In the latest Comic Book Legends Revealed, discover why Plastic Man was a member of the Justice League on Justice League Unlimited but was never shown.
Welcome to Comic Book Legends Revealed! This is the eight hundred and twelfth installment where we examine three comic book legends and determine whether they are true or false. As usual, there will be three posts, one for each of the three legends.
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Plastic Man was mentioned as being a Justice League member on Justice League Unlimited but never appeared on the show because DC wasn't sure if it had the TV rights to the character.
False
In case you're somehow unfamiliar with it, Justice League Unlimited was a sequel/revamp of the Justice League cartoon series that ran from 2004-2006 that worked under the idea of taking the original Justice League concept and expanding the group membership dramatically (one could say to an almost "unlimited" degree)...
The series introduced a whole pile of new characters to the League, a bunch of whom never really got a chance to get a spotlight on the series as they were SO many new additions (although there were a number of new Leaguers who DID get spotlights and became fan favorites as a result of their spotlight, like the interesting new approach to the Question as a conspiracy theorist that became a beloved version of the character by many fans) and yet, in the midst of all of these various characters, a notable character who was absent was Plastic Man.
Interestingly, despite not physically appearing on the series, Plastic Man was actually confirmed as a member of the Justice League on the series. In the seventh episode of the first season, "The Greatest Story Never Told," Booster Gold is frustrated at not being allowed to take part in a major battle against the sorcerer, Mordru. He is then joined by his teammate, Elongated Man, who is also stuck on crowd control duty because Plastic Man was already on the scene and the team didn't need a SECOND super-stretchy guy. This led to the amusing dialogue:
Elongated Man: "We don't need two stretchy guys". This is so not fair! I mean, okay, I realize that Plastic Man is in the League too, I'm not dissing the guy's skills, but come on! I have it all over that guy! Once I disguised myself as a vase for like, three days!
Booster Gold: No, you didn't.
Elongated Man: Okay, maybe not. Who'd want to anyway?
The League then finds a use for Elongated Man, but not Booster (or Booster's sidekick/robot, Skeets)...
Booster Gold: Is there a chance you could stop complaining for five minutes?
Elongated Man: Hey, the squeaky wheel gets the grease, my friend. But I'll tell you one thing: I wouldn't help those ingrates now if they begged me...
Wonder Woman: We need you.
Booster Gold: It's about time.
Wonder Woman: Not you. Him.
Elongated Man: Squeaky wheel.
Skeets: Maybe they needed a vase.
So why was Plastic Man even MENTIONED on the show as a member of the Justice League if he was not going to appear on the series?
The last time I addressed a similar topic, it was about the Blue Beetle, who was missing from Justice League Unlimited because Warner Bros. wasn't POSITIVE that it had the legal right to use Blue Beetle on the series (due to the deal from DC Comics purchasing Charlton Comics). Therefore, a number of fans have wondered over the years if perhaps that same issue came up with Plastic Man, who was ALSO a character that DC Comics acquired from another comic book publisher after it went out of business (Quality Comics, the same company got DC the Blackhawks and Uncle Sam, among a few other notable heroes).
While that is a logical enough concern (although, since Plastic Man had previously appeared in an animated series from DC Comics working with Ruby-Spears Productions, it would seem to be unlikely that DC was worried about whether it had the rights to the character). As it turned out, the answer was a lot simpler.
My pal, John Trumbull, was discussing Justice League Unlimited and the lack of Plastic Man on the show a few years back when Justice League Unlimited director and longtime DC Animated Universe artist, Dan Riba, stopped by to talk about the situation. He noted, "Well at least Plastic Man was mentioned ...but Sam Register had optioned him for a cartoon series headed by Andy Suriano...the pilot is included on the Plastic Man animated series DVD...which also features my talking head. "
Here's a short Plastic Man cartoon directed by Suriano and Tom Kenny (who also voiced Plastic Man)...
The Plastic Man series was ultimately not picked up, but its development was enough to keep Plastic Man off of the Justice League. However, Dan correctly added, "At least that mention got Plastic Man a toy" as, sure enough, Plastic Man later got a tie-in action figure for the Justice League Unlimited...
It's better than nothing!
Thanks to John and Dan for the information!
Check out some other entertainment and sports legends from Legends Revealed:
1. Did Black Widow Nearly Have Her Own Movie Before Iron Man or Thor?
2. Were There “Back-Up” Mothers on How I Met Your Mother?
3. Was Robert Downey Jr. Written Out of His Own Character’s Wedding Episode on Ally McBeal?
4. Did Wrigley Adapt Chris Brown’s “Forever” For a Doublemint Gum Commercial?
Check back later for part 2 of this installment's legends!
Feel free to send suggestions for future comic legends to me at either cronb01@aol.com or brianc@cbr.com
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