Jim Shooter Hired As New Legion of Super-Heroes Writer

By now this is old news. It has been out for about a week that Jim Shooter will take over the reins of the Legion of Super-Heroes starting with Legion of Super-Heroes #37. Heh, heh, notice the title? Something is missing, right? Damn, straight. No Supergirl. Thank the comic book gods for small miracles. Anyway, the artist that has been tapped to work with Shooter is Francis Manapul. I’ll get back to the choice of Manapul as the artist in a bit since the big news is Shooter being named the writer.

For those that don’t know Jim Shooter, make no mistake that this man is a bona fide legend in the world of comic books. Shooter is arguably the second greatest Legion writer behind only the master himself, Paul Levitz. Shooter started writing the Legion of Super-Heroes when he was just 13 years old back in July of 1966 beginning with Adventure Comics #346. Jim Shooter wrote Adventure Comics #346-380. Shooter then made a brief return in the 1970s and wrote Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #209-215, 217, 219-221, 223-224, and 238.

During Shooter’s run in the 1960s, he created several Legionnaires including Karate Kid, Ferro Lad, Princess Projectra, and Shadow Lass. Shooter also created some of the most famous Legion villains in Nemesis Kid, Universo, Mordru, the Khunds, and the Fatal Five. Shooter also introduced the concept of the “adult Legion.” All of that cements Shooter’s position as one of the greatest Legion writers and certainly affords him all the respect in the world from this Legion fan.

Now, many other comic book fans might recognize Shooter from his later position as Marvel Editor-In-Chief from 1978-1987. That is how I remember Shooter. Shooter’s work on the Legion was well before my time. However, I was a kid when Shooter was the Editor-In-Chief for Marvel and grew up with his version of the Marvel Universe.

When Shooter left Marvel he went on to found Valiant Comics in 1989. Valiant published its fair share of solid titles such as Archer and Armstrong, Bloodshot, Harbinger, Magnus Robot Fighter, Ninjak (which sported the art of a young artist just breaking into the industry by the name of Joe Quesada who would one day take the same job as Shooter over in Marvel.), Rai, Solar, Turok Dinosaur Hunter and X-O Manowar all through the early 1990s.

Acclaim then bought Shooter’s company that owned Valiant Comics. In 1996, Valiant Comics was renamed Acclaim Comics. Acclaim then went bankrupt and closed its offices in 2004.

All right, that was probably more than most of you ever wanted to know about Jim Shooter. But, I felt it was necessary for people to have a sense of history in the naming of Shooter as the writer for the Legion of Super-Heroes. Shooter is an absolute legend in the comic book industry and it is hard to find another writer with a pedigree superior to Shooter.

There is no doubt that this is massive news that DC dropped on the comic book industry. Shooter is a huge name and is a move that shows DC’s desire to place top-notch talent on the Legion of Super-Heroes in an effort to make this title an excellent read once again.

Now, I have refrained from posting a comment on Shooter’s selection to head up the Legion of Super-Heroes because I wanted to let it sink in and really wrap my mind around this move by DC. I think I have clearly established my respect for Shooter and all he has accomplished not just on the Legion of Super-Heroes, but in the comic book industry at large. And there is no doubt that Shooter is a talented man. And there is also no doubt that this is a bold move by DC. I don’t want anyone to mistake what I’m about to say as a dismissal of Shooter and all he has accomplished.

At first blush, I was totally excited about the news that Shooter would be the new writer of the Legion. Tenzil came over to the Bunker and we were hanging out playing some X-Box 360 and getting crunked when suddenly he dropped the bomb on me. Tenzil smirks and says “You know that Jim Shooter was just named the new Legion writer today, right?”

Well, I hadn’t heard yet since I don’t check out comic book news sites all that often. My jaw hit the ground. I was stunned. My heart began to race. Jim Shooter! Hot damn! The only writer that DC could have named that would have made me happier would have been the master himself, Paul Levitz, coming back to rescue his beloved Legion from the ravaging it has taken since his departure.

Once the stunned giddiness subsided, the more analytical and critical side of my mind kicked in. The fact is that comic book readers under the age of 35 may not even know that Shooter ever wrote the Legion of Super-Heroes. They may only remember Jim Shooter as the Editor-In-Chief of Marvel. And comic book readers under the age of 25 probably won’t even know who Jim Shooter is at all. So, the announcement of Jim Shooter as the new writer of the Legion really only seems aimed at old-time readers and younger readers like me who have a strong sense of history and absolutely love and treasure the history of comic books.

This move to announce Jim Shooter as the writer of the Legion reminded me of when my Washington Redskins announced that Joe Gibbs was returning to coach the team in 2004. Older fans were excited. Younger fans, however, were unfamiliar with Saint Joe. At first, I was excited. Now after a couple of unimpressive seasons, it appears that the game has passed Saint Joe by. The fact is that the move to bring back Joe Gibbs was an act of desperation. No other coaches had worked out since he left so rather than do some hard work and find the next Joe Gibbs; the owner took the easy way out and brought back the old Joe Gibbs.

This is pretty much how I view DC’s move to bring Jim Shooter back to the Legion of Super-Heroes. Yes, Shooter’s run on the Legion in the 1960s was legendary. However, sometimes things should simply be left in the past and truly appreciated for what they are. The fact is that you can rarely go home again.

It appears that DC’s move to bring back Jim Shooter hints at a bit of desperation. Let’s be honest, after Paul Levitz left, the Legion has been an absolute cluster fuck. And there has been a parade of writers who have attempted to fix the Legion and all of them have failed. So, DC decides that since they can’t find the new Paul Levitz or the new Jim Shooter, then they might as well bring back the old Jim Shooter.

Jim Shooter is a 56-year-old writer who has just been handed the keys to a teen title. That is certainly a bit of an odd choice. Now, obviously, teen titles are almost always written by much older writers. But a 56-year-old writer? C’mon. That is stretching it a bit. Jim Shooter first started on the Legion when he was 13. Paul Levitz started on the Legion when he was 19. I’m not too sure that going with a 56-year-old writer is the way to make the Legion relevant once again with current and new comic book fans.

Look, I’m pretty old school when it comes to the Legion and I love everything about the Pre-Crisis Legion and pretty much loathe and despise everything about the Post-Crisis Legion. But, the fact is that the readers that DC should be making the most effort to appeal to are new fans and the younger next generation of fans. That is the future of the Legion and what will make it grow in popularity and sustain that continued growth in the future.

I’m not saying that DC should ignore long-time fans. DC should certainly keep long-term fans in mind; however, the number one priority should be the new fan and the next generation of comic book readers who will carry the Legion into the future. Honestly, appealing to Legion fans over the age of 40 isn’t a wise business decision. For the Legion to become vibrant and popular and to garner better sales numbers, then DC needs to go after younger and newer readers.

I keep asking myself is going with a 56-year-old writer that many younger readers may not recognize at all really the best move for the future growth of the Legion of Super-Heroes? Or is it just a move of desperation geared at appeasing vocal older fans? I honestly feel that DC needs to look forward and spend its time and effort trying to find the next Jim Shooter or the next Paul Levitz instead of going back to the past.

Even if Paul came back, I know that it wouldn’t compare to those Pre-Crisis stories that he gave me when I was a kid. What Jim and Paul did in the past was great, but we will never be able to re-capture that magic. DC needs to focus on the future and try to find the next Legion legend rather than dusting off a legend from the past to try and save the Legion from its sagging sales numbers.

Now, even though I think that DC should be busy trying to find new talent who can work magic on this title as Shooter and Levitz did back in the day, I still am excited to see what Shooter has in store for us. I do think that Shooter’s take on the Legion is going to be more enjoyable than Waid’s run on this title.

And it is interesting that DC might have kicked around the idea of rebooting the Legion yet again in order to allow Shooter complete and total creative license in imagining this new Legion. DC decided against that move and I am glad they did. It is no secret that The Revolution has been less than impressed with Waid’s rebooted Legion. However, it isn’t unreadable crap like what the TMK Legion gave us. I think that Waid did enough things right that Shooter can work with what Waid left behind and use Waid’s issues as building blocks to create some great stories.

Plus, the Legion has been rebooted enough times already. Personally, I hope we never see the Legion rebooted again. Especially since the Multiverse has returned. With the beloved Multiverse back in existence, you have the ultimate literary tool that enables DC to have in existence every incarnation of the Legion. With 52 Earths, you can have every past version of the Legion still in existence and this will appease fans of the different versions of the Legion. It is time for DC to concentrate on the current version of the Legion and try to make it the best version of the Legion possible.

All right, now let’s talk about the new Legion of Super-Heroes artist. Francis Manapul has been tapped to provide the art for my beloved Legion. You can check out Manapul’s official website and his blog. I will admit that I am not at all familiar with Manapul’s artwork. His resume includes providing art for several titles that I have never read including Witchblade, Tomb Raider, Monster Fighters, and Fear Effect: Retro Helix. So it appears that Manapul has been working with Top Cow and Image up to this point. That would certainly explain his obvious Image style of artwork.

I have to say that Manapul’s artwork looks great. I really like it. Manapul’s art is a neat blend of manga-style artwork and the typical Image style artwork. Manapul’s artwork is very stylized, slick, dynamic, and vibrant. I think that Manapul’s art is an excellent choice for a youthful title like the Legion of Super-Heroes. Plus, Manapul’s art will give the Legion a very sexy and cool look that a team of teenagers from the far future should definitely possess.

Manapul’s sexy take on the Legion reminds me of Dave Cockrum and Mike Grell’s Legion costumes in the 1970s. Now that Legion had some serious style when it came to fashion! That was some serious 1970’s chic, baby!

There are only two costumes that Manapul has designed that I flat-out disliked. I hate Colossal Boy’s silly brown padding that runs up his arms, shoulders, and neck. It is way too Image Comics for me. It looks like Gim should be a member of Youngblood and not the Legion. And I really dislike the barefoot Timber Wolf. The less Brin looks and acts like a werewolf rip-off or a Wolverine rip-off the better.

However, all the rest of Manapul’s costumes look fantastic. First, let’s talk about my favorite Legionnaire, Cosmic Boy. Manapul’s version of Cos looks great. Manapul’s version is very reminiscent of the outfit Cosmic Boy wore during the Levitz/Giffen Era in the 1980s. Right down to the metal circles on the chest and the cuffs around the gloves. I love it. I just wish Manapul had posted a teaser image of Cosmic Boy in color so we could get a hint of any tweaks to the color scheme of his outfit.

At first blush, I wasn’t crazy about Brainiac 5’s new outfit. However, after looking at it for the past several days it has really grown on me. I’m now digging this new look for Brainy. Shadow Lass looks nice and I like the general costume design, however, I prefer Shady in black rather than brown. Triad, Ultra Boy, Star Boy, Invisible Kid, Sun Boy, Element Lad, and Chameleon Boy all look great.

I absolutely love Saturn Girl and Phantom Girl’s costumes. They are very reminiscent of their 1970s outfits. The white design on Saturn Girl’s outfit reminds me of the bikini cut of her 1970s costume. This is a cool blend of her costume from the 1980s and from the 1970s. And Phantom Girl is just hot, hot, hot. The holes in the costume and the low-slung belt remind me of her 1970s costume. Is there a possibility that this outfit has bell bottoms? One can only hope.

Lightning Lad, Princess Projectra, and Karate Kid are all sporting costumes very evocative of their 1980s costumes with the Levitz/Giffen Legion. I totally dig Karate Kid and Projectra’s flaring high collars.

With the exception of Colossal Boy and Timber Wolf, Manapul’s Legionnaires look absolutely fantastic! This is one smoking hot-looking Legion. This is certainly the best-looking Legion that we have gotten in a long time. I liked Barry Kitson’s Legion, but I think that Manapul’s Legion looks even better. I also like that it appears that Manapul did some research on the previous costume designs of the various Legionnaires when coming up with their current costumes.

Anyway, as I was saying, Manapul’s artwork seems to be a perfect match for the Legion of Super-Heroes. It is dynamic and eye-catching. It is youthful and “hot.” I think pairing the energetic and youthful artwork of Manapul with the old grizzled veteran writer in Jim Shooter is an absolute stroke of genius by DC. When you have a 56-year-old writer, you have to do something to make sure the Legion doesn’t read like an old geezer comic book. Manapul’s art should definitely do the trick.

Overall, I’m pretty excited about this new creative direction for the Legion of Super-Heroes. I think that Shooter and Manapul have the potential to be a pretty exciting creative team. If anything, it is just nice to see DC make a huge push to try and correct the dismal sales numbers that have plagued the Legion for years.