Summary
- Jimmy Olsen’s allergies trigger his transformation into a kaiju-sized alter ego, the Giant Turtle Man, posing a serious danger to the DC Universe.
- The transformation is a callback to Jimmy’s Giant Turtle Man phase from the Silver Age of Comics, but it’s unclear why it has resurfaced now.
- Jimmy should seek a long-term solution to his allergies to prevent his monstrous side from wreaking havoc in the future.
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville #3!One of the most bizarre monsters ever to grace the DC Universe has made its triumphant return. As things start going off the rails for Fire and Ice’s new small business in Smallville, Jimmy Olsen reveals an unfortunate and curious medical condition that has ties back to the Silver Age of Comics.
In Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville #3 by Joanne Starer and Natacha Bustos, Jimmy Olsen has come to Smallville to check out the duo’s villain rehabilitation salon. Fire and Ice take him on a tour of the business while doing their best to rein in their chaotic staff.
Before Superman’s pal departs, Jimmy takes a photograph of everyone working at the salon. Unfortunately, a cat brushes up against Jimmy’s legs and triggers his allergies. Jimmy sneezes and transforms into his kaiju-sized alter ego, the Giant Turtle Man. His head bursts through the salon’s ceiling sending Fire and Ice into a panic.
Jimmy Olsen’s Giant Turtle Man Form Returns to the DCU
As one of Superman’s closest friends, Jimmy Olsen has seen a lot of things in his day. During the Silver Age, the photographer was often subject to strange transformations (though they’d only ever last an issue). Throughout Jimmy’s life, he’s been transformed into a porcupine, a wolfman, and even a genie. But no transformation is as strange or as well-known as his Giant Turtle Man phase that first appeared in Superman’s Pal, Jimmy Olsen #53. Thanks to an accident involving a growth ray and a turtle, Jimmy was turned into a rampaging, turtle-like monster (thankfully, the Man of Steel fixed his friend).
While it’s been years since Jimmy’s Giant Turtle Man era, it looks like he’s never shaken that transformation. Jimmy does warn that he has allergies early in the story and tries to stay away from cats as much as possible. It isn’t revealed until the final few pages that Jimmy’s allergies trigger his transformation into his monstrous alter-ego. Why Jimmy suddenly changed into his old kaiju form isn’t exactly clear. It could be a new development or it could be something he’s been hiding for a while. Either way, Superman’s pal is harboring a serious danger that could unleash itself if Olsen so much as runs into a cat.
Jimmy Olsen’s Allergies Unleash His Most Dangerous Side
To say that Jimmy Olsen’s been through some harrowing events is an understatement. But now Jimmy Olsen has the unfortunate reality of allergies that unleash a giant and frankly bizarre monster. Maybe there’s a pharmacy that specializes in superhuman allergens to help keep his turtle side under control, but if Jimmy really is that allergic to cats, he should look for a more long-term solution. It’d be one thing if it was just sneezing, but allergies that turn him into a giant monster is something that endangers the DC Universe.
Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville #3 is on sale now from DC Comics.