Books

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein: Prodigal Son Volume 1

By Leroy Douresseaux
February 2, 2009 - 11:21

Frankenstein Prodigal Son Volume 1 cover is courtesy of barnesandnoble.com.

Del Rey’s Frankenstein: Prodigal Son is the latest hardcover graphic novel release coming out of Del Rey’s publishing venture with comic book company, Dabel Brothers Publishing.  This new hardcover collects Dabel’s 2008 comic book miniseries, Frankenstein: Prodigal Son #1-5, which was the comic book adaptation of the prose novel, Prodigal Son.  Written by Dean Koontz and Kevin J. Anderson, Prodigal Son was the first entry in the book series, Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein.

Del Rey’s Frankenstein: Prodigal Son collection also includes a bonus, original comic book short story set in the world of Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein and is written by Koontz himself and drawn by Rudy Vasquez and Andy Smith.  The book also includes a gallery of pencil art from Brett Booth, the artist of Dabel’s Prodigal Son comic book.

Koontz also provides an introduction for Del Rey’s Prodigal Son collection.  While I normally wouldn’t comment on a book introduction, I will because Koontz’s imprint here comes not only from the fact that this comic is an adaptation of his work, but also because he contributes the aforementioned original story, in addition to the introduction.

Set in New Orleans, Frankenstein: Prodigal Son follows two detectives, the determined female Detective Carson O’Connor and her witty African-American partner Michael Maddison.  They’re investigating a series of grisly killings in which the killer removes a specific body part or parts – eyes, hands, heart, etc. – from his victims.  Meanwhile, a mysterious figure comes to the Big Easy to confront his “creator,” Victor Helios.  Helios is now creating an entire race of perfectly engineered people that he hopes will take the place of humanity.  The bizarre serial killer, called “The Surgeon,” is somehow tied to Helios.

In his intro, Koontz mentions his love for the old Universal Pictures’ Frankenstein movies (including Bride of Frankenstein) and the personal influence the monster of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (first published in 1818), had on him.  Then, Koontz offers the opinion that Shelley’s novel is “mostly mistaught in our universities these days.”  It seems Koontz believes that modern professors twist Shelley’s original intentions and themes to fit their political view points.  Then, Koontz goes on to “twist” Shelley’s story to fit his own political views concerning failed communist utopias.

So Shelley’s novel isn’t about what those vile feminist, leftist, “homosexualist” college professors and instructors are teaching, hmmm?  Professor Koontz suggests Shelley’s Frankenstein is about man’s dangerous attempt to create utopias.  Want to know what the real message of Shelley’s Frankenstein is, Mr. Koontz?  It’s probably just a ghost story, girlfriend!  [I kid! I kid!]

Koontz claims in his introduction that his Prodigal Son is as an attempt to update Shelley’s story for our “hubristic age,” filled as it is with messianic politicians (a thinly veiled slight at President Obama) and Koontz’s other imaginary boogeymen – particularly, injudicious genetic scientists (my words).  If the comic book adaptation is a good indicator of its source material, the 2004 prose novel by Koontz and Anderson (which I’ve never read), this entire concept may be little more than a kooky, pulp fiction, re-imagining of a famous work of fiction now in the public domain (Shelley’s Frankenstein).  Koontz’s grand idea of updating the “Frankenstein legend” for our time is simply genre hackwork, which places some Frankenstein characters in a mystery-crime thriller, with smatterings of horror, fantasy, and science fiction.

Simply imagine Frankenstein’s monster in a serial killer, police procedural and you got Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein.  Here’s the surprise.  The comic book adaptation is quite readable.  The adaptation is written by veteran comic book writer Chuck Dixon.  Having worked so many years spinning yarns out of some of the most bizarre and ridiculous superhero concepts, Dixon is the perfect guy to take this embarrassing concept and make it into an enjoyable comic book.  Dixon’s writing had me anxious to turn each page and find out what happens next.

It’s unfortunate that the artist for the Prodigal Son comic book is Brett Booth, an artist who has been drawing comic books professionally for almost two decades and still draws like he’s an amateur producing a facsimile comic book for a high school art project.  I can’t say that there are many reasons to spend 23 bucks on this Frankenstein: Prodigal Son comic book collection, but Dean Koontz’s fans might want this – perhaps, even Chuck Dixon fans.

C

 

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12