Plasmus Explained
Plasmus is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is depicted as an enemy of the Teen Titans.[1]
Publication history
Plasmus first appeared in The New Teen Titans #14 and was created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez.[2]
Fictional character biography
Otto Von Furth was a mine worker in East Berlin, Germany until an unexpected cave-in trapped him and four fellow miners for seven days. During those days, Otto's co-workers died, leaving him as the only survivor. He and his fellow miners had been mining for radioactive radium and ended up exposed to it and when rescued, he was rushed to the hospital. Otto is later kidnapped by ex-Nazi General Zahl, who transforms him into a metahuman with plasma-based abilities. Subsequently, he joins the Brotherhood of Evil under the name Plasmus.[3] He and the Brotherhood of Evil fight the Teen Titans on different occasions. He enjoys these fights, but regrets not being the one to finally kill Zahl. Later, Plasmus is one of several metahumans who were corrupted and brainwashed by a cult-leader.[4] The rest of the Brotherhood of Evil reform into the Society of Sin. He is later recruited into Lex Luthor's Suicide Squad, and where he apparently dies fighting Imperiex.
Plasmus accepts an invitation to join the Secret Society of Super Villains in the Countdown to Infinite Crisis series Villains United.
Plasmus is featured in Infinite Crisis as part of a small group of villains that bombs the city of Blüdhaven. The creature known as Chemo is dropped from an aircraft and detonates, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people.
During the One Year Later crossover, Plasmus rejoins the Brotherhood of Evil. He is also seen in Salvation Run. He is used by Lex Luthor as a power source for a teleportation device, and is killed when it self-destructs.[5]
In The New 52, Mammoth appears as one of several villains who seek to take Blue Beetle's scarab for the Brotherhood of Evil.[6]
Powers and abilities
With his chemically-converted body, Plasmus' burning touch can bring a fiery death onto whomever he makes physical contact with, thus reducing them to a protoplasmic state. His touch is incurable and no normal human has withstood it.[7] He additionally possesses immense strength, stamina, and durability, as well as self-healing capabilities.
In other media
Television
- Plasmus appears in Teen Titans, voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.[8] This version uncontrollably transforms into a large, magenta sludge monster when he is awake, only reverting to human form when he is asleep or unconscious. Additionally, he can detach varying quantities of himself, which can act independently and often take on insectoid forms. Introduced in the pilot episode "Divide and Conquer", Plasmus is imprisoned and kept within a stasis chamber until Cinderblock frees him on Slade's behalf. In the episode "Transformation", the Titans inadvertently mix Plasmus with raw sewage, mutating him into a multi-eyed form with the ability to spit acid. In "Aftershock", Plasmus is temporarily fused with Cinderblock and Overload into "Ternion", but they are ultimately separated. Following Slade's death, Plasmus joins the Brotherhood of Evil in the fifth season, only to be flash-frozen alongside them by the Titans.
- Plasmus appears in the Teen Titans Go! episode "You're Fired!".[9] This version resembles the Teen Titans animated series' incarnation post-mutation.
- Plasmus appears in Young Justice: Outsiders, voiced by Yuri Lowenthal. This version is a child who was mutated by Dr. Simon Ecks and fell under Count Vertigo's control. Additionally, Otto has a sister named Ana (voiced by Grey Griffin),[10] who was similarly mutated into a lava-like monster called Plasma and fell under the Light's control. After Ana is killed while fighting the Justice League, Otto is forced to fight the Outsiders. While Black Lightning frees Plasmus from Vertigo's control, a concerned civilian kills the latter, believing him to be a monster.
Video games
- Plasmus appears in Teen Titans (2005), voiced again by Dee Bradley Baker.
- Plasmus appears as a character summon in .[11]
Miscellaneous
Plasmus appears in Justice League Unlimited #31.[12]
Notes and References
- Book: Cowsill . Alan . Irvine . Alex . Manning . Matthew K. . McAvennie . Michael . Wallace . Daniel . DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle . 2019 . DK Publishing . 978-1-4654-8578-6 . 195.
- Book: Cowsill . Alan . Irvine . Alex . Korte . Steve . Manning . Matt . Wiacek . Win . Wilson . Sven . The DC Comics Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the DC Universe . 2016 . DK Publishing . 978-1-4654-5357-0 . 232.
- Book: Rovin, Jeff . The Encyclopedia of Supervillains . Facts on File . 1987 . New York . 0-8160-1356-X . 268.
- Birds of Prey #69-72 (September–October 2004). DC Comics.
- Salvation Run #7. DC Comics.
- Blue Beetle (vol. 8) #1 (September 2011). DC Comics.
- Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #18 (August 1986)
- Web site: Plasmus Voices (Teen Titans) . April 6, 2024 . Behind The Voice Actors. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
- Web site: October 21, 2019 . Teen Titans Go! #114 - You're Fired! (Episode) . April 6, 2024 . ComicVine.
- Web site: Ana Von Furth / Plasma Voice - Young Justice (TV Show) . April 6, 2024 . Behind The Voice Actors. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
- Web site: Eisen . Andrew . October 4, 2013 . DC Characters and Objects - Scribblenauts Unmasked Guide . April 6, 2024 . IGN.
- Web site: Justice League Unlimited #31 - The One-Man Justice League (Issue) . April 6, 2024 . Comic Vine . en.
