History Creator / JimShooter

* ''ComicBook/SupermanFamily''
* ''ComicBook/SupermansPalJimmyOlsen''

James "Jim" Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is a American comic book personality. A divisive figure, he is known both for his work as a writer and editor, and for the controversies surrounding him.

* ''Adventure Comics''

* FlashForward: The ''Adult Legion'' story from ComicBook/AdventureComics'' #354-355, which even depicted the deaths of members who hadn't joined yet.

After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continued Shooter's emphasis on characterization and continuity. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers, "zero" issues etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market and earned both the company and Shooter himself several industry awards. However, internal politics resulted in Shooter being ousted from the company after a couple of years and, after an [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]], Valiant eventually closed down (and would be rebooted in 2012). Shooter tried a few more times, founding Creator/DefiantComics and Broadway Comics, but without success.

Shooter began his career at the age of 13 (!) after a script for ''Comicbook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' he sent to Creator/DCComics was accepted by the famous DC Editor Mort Weisinger. Weisinger eventually invited the young Shooter to New York and impressed with his talent put him to work at the age of 14. His run helped to modernize the series, bringing it out of its [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] status, most notably by causing the death of Ferro Lad, the first Legionnaire to be KilledOffForReal. He eventually went to work for Creator/MarvelComics, writing among other things ''ComicBook/TheAvengers''. One of his most notable stories there was "ComicBook/TheKorvacSaga" in which a supervillain gains cosmic powers but decides to use them for the good of the universe; however, an attack by The Avengers (who were not aware of his motives) ruined his plans, leading him to commit suicide, an unusual DownerEnding for such stories at the time.

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time (a major problem for the company earlier in the 1970s), and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. He also banned writers from editing their own comics, with even Shooter himself submitting his work to a staff editor; this led to conflicts with veteran creators like former EIC Roy Thomas, who had been accustomed to doing both jobs. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of this dissatisfaction to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Thomas, Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

* Having Peter Parker and ComicBook/MaryJaneWatson get married in the main continuity of ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' and producing the famous "The Wedding" issue, which he plotted out by himself, to coincide with the ''ComicStrip/SpiderMan'' newspaper strip written by Creator/StanLee. Shooter did it despite the fact that his writing staff had a small window, and that Mary Jane had fairly recently returned to the supporting cast, and while she and Peter had become very close friends with considerable romantic tension between them, and had dated in the past, they certainly weren't at the time. The decision polarized the Spider-Man writing team and regular fans, and it led to what many scholars note is one of the most contentious developments in the history of the character. Having said, ''The Wedding'' issue was highly successful and very popular among the public, both comics and non-comics fans and it remains an iconic part of Spider-Man's history.

Despite his writing talent, Shooter came to gain the enmity of some writers, artists and editors at Marvel, reportedly because of his authoritarian way of running things (most infamously Creator/JohnByrne, who purportedly held a party where [[SeriousBusiness Shooter was burned in effigy]] after his old boss's eventual sacking). It's notable how several of his stories were later attacked and parodied after he left the company: The Beyonder was revealed to not really have been an omnipotent being after all; Korvac was now EvilAllAlong; and the New Universe was reinvented in a DarkerAndEdgier form, with the hero of Star Brand being to blame for it, and Shooter's hometown of Pittsburgh being destroyed. And Ms. Marvel's "happy ending" with Marcus... wasn't. All of these seem to be a series of {{Take That}}s aimed at Shooter, done regardless of their effects on the characters (or their fans). An overt one on the DC side in ''ComicBook/{{Legends|DCComics}}'' (written and drawn by folks who defected from Marvel because of him) involves an {{Expy}} of Shooter (and Star Brand) getting his ass kicked six ways to Sunday by Guy Gardner, with the Expy almost-literally shooting himself in the foot, viewable [[http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2006/10/guy-gardner-vs-jim-shooter.html here]]. Creator/JoeQuesada cited Shooter's editorially mandated wedding of Peter and MJ as precedent and justification for editorially mandating ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay''. The pressure eventually lead to Shooter being fired from Marvel.

In the early 2010s, Shooter was hired to write Legion Of Super-Heroes again--however, he was dismissed soon after, because (according to him) DC Comics did not like the direction he was taking the story. He was also attached to a short-lived Creator/DarkHorseComics revival of ''ComicBook/MightySamson'', ''ComicBook/DoctorSolar'', ''ComicBook/{{Turok}}'' and ''ComicBook/MagnusRobotFighter'', old Creator/GoldKeyComics characters the last three of whom had previously been licensed to Valiant in its early years.

In 2011, he started [[http://www.jimshooter.com/ his own blog]]. For the best part of two years he updated almost daily with entries about his experiences in Creator/DCComics, Creator/MarvelComics and other companies, anecdotes and homages to legendary comic-book writers and artists, comic-book reviews... but updates have become very sparse since. While Shooter continues to be controversial, some recent comics scholars and fans have actually revised their opinion about his time as EIC, with many feeling he was rather overly blamed or scapegoated, and trying to balance the bad with the good.

!!TV Tropes articles where Shooter is mentioned include:

* ArmedWithCanon
* AuthorsSavingThrow
* ComicBookTime
* UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks
* ExecutiveMeddling
* ExecutiveVeto
* ExpansionPackWorld
* FlashForward
* FutureSlang
* GayPanic
* HideYourLesbians
* HordeOfAlienLocusts
* ComicBook/JLAAvengers
* Creator/JoeQuesada
* ComicBook/KarateKid
* OrganicTechnology
* PardonMyKlingon
* RevisedEnding
* RunningTheAsylum
* Take That - TakeThat/ComicBooks
* Comicbook/LegionOfSuperHeroes
* ComicBook/TheNewUniverse
* Creator/ValiantComics

Shooter eventually became an associate editor, then rose to the position of Editor-In-Chief at Marvel in 1977, at the age of 26 (which is actually on the older side when one considers that Creator/StanLee's first turn as EIC in the Timely era was at 19 years of age and Creator/GerryConway, Shooter's predecessor was in his early 20s too). Up until then, the editor-in-chief at Marvel was expected to supervise the entire line, which resulted in high turnover and a ''laissez-faire'' approach to editing. Shooter managed to talk his bosses into letting him restructure the editorial department by hiring a staff of editors, each with their own portfolio of titles, with Shooter as the (as he sometimes referred to himself in the credits) "Big Boss."

After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continued Shooter's emphasis on characterization and continuity. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers, "zero" issues etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market and earned both the company and Shooter himself several industry awards. However, internal politics resulted in Shooter being ousted from the company after a couple of years and, after an [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]], Valiant eventually closed down (and would be rebooted in 2012). Shooter tried a few more times, founding Defiant Comics and Broadway Comics, but without success.

Shooter eventually became an associate editor, then rose to the position of Editor-In-Chief at Marvel in 1977, at the age of 26 (which is actually on the older side when one considers that Creator/StanLee's first turn as EIC in the Timely era was at 19 years of age and Creator/GerryConway, Shooter's predecessor was in his early 20s too).

Despite his writing talent, Shooter came to gain the enmity of some writers, artists and editors at Marvel, reportedly because of his authoritarian way of running things (most infamously Creator/JohnByrne, who purportedly held a party where [[SeriousBusiness Shooter was burned in effigy]] after his old boss's eventual sacking). It's notable how several of his stories were later attacked and parodied after he left the company: The Beyonder was revealed to not really have been an omnipotent being after all; Korvac was now EvilAllAlong; and the New Universe was reinvented in a DarkerAndEdgier form, with the hero of Star Brand being to blame for it, and Shooter's hometown of Pittsburgh being destroyed. And Ms. Marvel's "happy ending" with Marcus... wasn't. All of these seem to be a series of {{Take That}}s aimed at Shooter, done regardless of their effects on the characters (or their fans). An overt one on the DC side in ''ComicBook/{{Legends|DC}}'' (written and drawn by folks who defected from Marvel because of him) involves an {{Expy}} of Shooter (and Star Brand) getting his ass kicked six ways to Sunday by Guy Gardner, with the Expy almost-literally shooting himself in the foot, viewable [[http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2006/10/guy-gardner-vs-jim-shooter.html here]]. Creator/JoeQuesada cited Shooter's editorially mandated wedding of Peter and MJ as precedent and justification for editorially mandating ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay''. The pressure eventually lead to Shooter being fired from Marvel.

James "Jim" Shooter (born September 27, 1951) is a notorious American comic book personality, known both for his work as a writer and editor, and for the controversies surrounding him.

After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continued Shooter's emphasis on characterisation and continuity. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers, "zero" issues etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market and earned both the company and Shooter himself several industry awards, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, founding Defiant Comics and Broadway Comics, but without success.

In the early 2010s, Shooter was hired to write Legion Of Super-Heroes again--however, he was dismissed soon after, because (according to him) DC Comics did not like the direction he was taking the story. He was also attached to a Creator/DarkHorseComics revival of some old Creator/ValiantComics characters before Valiant's revival as a separate entity.

* Starting the whole CrisisCrossover fad with the two ''ComicBook/SecretWars'' series (in which the Beyonder, an [[TheOmnipotent omnipotent]] being, first [[LetsYouAndHimFight made everybody fight]], then tried ToBecomeHuman) which he wrote himself. The first was a roaring success. ''ComicBook/SecretWarsII''... wasn't. The first was done in part to compete with DC's announced earlier, but still gestating, ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', and is considered the very first "event" CrisisCrossover -- however, in the years since its publication, it has become a much more divisive series.

After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continued Shooter's emphasis on characterisation and continuity. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers, "zero" issues etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market and earned both the company and Shooter himself several industry awards, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

* Starting the whole CrisisCrossover fad with the two ''ComicBook/SecretWars'' series (in which the Beyonder, an [[TheOmnipotent omnipotent]] being, first [[LetsYouAndHimFight made everybody fight]], then tried ToBecomeHuman) which he wrote himself. The first was a roaring success. ''ComicBook/SecretWarsII''... wasn't. The first was done in part to compete with DC's announced earlier, but still gestating, ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', and is considered the very first "event" CrisisCrossover.

Despite his writing talent, Shooter came to gain the enmity of some writers, artists and editors at Marvel, reportedly because of his authoritarian way of running things (most infamously Creator/JohnByrne, who purportedly held a party where [[SeriousBusiness Shooter was burned in effigy]] after his old boss's eventual sacking). It's notable how several of his stories were later attacked and parodied after he left the company: The Beyonder was revealed to not really have been an omnipotent being after all; Korvac was now EvilAllAlong; and the New Universe was reinvented in a DarkerAndEdgier form, with the hero of Star Brand being to blame for it, and Shooter's hometown of Pittsburgh being destroyed. And Ms. Marvel's "happy ending" with Marcus... wasn't. All of these seem to be a series of {{Take That}}s aimed at Shooter, done regardless of their effects on the characters (or their fans). An overt one on the DC side in ''ComicBook/{{Legends}}'' (written and drawn by folks who defected from Marvel because of him) involves an {{Expy}} of Shooter (and Star Brand) getting his ass kicked six ways to Sunday by Guy Gardner, with the Expy almost-literally shooting himself in the foot, viewable [[http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2006/10/guy-gardner-vs-jim-shooter.html here]]. Creator/JoeQuesada cited Shooter's editorially mandated wedding of Peter and MJ as precedent and justification for editorially mandating ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay''. The pressure eventually lead to Shooter being fired from Marvel.

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time (a major problem for the company earlier in the 1970s), and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. He also banned writers from editing their own comics, with even Shooter himself submitting his work to a staff editor; this upset veteran creators like former EIC Roy Thomas, who had been accustomed to doing both jobs. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of this dissatisfaction to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Thomas, Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time (a major problem for the company earlier in the 1970s), and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. He also banned writers from editing their own comics, with even Shooter himself submitting his work to a staff editor; this upset veteran creators like former EIC Roy Thomas, who had been accustomed to doing both jobs. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of that to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Thomas, Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time (a major problem for the company earlier in the 1970s), and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. He also banned writers from editing their own comics, with even Shooter himself submitting his work to a staff editor; this upset veteran creators like Creator/RoyThomas who had been accustomed to doing both jobs. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of that to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Thomas, Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time (a major problem for the company earlier in the 1970s), and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of that to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

Shooter began his career at the age of 13 (!) after a script for ''Comicbook/{{Legion Of Super-Heroes}}'' he sent to Creator/DCComics was accepted by the famous DC Editor Mort Weisinger. Weisinger eventually invited the young Shooter to New York and impressed with his talent put him to work at the age of 14. His run helped to modernize the series, bringing it out of its [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] status, most notably by causing the death of Ferro Lad, the first Legionnaire to be KilledOffForReal. He eventually went to work for Creator/MarvelComics, writing among other things ''ComicBook/TheAvengers''. One of his most notable stories there was "ComicBook/TheKorvacSaga" in which a supervillain gains cosmic powers but decides to use them for the good of the universe; however, an attack by The Avengers (who were not aware of his motives) ruined his plans, leading him to commit suicide, an unusual DownerEnding for such stories at the time.

* Comicbook/{{Legion of Super-Heroes}}

As EIC, Shooter was committed to getting issues out on time, and that meant a heavy handed approach and dictatorial command of his staff and pressure on writers and artists. This needless to say did not make him very popular among his co-workers. Jennette Kahn, the new publisher of DC Comics, took advantage of that to woo many of those disgruntled talents like Creator/SteveEnglehart, Creator/MarvWolfman and Creator/GeorgePerez to her side to jumpstart her company's competitiveness.

After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while. For his own part, he has opined in interviews years later that he had difficulty finding work in comics at the time because his reputation had been tarnished so badly in the press, claiming that magazines like ''Wizard'', keen for any direct input from comics creators they could get, would reprint every negative story from disgruntled former Marvel employees. However, the experience of trying to buy Marvel led Shooter to realise his ability to raise substantial amounts of capital very quickly and, assisted by former Marvel employees with whom he remained on good terms and contacts he had made in the publishing business immediately following his departure from Marvel, he decided to set up his own company. After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continued Shooter's emphasis on characterisation and continuity. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers, "zero" issues etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market and earned both the company and Shooter himself several industry awards, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

Recently, Shooter was hired to write Legion Of Super-Heroes again--however, he was dismissed soon after, because (according to him) DC Comics did not like the direction he was taking the story.

Most recently, Creator/DarkHorseComics has hired Shooter to manage [[Creator/ValiantComics some old and abandoned properties they recently acquired]]...

After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while. For his own part, he has opined in interviews years later that he had difficulty finding work in comics at the time because his reputation had been tarnished so badly in the press, claiming that magazines like ''Wizard'', keen for any direct input from comics creators they could get, would reprint every negative story from disgruntled former Marvel employees. However, the experience of trying to buy Marvel led Shooter to realise his ability to raise substantial amounts of capital very quickly and, assisted by former Marvel employees with whom he remained on good terms and contacts he had made in the publishing business immediately following his departure from Marvel, he decided to set up his own company. After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continuing his emphasis on characterisation and continuity, during the 1990s. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/{{Acclaim}} corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while. For his own part, he has opined in interviews years later that he had difficulty finding work in comics at the time because his reputation had been tarnished so badly in the press, claiming that magazines like ''Wizard'', keen for any direct input from comics creators they could get, would reprint every negative story from disgruntled former Marvel employees. However, the experience of trying to buy Marvel led Shooter to realise his ability to raise substantial amounts of capital very quickly and, assisted by former Marvel employees with whom he remained on good terms and contacts he had made in the publishing business immediately following his departure from Marvel, he decided to set up his own company. After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continuing his emphasis on characterisation and continuity, during the 1990s. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/{{Deathmate}} ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/Acclaim corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while. For his own part, he has opined in interviews years later that he had difficulty finding work in comics at the time because his reputation had been tarnished so badly in the press, claiming that magazines like ''Wizard'', keen for any direct input from comics creators they could get, would reprint every negative story from disgruntled former Marvel employees. However, the experience of trying to buy Marvel led Shooter to realise his ability to raise substantial amounts of capital very quickly and, assisted by former Marvel employees with whom he remained on good terms and contacts he had made in the publishing business immediately following his departure from Marvel, he decided to set up his own company. After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continuing his emphasis on characterisation and continuity, during the 1990s. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[ComicBook/Deathmate ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[Creator/Acclaim corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while. For his own part, he has opined in interviews years later that he had difficulty finding work in comics at the time because his reputation had been tarnished so badly in the press, claiming that magazines like ''Wizard'', keen for any direct input from comics creators they could get, would reprint every negative story from disgruntled former Marvel employees. However, the experience of trying to buy Marvel led Shooter to realise his ability to raise substantial amounts of capital very quickly and, assisted by former Marvel employees with whom he remained on good terms and contacts he had made in the publishing business immediately following his departure from Marvel, he decided to set up his own company. After an attempt to buy Creator/HarveyComics went nowhere, Shooter and his partners established Creator/ValiantComics, which successfully modernized several old existing characters licensed from Creator/GoldKeyComics and continuing his emphasis on characterisation and continuity, during the 1990s. It was successful for a time, even pioneering several marketing tricks and techniques (collectable coupons given away with issues which could be exchanged for a free exclusive comic, variant covers by "superstar" artists, holographic and holofoil covers etc.) which earned it considerable attention in the burgeoning collectors' market, but internal politics resulted in Shooter leaving the company after a couple of years and, one [[Deathmate ill-fated crossover]] with Creator/ImageComics and a [[AcclaimEntertainment corporate takeover and poorly-handled reboot]] later, eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

Despite his writing talent, Shooter came to gain the enmity of some writers, artists and editors at Marvel, reportedly because of his authoritarian way of running things. It's notable how several of his stories were later attacked and parodied after he left the company: The Beyonder was revealed to not really have been an omnipotent being after all; Korvac was now EvilAllAlong; and the New Universe was reinvented in a DarkerAndEdgier form, with the hero of Star Brand being to blame for it, and Shooter's hometown of Pittsburgh being destroyed. And Ms. Marvel's "happy ending" with Marcus... wasn't. All of these seem to be a series of {{Take That}}s aimed at Shooter, done regardless of their effects on the characters (or their fans). An overt one on the DC side in ''ComicBook/{{Legends}}'' (written and drawn by folks who defected from Marvel because of him) involves an {{Expy}} of Shooter (and Star Brand) getting his ass kicked six ways to Sunday by Guy Gardner, with the Expy almost-literally shooting himself in the foot, viewable [[http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2006/10/guy-gardner-vs-jim-shooter.html here]]. Creator/JoeQuesada cited Shooter's editorially mandated wedding of Peter and MJ as precedent and justification for editorially mandating ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay''. The pressure eventually lead to Shooter being fired from Marvel. After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while.

Shooter went on to head his own comics company, Creator/ValiantComics, by modernizing several old existing characters and continuing his emphasis on characterisation and continuity, during the 1990s. It was successful for a time, but eventually closed down. Shooter tried a few more times, but without success.

* Starting the whole CrisisCrossover fad with the two ''ComicBook/SecretWars'' series (in which the Beyonder, an [[TheOmnipotent omnipotent]] being, first [[LetsYouAndHimFight maed everybody fight]], then tried ToBecomeHuman) which he wrote himself. The first was a roaring success. ''ComicBook/SecretWarsII''... wasn't. The first was done in part to compete with DC's announced earlier, but still gestating, ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'', and is considered the very first "event" CrisisCrossover.

Despite his writing talent, Shooter came to gain the enmity of some writers, artists and editors at Marvel, reportedly because of his authoritarian way of running things. It's notable how several of his stories were later attacked and parodied after he left the company: The Beyonder was revealed to not really have been an omnipotent being after all; Korvac was now EvilAllAlong; and the New Universe was reinvented in a DarkerAndEdgier form, with the hero of Star Brand being to blame for it, and Shooter's hometown of Pittsburgh being destroyed. And Ms. Marvel's "happy ending" with Marcus... wasn't. All of these seem to be a series of {{Take That}}s aimed at Shooter, done regardless of their effects on the characters (or their fans). An overt one on the DC side (written and drawn by folks who defected from Marvel because of him) involves an {{Expy}} of Shooter (and Star Brand) getting his ass kicked six ways to Sunday by Guy Gardner, with the Expy almost-literally shooting himself in the foot, viewable [[http://daveslongbox.blogspot.com/2006/10/guy-gardner-vs-jim-shooter.html here]]. Creator/JoeQuesada cited Shooter's editorially mandated wedding of Peter and MJ as precedent and justification for editorially mandating ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay''. The pressure eventually lead to Shooter being fired from Marvel. After trying to buy Marvel (and missing the bid by less than 2 million), Shooter decided to move on from the Big Two for a while.