SUPERMAN’S PAL JIMMY OLSEN 028 (1958)
By Otto Binder & Curt Swan
Jimmy Olsen, fearless reporter who risks his life constantly, is too afraid to go to the dentist.
It’s much safer to go to professor Potter. You know, the guy who turned you into a giant-headed monster and sent you to another planet.
If he has invented a toothache remedy, WHY is this guy still considered a joke? And why do dentists still exist?
In addition to curing illnesses, professor Potter is also working on making giant radioactive plants.
Forgetting all about his toothache (we’re never told if the “cure” actually works), Jimmy gets on a helicopter to follow a story and finds himself crashing at sea.
The next day, he finds himself plagiarizing Gulliver’s Travels stranded on a beach and surrounded by tiny people!
Thank God for that strategic seaweed.
Then Jimmy is conveniently knocked out by a random rock and discovered by a yacht’s crew.
Which leads to Jimmy plagiarizing King Kong being transported back to the land to be exposed as a tourist attraction.
Wearing shorts, mercifully.
Also: Jimmy Olsen has no nipples.
Superman assumes this has something to do with professor Potter, and he’s right: he didn’t give Jimmy a toothache pill, he gave him a radioactive bean.
And the professor has conveniently forgotten the formula for the antidote.
It’s pretty clear by now that professor Potter has NO idea of how ANY of his inventions work.
Fortunately, the bump on his head has not made any real damage to Jimmy’s intelligence.
If anything, he looks smarter than usual.
You thought we could get through a King Kong ripoff homage without the giant ape climbing a skyscraper? Think again.
Though I bet you’ll never see this scene in any King Kong movie.
Superman figures out that Jimmy’s behavior is due to his toothache (and not the brain damage), so he puts him to sleep.
And then tries to pull out his tooth with the help of tractors and elephants…
…but it’s useless, since the antidote turns out to be anesthesia gas.
Basically, the worst dental hygiene PSA ever.
Historical significance: 0/10
Once again, mercifully forgotten by time.
Silver Age-ness: 10/10
“A science experiment gone wrong turns Jimmy into a giant” is one thing. The toothache remedy, the convenient brain damage and especially the resolution, however? Pure Silver Age.
Does it stand the test of time? 0/10
There’s nothing wrong with Jimmy becoming a giant. The problem is everything else.
Stupid Jimmy Olsen moment
Why would he EVER be anywhere near professor Potter by now!?
Superpower count: 16
Adding size increase to the ever-growing list.