Exploding Man (painting)

The Exploding Man, Burning Man, or Energy Man is a painting by Isaac Mendez. It depicts a prophecy which has not yet been fulfilled.
About
Seven Minutes to Midnight
Under the spell of Eden McCain's power of persuasion (and by the orders of Mr. Bennet), Isaac Mendez uses heroin and begins work on a new painting.
Homecoming
At Primatech Paper Co., Mr. Bennet examines Isaac's latest painting. The painting depicts a humanoid figure who appears to be burning or exploding. Mr. Bennet is not pleased — he was hoping for a prophecy about his daughter.
Fallout
Outside the Odessa Police Department, Peter Petrelli has a vision of a practically deserted Times Square. Peter sees himself glowing and grimacing in pain or frustration, as if he were about to explode. After the vision, he turns to his brother and says the explosion is "all my fault".
Notes
- Isaac painted this image after taking a dose of heroin, and he showed the characteristic signs of being in one of his precognitive trances, so the painting is almost certainly a prophecy of future events. Exactly how this prophecy will be fulfilled, or if it will be fulfilled at all, remains to be seen. The figure in the image may be related to the explosion foreseen in another of Isaac's paintings. The "burning man" may also be an image of Ted Sprague, who often emits radiation in an uncontrolled manner and has expressed a fear that he might explode like an atomic bomb if killed. Peter Petrelli mimics the powers of other evolved humans, so he might be the figure in the painting, duplicating Ted's radioactive abilities.
- The filename for the painting as it appeared as an Easter Egg in Fathers & Daughters was Energy Man.
Gallery
-
Isaac's finished painting depicts an exploding figure.
-
Peter Petrelli has a vision of himself apparently about to explode.