The modern incarnation of Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen is a potpourri of bizarre vignettes. Each vignette is part of a larger whole, but the connections are often tenuous or unclear. The individual pieces are deliberately told out of order. It shouldn’t work. And yet, somehow it’s one of the funniest, most compelling comics DC is publishing right now.

In the third issue alone: Jimmy Olsen’s ancestor metes out frontier justice to his nemesis. Lex Luthor hates mysteries. We learn that Jimmy’s transformation into a giant turtle in issue #1 was no accident. We meet the Porcadillo. Jimmy has a harrowing brush with a black hole. We learn why Jimmy fled to Gotham City in the first place.

Much of the credit for this unlikely success goes to writer Matt Fraction. Fraction’s screwball humor keeps the reader invested in finding out what the larger picture is. Fraction sprinkles tons of amazing details through the book, with mysteries to be solved such as Is the mayor of Metropolis an actual dinosaur? Does Jimmy’s other identity Timmy have a mustache? Why is Clark Kent so nonchalant about the gruesome death of Jimmy Olsen’s Pal Dr. Mantel? 

The art by Steve Lieber is also fantastic. His character acting and facial expressions only add to Fraction’s screwball humor. Colorist Nathan Fairbairn keeps each vignette distinct, with its own color palette and identity. In this issue, Fairbairn does particularly stunning work in the sad tale of Dr. Mantel. Clayton Cowles makes a meal of lettering Fraction’s 1966-Batman-esque captions and narration.

DC Comics is often criticized for its reliance on grim and gritty doom and gloom. Fraction and Lieber’s Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen is definite proof that DC has more going on than just the cliche.

Grade: A+