It's because he's bland by comparison. His athleticism and hard work are laudable and apparent, but if somebody doesn't excite an audience you can't force them to get excited. And frankly I think Adam's ability to project is far superior to Max's, so it makes sense that the audience reciprocates what the skater makes them feel. Max is a great athlete - moreso than Adam IMO - but he simply doesn't exude the charm, panache or star power that Adam has. I think part of the reason is because he's making his skating judge-friendly which is losing what makes him special - programs like Tron excite a crowd because they suit him, programs like Nessun Dorma while artistically pushing himself just doesn't feel like Max. And of course when he misses the element it's hard to feel as excited as when Adam cleanly skates (even if his SP jumps are easier).
Muse Exogenesis FS wasn't really a judge-friendly program, in fact he received underscored PCS most of the time to me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2GpQtiXj0Q
Even the commentators (apart for British Eurosport and of course TAT) from NBC, CBC and TDP always criticized this program.
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