Battle of the Super-Origins: Jimmy Olsen

This week's posts are the supporting characters of these books. Here’s a quick one on a character who most people hate for some unknown reason: Jimmy Olsen.

MoS – We only see Jimmy about twice and he is in the back ground. He talks to Lois in issue two where she is trying to figure out a way to interview Superman. We also see him in issue five at the Daily Planet just before Superman goes up against Bizarro.

Birthright – Jimmy is seen a lot throughout the book. We get introduced to him when Clark first shows up at the Daily Planet. He mostly hangs around with Lois and is there to be saved by Superman during the robocopter attack. Jimmy is pretty much the young loser of the group. His opening scene is a big example.  He thinks Clark is cool and is a little wary of Superman. He does get a moment  though. Jimmy’s big moment comes at the end where he leads the charge against the fake invaders to save Superman from getting killed. He also gets the pic that probably saves Superman's image.

Is that Norman Osborn in the back?

Secret Origin – We meet Jimmy at the Daily Planet during Clark’s first day on the job. We see that he’s new to the job and is an intern who’s not getting paid…bummer. Anyway, his defining moment occurs in part four where he talks to Superman and they open up to each other and talk about their problems. It’s also here where Jimmy gets his first awesome pic of Superman, which hits the front page of the Daily Planet. Later, he’s seen taking pics of Superman and around the DP during issues five and six.

Nu52 – In this origin, Jimmy starts out as Clark’s best friend instead of Superman’s. They’re both around same age and in the same profession. Later on, Jimmy tries to sway Clark into working at the Daily Planet. Later, he’s hanging with Lois all throughout the invasion. He makes a few quips and such but not too much unfortunately.

Well, that is something you don't see every day. 

The only things that match up with all of these versions is that they’re photographers and they're gingers. The Jimmies from Secret Origin and Birthright are pretty similar. They’re basically losers when they're introduced and they both grow throughout their stories.  

So which Jimmy is the best one? This is a pretty simple one. Jimmy’s is not even a note in Man of Steel. He’s just there for a page or two.  In Nu52, he has a role but you can pretty much put anyone else in that role. He’s not well defined as well here too. He’s just a guy who happens to be a photographer and just runs around with Lois for a majority of the story. I do like that he is a friend of Clark’s though. Since Clark is younger here and Superman is pretty much a loner, it really makes sense for those two to be friends.

 The Birthright version is pretty funny and somewhat defined in his role. He thinks Clark is cool but is not so sure about Superman even at the end. He does help out in the “Save Superman Flash Mob” at the end, so that helps his cause. In another turn of events, he’s also hinted at being a stalker…yeah, uh what is that about? Is it supposed to be a joke or does this Jimmy need a stern talking to? 

Jimmy, I think we gotta talk.

The Jimmy that wins it is the one from Secret Origin. It’s here where we kind of get an origin for Jimmy in how he became “Superman’s Picture-Taker”. We get a decent backstory on where he came from. We also find out that he feels he just won’t make it in Metropolis. Luckily, with a little help from Supes, Jimmy is able to get the picture of the century and make it to the big leagues. It also feels like he has a big role in the whole scope of things in Metropolis. So, the point goes to: Secret Origin...finally.

Ooooooo!!!! A chipmunk!!!!

Score tally:

Man of Steel (MoS): 1

Superman Birthright : 1

Superman Secret Origin : 1

Superman and the Men of Steel (...Nu52): 2

NEXT TIME: THE SUPPORTING SUPERHEROS (YEAH, THAT'S A CATEGORY TOO)!!!