1. Introduction

To open the book, we introduce critical trauma studies and critical disability studies to argue that it is time these two theoretical approaches entered into a productive conversation. The Mad Max series of films traversing a period of almost 40 years is the ideal text to prompt such a discussion. The character Max Rockatansky transitioned from able-bodied masculinity in the first film to a limping, maddened road warrior in The Road Warrior and, by Fury Road, to a man haunted by guilt and hallucinations, often presenting as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but rediscovering himself and his humanity. The origins and intentions of both critical trauma and critical disability studies are outlined to examine the sites of divergence and intersection. Focusing on a humanities approach to both trauma and disability, this chapter highlights productive areas of intersection related to aesthetics, metaphor, embodiment and social-cultural critique.