The Major (Hellsing)

The Major (少佐 Sturmbannführer) is a character in the manga and OVA series Hellsing. He is the main antagonist of the series and is the leader of Millennium. He's voiced in Japanese by Nobuo Tobita, and in English by Gildart Jackson. He appears briefly in the trailer for Gonzo's TV series, along with Doc and the Captain.

The Major is small, plump, unprepossessing, ruthless and psychopathic, his pleasant smile is the mask on a madman. He commands with a good-natured attitude, which can change in a moment to cruelty or grandiose elation. In the manga, if the information given by the corrupt priest that was interrogated by Enrico Maxwell is correct then the Major was between 26 and 27 years old in the year 1941 (just after participating in Operation Barbarossa), thus placing him in his late eighties during the Hellsing series. He was probably born somewhere around 1913 or 1914 (being 26/7 in 1941). According to his prototype character in another one of Kohta Hirano's earlier works called Coyote, it is implied that The Major grew up in a troubled home with an alcoholic father and a mother who worked as a prostitute that received clients in their own home. After his father's death, his mother continued her adultery by engaging in sexual services for various men. This incident led the young Major/Montana Max to grab his father's pistol and kill his mother and her client. He then wandered the streets homeless until he was found by Adolf Hitler and made into a lieutenant. These incidents led The Major to become indifferent towards rape, sex, and acts of violence, a trait his mother had shared when she showed indifference to the death of The Major's father.

A former first lieutenant of the SS, Adolf Hitler issued a special order (#666) placing him in charge of a top-secret project, the main focus of which was the perfection of an artificial vampirization process. The success of this project would allow the Nazis to utilize vampires in battle and turn the tide of the war in their favor. The operation was attacked and shut down by a young Walter Dorneaz and Alucard in Warsaw, Poland, in 1944. However, the defeat proved to be only a minor setback, as the Major and his subordinates managed to escape to South America unharmed. There they resumed their research.

Although other Nazi officers with higher ranks accompanied Millennium to their South American hideout and attempted to exert their authority, the vampire officers loyal to the Major quickly executed them. Depending on the translation used, the Major is variously a sub-commander or the founder of Millennium, as well as the leader of a Werwolf special force.

The original purpose of the Nazi vampire research was to ensure Germany's victory in World War II and to create a Reich that would last for a thousand years (hence the name "Millennium"), but the Major claims that he has "no purpose". He states that he simply wishes to start an endless war. In his famous "I Love War" speech, he elaborates on his love for all facets of war, regardless of which side is winning. While addressing Integra Hellsing's question as to his specific goal, he says that he has no goal. He explains that while others settle on no means in obtaining their goals, he will settle on no goals in obtaining his means.

In the final chapters, the Major and Integra Hellsing duel to the death. As the final battle starts, because of an attack by Seras, the Major's left side is blown off, revealing himself to be a cyborg. After this discovery, Integra debates whether he was a monster or not, since he wasn't literally human. The Major responds by saying that as long as his will existed he was human, no matter what has become of his body. His reason for despising Alucard is that, though the Major is a human who looks like a monster, the vampire is a monster who looks like a human, something that he can never forgive. In the end, Integra shoots the Major to kill him.

The Major's Prototype
The Major did not first appear in Hellsing proper, his first appearance was actually in Hirano's earlier manga "Coyote". In Coyote, he was mostly the same character with a few slight differences including being a lot slimmer, and being referred to by the name "Montana Max" (probably taken from the omonymous character from the Tiny Toon Adventures animated series). Hellsing actually includes what appear to be nods to Coyote in that The Major's old name is placed in a few pieces of the Manga's art and in panels, although it's very inconsistent and is spelled differently almost every time. Fans have actually adopted "Montana Max" as the Major's name in Hellsing, but as the name has never been written in any of the dialogue whatsoever, it is more likely than not just another in-joke from Hirano.

Montana Max (Hellsing) Le Major