Prometheus In Chains By Rich Davis
Red 5 Comics is thrilled to announce that its best selling comic book Prometheus In Chains #1 by rising horror master Rich Davis will receive a monumental second printing with brand new cover art by world renowned air brush artist Jay Ferguson! According to Red 5 Comics co-founder Scott Chitwood, the first printing of Prometheus In Chains #1 sold out very quickly through Diamond Comics Distributors yet orders kept coming in. “I think the success of Christopher Nolan’s brilliant film Oppenheimer has rekindled a desire for “atomic” age science fiction and horror,” said Chitwood. Davis’s tragically personal take on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein takes place from 1939-1969 in the lead up to, during and through the fallout from the Manhattan Project. J Robert Oppenheimer, Albert Einstein and other historical figures make appearances in Prometheus In Chains albeit in uniquely twisted ways.
Best known for Cult of Dracula, his best selling and award winning spin on Bram Stoker’s seminal work, writer/creator Rich Davis has made his bones re-imagining some of the most iconic figures in horror history. “I like to subvert expectations and challenge everything readers “know” about these characters and their worlds. I want to tell the stories that their authors intended, but do so in ways that no one expects,” says Davis. Davis’s works have been widely praised for their unique perspectives and unexpected points of views while holding their source materials in high regard. Prometheus In Chains holds true to those ideals. It has been almost universally well received by both critics and readers alike.
Second printings are fairly common from major publishers such as Marvel and DC. They’re much less so in the world of small press publishers like Red 5. Chitwood says, “It’s a rare opportunity to offer our fans a second printing. It means that we sold out the initial print run and still couldn’t meet demand for the book. We can’t fumble this one.” Davis adds, “We had to go all in for this one. Scott and I agreed that we needed to mark this moment with spectacular cover art. I knew immediately that I wanted Jay Ferguson to do it.” Ferguson is well known and highly respected in the underground/indie comics world. He prefers to work with creators like Davis who allow him the freedom to create and don’t try to tame his art. When asked about this version of Frankenstein, Ferguson had this to say, “I always envision Frankenstein with a dark sadness and a bleak feel.” Davis’s take definitely checks those boxes.
Traditionally, in most adaptations of Frankenstein it is Victor’s arrogance that drives him to steal fire from the gods by conquering death. Davis offers a different perspective. “I chose Victor’s grief as his motivation. It humanized him. Made him more relatable. More interesting in my opinion. It was hell to write. I had to face my own demons. But also cathartic.” In this story, Elizabeth Frankenstein dies of cancer she developed while working alongside Victor on the Manhattan Project. Davis’s version of Victor is fueled by depression, addiction and PTSD. Prometheus In Chains mirrors Davis’s own struggles with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. His wife Amber Davis tragically passed away following a botched transplant surgery at the University of Tennessee Medical Center in 2021. “There are a lot of us out there with PTSD. People from all walks of life. Veterans. Police officers. First responders. People in the medical field. We don’t talk about it. Men especially. We’re conditioned to hide from our emotions. That’s not healthy. If anything positive can come of this, it’s my hope that one person struggling with PTSD will read this story about a man with PTSD written by a man working through his own grief and instead of picking up a gun, he picks up a phone,” Davis adds that every issue of Prometheus In Chains will prominently feature the toll free number for the National PTSD Hotline: 866-903-3787.
