Prometheus (DC Comics)

Prometheus
File:Prometheusdc.gif
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	New Year's Evil: Prometheus #1
Created by	Grant Morrison Arnie Jorgensen
In-story information
Alter ego	Unknown
Team affiliations	The Society, Injustice Gang, Hush
Notable aliases	Retro
Abilities	Cybernetic implant in his head and linked to his helmet allows him to download data from small CD-type disks directly into his brain

Prometheus is a fictional character from DC Comics and a supervillain.

Curt Calhoun

The first Prometheus was a Texan named Curt Calhoun, created by Marv Wolfman. He was virtually invulnerable, possessed great super-strength, and was capable of raising the temperature of his armored form to several hundred degrees Celsius, easily capable of melting most other metals. Prometheus and most of his team the Hybrid died under the control of Roulette. He and other members of his team appear on the "Fallen Players of the House" remembrance wall.

Morrison's Prometheus

His creator, Grant Morrison describes him as "the anti-Batman." Prometheus was the son of two criminals who travelled across the United States with him in tow committing indiscriminate murders and thefts, often of a brutal nature (similar perhaps to Bonnie and Clyde). Eventually they were cornered and forced the police to gun them down in front of their son, whose hair turned white from the shock. That night, he swore an oath to "annihilate the forces of justice."

Training

Prometheus obtained large sums of money both from his parents' hidden stashes of money and by extorting local mob bosses using his knowledge of their criminal activities. Leaving home at the age of 16, he used his money to travel the world in order to develop the skills he would need. His activities during this period included training as an underground pit-fighter in Brazil, working as a mercenary in Africa, joining terrorist groups in the Middle East, studying silat in Malaysia, associating with the wealthy social elite in order to learn their secrets, and attending legitimate academic schools. Eventually he found a sect of monks living in the Himalayas who worshipped evil itself. Studying with them, he eventually became a favorite of their leader, who showed him their greatest treasure, an alien spaceship upon which their ancient monastery had been built.

Ghost Zone

Along with the ship was a key that opened into what Prometheus dubbed "The Ghost Zone," an infinite expanse of white nothing-ness. (JLA member and angel Zauriel referred to this zone as limbo; it was also used by the White Martians as a form of Hyperspace to effect interstellar travel; the people of Krypton knew it as the Phantom Zone). Prometheus would eventually build himself a small wooden house in The Ghost Zone where he could not be reached by Earth's authorities or heroes.

Equipment

As well as the key to The Ghost Zone, Prometheus also carries a high-tech tonfa that allows him to deliver superhuman blows, as well as various other gadgets. His greatest accomplishment is the invention of a helmet which allows him to download the knowledge of others, stored on a compact disc, directly into his brain. (This information is not, however, retained indefinitely, and Prometheus must change disks in the helmet to access different knowledge.) This helmet also transmits certain reflexive abilities enabling him to access physical skills as well as knowledge. The helmet can also emit strobe lighting to disorient or hypnotise an opponent.

Prometheus first appeared in "New Year's Evil: Prometheus" one of a number of New Year's Evil one-shot issues from DC Comics that featured various supervillains. In this, his origin is explained and Prometheus kills a young man calling himself "Retro." Retro was just a normal young man who had won a competition to be a member of the new JLA for a day by designing his own costume and fictitious "origin story."

Retro

In issues of JLA, Prometheus took the place of Retro at the Justice League Watchtower on the Moon and almost single-handedly took down the League: He shot the Martian Manhunter with a dart that turned his shape-changing power against him, infected Steel's armor with a computer virus which commanded the suit to destroy the Watchtower, hypnotized the Huntress, attacked Green Lantern with a "Neural Chaff" that rendered his ring useless, trapped the angel Zauriel in the Ghost Zone, tricked the Flash into believing that he had planted motion sensitive bombs that would explode if the Flash used his powers, and defeated Batman in hand-to-hand combat by downloading the skills of several martial arts masters, including Batman himself, into his brain. He then demanded that Superman commit suicide in exchange for the lives of the hostages.

Prometheus was defeated when the anti-hero Catwoman showed up unexpectedly, buying Steel time to beat the virus and, in turn, override Prometheus' helmet. Prometheus then escaped to the Ghost Zone.

Injustice Gang

Prometheus later returned as a part of the second Injustice Gang created by Lex Luthor. He was able to use the Ghost Zone and a White Martian spaceship left from the Martian Invasion within it to get into the Watchtower. He almost killed Oracle when she refused to let him use his technology to give her back the use of her legs in return for betraying the JLA.

He then had a final rematch with Batman who had, in the intervening time, managed to unlock the secrets of Prometheus' helmet. Batman replaced the martial arts skills Prometheus had download into his mind with the physical skills and coordination of Professor Stephen Hawking, subsequently knocking Prometheus unconscious with one blow. Batman later commented that he "had never hit a man with motor neuron disease before." Later, Batman was forced to intervene in order to prevent Huntress from killing the helpless Prometheus, firing her from the JLA in the process.

Prometheus had a brief cameo in a JLA/Avengers crossover fighting Marvel Comics hero Captain America.

Hush

Prometheus was later seen in Star City, fighting Green Arrow and the police, where he escaped with the help of Batman villain Hush. Prometheus later formed a partnership with Hush, but was abandoned for his complicity in the murder of Poison Ivy. Infected with a terminal disease by one of Ivy's mutated foster children, Prometheus was powerless to defend himself when he was kidnapped by The Society, of which he had previously been a member. The Society wanted to steal the key to the Ghost Zone, which Prometheus had already hidden in the museum of the Justice Society of America.

Most recently, Prometheus appeared in Birds of Prey #94 defeating Lady Shiva, and re-capturing the Society defector Crime Doctor from under the Huntress' nose.