This World Is Not Enough

This World Is Not Enough is the first episode of the first season of Plasma-Man and the first episode of the series. It features the first appearance of Plasma-Man in his Plasma Form.

Synopsis
CEO of Renaissance Technologies Johnathan Long and Samuel Cheng, made enemies by Johnathan firing him, encounter mysterious forces. They must come to terms with their new power, and choose whether to use them for good, or evil.

Plot
The episode begins with a couple walking into an alley in Cobalt City, only to be ambushed by two mysterious figures fighting: a man composed of blue flames and armor and a man that appears to be shimmering in and out of reality. The latter man manages to temporarily overpower the flaming man, and threatens the couple, before the fiery man saves them by knocking the man out. He carries him away from them, as we move to a week earlier.

CEO Johnathan Long and his mentor William North are introduced as scientists and partners as Johnathan gives a rousing speech to the press and crowd about his PlasmaTM Reactor technology that he plans to make a reality very soon. They have a chat afterwards and it's shown that they are good friends, and that William has a connection to John's late father.

We are then introduced to Samuel Cheng, who enters Johnathan's office seeking a raise to help with medical bills for an injury John implies he obtained in an "incident" with aliens. Johnathan refuses, and fires Samuel, based on the board's insistence on reigning in costs. Samuel angrily tries to beat Johnathan, but guards take him and throw him into the street, where he walks away in anger.

At the presentation the following day, Johnathan and William present their technology to a waiting press and public, but things go wrong and Johnathan decides he must take responsibility and ensure everyone else makes it out at all cost. He tries and fails to stop the reactor from exploding at all costs, and as the remaining scientists struggle to help, he remembers his father's fate in that same room, that same way... as the reactor explodes and the fire encompasses all.

We then see inside his mind, as a mysterious entity reveals that he is going to die soon, but that he isn't dead yet. Unless he accepts his gift of new life, in return for his help. On what, he does not say, as he leaves John with that choice. John accepts, and we're propelled back into the real world.

Johnathan wakes to find that the lab is destroyed and the scientists are now all dead. He weeps, and after a moment stumbles out in a delirious state into the parking lot, passing out into William's arms.

Samuel Cheng finds himself evicted from his own apartment, and goes to a church seeking solace, but finding little. He is approached and lured by a mysterious man to a car full of other masked men, who drug and kidnap Samuel.

Johnathan wakes up in the hospital to discover he survived the accident with not a scratch on him. He is visited by Yanis Trevell, a member of the board of his company, Renaissance Technologies, and is told he is fired for his incompetence and negligence.

Samuel is then brought before mysterious robed men who give him an eye back with a ritual calling on "higher powers". He begins to display the ability to teleport over short distances, and expresses his desire to back out of whatever game the masked men are playing. one of them reveals that they require human vessels to function as an organization and his duty to keep his new eye is to find them someone new.

Johnathan drinks heavily at his home and nearly drinks himself to death, before he suddenly becomes unable to control his body and slings the alcohol against the wall. He then transforms into Plasma-Man for the first time, a being composed of pure flame and metal. He knocks himself out is his drunken and confused stupor.

The next morning, William is tending to him, having found him passed out and drunk on the floor. Johnathan explains what happened, and after William skeptically questions the logic of what John is saying, he sees him transform before his very eyes, and they both figure out that he can return to normal by calming himself down

Samuel begins to be affected by his new ability, and is told it will take time to learn to adjust. He then tells Samuel it is time to search for their vessel. Samuel seems hesitant at first, before devilishly grinning and saying he knows just who to find.

Johnathan wakes up in the middle of the night to someone breaking into his house, who we soon learn is Samuel, and they fight for a good while, taking them all the way into the city and up to the rooftops, where they reach an impasse as John angrily confronts him, and Samuel reminds him of what he's done to him. Johnathan expresses guilt, saying he can help him. Samuel rejects his help, kicking him into the alley below, where the fight from the intro happens again, Johnathan rescuing the couple from Samuel and carrying him away.

As he walks into the distance, Johnathan muses that maybe he could help more people, if he's stuck living ass he is now. Suddenly, he's tranqed by a cult member from behind, as the episode ends.