JIMMY OLSEN 100 (1967)
by Leo Dorfman & Pete Costanza
An important milestone: “The weirdo wedding of Jimmy Olsen”.
Jimmy’s day begins with a raise.
Everything seems to be going great, except with Lucy…
…who is of course more interested in anybody instead of Jimmy.
But Jimmy has a secret weapon: continuity!
When he tries to use his newfound strength, he immediately loses it!
And apparently that’s enough to give Jimmy the strength to finally propose to Lucy.
So weird to see Jimmy Olsen even mention LSD!!!
Even weirder that she accepts.
Jimmy is so in love that he decides to dump all the girlfriends… all of which won’t even give him the time of the day.
He even interrupts a meeting of the Legion where Cosmic Boy is supposedly informing the team about the Sun-Eater.
No clue what they’re talking about, since I refuse to believe they’re referencing Adventure Comics #353 (even though it was published a couple month before this story).
As a true journalist, Jimmy gives more importance to the real story: himself.
Back to the present, Superman has a gift for the Olsens: A FREAKING MANSION.
Who does he think he is, Batman!?
Superman has a creepy fixation on robotic mannequins. Just saying.
Jimmy’s wedding makes national news (SOMEHOW), and upon learning that Supergirl won’t be attending because she’s on a mission Ms. Gzptlsnz has a plan.
Well at least she has some… interesting gifts for the couple.
Everything’s going great for everybody. Except Lois Lane because all writers hate her.
And finally we get to… the marriage of Jimmy Olsen!
This is a little too normal. Can we get something insane? Superman having to leave the ceremony to save some people is a good chance!
I love that Lucy doesn’t give a crap about Superman’s weird transformation. Which makes sense, since in the Silver Age this kind of stuff happened CONSTANTLY.
Jimmy gets the idea that the transformation is caused by him kissing Lucy, but that’s proven wrong by some extreme luck.
Except the next day…
Lucy Lane Olsen does not give a crap.
At least until Lois shames her.
Ms. Gzptlsnz’s spell works ridiculously well.
And that’s all they need to annul the wedding!!!
Then Ms. Gzptlsnz shows up to tell Jimmy everything. And she does it because…
I’ve got nothing.
Well that was settled quickly. There’s no need to annul the wedding now, right?
Nope! Turns out that Rona, returning from Jimmy Olsen 73, is not only surprisingly muscular but she’s even more powerful than Ms. Gzptlsnz!
Aaaaand that’s resolved immediately.
There’s no need to annul the wedding now, right?
Actually, there is: Lucy is just DONE with all these aliens showing up!!!
And so… the marriage is quickly annulled.
If that feels like a last minute change… that’s because it is! The marriage was initially supposed to be real, but editor Mort Weisinger later changed his mind and ordered a last minute rewrite to preserve the status quo.
As a celebration of the 100th issue, there are several articles talking about all the previous stories, including a very incomplete list of Jimmy’s powers.
And a teaser for what’s next to come!
I have no idea if he actually graduated to full reporter.
Obviously Superman won’t reveal his identity to Jimmy and Lucy won’t actually marry him… but we will discover the history behind his father. Eventually.
Historical significance: 5/10
Obviously this would’ve been a 10/10 if Jimmy actually DID get married, but even so it’s still a minor milestone.
Silver Age-ness: 10/10
When women from both the 5th and 7th dimension show up to ruin your marriage, you know you’re in the Silver Age.
Does it stand the test of time? 0/10
What a mess. After all the previous issues, the moment Jimmy actually proposes is very underwhelming. Superman turning into a mole is extremely random, Jimmy and Lucy come off as very self-centered throughout the story, and the ending is one of the most anti-climactic I’ve ever seen.
Stupid Jimmy Olsen moment
Out of all the ways to get super-powers at his disposal, Jimmy chooses the one with the shortest lasting effects.