Maybe he is/maybe he isn't. Maybe he's taking great ideas from all three movies. Maybe he's just doing as he damn well pleases. I just think it's probably his brain is more stuck on what he did when he had to go it alone(I won't mention his co-director) with Thunderdome.

Of course, I'm usually half right/half wrong at best at these type of things lol.

*I think there was a bungee character in Thunderdome, it's been so long since I've seen it I just don't know anymore.

[Maximum]

It's been said many times, but Miller didn't put his heart and soul into Thunderdome. Hence the co director credit. He was still coming to terms with Byrons loss. He's even acknowledged that he wants to get the movie back to the feel of Mad Max 2. There's so much speculation that I don't know what to expect. I know I want it to fit into the timeline of the previous movies. But it would have to be post thunderdome if that's the case. Regarding the jacket, the only issue is that Mad lost it in the post thunderdome chase. Would he have walked back to find it? And his gun was left in Bartertown! But by the third movie, he no longer had the leg brace. So that would mean the movie takes place before thunderdome! Reboot, reimagining, prequel, sequel? Who knows.
We don't need another (timeline!)

[MWFV8]

It's hard to accept MM4 will be set after Thunderdome because it is generally thought of as the weakest film(by a longshot) of the three.

Pardon me if you will while I try to delve into the mind of George Miller. Okay, George Miller and Byron Kennedy were a great team that made the first two Mad Max movies. Then, tragically Kennedy died before the third movie so George had to go it alone without his visionary buddy. Of course, Thunderdome was vastly different from the first two Mad Maxes as it was from the mind of George Miller ALONE. Kind of like Pink Floyd without Roger Waters, which is they sucked. Kind of like Roger Waters without Pink Floyd, which is he sucked. So, George Miller without Byron Kennedy sucked when it came to Thunderdome.

So what I think is happening now is even though it's 30 years later George Miller is still George Miller without Byron Kennedy. I know, obvious right? So yeah, Miller STILL has all these ideas/concepts from the Thunderdome movie rolling around in his head. Therefore this explains why we've seen things like the Thunderdome jacket, the kids that look like Scrooloose, silly Thunderdome like vehicles, possible/probably plot-line similarities, the bungee guitar player*, and other Thunderdome references.

It just makes sense that Miller would stick to what he knows especially since he doesn't have Kennedy's voice in his ear telling him "No George, let's do the story this way"

And an obvious question would be "Why doesn't Miller use more ideas from the better MM and MM2 movies? and/or "Why not tie in Fury Road closely with the great MM2 more than anything?" Maybe he is/maybe he isn't. Maybe he's taking great ideas from all three movies. Maybe he's just doing as he damn well pleases. I just think it's probably his brain is more stuck on what he did when he had to go it alone(I won't mention his co-director) with Thunderdome.

Of course, I'm usually half right/half wrong at best at these type of things lol.

*I think there was a bungee character in Thunderdome, it's been so long since I've seen it I just don't know anymore.

Great post. I'd also consider budget constraints here.

[themanw/oaname]

Regarding the jacket, the only issue is that Mad lost it in the post thunderdome chase. Would he have walked back to find it? And his gun was left in Bartertown!

Consider the scarcity of every day things like a jacket; He's more likely to find the one he already had where he left it, than find a new one some where else eventually.

He may also have left his guns in Bartertown for a few reasons:

1. He just spent the better part of a few days fighting it out with the soldiers and leaders of Bartertown, and waltzing back in to get his stuff could mean more time fighting with them. They didnt lose any resources, nor did the town fall apart (pigshit factory is still there); they just gave up and let him go. Unless I completely misunderstood the entire film.

2. They were decoy weapons. No live ammo, or just enough to show he wasnt pulling a fast one. This also could explain the different shotgun; and why he wanted his car back. They find his REAL stash, he loses that card up his sleeve and they gain the upper hand. Yes in the end the car was destroyed but it's contents are still most likely intact; and there were plenty of salvageable vehicles and parts left during the battle on his way back to picking up his jacket.

Max is resourceful, everything about what he wears, what he owns; it all makes sense. From the shoulder pad on the arm that would be exposed in his car for protection, to his tail gait hinge leg brace, to what fingers are cut off the gloves (for ease of car repair or ammo loading).

[DetritusMaximus]

I can't tell if you are agreeing with me or putting forwarding a different view.

Everything you've said confirms what I was pointing out.

Probably both or somewhere in between. I don't proclaim to know how it fits with the others, but what I've seen and read doesn't make me think it's anything other than another adventure that follows behind Thunderdome. Some of the theories seem to be more about where the theorists WANT the movie positioned, mostly because they refuse to accept Thunderdome as part of Max's story and partly because they want the BoB back. The only way to do that without using flashbacks (to bring a new audience up to speed on 'the story thus far...) is to puree Max ('a piece from here and a piece from there', an older Max with Thunderdome jacket and pre-RW BoB?) to make a movie that fits between MM and RW, yet the vehicles and characters are stylistically later than Thunderdome.
The idea of the man as myth with each story being told from the faulty memory of someone in the future (only works for the second two movies, no 'tell' in MM) is a neat idea, but there is a linear continuity to Max storywise and his clothing and car follow along. I have trouble believing this movie is set at anytime before Thunderdome with everything wilder and crazier...except him.

[DetritusMaximus]

Why is it so hard to accept the idea that it might just be set sometime after Thunderdome?

It's hard to accept MM4 will be set after Thunderdome because it is generally thought of as the weakest film(by a longshot) of the three.

Pardon me if you will while I try to delve into the mind of George Miller. Okay, George Miller and Byron Kennedy were a great team that made the first two Mad Max movies. Then, tragically Kennedy died before the third movie so George had to go it alone without his visionary buddy. Of course, Thunderdome was vastly different from the first two Mad Maxes as it was from the mind of George Miller ALONE. Kind of like Pink Floyd without Roger Waters, which is they sucked. Kind of like Roger Waters without Pink Floyd, which is he sucked. So, George Miller without Byron Kennedy sucked when it came to Thunderdome.

So what I think is happening now is even though it's 30 years later George Miller is still George Miller without Byron Kennedy. I know, obvious right? So yeah, Miller STILL has all these ideas/concepts from the Thunderdome movie rolling around in his head. Therefore this explains why we've seen things like the Thunderdome jacket, the kids that look like Scrooloose, silly Thunderdome like vehicles, possible/probably plot-line similarities, the bungee guitar player*, and other Thunderdome references.

It just makes sense that Miller would stick to what he knows especially since he doesn't have Kennedy's voice in his ear telling him "No George, let's do the story this way"

And an obvious question would be "Why doesn't Miller use more ideas from the better MM and MM2 movies? and/or "Why not tie in Fury Road closely with the great MM2 more than anything?" Maybe he is/maybe he isn't. Maybe he's taking great ideas from all three movies. Maybe he's just doing as he damn well pleases. I just think it's probably his brain is more stuck on what he did when he had to go it alone(I won't mention his co-director) with Thunderdome.

Of course, I'm usually half right/half wrong at best at these type of things lol.

*I think there was a bungee character in Thunderdome, it's been so long since I've seen it I just don't know anymore.

There are many themes reused throughout the series, enough to fill it's own thread, but reuse of those themes does not mean rehash. You can make FR/RW connections, too. To me those themes are evolving over time and I find it interesting how a minor background idea develops further in the later movies (scarcity of fuel in MM and the two mighty warrior tribes prolog in RW become Bartertown and embargos. Pappagallos "he's an honorable man' becomes 'bust a deal, face the wheel', the gangs become tribes which become towns).
The assumption that Miller would ignore Thunderdome doesn't ring true. It's doesn't have the raw, brutal tone of the first two, but that does not make it a weak movie. The first two were directly about Max, the third really starts to look at the world around him and how it is growing and developing and that it forces him to do so, too.

[Uncle Entity]

Why is it so hard to accept the idea that it might just be set sometime after Thunderdome?

It's hard to accept MM4 will be set after Thunderdome because it is generally thought of as the weakest film(by a longshot) of the three.

This is your opinion, which is debatable.

To me, Thunderdome is the most visionary and "epic" of the three.