Sam the Dog

Sam is a 6-foot-tall, brown anthropomorphic dog with black pupils. He wears a grey Bloodhound fedora, as well as a grey suit with a white dress shirt, meant to mimic a typical noir detective outfit. He wears a comically large neck tie with black and blue stripes. Underneath his suit jacket, he presumably wears a leather shoulder holster. Despite his body being anthropomorphic, he only has four fingers (including his thumbs) and three toes. He refers to himself as an Irish wolfhound in On the Road.

Sam carries around a Smith & Wesson Model 29 44 Magnum revolver. It's incredible size lends it to "droop" while being held. In the comics, he is quick to use it but is a very lousy shot. In the Telltale episodes he can hit any object on the first shot but is very reluctant to use it against living things, even villains. The gun makes a single appearance in the animated series in episode 20, entitled "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang." (when Sam and Max had just escaped the Commissioner's daughter's wedding and Sam says "I think the Commissioner would support our decision to employ rubber ammo and tear gas at this point!)

A member of the Freelance Police, Sam comes off as more level headed and less violent than his partner Max, albeit not by much. He typically wears a grayish film noir-styled suit, with a hat and a blue and black striped tie and also goes barefoot. In the games, he has a tendency to take everything he sees, and apparently keeps the items in a cardboard box that he carries inside his jacket.

Sam is prone to long-winded sentences filled with elaborate terminology. He is usually depicted as being very calm, rational and collected, preferring to solve things diplomatically rather than always resorting to violence. He rarely loses his temper and is able to react to panic-inducing situations with extreme calm. When he does get angry, however, he tends to react in an uncharacteristically savage manner. In They Stole Max's Brain, Sam shows his more violent manner of investigating then the previous episodes, which include from beating a gorilla for showing a dog sign, to using a gun on a COPS member. It is usually, and somewhat ironically, Max that calms him down and prevents him from acting upon his anger. Although most of the time he acts like a human, Sam sometimes behaves like a dog. He has growled several times in the Telltale games, and his sobbing in Sam & Max Hit the Road sound similar to the whimpers of a dog. He seems to have an enhanced sense of smell; he was able to smell where Max parked the car in Monkeys Violating the Heavenly Temple, and located the cereal aisle in Beast from the Cereal Aisle and the concession stand in Night of the Cringing Wildebeest by their non-food scents. He has also been shown to enjoy dog treats.

He is very protective of Max, and will go at great lengths to keep him safe. He cares for his friends, but isn't above using them for his plans, such as when he manipulated Sybil to damage Lincoln's reputation in Abe Lincoln Must Die!. He has a large sweet tooth, as during many of his adventures and assignments he can be seen enjoying a multitude of frozen treats, such as popsicles and ice cream sandwiches, especially in the comics. In Sam & Max Season Two he becomes self-conscious about his weight, particularly when seeing his future and past selves.

Max is Sam's long-time best friend and sidekick (And possible lover). They met as children and attended junior-high together before becoming the Freelance Police. In most situations, Sam tends to play the straight man against Max's chaotic behavior. Sam is incredibly close to Max and will become tangibly uncomfortable when separated from him for any reason; he is willing to delve into great lengths to protect his little buddy. Unlike most people, Sam seems to admire Max's violent tendencies, for the most part. Though it is unclear precisely when. They are incredibly close and will become physically uncomfortable when separated for any reason, both willing to delve into great lengths to protect each other. Max is known for showing his affection towards Sam in the form of violence, but he harbors no ill will towards him. Several examples in the series show that they are "married".

Max Ruth The Geek The color orange Glazed McGuffins Going for car rides Snack foods Friendship Cherry pie Hummus Protecting the innocent Women Men Hugs Killing Nazis/Klansmen Sticky buns Hannah Montana Shooting out the office window at passersby Running over things Coffee with a shot of cream and two scoops of sugar Kids Action Figures "Treeetz" puppy treats Fudgey Freezes Moody noir settings Musicals Bluegrass music Television His DeSoto The Rubber Pants Commandos Playing Fizzball Buddy Hackett Highway Surfing Heavy weaponry Banang Throwing Max into the air His banjo Surprises.

Max being consistently reckless of his own safety Max mocking him The thought of anything bad happening to Max Pink bellies (the act of being held down on your back while having your belly slapped until pink) Hugh Bliss General Skun-ka'pe Criminals, villains, and bullies The Desoto getting stolen Suicide Murderers Insults Nazis/Klansmen Told to pick up objects he doesn't want to (or can't altogether) pick up Being called McGruff Being alone Being touched (sometimes) The Soda Poppers Having his mind read Cracks about his weight Riddles Max's brain being stolen Max being transformed into an elder god His weight Being seen naked Being mistaken for a bear or a cat

When talking to the Commissioner on the phone, Sam's part of the conversation is typically completely minimal, consisting only of one word reactions to what the commissioner says. In voiced appearances, these follow each other so quickly that it seems impossible for the commissioner to actually tell Sam the things he does.

Sam is known for his famous, long-winded non-sequiturs. Many comics and cartoon episodes, as well as Hit the Road and a few Telltale episodes, end with Sam saying this line or a variation on it in response to something Max says (Max's end varies):

"You crack me up, little buddy."

Sometimes when Max suggests a course of action in a situation, Sam goes along with it if he finds nothing wrong with Max's reasoning.

"Can't think of a reason not to."

The Freelance Police is the team consisting of Sam, Max and the Commissioner. It can be hired for Private Investigation, Law Enforcement and general Vigilantism. In the animated series, the Geek and Gary are members as well. The Freelance Police has a logo that is used as a decal on the DeSoto and on the time cards in Chariots of the Dogs. In Monkeys Violating the Heavenly Temple, the logo is a five-pointed star with "Sam & Max - Freelance Police" written on it. In later comics and Sam & Max Hit the Road, the logo is a seven-pointed star with "Sam & Max" written in a circle in the middle. In the animated series and Telltale episodes is a shield with "Sam & Max" written over it. In the Telltale series, the words are written above a seven-pointed star inside the shield, with the letters F and P appearing inside the star. The "Intergalactic Freelance Police" from the future seen in Chariots of the Dogs use a logo similar to that of Starfleet.

Max is a 3-foot tall, white-furred anthro "rabbity-thing". His appearance is generally cute and cuddly, but contrasted by his enormous sharp-toothed grin, which remains plastered on his melon-like head at almost all times. He has big feet and long ears that always stay upright, as well as a pair of glaring, beady eyes. Apparently, he has a metal plate in his skull. He also has a belly button. Max is best described as silly, funny, feisty, immature, reckless, impatient, annoying, destructive, and violent. However, it's shown he can be quite emotional and caring, more so in the cartoon series than in the video games. Purcell describes him as 'being made up of pure Id', and when it comes to comparing him and Sam, he states that "Sam is the guy we are, while Max is the guy we want to be." Max enjoys extreme violence and prefers to solve problems aggressively. He has a slight distaste for the long stories, anecdotes, and sentences that Sam constantly spouts forth, often asking Sam and others not to use different words such as 'ensue' and 'acumen'. He shares Sam's enthusiasm in just about anything, especially if it involves large guns and trouble. He also has very poor hygiene, as he sometimes tastes his own belly button lint, and once had a large "suspicious growth" behind his ear. Sam has commented on his pungent bodily odors on more than one occasion. Max always carries a Luger around, and when asked where he keeps it usually responds with "None of your damn business.". He is fairly trigger-happy with it in the early comics, but this is rarely seen elsewhere. Like Sam, he's a lousy shot and is never seen usually hitting anyone. Instead of shooting guns, Max prefers to maul his foes and torture them in whatever way he can come up with. This fails miserably about as often as it works; despite his boundless energy and love for violence, Max isn't particularly good at fighting.

Despite this, he doesn't seem to mind affection when he initiates it, or when given it by Sam, willingly kissing the player in Poker Night at the Inventory 2 and being generally affectionate with Sam, even allowing the latter to rest his hand on Max's head (something most often seen in the comics). He also seems to have his own "brand" of affection, which he often likens to "tough love" - essentially, acts of senseless violence, and heated, violent arguments. This is most obvious in the Telltale series of games. When interacting with the long-abandoned "Lefty's Hardware" store, Max fondly recalls times he had positive interactions with Lefty, which Sam notes were usually max committing nigh-unspeakable acts of violence against the store clerk. Max appears to have some repulsion to physical touch, especially of any affectionate varieties. As a child, he would claim any sort of romantic touch was "grody!". This mindset continued into adulthood; though he was usually slightly more subtle with his distaste for touch, he actually gagged when seeing molepeople courting practises in the cartoon and takes every opportunity to denounce hugs and kisses (most recently seen in This Time it's Virtual - when Sam calls him "huggable", he immediately responds with "Don't hug me", most likely directed at Lumpy.) Additionally, he apparently punches Sam, perhaps repeatedly, after he gets up in the morning as a means of showing love for him. When Sam asks for him to not attack so early in the morning, Max exclaims "No way, Sam! I could never stop loving you!"