Plastique, alter ego Bette Sans Souci, has been a DC Comics supervillain for over 30 years who can project explosive force from her body. Created by Gerry Conway and Pat Broderick she made her first appearance in Fury of Firestorm #7 in December 1982. Plastique was originally an enemy to Firestorm, has been an enemy and love interest of Captain Atom, and even became a mercenary.

Plastique began her career as a terrorist who was attempting to coerce the separation of Quebec from the rest of Canada. In her first appearance Plastique had bombs attached to her costume with a goal to blow up the New York Herald-Express. Firestorm disarmed her by vaporizing her clothes and taking the bombs elsewhere to explode safely away from people, leaving her naked and humiliated. After that Plastique made several appearances during Conway’s time writing Fury of Firestorm and started appearing in the first Captain Atom series beginning in 1986.

Later genetic engineering gave her the power to project explosive force outward from her body. Her last public appearance as a terrorist was in her first appearance with Captain Atom when she attempted to destroy the Canadian Parliament Building in Ottawa and the Statue of Liberty in New York City. She also attempted to assassinate the President of the US and the Canadian Prime Minister but her plans were stymied by Captain Atom who captured her.

Plastique became a member of the Suicide Squad for only one mission. She tried to betray them during the second operation and was brainwashed to remove memories of the event. After that she became a mercenary and was pardoned by the US government for working on the Captain Atom Project.

This led to a romance with Captain Atom and Plastique was invited to join the Extreme Justice faction of the Justice League. Captain Atom later states that their marriage was doomed from the start and had been really short. After divorcing him she returned to her life of crime. In The New 52 storyline “Trinity War” she is revealed to be a villain again and a member of the Secret Society of Super Villains. In the “Forever Evil” storyline the Crime Syndicate send her, Black Bison, Hyena, Multiplex, and Typhoon to attack a hospital to finish Gorilla Grodd’s work in Central City.

Plastique recently appeared in The CW’s The Flash as an EOD specialist in the US Army. During a mission in Afghanistan she was wounded while trying to defuse a bomb and taken to Central City for treatment. She was caught in the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator explosion, fusing dark matter energy to shrapnel in her body turning her into Plastique.

Where is Plastique now? Whether in comics or on screen we’re sure she’ll reappear with a bang.