The Sandman | Morpheus being a sad wet cat

Starting 'The Sandman' show…

As someone who ones all the original hardcovers (and a few Absolutes), my apologies to my handful of followers for the insufferable prick I'm about to become.

I will say that, if you upgrading Ol' Mouth Eyes to a main protagonist, Boyd Holbrook as Peak Asshole Southern Gentleman is on point. Also, looking forward to Sweary Matthew.

So for those unaware of what just went down, a whistleblower has exposed that last year the American / Canadian / and UK comity of the Hugo Awards deliberately removed some nominations specifically because those nominations might offend the Chinese government.

The Hugo Awards (until now) were a very respected scifi / fantasy award. In years past Neil Gaiman had won Hugo awards for such things as The Sandman: Overture and other works.

However the nominations removed last year to avoid offending China included episode 6 of the Netflix adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman, likely because it showed Death taking souls to the afterlife. The Chinese government does not like Western depictions of the afterlife.

This has blown up into a very big and interesting scandal and now Neil Gaiman and The Sandman Netflix series are part of it.

I grew tired of Hollywood pandering to China years ago when I found out that's why so many horror reboots removed supernatural elements (i.e. the Child's Play remake turning Chucky into an evil AI robot doll instead of a possessed talking doll).

The Chinese market does not like western depictions of ghosts or the afterlife and this has lead to a steep decrease in high budget supernatural horror and why most horror is now made by smaller, low-budget divisions like Blumhouse.

Disney couldn't even put a Haunted Mansion in Hong Kong Disney. Instead it's "Mystic Manor" which isn't haunted at all but just "enchanted" with "living furniture." The popular excuse they give is that the Chinese culture has different views on ghosts than us. Bull. I've read plenty of scary Chinese ghost stories. And they don't mind western depictions of ghosts if they happen to be in Korean or Japanese animation.

Every time I write a new meta exploring the Netflix adaptation of the Sandman comics and what they changed, I draw the same conclusion. Even if I don't start the meta even considering that conclusion I can't get away from it. I've been wrapped up in the comic canon for a while now and the comics only have one ending and no other ending is really possible unless you really hyperfocus on Hob's dream. I totally support comic analysis that concludes that the ending is paramount and fixed and cannot be changed. Comic focused meta writers are adament the story must play out as per the comics and I respect that reading.

But then I delve into show meta again and I once again reach the same conclusion: they are changing it. They must be changing it. The show canon doesnt allign with the comics. Its too hopeful, too kind, too supportive.

Maybe too much hope is as much of a bad thing as not enough? There was never any hope in the comic universe. Overture makes that very clear. But the Netflix universe? Oodles of hope. Hope in all corners. Filled to the brim with hope.

I'm completely at a loss and in two minds about it. I'm fascinated and terrified about it. Perhaps we wont even get that far though. Maybe Netflix will cancel the show before we get a chance to see its natural ending. Season 2 could also totally do a 180 on the groundwork season 1 laid down so there is that. I don't know... I'm so confused by it all.

Trusting an adaptation

There's a specific problem creators run into when adapting a long-running series (comics, multiple books, etc.). Adaptation naturally necessitates some changes. Then when the time comes to adapt the next part (second book, sequel, etc.) you have to choose whether to continue the changes made in the first part (making the adaptation continuous, but increasingly divergent from its source) or to ignore them (making a more accurate adaption of the material, but making the adaptation self-contradictory).

And I've found that seeing evidence that creators have planned ahead and made efforts to minimize this disruption is one of the strongest ways to make me lower my hackles and trust that an ongoing adaptation knows what it's doing. I can think of two examples prominent to me:

I've been a fan of a Series of Unfortunate Events since childhood, and was very excited when the 2004 movie came out. In hindsight, any movie that was adapting three books at once clearly has little interest in being faithful. But the thing that stood out to little-kid me was Olaf's eye tattoo, which looked like a regular eye. In the books, one would have to read as far as book 9 to learn the eye tattoo's design specifically resembled the initialism VFD. It has no real effect on the movie. But I remember it made me think "How will they ever explain/fix that in later movies, when they get to book 9?". The answer, of course, being that they never intended to get that far.

So when the Netflix series came out in 2017, I was hesitantly hopeful. The author was involved, which is a huge plus. But the moment I breathed a huge sigh of relief was when I saw the tattoo on Olaf's ankle, and it fit. Now, Netflix got to finish adapting the series. There was a possibility they wouldn't. That the accuracy of the design would be wasted. But the fact they started from episode one, setting up the payoff they'd need 16-17 episodes later, was a sign the writers and designers and crew were committed to doing it right if they could.

Netflix's Sandman adaptation is the other example for me. Yes, the trailer looked amazing and Neil Gaiman's involvement was a huge green flag, given how careful he'd been with adaptations before. But realizing that things I thought were small show adaptations (Lucienne's presentiment, Dream's confrontation with the Corinthian) were actually word-for-word accurate for Overture, really hammered home the amount of planning they were doing. The series has currently adapted the first 2.5 volumes out of ten, and Overture comes after all 10 (and also before. It's like that). The first season was massively popular, so I really hope Netflix gets their act together and doesn't let this go to waste. But the fact that the writers are planting properly, leaving room for themselves to make sure they haven't painted themselves into a corner down the line, is really promising as a fan.

17, 18, and 19 for the book asks!

17. Top five books of the year

skdfjskj this is ABSURD to try to narrow down BUT. in no particular order:

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi This book basically unravels the mystery of how Vivek Oji died, and explores the lives of a group of queer youths in Nigeria - and the core of the story is the dual experience of wanting to "truly" express oneself while also not being out for the sake of safety, which as someone in a relatively similar situation made me want to scream because the experience is captured so WELL UGH

The Shadow King by Maaza Mengiste This is such EXCELLENT historical fiction - it talks about the involvement of women in the Italian invasion on Ethiopia as soldiers, spies, etc. and examines the dynamics between them on levels of station, power, allyship, etc. It's so SO SO well written and researched, I finished the entire thing in one sitting

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller I'll be honest I was putting this one off for a WHILE now and finally got to it after seeing your posts about it skfdjsk, the spirit of greek tragedies is alive and well in this one T_T

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood Another one I've kind of been putting off, and haven't watched the show for - the entire book is naturally fantastic and then there's the EPILOGUE which breaks the narrative style into like an academic conference at least a century or two in the future which. HOLY SHIT

The Sandman: Overture by Neil Gaiman This is technically a six-issue comic run but ssshhh they're good they're so good!!! Not going into this too much bc Sandman spoilers but it's basically a prequel of sorts to the first issue of the Sandman original run (which should absolutely be read before Overture btw, because Overture contains major spoilers from the final Sandman issues) which messes with such concepts of time, reality etc.. Also Dream reveals a bit of a backstory where he was damselled in a tower while a cool lady came to save him from the dangers lurking outside, which is fascinating from a meta perspective of storytelling.

18. Least favourite books of the year

Heart of Darkness by Joseph fucking Conrad. it's both tedious and fucking AWFUL and i hate that i had to read it not once but TWICE this year for two separate classes. if i have my way i'll never touch this book again in my LIFE

Also The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing. I had such high hopes for this one because the premise sounded interesting as hell but the protagonist is just awful. She's the LEAST compelling person to have written an entire epistolary novel about and her character is the flattest thing on the planet. I've gone on SEVERAL ranting sessions (and even ranted in my essay for the class I had to read it for lol) and suffice to say it's just not my thing

19. Best non-fiction book(s) you read this year

OKAY so there are a few that my professors wrote/recommended that were just incredible but those also involve giving away my location which I really don't wan't to do, but I did read A Feminist Theory of Violence by Francoise Verges and was utterly THRILLED with it!

The book talks through various salient issues (ex. racism, the prison system, sexual violence, capitalism & neoliberalism etc.) and why they don't cross each other out but actually intersect in ways that enrich conversations around these topics individually - furthermore also talks about how the sources of these institutional problems is often very much the SAME thing, meaning they're all interconnected enough that approaching one should, in fact, involve approaching these other structural problems also

Fair trigger warnings for discussion of state violence, racism, rape etc. but it's a genuinely poignant book that I highly recommend!

End of the year book asks

☕️ sandman

when i was in high school i was told not to read sandman because i wouldn't like it. i think that was probably true of me when i was in high school but then i just never did; when the trailer came out for the show i was like "hmm. that looks like an escapee from an emo boy band (derogatory), not an immortal freak" and immediately forgot about it

umm. but i do like sandman?

i watched the show first and now i've read the original 10 volumes, plus overture; i did a bit of liveblogging here but it was really a journey from "oh, interesting, i think the show really improved on this" to "hmm this hasn't aged too well" to "ah. this was made to devastate me, and me only." months later, i still have thoughts about the final arcs simmering. on the flipside, my brother decided to read the comics first and then watch the show, so discussing both with him has also deepened my appreciation for the writing in both mediums. i'm honestly excited to see what choices are made in the future

i like it when storytelling — often storytelling about storytelling — poses questions about memory and identity. what are you made of? are you the sum of your memories, and what does that mean if you forget? where do the parts of you that you forget about go? what stories do you tell yourself about yourself? who are 'you' and do you want to be 'you'? can you change? do you want to? they're themes of gaiman's other work as well and ones that have resonated with me probably since i read the neverending story as a kid. so what the heck. the comics everyone says are good are good.

and in case tom sturridge ever reads this, i think you did a great job and you really sold the immortal freak through performance in a way the trailers did not do justice to. i understand why the look had to be toned down even though i disagree with it. so that ended up being all right.

it's a shame that hob gadling has made the tag unusable but what can ya do

Re: Wagner, the semi-recent Alex Ross (New Yorker classical music critic) book on Wagner and the surrounding culture is very informative and stylish. For getting into the music itself, the Herbert von Karajan album Preludes and Overtures is a great introduction to the melodies and themes, allowing them to get into your head so you regonize the motifs when they pop up in the actual operas. At least it worked for me! For the operas, I would listen to Tristan and Isolde before Parsifal or the Ring cycle. Shorter, harmonically revolutionary, and as close to perfect as the man got.

Thanks! Yes, the Ross is on my Wagner list, as is the new Penguin Classic of the Ring libretti. Years ago I was asked to review a book about Wagner's influence on modernism, which also doubled as an attempt to vindicate him as a revolutionary rather than a reactionary. I lacked the expertise, but I did the job anyway. (I never turn down book reviews even if I don't know about the subject; I figure I'll learn what I need to know from the book and then imagine the rest!) I mainly took it as an occasion to denounce academic historicists—here's the review, still online—but the book as a whole did convince me of Wagner's pervasive influence on modernism, even without mentioning his influence on Anglophone literary modernism, as demonstrated by often crucial allusions in both The Waste Land ("Oed’ und leer das Meer") and Ulysses ("Nothung!"). I've listened to some of the music over the years, but for my knowledge of the dramatic or literary content of Wagner's opera, I fear I've so far relied on comics books. Comic books, however, of a very high order in the form of P. Craig Russell's superb graphic novel adaptation. (Russell, now celebrated as the first out gay mainstream comics creator, will be familiar to Sandman readers as the artist of the classic "Ramadan." Fun fact while I'm digressing: he also did a beautiful short piece that may be read as a companion to Schrader's aforementioned Mishima biopic and was in fact published the same year the film was released: "Dance on a Razor's Edge: A Ballet on the Death of Yukio Mishima." You can read it here, but try to go in with an ad blocker.)

Hi, I recently reread Desire's short story from Endless Nights in the Sandman comics, and I wanted a.) to let you know that that specific story, out of everything I've ever read, is probably the piece with the most emotional impact on me ever, and b.) to ask if there are any plans to do Endless Nights or Overture in the Sandman series?

I love that story so much, still. I'm glad you like it.

Right now we're just looking at how to do Season 2. That would be a long way down the road. But I'd love it if everything ended with Overture...

Hi! I've been reading your latest analysis, and Dream being perceived as misogynistic has come up a few times. I've never really caught that(tho it's been a hot minute since I read the sandman comics and I might've forgotten)? He's really respectful towards Bast, Hettie, and Titania, He's mostly kind towards Rose and Nuala, and yeah, he was a dick towards Ishtar, but you explained why's that far better then I ever could. He also comes across as cold-hearted and cruel towards Lyta, but I think that has less to do with her gender and more with Dream not knowing that tact Exists. I also think that Dream being abusive husband is total bullshit. In the song of orpheus, Calliope and Morpheus seem to be close and Calliope doesn't show any signs that she's afraid of him, or is being abused by him, and at the wake she says that Morpheus was the best lover she had ever had. Why would she say something like that about her rapist?

Hey! Yep I agree completely. I think a lot of this interpretation comes from Ishtar and the Sandman Companion (which I haven't read but appears to include some absolutely insane hot takes that make zero sense and clearly just wanna be edgy and dark).

Other than Ishtar, who I have already now spoken about extensively, the only other female character he has actively hurt is Nada. Now the Nada story is horrifying, and I can't in good conscience defend Dream here. I'm with Death on this matter. It was a really shitty thing to do. Now, baring in mind Death hints that Desire had a lot more to do with that whole situation than they have ever let on, Dream's behaviour towards Nada was disgusting. She rejected him and he sent her to Hell for it. However, I don't think this is evidence of Dream's misogyny. What it is evidence of, is that Dream is an extremely prideful and hot tempered creature who does not take kindly to any response that he considers an insult.

Even with Alianora, all we know is that he became cold towards her, to the point that she wanted to leave him. We don't know anything more than that. Overture only shows that Alianora was upset and didn't want to be stuck with him anymore, and so Dream created an entire world for her to live in where she wouldn't have to see him. Remember that if Dream was truly cruel towards her he could have simply kicked her out of the Dreaming, left her to fend for herself in either the Waking World or sent her back to where she came from, even though she told him they would never accept her again. He respected her enough to give her a world of her own, even after she decided to leave him.

Now the comics as you have said give us absolutely ZERO indication that Dream was abusive towards Calliope. There is NOTHING. NADA. NIENTE. I have poured over every single page that includes Calliope as well as every reference. The only thing that comes close to indicating that he might have been cruel towards her was when she comments that "the old you would have left me here to rot" which is also more an indication of Morpheus' pride after being hurt/rejected than it is of abuse and misogyny. Had Calliope's capture and abuse at the hands of mortals happened much sooner, whilst their divorce was still a fresh wound it is probably far more likely that Morpheus would not have helped her, simply because he was still nursing his wounded pride after she left him (because the comic does make it clear that Calliope left Morpheus just like Nada rejected him and Alianora wished to leave him. Morpheus has never initiated any of his break ups. It was always the women who chose to leave him, therefore hurting him to the point that he lashed out like a wounded animal.)

Outside of ex lovers, he doesn't treat any other women badly. He clearly has a mutual respect for Lady Bast, who seems to adore him. He and Titania were lovers and are on very good terms. He is certainly on better terms with his sisters than he is his other siblings and he treats Mad Hettie far more respectfully than she usually gets treated. He was kind to Rose throughout the Dolls House, as you say. He was also extremely respectful of Barbie and even called her Princess Barbara to respect her dream kingdom. He treats Ruby respectfully and is shown to be genuinely upset and haunted by her death to the point that two other characters remark how odd it is that he even cares about the death of a mortal. He wasn't always tactful with Nuala - stripping her of her glamour in front of all the other Gods was a bit cruel, and an indication of how much he dislikes fairie magic even though he remains close to the fae in general, but Nuala also falls head over heels in love with him so he must have been treating her reasonably well for that to happen! He certainly doesn't take advantage of her the way she expects when her brother presents her as a gift. I think it's often forgotten about but Nuala was literally given to Morpheus as a gift to do with as he wished, the implication being that she was to be his whore. He never forces himself on her or treats her the way she is technically there for. If this comic was adapted by writers with a Game of Thrones mentality I shudder to think how Morpheus would treat Nuala. But Morpheus is far too respectful for that. There is nothing in the comics that even remotely indicates that he would take advantage of a woman or anyone. Hell, in the scenes with Ishtar he certainly isn't perving over the women or acting in any way less than utterly respectful and dignified. Even Matthew shows himself up in those scenes as being a bit of a pervert when he was a man. But not Morpheus. If he was a misogynist, wouldn't he be taking Cluracan up on his offer and fucking Nuala the moment he gets the chance even if she didn't want it? Since by fae law she is his property to do with as he sees fit. He is within his rights by the laws of the fae to force himself on Nuala whenever he wants. A horrible thought but a true one according to the comics. But just because he has that power over Nuala, he never uses it. And yet the Sandman Companion implies he's a rapist? Nah. I call bullshit. If he was a rapist he would have raped Nuala the moment he had the chance, and he has had plenty of chances.

Instead Morpheus requests that she be given quarters in the palace and made comfortable. He agrees to let her stay in the Dreaming because refusing her means refusing his gift which would cause Nuala harm if she returned to fairie. He never asks anything of her. She takes it upon herself to act as his maid simply to keep herself busy but Morpheus never orders her to do any of it. Honestly his treatment of Nuala given the situation is the biggest indication imo that he is NOT a misogynist, NOT a rapist, and certainly NOT abusive.

Then we have Lyta Hall. Poor confused Lyta Hall. The problem with Lyta, is that for Morpheus it was always simply bad timing. He never took the time to explain things to her properly because he was always either late for a meeting (with Hob) or about to go to Hell (to save Nada) or dealing with something that was distracting him at the time. Lyta reacts badly towards him because she blames him for Hectors death - which is stupid because she KNOWS Hector died before she ever met Morpheus (in both comic and show she knows this) and Morpheus is frustratingly lacking in tact when dealing with the overly emotional grieving pregnant widow. His treatment of Lyta is NEVER misogynistic though, even when she calls him names, yells at him, threatens him, etc etc. She is far more aggressively confrontational towards him than practically any other character and each time he sees her he is patient and calm with her and just sort of takes the abuse she throws at him - mostly because from his point of view she is just a grieving mortal with no power who is absolutely not a threat to him - which is why her being his ultimate doom is so ironic.

When I take all of this into consideration, I can't possibly come to any conclusion that supports this theory that Morpheus is a misogynist let alone a rapist. There are too many layers of interpretation to every moment in the comics and misogyny is only one of multiple interpretations in the few stories that can possibly be viewed that way. In fact, over the past day or so since these conversations have started again, I have actually moved further away from these interpretations and am more inclined to disagree with them and consider the other interpretations more compelling.

Hello. I have noticed your posts, and figured that it's worth a shot to ask you. I apologize if this has been asked already. I have long planned to get myself the Sandman comics, as I am fond of Neil Gaiman's works. I keep putting them off, though, but it's always been in the *files in the back of my head* priority. But now that the show is here, I am reminded that I need to work on getting meself the Sandman.

I would like to add that I am what the internet calls a weeab, so anything past the original storyline and the Overture extras is a big ??? this is elvish to me. I am baffled with the western market's offerings for the Sandman editions as well. Do you have any tips on what editions to get ie Omnibus or The Expanded editions (trade pb; boxed set). I am something of an hobby artist so extra artworks are SWELL. I assume that extra artworks are often included in the deluxe/absolute/omnibus editions, my basis for this assumption is my lone copy of Alan Moore's Watchmen (what edition? I also have no idea) Would you rather an artist/weeab fan get the trade paperback expanded editions (at the risk of missing the art extras, if there are any at all) and purchase the omnibus editions one at a time? I've read that the omnibus contains the variant illustrations ie James Jean's variant for Overture.

My only gripe with the Omnibus edition is the weight and possible binding issues would make rereading a challenge.

PS

is there any way we can get the novella edition of Dream Hunters? A friend lent me their P. Craig Russell edition back when I was in uni, but I'm a huge fan of Yoshitaka Amano's art.

PPS

I would also like to apologize for my shoddy English and the long ask

The current version of The Sandman box set is fourteen volumes (including the novella version of Dream Hunters and graphic novel version).

The Omnibuses are three volumes now.

The Absolute editions are five volumes then Overture, and if you want the Death books as well.

The Sandman graphic novels individually used to be ten volumes but now there are officially fourteen.

There is a 30th anniversary edition of both versions of Dream Hunters.

The cheapest way to collect all of the Sandman is the new four books that just say "The Sandman Book 1, The Sandman Book 2, The Sandman: Book 3, The Sandman: Book 4" and then buy The Sandman: Dream Hunters (Both versions), The Sandman: Endless Nights, and The Sandman: Overture separately. (Though those will eventually be sold as The Sandman: Book 5.

For price you could get those but for quality I'd get the Absolute editions.

After you read The Sandman there are the Death stories that can be bought as Death Deluxe edition or Death: Absolute edition and can be read at any point after The Sandman: A Game of you. The books of Magic (30th anniversary edition by Neil Gaiman, not the spin-off versions by other authors). And that's pretty much it.

That's all that's officially canon to The Sandman. There are many Sandman Presents and Sandman Universe spin-offs but their status as canon is precarious at best and Neil tends to ignore them whenever he adds on to The Sandman mythos. Just stick with the stuff he wrote.

Hey Neil, not much of a question here. It just so happens that I've finished reading the whole Sandman series for the second time around and thought I'd come in here to say thank you so, so much. I think I love those 75 issues even more now. Can't wait for reading it a third time haha. Also can't wait for the tv adaptation. Anyway, I guess that was it. Thanks again for creating such a magic, beautiful and meaningful experience. I Hope you have a nice holiday. Cheers from Brazil. - Guilherme F.

I'm glad. Don't forget to read Endless Nights, and then Sandman Overture.

hi! I really love the Sandman, and have been reading and re reading it since I was little. Recently I've been wanting to branch out into the other books and series in the universe. I've read Death: the high cost of living, but that's about it. Any suggestions on where to start?

Oh, I completely bungled it.  When I finished Sandman I wanted more so I immediately went to The Dreaming but it was... not very good...  It actually made me resent Daniel for a while because of how much I disliked it. This August there should be some new stuff to read.   The newly official Sandman Universe begins.  There will be four new comics.  A reboot of The Dreaming, a soft reboot of The books of magic, a continuation of Lucifer, and The House of Whispers.   If you stopped with the original Sandman story there’s also Dream Hunters, Endless Nights, and Sandman: Overture.  Overture is gorgeous.  Those are by Neil Gaiman.You could try the Death Deluxe edition.  it has High cost of Living but it also has Death: The Time of your Life, which is also good (Though I prefer High Cost of Living).  Everything in the Death Deluxe edition is by Neil Gaiman.

For spin-offs try Lucifer (the version written by Mike Carey.  Volume 1).   And House of Mystery Volume 2.   House of Mystery Volume 2 is not great but it’s better than the version of The Dreaming that has now been retcooned for the new one coming this summer.  Morpheus also has a 2002 brief flashback appearance in Green Arrow (The Kevin Smith ones).   Daniel appears in two issues of the 2008 JLA (I can find the issue numbers of you need them).  There’s also the 1980s Swamp Thing storyline that lead to Morpheus gaining Matthew.   Daniel also has two appearances in Dark Nights metal, Lucien appears in it once, and Cain and Abel are in one panel if you look carefully.