Plastic Man is a DC comics superhero character with the power of elasticity. He was once a crook named Pat "Eel" O'Brian, who acquired his powers after a botched heist, where his partners abandoned him and he was exposed to chemicals. After recovering in a monastery where he discovered he could manipulate his shape, he took it as a sign of redemption. Keeping his "Eel" alias to keep tabs on his former buddies, O'Brian donned a red/yellow costume with googles and became PLASTIC MAN. He appears in other media outside the comics, most notably in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, where he is a main character. In this variation of his origin, Batman is responsible for his creation when he stopped Kite-Man's latest heist. His sidekick is Woozy Winks and his family includes his wife, Ramona, his son Luke and his dog.
In the 1940s a crook named Patrick "Eel" O'Brian was shot by a security guard at the Crawford Chemical Works and struck by a falling drum full of an unidentified acid, some of which entered Eel's wound. He was saved in Rest Haven by a mysterious order of monks whose example cured his penchant for crime. The acid bath gave him the ability to change his shape. He wore dark glasses and a red and yellow costume as flexible as his body. Whatever shape he took, the colors remained the same, so there would be a red-and-yellow chandelier over a table full of plotting gangsters, or a red-and-yellow abstract painting hanging on the wall, but the villains never caught on until it was too late.
Plastic Man (sometimes called "Plas") later acquired a sidekick called Woozy Winks, a clumsy oaf who was originally magically endowed with the power that nature itself would protect him from harm. Woozy became a dumb but loyal friend of Plastic Man. The two of them became members of the police squad and eventually the FBI. Plastic Man later aided his country by serving in the All-Star Squadron and Freedom Fighters. Because of their powers, "Plas" and Woozy have stayed youthful into modern times.
Strangely, Patrick became a good friend of Batman (despite Batman's lack of a sense of humor and skepticism towards reformed criminals), and an occasional member of the Justice League. It was revealed that Plas had a son named Luke who was born out of wedlock and whom he ignored to the point where his son joined a gang. Batman got Luke out of the gang and tried to reunite him with his father.
Obsidian Age
In a mission, Patrick and the JLA went back 3000 years into Atlantis' past where Plas was ripped apart during the fight. The JLA returned to the present thinking him dead but in the time gap (3000 years) he pulled himself together. Batman and Firestorm found him and helped him complete the process. Traumatized, he blocked Plastic Man from his mind. Plastic Man became Ralph Johns and went back to his family in Chicago. Emotionally, they took him in. He became an average Joe, a father, and was in an relationship with his son's mother.
When Martian Manhunter was possessed by a martian demon and tried to destroy the world, Batman came asking for his help (as he was immune to telepathy). After spending precious time trying to get him to remember who he was, Batman left "Ralph" to think it over. After staring out the window thinking about everything, Plas remembered who he really was after his son revealed his inherited powers and told him a joke. After defeating the rogue Martian Manhunter, was over, O'Brian started a new life balancing his hero life and his family life.
Comics Teams Justice League |
Justice League of America |
Justice League Dark |
Justice League Europe |
Justice League Incarnate |
Justice League International |
Justice League Task Force |
Justice League Queer |
Super Buddies
