Leviathan Revealed?
Is DC Comics Newest Threat the Last Person Anyone Would Suspect?
by Phil Perich for the Capes and Lunatics Blog
For those of you currently reading DC Comics, the big event (one of them anyway) is Event Leviathan featuring a mysterious armored figure that has wrested leadership of the Leviathan group from Talia Al Ghul and taken the name of Leviathan as their alias. This person has also made most members of the world’s top secret organizations disappear without a trace. I think I have finally have enough clues to make an educated guess. I believe the identity of DC’s newest threat is the last person anyone would suspect.
Ready for a possible HUGE spoiler?
Here goes:
The mystery figure is none other than…
JIMMY OLSEN!!!
That’s right, I said Superman’s pal Jimmy Olsen! How could I make such an outlandish claim? I believe the evidence is on my side.
Action Comics #1006
Sitting around the newsroom of the Daily Planet, Jimmy Olsen and Clark Kent are apparently sharing info on different stories. Jimmy asks Clark if he’s heard anything about the spy organization ARGUS. Clark says no. Is this Jimmy working a story or Leviathan seeing if the world media has discovered the beginnings of his work?
And just a few pages later Jimmy attempts to reveal to Clark that he has been sleeping with Talia Al Ghul. When I first read this, I thought it was ridiculous. non-superhero, non-superspy Jimmy Olsen having a fling with a super villain? The daughter of one of the world’s most dangerous villains? But now I think it makes sense if it’s another clue. If Jimmy could make it happen, was this his way of infiltrating the Leviathan organization and getting inside info to oust Talia?
Action Comics #1007
This issue opens with Jimmy out on what appears to be a date. But it’s then revealed that his “date” is a member of the secret villainous organization Kobra. Jimmy is quickly discovered and flees the building mere seconds before Leviathan attacks the building and makes the Kobra members vanish. Giant coincidence or was Leviathan himself investigating Kobra and then called down the strike once he was clear of the blast? (He was taking pictures with his phone, he could have easily sent a signal).
Jimmy later wakes up in Perry White’s office with no memory of how he got there. I think this is a MAJOR clue as to why Jimmy has suddenly become this threatening figure. I believe Leviathan may be either an alternate personality living in Jimmy’s head or an outside entity taking control of him.
Action Comics #1008
This time, instead of sleeping in Perry’s office, Jimmy is found hiding under Lois Lane’s desk. Jimmy says he hasn’t been sleeping and wants to know if Lois is one of the “secret people”. Is this Jimmy reacting to the voice (Leviathan) in his head, or Leviathan in Jimmy’s head trying to decide if Lois is someone he needs to deal with?
Action Comics #1011
After arriving at the Fortress of Solitude, Jimmy is listening to Superman and Lois talk about going undercover. Superman had been masquerading as a Spyral agent named “Chaz”. Jimmy asks Superman if Chaz is his real name and also tells Superman he can trust him with the secret of his dual identity if he wants to. Is this just a touching moment between two old friends or is Leviathan trying to discover one of the world’s biggest secrets?
Superman: Leviathan Rising Special #1
After the kidnapping of Clark Kent where he is forced to wear a kryptonite vest fails to draw in Superman (I wonder why…), Talia confronts Leviathan and tells him he stole the organization from her. In response to this, Leviathan says he wanted a partnership. Is this a co-rule the world partnership or the end of a failed relationship with a former lover?
The new crime boss of Metropolis, Ms. Leone calls Leviathan “little boy”. Just an insult to a newer power figure or a description of an actual young man like Jimmy?
When Superman catches Talia after Leviathan throws her out of his airship, Superman asks Talia who Leviathan is. She refuses to answer. Talia is not one to scare easy. Does she just want to be the only one to exact “justice” on Leviathan or she doesn’t want the world to know that she slept with, was deceived and betrayed by Jimmy Olsen? Plus if Leviathan is Jimmy, maybe Talia thinks Superman will go easy on him, or maybe enabling him in some way.
Other points of interest include:
-The Hero Dial is missing. For those who don’t know, The Hero Dial is a device that gives a person a different superpower every time they use it. Could this be empowering Jimmy as Leviathan?
-Sam Lane and Amanda Waller were attacked by Leviathan. Sam Lane did not disappear and ended up in the hospital. Was this Jimmy sparing his friend’s father? Or was he attempting to throw suspicion on Lois? If you’re looking for a mysterious figure attempting a global scale plot who was a member of the media, who would you think, Lois Lane or goofy Jimmy Olsen?
-Superman takes a wounded Amanda Waller to the Fortress with Lois and Jimmy. When Superman and Lois are out on their undercover op, Jimmy claims that Amanda Waller knocked him out and fled in one of the Fortress’s escape pods. True story or was this Leviathan making Amanda Waller disappear in the same fashion as most of the other super spies of the DC Universe?
-In the Superman Leviathan Rising Special #1, Jimmy wakes up from a supposed wild night of drinking, married to a woman he doesn’t know. Alcohol induced blackout or another lost time incident caused by the Leviathan personality? And the story literally ends with Jimmy painted head to toe in red. Is this writer Brian Michael Bendis having fun with us? Red Herring or subtly confirming my theory?
-And speaking of the creators, they literally call out Jimmy as the most dangerous man on Earth on the cover of Action Comics #1008. It’s meant to appear as a ludicrous joke, but what if this is another shout out to the truth?
That’s my theory. Did I miss any clues that would further prove my theory or any that would completely blow it out of the water? What’s YOUR theory? Let me know, I love feedback!
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