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Plastique is a fictional supervillain appearing in comics published by DC Comics. She first appeared in Fury of Firestorm #7 (December 1982), and was created by Gerry Conway and Pat Broderick.
Fictional character biography
Bette Sans Souci was introduced as a terrorist attempting to coerce the separation of Quebec from the rest of Canada. First appearing in Fury of Firestorm # 7 (December 1982), she subsequently made several appearances during Conway's tenure as writer of that series. 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.
Firestorm
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In her first appearance, Plastique attempted a suicide 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 vaporizing her clothing, leaving her naked and humiliated in public 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.
Her last major public operation as a terrorist was depicted in her first Captain Atom appearance, wherein she attempted to destroy the Canadian Parliament Building in Ottawa and the Statue of Liberty in New York City, as well as attempting to assassinate the President of the United States and the Canadian Prime Minister. Her plans were thwarted, and Plastique herself was captured by Captain Atom.
Suicide Squad
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Main article: Suicide Squad
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 was anticipated and 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). She then became a mercenary and eventually reformed, subsequently earning a pardon from the United States 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.
Marriage
- See also: Captain Atom
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 and Plastique was invited into the ranks of the "Extreme Justice" faction of the Justice League, and celebrated a bachelorette party before Extreme Justice was itself cancelled in 1996.
The wedding was notable for its non-depiction within the comics themselves, having been implied in the mini-series 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.
Current status
In Justice League of America #1, Signalman informs Black Lightning that Plastique has teamed with The Electrocutioner in a partnership known as the Bomb Squad. Since then she has appeared in Checkmate (1st series) as a member of the Suicide Squad. Apparently, she and Captain Atom are now separated, leading the character to revert to her criminal ways.
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.
Powers and abilities
Originally Plastique wore a costume covered with plastic explosives, which she could trigger and detonate manually. She has since gained the ability to project explosive force at will by touching an object with her fingertips.
Other media
- In the Justice League Unlimited episode "Task Force X", Bette Sans Souci a.k.a. Plastique is an explosives expert. Plastique has advanced knowledge of the intricacies and use of demolition weaponry. She was assigned to Task Force X, along with Rick Flag, Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, and Clock King, on a dangerous mission to infiltrate the Justice League's Watchtower space station and steal a magical automaton called the Annihilator. She was caught in an explosion of one of her own devices when Deadshot detonated it from a distance so that rest of the team could escape. She was wounded but still alive when last seen, mainly because Captain Atom attempted to take the brunt of the blast. It is unclear whether she died or survived, though Amanda Waller does state "I heard we lost Plastique." She was voiced by Juliet Landau, albeit with a Creole rather than Quebec accent.
- The second episode of the eighth season of Smallville is called "Plastique," and involves a 15 year old version of the character.
Resources
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