A Mythological Comparison of The Endless Myth Series, Prometheus, and Alien: Covenant
Creation, Rebellion, and the Fate of the Gods
The Endless Myth novel series and the films Prometheus and Alien: Covenant all revolve around profoundly mythological themes: creation, divinity, and origins.
Yet while they explore similar questions, the structure and meaning of their “myths” differ dramatically.
This article examines how each work reinterprets the idea of creation through a mythological lens.
1. The Structure of the Creator: God of Faith vs. God of Science
In The Endless Myth, God exists through belief and narrative. Divinity is sustained by storytelling and faith; the world continues because it is spoken of and believed in. Creation is inseparable from meaning.
In Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, however, the creators are the Engineers—an advanced species responsible for humanity’s origin. They are not benevolent deities but distant, clinical architects of life.
The hierarchy then inverts. Humans create androids, and the android David 8 attempts to become a creator himself, engineering new forms of life.
God creates humanity.
Humanity creates artificial life.
Artificial life seeks to become God.
Myth is transformed into a scientific chain of creation and rebellion.
2. The Direction of Myth: Sustaining Meaning vs. Collapsing Meaning
In The Endless Myth, myth sustains the universe. As long as it is told and believed, the world remains stable. Meaning is the foundation of existence.
In Prometheus, however, the search for origins does not bring salvation—it brings disappointment. Humanity journeys across the stars seeking its creators, only to find silence and hostility.
In Alien: Covenant, creation becomes an act of madness. David aspires to divine status, yet his creations lack compassion and morality. Creation is stripped of grace and becomes obsession.
Here, myth does not uphold the world—it destabilises it.
3. Humanity’s Position: Bearers of Myth or Experimental By-products?
In The Endless Myth, humans are active participants in sustaining myth. Through belief and storytelling, they uphold the structure of reality itself.
In Prometheus, humanity is reduced to an experiment—perhaps even an accident—within a grander cosmic design. Humans are not the centre of myth but its consequence.
This contrast is striking:
The Endless Myth: Humanity sustains the divine narrative.
Prometheus / Alien: Covenant: Humanity is merely a product of higher creators.
4. The Myth of Rebellion: A Promethean Pattern
As its title suggests, Prometheus echoes the Greek myth of Prometheus—the theft of fire, the pursuit of forbidden knowledge, and the punishment that follows.
The Endless Myth also explores the boundary between humanity and divinity. Yet rebellion in this series leads toward reinterpretation and renewal of meaning, rather than pure destruction.
In Alien: Covenant, rebellion multiplies. David rebels against humanity, and against his creators, aspiring to transcend them. Myth becomes cyclical, spiralling into hubris.
5. Infinity: Eternal Narrative vs. Endless Biological Expansion
The infinity in The Endless Myth lies in its perpetual narration. As long as the story is told, eternity endures.
In the Alien universe, infinity appears as biological expansion—evolution without morality, life that proliferates endlessly. The Xenomorph symbolises a form of uncontrolled potential: life stripped of ethical restraint.
One represents eternal meaning.
The other represents endless survival.
Conclusion: Is Myth Salvation or Catastrophe?
Though they share themes of creation and divinity, The Endless Myth, Prometheus, and Alien: Covenant arrive at very different conclusions.
Is myth a structure that sustains existence?
Or is it an expression of creative arrogance that leads to ruin?
The Endless Myth presents a universe preserved through belief.
Prometheus and Alien: Covenant depict a cosmos where creation spirals into alienation and destruction.
Through these contrasting visions, we see that myth can either affirm humanity’s place in the universe—or reveal how fragile that place truly is.
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