The Four Color Media Monitor

The former DC writer and executive who lost his way in later years is joining the company Mark Waid used to be editor for and might still be involved with:

Boom Studios said Friday that it's turning to Paul Levitz, a comics industry veteran, to join its board of directors. [...]

Levitz, 57, is a writer, editor and publisher of comics, whose runs on DC Comics' "Legion of Super-Heroes" and the current "World's Finest" are critical and commercial successes.

This does not tell a clear picture. His older work was good, but as he rose to company executive in the 1990s, that's when he began a journey downhill. He did nothing to keep Emerald Twilight and Zero Hour from desecrating the DCU, including his own work, nor did he try to find valid ways to appeal to wider audiences. After all, DC, like many other companies in the mid-90s, largely abandoned the bookstore business while doing nothing to change their pamphlet format approach. He allowed Dan DiDio to cause more damage unchallenged, approved of the collaboration with the Kuwaiti propagandist who conceived The 99, refused to give Chuck Dixon any credit in the 75 Years of DC history book, and, in a move with shades of a union tactic, he arranged for DC to become an entertainment division for Warner Brothers, all in order to save the jobs of many undeserving contributors. I lost a lot of respect for him as a result and question whether he really had any love for the company that gave him a respectable job to begin with.

And the current World's Finest isn't selling much. I can't say it's a critical success either.

"Paul brings a wealth of knowledge unparalleled in our industry, which will help us get to the next level," Richie said.

I doubt it. If he didn't show talent as an executive, and trashed the quality of writing in the end, there's little chance he'll boost Boom Studios' sales to epic levels.

Labels: bad editors, dc comics, indie publishers, msm propaganda