We celebrate our 150th show with an interview with Spider-Man Editor Steve Wacker. Josh Bertone and Donovan Grant talked to him at San Diego and he had some interesting comments about his tenure. He reveals his hits and misses with the book. He also says a few controversial things about this website. I have a rebuttal at the end of the episode.
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Mr Wacker’s been banned numerous times, but he keeps coming back…
Maybe you need to trick him into saying his name backwards? 😉
“I bet if you were to come in here TOMORROW with a more friendly attitude, despite all of this, you would be welcome with open arms.”
Oh no no. He wore out his welcome back in June. His behavior, his choice.
I bet if you were to come in here TOMORROW with a more friendly attitude, despite all of this, you would be welcome with open arms. Nobody started to dislike you until you started acting like an ***, Ben or Phil, whatever the hell you’re calling yourself this week.
Complaining about negativity that YOU yourself had a hand in causing. That’s so hypocritical, it’s not even funny. It’s just sad.
At least Slott has the decency to not sneak back in just to throw snark around. You don’t like this site, regardless of what you say. Why else would you keep coming back just to act like this?
And no the comic strip excuse doesn’t float. Buy a damn newspaper if you want to cover it. That way you don’t have to deal with us.
People constantly complaining about the EXTREME negativity of this site… and when does it seem to actually occur? When YOU come in here and start stirring the shit!
Yes, you’re free speech is impeded for fear of putting the CS in tizzy… Use whatever excuse you want. You have come on this site many times demanding that the admins enforce rules and they have against many people that are for and against the current direction. Then when you violate the rules and they kick you off, suddenly the rules don’t matter. Us peons need to follow rules but the all important Spider-editor will keep coming up with excuses to do whatever the hell he wants. That sends a great message to the kids!
Given the offense taken whenever this website is as much as kind of mentioned…I really can’t respond anywhere else with getting you all in a tizzy.
Remember your anger when Dan DIDNT mention this site and it became a news item.
SW
“#139Phil Urich says:
September 22nd, 2011 at 5:38 pm
It’s just weird I can be discussed so blatantly and not respond. Though I understand why some wouldn’t want that. Takes away the one-sidedness.”
Of course you’re going to be discussed. This is a Spider-man website. We all love Spidey and you are the editor of the book. Also, you just did an interview and came in fighting with posters again. There’s going to be discussion. It’s sad because I would love it if we could have the editor of ASM popping in here all the time and it be a fun discussion but every time you showed up to stir the pot and insult people. You gave up your privileged to discuss things on this board when you broke the rules. This is Brad’s site that he works hard to make fun for us all. We show him respect by following his rules. You continue to violate them repeatedly without regard. You can respond to anything said on here on Twitter, FB, podcasts, Marvel.com, CBR, hell even on the freaking Amazing Spider-Man letters column but not on the Crawlspace where Brad has banned you for breaking the rules.
@#139
I know, man… if only you hadn’t been banned for no good reason.
… oh wait…
@137 Not getting uptight. Just trying to steer the conversation back to the interview and podcast. (And away from the melodrama…)
@141 So its going to become a game of “Wacker-Mole” around here…*rim shot*
I get the feeling that Steve Wacker will be joining us for the foreseeable future no matter how many times he’s banned. I guess there’s two ways to look at this: 1) it’s flattering to Spider-Man Crawl Space because he can’t stay away, or 2) he loves being annoying and keeps coming back to “defend” himself. I think both are correct.
@139 – “It’s just weird I can be discussed so blatantly and not respond. ”
You’d be able to freely respond if you hadn’t abused the board’s rules. Your status here was your choice, Steven.
@133 – “My question (or concern) for George is he really seems to be against the current direction of Spider-Man, and Marvel, these days – does it make for a biased opinion when interacting with fans who like the direction, when covering Spider-related news items, and when reviewing the books on the podcast?”
If I seem that way well that’s for a good reason – I do dislike the direction of the character since OMD. When I review the Brandnewverse stories on the podcast I do point out things I dug, not just the things that made me groan.
As to “bias” regarding “interacting with fans who like the direction,” that’s completely untrue. There are folks on our boards and on the front page that I get along famously with who love the current direction. What I *am* biased against is jackassery towards this site.
@133 – “Should this question be moved to the “ask George Berryman” thread?”
It could be. I’ll happily continue to address your concerns there.
It’s just weird I can be discussed so blatantly and not respond. Though I understand why some wouldn’t want that. Takes away the one-sidedness.
Folks are sure sensitive though.
SW
I’m stunned by Steve Wacker’s constant lack of judgment! He jump’s right on here despite the fact that he is supposed to be banned, and since two of his IP’s are banned he’s clearly going out of his way to get on here (against the rules). And his first post is to insult someone! Why would he waste his time fighting with people on a Spider-Man fan message board? How does he think this is good public relations?
It seems to me that the guy just can not take criticism and acts like a child in the face of it.
I can not believe he doesn’t understand that all this does is negatively reflect on himself and Marvel, regardless of if he was right or not.
I was shocked at his conduct in the past and I am more so now. I am even more shocked seeing people defend Steve’s conduct, did they read different threads to me?
@136 – The way I see it, if one is contributing to a Spider-Man fan site I would hope they like the character and product. I know that there are fans out there that disagree with the direction of Spider-Man today, but they’re not on the podcast. I’m not saying that everybody has to like everything Spider-Man, it’s just that I feel sometimes that George isn’t giving Spidey a fair shake these days because of maybe BND, Slott/Wacker, Mephisto, etc.
As for the podcast and the interview, I did comment on it in the message board section. I was simply continuing a conversation that started here in the comments section. No reason to get uptight.
@134 – Are you worried that a mod who likes the book would be biased towards fans who aren’t happy with the direction? Why aren’t you asking that question? It sounds like your trying to bait George. Why not talk about the podcast and Wacker’s interview not Wacker’s antics on the front page?
Wacker invited me to do that in San Diego. Just waiting for one relevant to do in VENOM.
@132 – Oh there’s no doubt that George has been working with Brad (and yourself) on policing the Spider-Man Crawl Space as of late. With people’s schedules being so hectic these days, with back-to-school and all, it’s probably wise for Brad to bring on some extra help. My question (or concern) for George is he really seems to be against the current direction of Spider-Man, and Marvel, these days – does it make for a biased opinion when interacting with fans who like the direction, when covering Spider-related news items, and when reviewing the books on the podcast?
Should this question be moved to the “ask George Berryman” thread?
Bertone, I think you should compile all your Betty Brant articles into one book and send them to Wacker. Who knows, it may get published in a very long ASM letter’s column. LOL!
Thanks for the congrats everyone.
Regarding George, many of you don’t realize he’s already been helping Brad run the site for years. There have been many Skype conversations and staff message board discussions where George has helped Brad with lots of major decisions. George has not only earned his place as an admin, but he’s been doing most of the job duties anyway.
Regarding the rules….they are easy…we are forgiving. Don’t go out of your way to be a jerk and it’s fine.
@Wheatcakes: What you’ve seen is plain old immaturity + ego, combined with a commitment to discrediting critics, in order to distract readers from the substance of their criticisms.
@128
HEAR, HEAR!!! 🙂
*CLINK*
I’m just waiting for it to happen… the day will come when all that power will go to Bear’s head… then I’ll have a few fainting spells, and in a weak voice I’ll say, “My god… they… they were ALL right… George has gone mad!”
Isn’t fiction fun? But back to reality for a second. There is no way in HELL that George would give any of you the satisfaction of living up to your less than stellar opinions and expectations of him. Why I’d even go as far as to say he’s a better man than that. But I guess none of this will matter. You’ll ignore that, and continue to attempt to bait him with snark and smugness in the hopes that you’ll actually force his hand, then whine and or b**** about him and his unfairness when he’s forced to take action against you…. because you ignore or simply refuse to follow the rules.
And George, you better not make a liar out of me.
George has been a valuable member of this website along with being an awesome friend. His Fight Club is one of the most popular features on the site and I trust him with the keys the Crawlspace hot rod. He and Bertone contribute so much to the site and I really appreciate it and I trust them both with treating everyone fairly.
“It seems odd that the Spider-Man Editor at Marvel has been banned from a Spider-Man fan site. ”
Well if said Spider-Man Editor could have followed the same rules the rest of the board is held to then he’d still be around. Unfortunately he chose not to. And continues to do so.
@100
Stuart, check out the message board for the highlights. It really is a great interview and podcast, despite the front page drama…
Just got to listen to the interview. I’ll never get to go to conventions since I live in south east asia so these interviews are always a treat for me. It’s hard to match Mr. Wackers voice to that picture of him kissing the sign.
@119
Exactly. It amazes me how many times it needs to be repeated, follow the rules and guidelines and you don’t have to worry about getting into any trouble.
Congrats to George and Josh on your promotions!
Why do I feel like Gwen v. Bridge is going to start signing SW at the bottom of his posts….
“I totally don’t see this decision coming back to bite you at all.”
Right. Because after over three years here on the site (as a poster, moderator and contributing writer) and through the countless hours we’ve talked Brad Douglas doesn’t know me *at all.*
@118 – I couldn’t agree more. But don’t forget, Bertone is a new admin as well. As long as your username isn’t Betty Brant, things should be okay. LOL!
Too bad Wacker has been banned, I really enjoyed his contributions to the site. It seems odd that the Spider-Man Editor at Marvel has been banned from a Spider-Man fan site. Oh well, about as strange as making GB an admin I guess. Hopefully Marvel will continue to send Brad Spider-Man press releases. This is a great site to get Spider-Man news. As well as read the daily comic strip.
@#118
Scared? Here’s a free tip… don’t troll him, bait him, insult him, etc…
Oh, and try following the rules and guidelines while you’re at it.
Way to go, Brad! You just made one of the most confrontational guys on the site one of the most powerful. I totally don’t see this decision coming back to bite you at all.
I just don’t get Mr Wacker at times. I mean, I want to like him, but it’s darn near an impossible feat most times. Say what you want about current Spidey, I’m sure he tries hard at his job and wants to perform well, so why he would alienate a huge portion of his fanbase, despite the fact most of these same people are still buying ASM, is beyond me. I really don’t get it. I figure he’s either a bully, or he wants someone above him to take notice of his public persona and can him. I can’t imagine any other scenario. Unless Mr Alonso thinks he’s totally hilarious?
Thanks folks. With two new admins we can hopefully respond to board business with the appropriate response much quicker.
“I’m sure George will take that as a compliment, even though that’s not how you meant it.”
Pretty much FSU! Heh.
I’m just glad Brad stepped in and took a hand in this. Of course, I’m expecting the banned party to just find another PC with another IP, and reregister again. I wanted to congradulate George and Josh on their promotion too. Watch out, Betty Brant………Josh is an Admin now:)
Well, he’s in the industry, and the attitudes he shows are part of the reason the industry’s gone downhill.
I have had a good round of speaking with Mr. Wacker on CBR concerning how he spoke to the fans and how it seemed in many instances he’d go out of his way to either be rude to them or so snarky it would automatically take any thread he posted to. I asked him if such behavior was considered professional because it wasn’t coming across as being such. But all I got was how invalid my opinion was because I was using a screen name instead of my real name, then once I switched it to my real name it was more or less, who was I to tell him what was or wasn’t professional.
Frankly, I feel he’s his own worst enemy in these regards because he picks fights with the fans who disagree with aspects of what they are doing. I certainly couldn’t see Stan Lee, a class act, behaving in such a way towards the very people who make it possible to pay his bills. (Clearly if someone is buying the material, they have more than a right to express their opinions on it). I didn’t know at first Wacker was on this board too (I randomly came across the Crawlspace), but I was not surprised to see that even here, whenever he posted, the thread went up in smoke and turned into a flame war. Something you’d expect from a fanboy, not from an industry professional.
“He comes off like the Rush Limbaugh of the Spidey universe.”
I’m sure George will take that as a compliment, even though that’s not how you meant it. 🙂
Wow. Making Berryman full admin who is participating in the back and forth seems odd. I was just going to post after listening to the podcast that I wished Berryman wasn’t so uncompromising and one-sided in his views. He comes off like the Rush Limbaugh of the Spidey universe. I wish he didn’t derive most of his humor from negativity.
So SW trolled (again), and broke the site’s rules about registering (again), in order to make some point about how rude and unethical the people who run this site are.
I’m sure George becoming an admin will only cement Wacker’s views about the site but since he has no interest in follow the rules, it really doesn’t matter. After everything that’s happened I don’t know if you guys should do another interview with him even if he asked.
So…Congrats to George and Josh on their new Admin status. Sucks it took something like this to get it.
Thanks for the interview, it was a fun listen.
One suggestion though: The background music went on during the first minute of the interview or so, even with the people talking in the background. IMO it would be best if any background noise would be kept to a minimum.
@104-
“BD,
This thread has made me realize that I need more help with moderating the message board and the front page.”
Agreed, BD….You do too much. You’re not Superman, you know! 😉
Times like this I really miss Kevin being around here so often…If he had been here, this whole mess would’ve been cleaned up around 70 or 80 posts ago!
“As of now Bertone and George are full admins. They can issue warnings and ban folks.”
Congrats on the well deserved promotion, guys!
But always remember: “With Great Power…”
I can’t help but notice that Mr Wacker still doesn’t appreciate the irony of the situation, though:
When Dan Slott told someone to go “F-Themselves”, Mr Wacker claimed that he was “not a Marvel employee”(?), so he couldn’t do anything about it.
Yet when a member of THIS site posted comments on another site (HIS OWN PERSONAL BLOG), the Crawlspace is somehow held accountable.
Seems like kind of a double standard to me.
#21
Jon says:
September 20th, 2011 at 6:51 pm
@Enigma “All I’m gonna say is… who stared it?”
The point is it should never have gotten to the place it did. It was a gang-up.
… which is what happens when you troll an ENTIRE SITE. Fix the problem at the source, and you fix the problem. Pointing the finger both ways is just an excuse used to keep from admitting who’s REALLY responsible.
“I would have acted no differently then Wacker”
…and you would have been just as responsible.
BD,
This thread has made me realize that I need more help with moderating the message board and the front page. As of now Bertone and George are full admins. They can issue warnings and ban folks. I can’t be on the site 24/ 7 so they’ll help trim the trolls.
HI Nik! You’re gone. Reasons 1) You didn’t read the rules and decided to discuss the warning in this thread. 2) You continued to insult George in the thread. So goodbye to you and your “girlfriend.”
And Mad Men is pretty magnificent. Two episodes to go in the third season, and it’s getting better and better.
But “Ban-Ban” Berryman has even admitted to having a hand in at least one ban!
And I didn’t attack anything other than his asinine methods of over-quoting, AND USING THOSE QUOTES OUT OF CONTEXTto suit whatever argument he feels like pulling out of his rear at any given moment!!
You gotta understand, his methods are an abortion of logic. I agree I’ve been over-the-top in this thread, and it’s been intentional. But it’s only to balance out the cartoonishness of George’s crappy lawyer schtick he’s got going on.
I’m going to be the bigger man and split my warning with you, George. Lord knows you deserve it, hombre.