The Tease of Things I Don't Need

Editorial Hip Hop

News that DC editor Stephen Wacker, primarily known of late for shepherding 52 thtough its weekly schedule and even fielding a weekly Q&A about the latest issue, has suddenly left DC for a position at Marvel. This immediately had me wondering if a seeming clerical error, the omission of 52 from next week's Diamond shipping schedule, is more than an error. It would seem that something that close to release would be unaffected by so sudden an announcement, but the loop might be incredibly tight for a weekly, even one where the creative teams have worked so far ahead.

Beyond that, I had to laugh at the quick Q&A Newsarama managed to get out of Marvel's EiC Joe Quesasa when Joe stated "We have the finest editors in comics..."

This raises the question, once more, of what the criteria is for an editor at Marvel. If what's meant is someone who keeps potential issues cleared through the legal department, presses creative teams to pad out stories so they'll fit neatly into trade editions, keeps issues coming out on schedule (unless it's something involving the name "McNiven") and generally keeping the "talent" happy, then I guess they're doing pretty well. I wish, though, that they had editors who genuinely knew and cared about the histories of the characters and applied that knowledge in a feedback loop to keep the writers honest.