Discuss Supergirl
Discuss → TV Shows → Supergirl → General
My Issue With James Olsen.
posted by Luke CageSTAFFMOD on February 19, 2017 at 1:45 PM
My problem with James Olsen is his superhero persona, The Guardian, is highly underdeveloped. His fighting skills are topnotch, but we never see him develop into The Guardian. He almost seems to wake up one morning, and become the Guardian with no back-story as to why he can hang with super-villains. In addition, we don’t know everything his suit can do, and that’s a problem. I think if the suit is doing more than protecting him from punches and bullets, then it needs to be stated.
I think there are ways to improve on James’ back-story, and that’s by actually giving him a back-story other than his fascination with white girls. We know that black characters are normally overlooked, but since he’s a main cast member, ignoring his back-story angers the viewers: supporters and non-supporters of James Olsen alike. In addition, if the only story we have about a black character is he likes white girls, then it has already weakened the black character in the eyes of public. Instead of developing James Olsen’s characterization, he was used as a prop for Kara’s characterization. If that was the case, he could have been a recurring character or a guest on the show, and then killed off.
Reply by GNS1991
on February 20, 2017 at 11:32 AM
That's actually the problem with season two. The show creators seem to without any explanation or transition throw some major plot-lines for the viewers that were not there in season one. The biggest one, disregarding the Guardian, is the fact that there are now hundreds of aliens in National City hanging out at the bar, while in season one there was only a handful in the open. This bar thing was, without explanations, ripped off from Angel's "Caritas" where demons had their own sanctuary there.
Reply by danithang
on February 20, 2017 at 4:52 PM
I have really felt the James character was pointless from the beginning and I feel like it is real apparent this season. In season 1, James was just the love interest of Kara and we had to put up with that triangle of him, Kara, and Lucy. I personally never thought James and Kara had chemistry. Then he and Kara get together then break up 5 mins later this season. I feel like they made him Guardian just to keep the character relevant. With Supergirl and this superpowered world I feel there is no room for a non-powered vigilante crime fighter, that belongs on Arrow. And from somebody who was just the photographer at Catco, how did he end up running the place? The bad thing is we don't really see him running it really.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 20, 2017 at 9:08 PM
I think the Alien Bar is simliar to Caritas, but Angel's crew had a close and intimate relationship with Lorne, the owner of the bar. I don't feel that the characters on Supergirl are relaxed as they should be inside the Alien Bar. I think Hank said there were a lot of aliens living and hiding in National City because there were thousands released from the Phantom Zone.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 20, 2017 at 11:27 PM
With James Olsen being the black character on the show, he's neglected from the start. It has nothing to do with the character in these cases. James only job was to make Kara hip by dating the black guy. Once the Interracial relationship fizzles, the black character disappears into the background. This trope of the token black guy chasing the white girl is disrespectful and overused, especially when there is no characterization of the black character. For example, we know the names of all the main characters' fathers except for James, and he's the second person in the lineup. In addition, he's the only main character who has been completely absent for at least three episodes this season. In addition, with the lack of characterization surrounding James, it makes no sense that he would be running a multi-million dollar corporation with a board of directors. We don't know what kind of degree he holds, his experiences outside of taking pictures, or anything else about the character, and this is not the fault of the actor, and I think we need to make that clear. We know James is the token black guy, but for the producers to put so little effort into building up this character, it's disrespectful to the actor and to the people the actor represents. I think there is room for a non-genetically enhanced character on the show with Supergirl, especially in this version of the show, but because of the way the producers are doing the show, it seems pointless. In this version of Supergirl, there seems to be an abundance of kryptonite. Since Superman is already established, super villains have been working non-stop to build weapons with some kind of kryptonite core that would be deadly to anybody from Krypton. The DEO has already proven that human beings can easily take down aliens, including kryptonians, with the right equipment. I don't know how long Mon-El will last on the show, but his weakness isn't krptonite; it's lead. The fact that the DEO is lined with lead could already be affecting him on a cellular level.
Reply by danithang
on February 21, 2017 at 12:15 AM
Yeah maybe if they had developed James better, I would have taken to his character more but because they made him the token black character and that's pretty much it, it's hard to connect with him. It's a shame because I think the creators did a better job of developing black characters on The Flash, Arrow, and even Jackson on Legends of Tomorrow. James as Guardian reminds me too much of Diggle's hero persona on Arrow. The DEO is its own entity that specializes in taking out aliens and even has an alien as their leader. James seems more built to fight regular bad guys like they do on Arrow, that's why I do not feel Guardian belongs on here. We see all the special effects of supergirl and other aliens so when I see James fighting regular street dudes it bores me. Then again if they didn't just jump into it and actually built up to him becoming Guardian I may have accepted it. I just feel like James woke up and decided "I want to fight crime today" and it just magically happened overnight.
Reply by Costumers
on February 21, 2017 at 1:20 PM
Actually, the bar, restaurant, whatever as a neutral hangout for non-human, alien, supernatural creatures is a very common trope that has been around for decades. I don't have a problem with it.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 21, 2017 at 1:39 PM
You're probably right because I recall one of my writing instructors in college saying my story needed a bar for people to hangout.
Reply by RodimusConvoy
on February 21, 2017 at 2:44 PM
I agree with this 100%. Though about the lead thing, it was explained a few episodes back (I think when they were kidnapped by Roulette) that unlike kryptonite lead isn't radioactive, so he can be around lead just fine. It's just when its introduced into his bloodstream, like via a BULLET, that it's effects become similar to kryptonite.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 21, 2017 at 4:17 PM
@RodimusConvoy I see.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 21, 2017 at 4:56 PM
I'm okay with token characters in theory because they usually represent a particular minority group in society. That's not the problem. I think the majority of people want all the characters to be humanized and characterized on some level, even the bad guys. It seems to me that token characters aren't presented in a natural way most of the time. For example, James--for whatever reason--had two women vying for his affections, and I think it was fairly palpable to most people watching the show. Lucy immediately noticed that James had taken an interest in Supergirl, and that was going to be a problem with the relationship and he was making eyes at Kara; therefore, she broke it off with James because he wasn't fully vested in their relationship. Moreover, James had verbal confirmation from Supergirl's doppelganger of her love for him. Bizzaro's love for James was so strong that when he tried to trick her, we see a visceral reaction from her like a scorned lover. I thought she was going to incinerate him for a second. So, we see Kara pursuing James for the entire first season, and I'm thinking, they will be together for the first part of the second season, but something will cause them to breakup. Instead, we see Kara breakup with James for absolutely no reason. When this happened, James' response wasn't what would be expected from anybody. I think every man would have been upset with her for leading him on like that, because when he gives in to her, she drops him like a sack of potatoes. I think playing it safe with James by having him kind of walk away without a visceral reaction hurt the character because it didn't allow the audience to see the human side of the character. In addition, I think Kara breaking up with James like that hurt her character too. All that smiling and giddiness after the dick move she pulled makes her look like a social path. I think one of the major problems with James Olsen is we aren't allowed by the producers to experience his human side. I try not to like token characters too much because the writers will neglect them to death.
Reply by GNS1991
on February 23, 2017 at 6:48 AM
Hmm, possibly, then I stand corrected.
Reply by RodimusConvoy
on February 23, 2017 at 1:06 PM
Ya know this has stuck with me for days because its true and I never thought of it like that. If they wanted to end the James/Kara relationship, fine (not fine, but you know) but they could have done it in a way that didn't make them both look bad. And I don't think seeing James hurt would have made him seem weak, it would have made him seem human. Or, they could have wrapped his decision to become Guardian around that. Without someone he pined for he's rudderless and saw Guardian as something to give him direction. Then it could have become something more than that, but it could have been borne out of this rejection.
Reply by Jayhn1111
on February 23, 2017 at 8:55 PM
I am not a fan of James. I would be perfectly fine if he just disappeared from the show. He is just dry. He walks around like he's god's gift. Mr. GQ smooth. I was happy when they nixed them as a couple. One minute he's a news man and the next minute he's a bigger badass than Batman. I don't like that story at all.
Reply by Luke Cage
on February 23, 2017 at 11:11 PM
I saw several other threads discussing that James was too smooth, and I don't necessarily see that. I think some people actually have an implicit bias when it comes to James Olsen. The reason I want him off the show is because the producers have failed to develop his character. When black children see underdeveloped, emasculated characters on television and in the movies, it isn't healthy for them on a mental level. The fact that we don't know how James became a good fighter says it all. We don't know his father's name. We know all the other major players' fathers except for his. I don't care about James and Kara breaking up, but it's the way they broke up that's the problem. She chased James for an entire season, interfered with his relationship with Lucy, and acted like she cared about him. She breaks it off with him without any real reason, and it made her seem cold and uncaring. The producers, for obvious reasons, don't show James' dismay over the breakup. We don't see him lamenting, crying, or his heartbreak; and when writers write a character like that, you won't be able to care about him.
Reply by RodimusConvoy
on February 23, 2017 at 11:21 PM
And he's not a "bigger badass than Batman." He has a black belt in some martial art, I forget which, but that's it. They actually make it a point to show James hurt after his nightly activities. That's the opposite of a badass OR Batman. He struggles but prevails against regular mooks, that's not even Robin level. He actually needs more training and it would make sense for him to join the DEO as a new recruit or cadet to hone his fighting. If they need a link to the paper, Kara still works there and Snapper Carr seems to be her superior, so him being some sort of regent to Cat is kinda of redundant.