Plasmus

Plasmus (/ˈplæzməs/) (Otto Von Furth) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is a German supervillain and an enemy of the Teen Titans who possesses a protoplasmic touch and was formerly a miner before General Zahl rescued him from a cave and later mutated him.^[1]

Plasmus
Plasmus as depicted in Who's Who in the DC Universe #18 (August 1986). Art by Marv Wolfman (penciller) and George Pérez (inker).
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	The New Teen Titans #14 (December 1981)
Created by	Marv Wolfman George Pérez
In-story information
Alter ego	Otto Von Furth
Species	Metahuman
Team affiliations	Brotherhood of Evil Suicide Squad Secret Society of Super Villains
Abilities	Superhuman strength, stamina, and durability Regeneration Fatal touch

Dee Bradley Baker and Yuri Lowenthal respectively voice reimagined versions of Plasmus in Teen Titans and Young Justice. Both are depicted as more sympathetic than the comics version, respectively being a human with an uncontrollable monstrous form and a child who was kidnapped and exploited for his abilities as part of a human trafficking operation.

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 is a mine worker in East Berlin, Germany until an unexpected cave-in traps him and four fellow miners for seven days. The four other miners die, leaving Von Furth the only survivor. After being rescued, Von Furth is hospitalized due to radium poisoning that he suffered while in the mine. He is later kidnapped by General Zahl, who transforms him into a metahuman with plasma-based abilities. Following his transformation, Von Furth joins the Brotherhood of Evil under the name Plasmus.^[3] He is later recruited into Lex Luthor's Suicide Squad, where he apparently dies fighting Imperiex.^[4]

Plasmus later resurfaces and joins the Secret Society of Super Villains in the Countdown to Infinite Crisis series Villains United.

In Salvation Run, Lex Luthor uses Plasmus as a power source for a teleportation device, which self-destructs and kills him.^[5] Plasmus is resurrected following The New 52, which rebooted the continuity of the DC universe.^[6][7][8]

Powers and abilities

Plasmus' body is made of chemicals that dissolve whatever they touch, reducing objects and people to a protoplasmic state.^[9] He additionally possesses immense strength, stamina, and durability, as well as self-healing capabilities.

Other versions

Plasmus appears in Tiny Titans.^[10]

In other media

Television

• Plasmus appears in Teen Titans (2003), voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.^[11] This version uncontrollably transforms into a sludge monster while awake, only reverting to human form while unconscious. Additionally, he can detach varying quantities of himself which can act independently and often take on insectoid forms. Later in the series, Plasmus mutates further, gains the ability to generate acid, and joins the Brotherhood of Evil.
• Plasmus, based on the Teen Titans (2003) incarnation, appears in Teen Titans Go! (2013).^[11]
• Plasmus appears in Young Justice, voiced by Yuri Lowenthal.^[11] This version is a Markovian child who was kidnapped and had his meta-gene activated as part of a metahuman trafficking operation. While battling the Justice League, Plasmus is shot and killed by a farmer who believes him to be a monster.^[12][13]

Video games

• Plasmus appears in Teen Titans (2005), voiced again by Dee Bradley Baker.^[11]
• Plasmus appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.^[14]

Miscellaneous

• Plasmus appears in Justice League Unlimited #31.^{[citation needed]}
• Plasmus appears in Teen Titans Go! (2004).^[15]