Continuity between films and Timeline

[mahenoguy]

Was just trawling through old posts and noticed that the differences between the MM1 , MM2 and Furyroad Interceptors gets quite a lot of attention . Sure some of the differences are due to changing safety laws , and some may be "production " hoping people won't really notice , But I believe that most of them are contrived to show that the Inteceptor is an evolving vehicle . Although the exact time frame is disputed , MM2 shows us Max has been in the Wasteland for a while . Here's a couple of "Real world "solutions for some of the differences seen between mm1 & mm2 .
The higher set , slightly different blower could show us the engine has been re-built ( Which it certainly would need after endless miles of hard driving )
The changed rear rims match his panel van which could suggest he hung around the edge of the phohibited zone ( Re visiting Jess's muder scene and May's house ) before wondering into the wasteland.
The gutted interior could suggest Max no longer see's himself as a policeman ( Radio , Siren and Bronze badges all gone )
The Tanks obviously suggest extended range , Required to search for fuel as those reserves closer to civilization dry up
Missing Air dam and different exhaust could be the result of road debris which we see so much of in the opening scenes .
I like to think that the Changes were gradual so the car would look different every time to the observant maruader .
I am ( Like the rest of us ) unsure of where ( If at all ) the FuryRoad Interceptor fits into this timeline , but unless it was a re-make of mm2 , you would expect the car to be slightly different from either of the originals .
All those who are put -Off by the "RE-Imagininging " title ( As I 1st was ) should remember that MM2 was an imagination of the story , as told by an Elderly Feral Kid . I think the film was stylized to represent his memory of events ( Remembering he must have heard much of the story from Max or the Gyro captain , given he wasn't there for many of the scenes . ) Perhaps in his elderly future , Cars are so long-gone that his memory is disrorted and infact the vehicles were more heavly modified than he remembers ! Even Max's face is slightly different , and One tank or Two in the Interceptor ?......... well it was a long time ago .

One other small thing i thought of , I have had some great discussions on this forum about the time-line on the original films . My main issue being that if MM1 was set in the late 70's / Early 80's ( A few years from Now) and mm3 was set about Now ( As shown in Cave Painting during the "Tell") then Max would be about 60 and would look like.....well like Mel Gibson looks now , not the "Bon Jovi "max we see in Thunderdome !
Perhaps if Mad Max was set about 2000 then the time-line would make more sense with the trilogy spanning about 15 years instead of 40 !
The fact that all technology is late 70 's ( E.I Cars , Radio's etc ) could be explained by Electcro Magnetic Pulse ( From nuclear explosions ) Knocking out all Computers , forcing the MPF to resort to pre-computer technologies .
Anyway , hope this subject hasn't been done-to-death , apologies if it has....

[BlownV8]

Just to clarify a few points.
Max's van had alloys that were different to the rear wheels he had on the coupe. Also, they were a different stud pattern and would fit.

I think max would have gutted the couple and sold/traded the bits for the dual tank instalation.

As Fury Road doesn't follow this timeline, it is effectively a different car.

[NuffTorque]

With regard to EMP knocking out computers, in the late 70's early 80's they were limited to very few businesses. Home computers and govt departments didnt really get computers as we know them until well into the very late 80's and early 90's.

If the world war had happened at that time, then any further development of technology and cars etc would cease and they would be the last of their kind.

Unfortunately, for us original MM1 fans who were first exposed to the BoB, we will never see it in its original condition on film again, as someone said before, times change and the marketing for the movies is about attracting a new younger generation. I showed my son the movie a couple of years ago and he just shrugged and said yeah its ok. He has grown up on a diet of mobile phones and lipstick cars (WRX etc), so a thundering V8 in flash colours is just another car.

It seems we may never see the BoB in its original glory on the big screen again.... (but I live in hope)

[mahenoguy]

I am not car savvy enough to spot the difference in the panel van / Interceptor rims so i'll strike that one off . Trading interior fittings for the tank installation makes sense , However a poor trade as I would Imagine long range fuel tanks would be worth a lot more than a few car seats , defunct radio and police siren ( Know one ever said wasteland warriors were smart ) . You reiterate my point though that the changes are deliberate , Ment to represent the changes in Max and his world . As the original interceptor was bought back for the filming of MM2 in much the same condition it was sold at the end of mm1 ( Minus Zoomies and Blower ) , one must assume that it would have been easier to make the car look identical than the difference we see , so it must have been a production decision to help push the story forward.
As Far as Fury Road being a completely different time-line....well I'm not so sure . Although many leaks indicate a whole new world....I believe "Re-imagining "is just re-telling of the story from a different perspective....Remembering mm2 was told from the childhood memories of an old man. I believe if George Miller wasn't interested in a certain amount of continuity in the story he wouldn't risk tainting the good name of the franchise and just make a new stand alone film . The fact that so many Mad Max Icons have already been seen in leaked material ( Costume.....Interceptor ......etc ) I think Fury Road will fit ( however loosely ) into the original timeline . The fact that the fury Road interceptor seems to be more weathered than the MM2 Version could be eplained by the presents of the silver interceptor..... The fact that there is more than one opens the scope for repairs or even replacement of the car between films.
I may seem ignorante with all that has been written about the plot to Fury Road , But I take most leaks with a grain of salt as they are a normal part of the movie making process and ofter are planted to keep media interest going.

[mahenoguy]

Me tooo nufftorque ! The point I was Making with EMP was that if MM1 was set later ( IE 2000 or so ) all computerised cars of that period would be de-funct , forcing the MFP to utilise pre-blackbox vehicles as seen .

[NuffTorque]

Me tooo nufftorque ! The point I was Making with EMP was that if MM1 was set later ( IE 2000 or so ) all computerised cars of that period would be de-funct , forcing the MFP to utilise pre-blackbox vehicles as seen .

Arrrh now I get ya in relation to computers in the cars themselves.

Its interesting reading through the forum and each and everyone here has a slightly different interpretation of what each film is, and what it means to that individual. I dont believe anyone is wrong in any of their interpretations of the old or up coming film. I personally find it facinating reading each persons prespective and comparing it to mine, and adds to my perception of the films.

Some people are amazing in their perception of details. I never noticed the difference in wheels or zoomies from MM1 to MM2 until I started reading this forum.

[roadwarriormfp]

Me tooo nufftorque ! The point I was Making with EMP was that if MM1 was set later ( IE 2000 or so ) all computerised cars of that period would be de-funct , forcing the MFP to utilise pre-blackbox vehicles as seen .

MM1 never assumed that war had broken out... there was a world oil/ fuel shortage. Peak production had passed, therefore production lines of new cars closed down, industries ceased (and they stopped making the V8s). George Miller actaully stated this once (about the relationship with the 70s oil shortages). MM2 just confirmed it with the opening montage.

Sometime after MM1 world war broke out in order to secure oil supplies, which of course turned nasty and nuclear weapons wouldve been involved.
EMP is a by product of atomic explosions, I doubt weather that in the 70s they wouldve had the technology/ or the interest to build a stand alone weapon when there was 1000s of wareheads already doing nothing.

[DetritusMaximus]

So if world war had not broken out yet in MM1, why the 'Prohibited Area' signs and in the RW prologue, does the Feral Kid's statement about Max wandering out into the wasteland suggest it is a 'destroyed' wasteland, just a general 'wasteland' (not very usable for much, war or not), or his reference to the area that would later become a wasteland?

My take on the Interceptor changes is that it is a lived-in car. It changes over time depending on his needs. The interior would fall apart pretty quick in the desert (especially if it was 10 years old or more when he got the car: based on suggestions that vehicle production would have stopped years before MM1). The other modifications tell a tale of wide ranging survival. The condition of the car, though, says that road combat is relatively minor. Several years after MM1 and the only apparent damage is the loss of the airdam? The paint over the rest of the car is pretty consistent in its patina, no signs of mismatched and replaced panels, not even the flares or flutes. An argument could be made that he had resources somewhere to repair and repaint the car after battle, but I think that gets to be farfetched as there are more important things to worry about than matching your paint after the apocalypse.

[roadwarriormfp]

Yes we saw Max enter a prohibited area in the film but it certainly wasnt a waste land (wasted by war) in MM1.
I think that area is an area not covered by the long arm of the law....

The opening montage with the comments that he wandered out into the wasteland is probably very far removed from SunCity.
3000miles from here.... paradise... and lets face it, there isnt much out there at all in reality.

In the MM1 world, things were already in steep decline due to the oil shortage. Just think about what would happen should oil start to run out?
EVERYTHING would stop or slow down dramatically. Certainly there would be no more production of cars, hence all the old crap cars we see in the movie.

Eventually war would break out.... with all the major towns being abandonned.

Because of the death of Maxs wife and child he wouldve left the city before all this happened.

[MadMatt]

Also the differnt blower and pipes were due to the original car loosing these items to go on mall tour and be sold on the auto market since they were done with it after the first film. And about 5 years in wastland/desert the interior would get worn out torn up etc.. bust off the lower air damn for ground clearance on the occasinal offroad jaunt. and hey if you come across a good set of tires mounted on rims that fit youd bet they be on the car (No tire machines around to bust a tire off rim easy) Although they make some hand operated tools for that,just not fun to use. The blue light was lying on the floorboard next to Dog too at the begining.