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Plastic Man Reading Order

Launched as a minor feature in Police Comics #1 in 1941 (originally published by Quality Comics and later acquired by DC Comics), Plastic Man is a creation of artist and writer Jack Cole. He initially thought of a character named the Indian Rubber Man, inspired by sideshow freaks, but Everett Arnold–who was the founder of Quality Comics–suggested naming the character after that material that was all the rage at the time.

According to Art Spiegelman, who profiled Cole for The New Yorker magazine, in 1943, when Plastic Man expanded into his own book, Cole explained the morphing hero to new readers: “If you should see a man standing on the street and reaching into the top window of a sky-scraper…that’s not astigmatism—it’s Plastic Man!… If you happen upon a gent all bent up like a pretzel…don’t dunk him…it’s Plastic Man! All this and bouncing too, you’ll see when the rubber man and his pal Woozy Winks gamble their lives in—The Game of Death.”

This is the story of Patrick “Eel” O’Brian, a lowlife gangster. While committing a robbery, he was accidentally doused by some unnamed acid. Nursed back to health by a reclusive order of monks, Eel became a new man. He now had stretching abilities that defied the laws of physics and, inspired by the teaching of the monks, he was now ready to put his criminal past behind him to protect the law–he first helped the police force and later became a special agent for the F.B.I.

But Plastic Man still went back to the world of crime. Nobody knew that he and the gangster Eel O’Brian were the same person. Unlike most of the superheroes who followed, his secret Identity was on the other side of the law. He was the man he was supposed to put in jail. For a time at least, as Plas could become anyone and mostly stop being Eel. His sidekick was also a reformed criminal (in Plastic Man #13). Woozy Winks realized he couldn’t be harmed and using a coin toss, he went on doing crime. His powers diminished and he became a comical counterweight to Plastic Man.

That was during the Jack Cole era, The Golden Age! Plastic Man stories were published by Quality Comics from 1941 to 1956, but the character joined DC Comics in 1966. After that, his most notable role was in the Saturday morning cartoon titled The Plastic Man Comedy/Adventure Show (1979-81). In 1988, during the Modern Age era, Plas was reintroduced in a miniseries by Phil Foglio.

In this new version, Eel O’Brian is shot and exposed to a mysterious chemical. At first, he didn’t realize what happened to him, but when the reality hit him, he thought of ending things by jumping off a bridge. That’s when Woozy Winks, now a former mental patient, interrupted him. Together, they decide to make a fortune by using Eel’s power and toss a coin to decide if they are going to do it as criminals or crime fighters. The rest is history! Eel was going to call himself Elastic Man, but a reporter called him Plastic Man, and the name stuck–for those who may be confused by the elastic heroes, he is not Elongated Man. That’s Ralph Dibny

Plastic Man Comics Reading Order

Plastic Man’s adventures are not that easy to find nowadays, especially when it comes to what was published pre-JLA. But if you can find it, the book “Jack Cole and Plastic Man: Forms Stretched to Their Limits” by Art Spiegelman and designer Chip Kidd offers an interesting look at Plas and its creator, and some scans of stories from the 1940s era.

The following guide focuses on the essential Plastic Man readings and what’s available to readers today. It’s not trying to be an exhaustive look at this Golden Age character. If you think some important stories have been left out, don’t hesitate to leave a comment.

The Jack Cole Era of Plastic Man

The original Plastic Man series by Jack Cole from Quality Comics is quite hard to find nowadays. It was reprinted in the early 2000s in the “DC Archive Editions” collection. Maybe you can find them on the second-hand market.

  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 1
    Collects Police Comics #1-20.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 2
    Collects Police Comics #21-30, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #1.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 3
    Collects Police Comics #31-39, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #2.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 4
    Collects Police Comics #40-49, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #3.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 5
    Collects Police Comics #50-58, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #4.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 6
    Collects Police Comics #59-65, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #5-6.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 7
    Collects Police Comics #66-71, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #7-8.
  • Plastic Man Archives Vol. 8
    Collects Police Comics #72-77, Plastic Man (Vol. 1) #9-10.

The Silver/Bronze Age Plastic Man

Plastic Man already joined the DC Universe starting with House of Mystery #160 (1966) and soon got his own bi-monthly title that revealed that this version of Plastic Man is the son of the original. It was canceled after 10 issues. Another Plastic Man series was relaunched in 1976 by writer Steve Skeates and artist Ramona Fradon, but once again it only lasted 10 issues (from #11 to #20). Soon after, Plas and Woozy were back in Adventure Comics #467-478 by Marty Pasko and Joe Staton, before being sent in Super Friends then World’s Finest.

We also can find him occasionally in the All-Star Squadron series from 1981. He made his last appearance in this timeline in DC Comics Presents #93 in 1986.

Plastic Man during the Modern Age

Post-Crisis, Plas was introduced into the Modern Age of the DC Universe in Secret Origins Vol 2 #30, but mostly via the 4-part miniseries by Phil Foglio. It’s available on digital.

After that, Patrick “Eel” Obrian–as he is known now–made a few guest appearances. Notably, though, he joined Grant Morrison’s JLA series and stayed a member of the Justice League team long after the famous writer left the book.

  • JLA Vol. 1
    Collects JLA #1-9 and JLA Secret Files and Origins #1. Plas is only in Issue #5, but you can read everything, it’s really good.
  • JLA Vol. 2
    Collects JLA #10-17, New Year’s Evil: Prometheus, JLA Secret Files and Origins #2, and JLA/WildC.A.T.S.
  • JLA Vol. 3
    Collects JLA #18-31.
  • JLA Vol. 4
    Collects JLA #32-46.
  • JLA Vol. 5
    Collects JLA #47-60, and JLA: Heaven’s Ladder.
  • JLA Vol. 6
    Collects JLA #61-76.
  • JLA Vol. 7
    Collects JLA #77-93.
  • JLA Vol. 8
    Collects JLA #94-106.
  • JLA Vol. 9
    Collects JLA #107-125.

During that time, mostly due to his link to the JLA, Plas also appeared in other titles as a guest star like in a few issues of Green Lantern, Superboy, Impile, Wonder Woman, The Flash, etc.

Kyle Baker’s Plastic Man (Must-Read)

In 2004, Kyle Baker wrote an award-winning standalone series composed of 20 crazy issues. Here is the official synopsis: Plastic Man must come to terms with his criminal past when the FBI assigns him to catch his underworld alter ego, Eel O’Brian. Can Plas clear his name? Maybe, with the help of his beautiful, ruthless new partner, FBI Agent Morgan. Or, maybe not, thanks to the completely useless help of his old crime-fighting sidekick, Woozy Winks. 

It’s considered by many as the best Plastic Man story not written by Jack Cole. If you’re interested in the character, this is a must-read.

After the Infinite Crisis

As the Justice League officially disbanded during the Infinite Crisis storyline, Plastic Man was not part of any team anymore. He appeared in a few chapters of the 52 series (Week #1, 35, 38, 43, 50-51), then in Teen Titans v3 #38, before being one of the main cast of the mini-series Countdown to Mystery.

Plas then appeared in Green Arrow/Black Canary #8-12 before briefly joining Len Wein and James Robinson’s Justice League of America, stories that led to the Blackest Night crossover event.

Then came the New 52 era, but Plastic Man was barely in it. However, he appeared during the (unconsequential) Convergence event.

DC Rebirth Plastic Man (and beyond)

During the Rebirth era, Plastic Man made his comeback during the Dark Nights: Metal event. This led him to join The Terrifics series by Jeff Lemire and Gene Luen Yang series (with multiple artists) in which he, Mr. Terrific, Metamorpho, and Phantom Girl find themselves bound together by a tragic accident. This team of unlikely allies must rely on one another to make their way back home. 

Also, Plas got a 6-part miniseries from Gail Simone and Adriana Melo.

Plastic Man being historically a detective, it’s no surprise that he joined others like him during the Event Leviathan story.

  • Event Leviathan
    Collects Superman: Leviathan Rising Special #1, Event Leviathan #1-6, DC’s Year of the Villain #1

Since then, Plastic Man has mostly done guest appearances and cameos. He’s still a hero of the DC Universe, but not a prominent one. For now.

As part of the Black Label imprint, DC launched a new Plastic Man miniseries, written by Christopher Cantwell with art by Jacob Edgar. It starts when an incident on a Justice League mission leads to catastrophic cellular damage, Plastic Man discovers he just might be out of time to make amends for the past he’s tried hard to outrun — or to save the soul of his son, who (unfortunately for him) might have inherited more from dear old Dad than just his superpowers…

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