Plastique was introduced in The Fury of Firestorm #7 (December 1982), as a terrorist attempting to coerce the separation of Quebec from the rest of Canada. She subsequently made several appearances during Gerry Conway's tenure as writer of that series.[2] She then began appearing in DC Comics' first Captain Atom series from 1986 onwards, at first depicted as an adversary, though that relationship eventually evolved toward the romantic.
In her first appearance, Plastique attempted a bombing against the New York Herald-Express (a fictitious newspaper appearing within the DC Universe) using a set of bombs attached to her costume, only to have Firestorm disarm her by vaporising her clothing, leaving her naked and humiliated in public[2] while Firestorm took the bombs to explode in a safer area. Later, via genetic engineering, she gained the power to project explosive force outward from her body.
She became a member of the Suicide Squad for the duration of a single mission. She attempted to betray the team during their second field operation in Qurac (under the command of Amanda Waller), but it was anticipated and Plastique was caught by fellow operative Nemesis and subsequently brainwashed to suppress all memories of her membership in the Squad. Her followers eventually abandoned her after becoming disillusioned with the use of force and violence to advance their shared cause (thus reflecting real-world Canadian politics by that point, which had long since moved past the era that Plastique's methods and policies reflected). Plastique became a mercenary.
Eventually she reformed, subsequently earning a pardon from the U.S. government for her crimes there based on services rendered to the Captain Atom Project, as well as a somewhat more subdued response along similar lines from the Canadian authorities.
Plastique then became engaged to Captain Atom, although the engagement was effectively broken in the wake of events of Armageddon: 2001. Following his reappearance in the then-present day, the engagement was renewed. Plastique was invited into the ranks of the Extreme Justice faction of the Justice League. She celebrated a bachelorette party before the Extreme Justice title was cancelled in 1996.[3]
The wedding was notable for its non-depiction within the comics themselves, having been implied in the miniseries The L.A.W. as having taken place sometime between the cancellation of Extreme Justice and the start of The L.A.W.'s first issue. Plastique has made a handful of appearances since then, mostly cameos in other series. It has, however, been confirmed during the Captain Atom: Armageddon events, in which Captain Atom states that their marriage had been really short, doomed from the start from irreconcilable differences, mostly about political views, between them.
During the 34th week of the series 52, Plastique and the Electrocutioner appeared as part of a Suicide Squad operation against Black Adam. She later appeared in Checkmate (2nd series), again depicted as a villain. In Countdown, she appears with the Suicide Squad to help apprehend the Trickster and the Pied Piper.
It is recently shown that Plastique helped Prometheus in his plot to get revenge on the Justice League by planting a massive explosive device in Fawcett City. While trying to flee the country with several companions, the group is ambushed by Batman and the new Justice League. Plastique tries to escape, but is defeated and captured by Congorilla.[4]
In the Futures End storyline, Plastique is working as a thief and mercenary in the year 2020.[8] She crosses paths with Batman (Terry McGinnis), who has traveled back in time to stop a robot apocalypse. Caught in his time wake is a cybernetically converted Plastique. After killing the cyborg, McGinnis is forced to bring her body with him so the future technology will not fall into anyone's hands. Plastique finds the body, causing her to freak out, fight alongside the heroes, and becomes romantically involved with McGinnis.[9]
Powers and abilities
Originally Plastique wore a costume covered with plastic explosives, which she could trigger and detonate manually.[2] She has since gained the ability to project explosive force at will by touching an object with her fingertips.
In other media
Television
Plastique appears in the Justice League Unlimited episode "Task Force X", voiced by Juliet Landau.[10][11] This version is an explosives and demolition expert who can conceal explosives in her suit. She is recruited into Project Cadmus' Task Force X to help steal the Annihilator automaton from the Justice League's Watchtower. While the group succeeds, they abandon Plastique after she is wounded by one of her devices, after which Captain Atom attends to her injuries.
Plastique appears in Smallville, portrayed by Jessica Parker Kennedy.[11][12] This version is a metahuman who can emit explosive beams from her eyes, and as a child was kidnapped and held prisoner by LuthorCorp for three years before escaping and going on the run. In her self-titled episode, Plastique is discovered by Chloe Sullivan and attempts to kill her, only to be defeated by Clark Kent and arrested by the authorities. While awaiting transport to Belle Reve, Plastique is recruited by Tess Mercer's group. In the episode "Injustice", Plastique joins the group in searching for Davis Bloome. After two of their members are killed, the survivors go rogue, but are defeated by Kent and Green Arrow.[13] In the episode "Shield", Plastique is recruited into the Suicide Squad and helps them break Deadshot out of prison.
Bette Sans Souci appears in The Flash episode "Plastique", portrayed by Kelly Frye. This version is an EOD specialist for the U.S. Army who lacks villainous tendencies. After being wounded by a bomb in Afghanistan, she was brought to Central City for treatment. While there, she was exposed to dark matter from the explosion of S.T.A.R. Labs' particle accelerator, which fused her with the bomb's shrapnel at the cellular level and turned her into a metahuman capable of detonating anything she touches, though she lacks control over this. While on the run from General Wade Eiling, who intends to weaponize her, Souci encounters the Flash and his allies, who create special gloves that negate her abilities. They intend to recruit her into their group, but Harrison Wells secretly convinces her to kill the relentless Eiling. She makes an attempt on his life, but is fatally shot, forcing the Flash to run her into the Central City river to prevent her from detonating in the city.
Plastique appears in the Harley Quinn episode "Harlivy", voiced by Kari Wahlgren. This version is a minor member of the Suicide Squad. After being kidnapped by Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, Amanda Waller calls in Plastique to successfully buy her time to escape. Ivy then restrains Plastique, who commits suicide via one of her explosives.
The character of Plastique has been portrayed in diverse ways in its various appearances: considered "a classic DC villainess" by Tierney Bricker,[14] "she has flirted with good on occasion".[15][16][17] Reviewers Scott Von Doviak, Brianna Reeves and Felix Böhme found Plastique’s appearance in The Flash TV series interesting and nuanced, both in comparison to other representations of the character as well as other comic antagonists: she is shown as a victim, but still as a dangerous and uncontrolled force, making how to deal with her a moral conundrum for the team of the titular hero.[18][19][20]
Reviewer Rachel Paige commented on the impact of Plastique's changing backstory: she found the idea from the comics, that the character got her supernatural explosive abilities by "some handy genetic engineering" terrifying, but getting her powers from the S.T.A.R. Labs explosion like the Flash from the TV series only mildly so.[17]
Brent Frankenhoff included Plastique in his list of Comics' Sexiest Bad Girls due to the accentuated depiction of her body,[21] while the character was still portrayed with a sense of shame when unclad in public.[2]
Related Research Articles
Captain Atom is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books, initially owned by Charlton Comics before being acquired in the 1980s by DC Comics. All possess some form of energy-manipulating abilities.
The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in The Brave and the Bold #25 and the second and modern version, created by John Ostrander, debuted in Legends #3.
Nightshade is a superhero appearing in media published by DC Comics. Created by David Kaler and Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in Captain Atom #82 originally published by Charlton Comics.
Amanda Blake Waller, also known as "the Wall", is a character featured in some American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Legends #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and John Byrne. Amanda Waller serves intermittently as both an antagonist and an ally to the superheroes of the DC Universe; she is occasionally described as a supervillain.
Justice League Europe (JLE) is a comic book series published by DC Comics that was a spin-off of the comic book Justice League America.
Maxima is a character appearing in comics published by DC Comics. In her original incarnation, she was a morally ambiguous queen from the planet Almerac who is known for searching for mates among Earth's superhuman male population to be wedded as her king, and became obsessed with Superman for a time. She has also worked as a superheroine member of the Justice League. In her recent incarnations, she is reintroduced as a princess of Almerac and ally of Supergirl. Unlike her previous version, she is lesbian and struggles with following Almerac's traditions in continuing the royal line with finding a male mate.
Kobra is the name used by two supervillains published by DC Comics. The Jeffrey Burr incarnation of Kobra and his brother Jason first appeared in Kobra #1, and were created by Jack Kirby. Jason Burr debuted as Kobra in Faces of Evil: Kobra #1 by Ivan Brandon and Julian Lopez. The Kobra identity is later established as an international terrorist organization that frequently clashes with superheroes associated with the Justice League.
Invasion! was a three issue comic book limited series and crossover event published in 1988 by DC Comics. It was plotted by Keith Giffen, and ties up a great many plotlines from various Giffen-created DC series, including Omega Men, Justice League International, and Legion of Super-Heroes. A trade paperback collection of the three issues was released on September 3, 2008.
General Wade Eiling, sometimes known as The General, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
The Thinker is the name of five supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
Killer Frost is a name used by several female supervillains and superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics: Crystal Frost, Louise Lincoln, and Caitlin Snow. All three usually have some connection to the superhero Firestorm.
Lashina is a supervillainess and Goddess warrior appearing in comics published by DC Comics.
Slipknot is a supervillain, published by DC Comics. Created by Gerry Conway and Rafael Kayanan, the character made his first appearance in The Fury of Firestorm #28.
A.R.G.U.S. is a government organization in DC Comics. A.R.G.U.S. first appeared in Justice League vol. 2 #7 and was created by Geoff Johns and Gene Ha.
Amanda Waller is a fictional character in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) and later the DC Universe (DCU) media franchise. She is portrayed by Viola Davis and is based on the DC Comics character of the same name. She is a morally ambiguous character as in the comics, Waller is a ruthless, calculating government official who oversees the operations of the Suicide Squad, tasking them with deadly missions.
References
↑ Cowsill, Alan; Irvine, Alex; Korte, Steve; Manning, Matt; Wiacek, Win; Wilson, Sven (2016). The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe. DK Publishing. p.232. ISBN978-1-4654-5357-0.
1 2 3 4 Rovin, Jeff (1987). The Encyclopedia of Supervillains. New York: Facts on File. p.268. ISBN0-8160-1356-X.
↑ Misiroglu, Gina Renée; Eury, Michael, eds. (2006). The Supervillain Book: The Evil Side of Comics and Hollywood. Visible Ink Press. ISBN978-1578591787.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
