Prometheus, son of Iapetus (New Earth)

Prometheus

Mainstream Universe‎‎, 1930s-2011

Prometheus is theTitan god of fire and a hero who stole fire from theGods ofMount Olympus to benefit men and was punished for it.

History

Pre-Crisis

Earth-Two

Jove orders Titan Prometheus andhis brother to create life on Earth. They make man last, and Prometheus steals fire from the Sun to gift to man. Enraged, Jove punishes Prometheus by tying him to a rock, and condemning him to be tortured by a vulture for all eternity.^[1]

Earth-One

There are at least two versions of Prometheus in the Earth-One reality.

In the first, faced with the vision of theOracle of Delphi, who saw a future in which the gods were forgotten and mankind worshipedSuperman, theOlympian gods and heroes worried about their fate and Prometheus suggested a plan: he would create a new man from clay and the gods would grant him their powers. He was calledZha-Vam the Invincible, a name formed by the initials of some of the Olympian gods, and Prometheus also girded him with a magical belt with powers from other gods, not just those of Olympus.

Despite being immensely powerful, however, Zha-Vam was unable to defeat Superman, who also had divine help when Neptune gave him another belt with which the Man of Steel could access divine powers to combat those of Zha-Vam.

With Zha-Vam defeated, Zeus ordered Prometheus to turn the champion of Olympus back into lifeless clay.^[2]

In the other version,Lois Lane snooped around Dr Evans' house to get the story on a time machine, outsmarted Superman, and ended up catapulted back in time to the Golden Age ofGreece.

Lois appeared in front ofEpimetheus, and he proposed marriage, as he thought Lois was a gift from the Gods. Sure that Superman would find her, Lois accepted and visited Epimetheus' brother, Prometheus. Part of the Greek wedding custom would be for her groom to choose a new name for Lois.

The brothers were scientists, and allowed Lois to explore their estate where her curiosity unleashed hybrid monsters and set the room on fire. An unlocked box marked "Not to be opened by anyone! Beware!" attracted Lois' curiosity and she, of course, opened it and released a plague of flies. Despite this, Epimetheus would not punish her and still desired marriage.

After having searched for thousands of years, Superman found her and returned her to the present. Lois' film was ruined by a radioactive meteor, so her only proof was the wedding ring, in which was engraved "Epimetheus to Pandora." Superman laughed, as Lois had become thePandora of legendm when she opened thebox of all evils.^[3]

Post-Crisis

Prometheus was once a member of a tribe of nomadic humans who lived a cold, miserable existence on a barren landscape while praying to theGods of Olympus via stone totems for fire and warmth which never came. Fed up with prayer and the God's refusal to share their warmth, Prometheus decided to venture to Mount Olympus to take the Olympian flames for his people. Prometheus ventured into Olympus and avoided it's obstacles such as the vicious Gryphons and a sleepingZeus. Prometheus found the flames and used Zeus' Aegis shield to carry the flames to his people, and was hailed as a hero to mankind, while outraged Zeus swore revenge on mankind and Prometheus.

The Gods sided with Prometheus due to his heroism and bravery for his race, causing Zeus to relent in his punishment and reward Prometheus for his valor. Zeus had the Gods constructPandora, a woman who was constructed long ago by Hephaestus and blessed by the Olympian Gods to act as the living embodiment of all that is woman and presented to Prometheus as his reward and mate. Pandora was eventually given a box by Zeus as a keepsake to be which she was charged with never opening under any conditions, later revealed to be a trap set to punish Prometheus and mankind. Pandora was presented to Prometheus, who spurned Pandora since he correctly deduced she was a trap set by Zeus in the guise of a gift and left, while she eventually chose his older brotherEpimetheus as her mate and convinced him to open the box which released great evils onto the world.

For spurning Pandora and ruining his plan, Zeus had Prometheus bound in chains atop Mount Caucasus where an eagle would feed upon his liver during the day and Prometheus' liver and injuries would grow back and heal at night to begin the torment anew the following day. According to the Fates, Prometheus would be cursed to remain bound until thirty generations of mankind were dead long after him, upon which he would be released and whisper a secret to Zeus that he had been keeping since his imprisonment.^[4]

According toGregori Rasputin, Prometheus was once Earth's fire elemental, similar toFirestorm.^[5]

Powers and Abilities

Powers

• Godly Physiology (Pre-Crisis)
  • Immortality: In the Post-Crisis, however, Prometheus is a mortal who, as part of his punishment by Zeus, is cursed to live until thirty generations of mankind have died long after him.^[4]

Abilities

• Artistry: Prometheus is very skilled in modeling human sculptures from clay.
• Genius Level Intellect: Prometheus is known throughout the Greek World and others for his intelligence and innovation compared to other humans at the time, enough where he managed to sneak into Mount Olympus and use Zeus's own Aegis to carry the Olympian flames back to his people undetected.
  • Science^[3]
• Indomitable Will: It is said that Prometheus' will shall allow him to endure his punishment by Zeus in strict defiance of Zeus' authority.

Notes

• This character or object is an adaptation of Prometheus, a character or object in traditional stories. These include, but may not be limited to religious texts, myth, and/or folk lore. More information on the original can be foundat Wikipedia.org.
• Although this character was originally introduced during DC'sEarth-Two era of publication, their existence following the events of the 1985–86 limited seriesCrisis on Infinite Earths remains intact. However, some elements of the character's Pre-Crisis history may have been altered or removed for Post-CrisisNew Earth continuity, and no longer apply.

Related

• 5 Appearances of Prometheus, son of Iapetus (New Earth)
• 1 Images featuring Prometheus, son of Iapetus (New Earth)
• Quotations by or about Prometheus, son of Iapetus (New Earth)
• Character Gallery: Prometheus, son of Iapetus (New Earth)

Footnotes