I initially started writing this post differently but have quickly realized that if I continue saying everything I want to about The Sandman series on Netflix, it would be so long that I doubt many people would want to read it. So I’m going to attempt to condense my thoughts in this second draft.
First of all, if you haven’t seen it yet then you REALLY should. It is a masterpiece from start to finish. Everything from casting to visual effects to story to costuming and so on is absolutely perfect. Even though there are a number of changes from the comics to the show, in a way the show actually enhances the original story and vice versa. Both comics and show are brilliant and even with the changes, they somehow work perfectly together. The parts taken out of the comics give more depth to the show and the parts added to the show help expand the comics without taking away from it. In my personal experience, I’ve never had an adaptation of a text to screen work so flawlessly together. It’s always “I prefer the book more.” I think part of that is because they both work so well in their own medium but wouldn’t work nearly as well in the opposite. The show wouldn’t be able to have the same gritty artwork and details as the comic and the comic would be more boring if it was run as smoothly as the show.
The Sandman follows Dream, one of the Endless, as he’s captured for over a hundred years, escapes, and must find the three tools stolen from him. On his journey, we meet various characters who range anywhere from the loyal Lucienne – the only being left in Dream’s realm that didn’t leave – to murderous Corinthian – a literal nightmare in the waking world who would do anything to stay where he is. We meet Johanna Constantine who is not a variant of John Constantine but her own person; we see a duel in Hell between Dream and Lucifer; an insane John Dee who has twisted Dream’s ruby to his own tool. We also are introduced to three of his Endless siblings – Death, Desire, and Despair – with their unique personalities and ambitions. But the story doesn’t stop there. Dream, also known as Morpheus, comes across a Vortex, Rose Walker – a being that can take hold of the dreaming world and destroy it if Dream doesn’t destroy her first. Rose is only looking to get her young brother back but must be killed before she tears the universe apart. Even though he seems to like Rose, he knows the risk he takes in letting her live.
One of the best perspectives The Sandman has brought to the forefront more than any other movie or series is how easily characters can be physically different from the original writing and yet still BE that character on screen. Physical looks are superficial unless specifically written into the storyline. (i.e. people with purple eyes can see in the dark so characters with that trait will always have to have purple eyes.) In the show, Death isn’t white like in the comics but Kirby Howell-Baptiste portrayed her so perfectly that Neil Gaiman cried during one of her scenes and so many people, myself included, would love to meet Death like Ms. Howell-Baptiste portrayed. Lucien in the comics is a white dude with weird hair and a carnival-looking shirt but the poise and beauty of Vivienne Acheampong is absolutely impeccable to the role of Lucienne. I want to meet Lucienne and have her show me around the library someday. Constantine (Jenna Coleman) is a put-together, badass woman rather than a beat-up looking man haunted by his nightmares. But she’s still kicking demons’ asses and sending them back to Hell even with her nightmares. People have been praising Gwendoline Christie all over for her portrayal of Lucifer because she is so perfect. (Though I always thought angelic beings were neither male nor female anyway so I didn’t understand some peoples’ backlash that Lucifer was being played by a woman.) And Desire is played flawlessly by non-binary actor Mason Alexander Park who, from my understanding, got an audition because they tweeted Neil Gaiman asking if the role was still open. (Makes me wonder if I could tweet to Mr. Gaiman asking if he needs a personal assistant or something. lol) Then we also have Unity and Rose (who I haven’t gotten to in the comics yet) who were also originally white characters. But just like the others, skin color has zero effect on the characters and actors’ abilities to play them and they were both so wonderful to watch.
These casting choices are important because for years we’ve been non-verbally (and maybe not-so-non-verbally) told that actors have to be chosen by physical descriptions given in text and, in the case of comics, by how they’re drawn. And though we have had text-to-screen characters with some physical changes, it’s never been on this scale or so many characters before (that I’m aware of, obviously). And supporting non-binary, trans, and other actors in the LGBTQIA+ community is incredibly important in a society that still needs to accept people for who they are. Hopefully the amazing success of The Sandman in its first week, especially with some of the backlash from weak-minded people prior to the premiere, shows the entertainment industry that unless it’s inherently tied to the story, physical looks for a character don’t matter. They don’t make up the characters. Actions, words, personality – that makes a character.
Now, I wasn’t going to go into a ton of detail about individual characters/actors but I have to talk about Tom Sturridge as Dream. Especially those cheekbones because they are absolutely to DIE for. I read somewhere something along the lines of women who had a “goth phase” are coming back out because of Dream. I do have to say the dark brooding look has always been my type which I’m sure plays to my fascination of Morpheus in the show. But putting that aside, Mr. Sturridge truly embodies Dream in the way I’ve pictured him and not just looks. The unhurried speech, deep dreamy vocals, grace of movement, quiet strength, soft small smiles, when to be emotional and emotionless, just everything. People have been comparing Dream to Edward Cullen and I’m not going to lie, it crossed my mind while watching The Sandman as well. So did Louis in Interview with a Vampire during Dream and Hob meeting in 1789. Dark, brooding types with similar facial features. However, Morpheus is miles above Edward. (I don’t blame Robert Pattinson for the way Edward was portrayed but that would be a different conversation.) I also admire his dedication to play Morpheus as close to the comics as possible. I’ve seen him talk in interviews about how big of a fan he is and how he wanted to portray Dream correctly. One of the ways he did this was going on a very strict exercise and diet regimen which I give him huge props for because I could never. (He woke up at 4am every morning for months!!) His dedication to the role completely shows in his performance. Tom Sturridge, in my humble opinion, played Morpheus absolutely perfectly and, dare I say, dreamily.
I do want to call out whoever thought of not only killing Jessamy (which made me cover my mouth and gasp in shock) but also changing the story to where Morpheus has to take the life force of Gregory for being a heartbreaking genius. (Neil Gaiman, was that you?? I’m sure at minimum you approved it.) They could have just had Gregory bringing Morpheus to Abel and Cain with that cute, innocent, silly face from the comics but no. They had to make him adorable and loved by both Cain and Abel and then show Dream with tears in his eyes taking Gregory away. Absolutely brilliant writing but completely unfair. They kind of make up for it with Morpheus giving them a gargoyle egg. Kind of. And having Matthew in the series has proved to be very entertaining. RIP Jessamy and Gregory
One of the best scenes they adapted to screen was the battle in Hell. I liked how it was Dream and Lucifer fighting (in the comics it was the demon and Dream) and those outfits were just killer. It was fun to read the battle in the comics but to see it visually, especially in the way it was done, was just stunning! I’m impressed with the show in its entirety but this is definitely one of the scenes that impacted me most. You can get an idea in pictures about the battle but being able to see the actions and the reactions elevates the intensity.
Probably the most anticipated scene in the series would have to be the episode “24/7” – otherwise known as the diner scene. Of all the parts of Preludes and Nocturnes, this is the one that left a vivid impression in my mind. There were, understandably, some of more graphic parts of the comic left out such as John Dee being put on the patrons’ shoulders naked. However, the episode certainly did not disappoint. It still had the moments of everyone telling the truth, lust, anger, and self-mutilation/suicide as the comics. Of all the episodes, I would say this one is the darkest but the one I was looking forward to seeing the most. Everyone was just amazing and the comic was brought to life so well.
One character I was not familiar with since he doesn’t show up in Preludes and Nocturnes (the only comic I’ve read in the series so far) is The Corinthian who is another intriguing character and wound up being a favorite in spite of his murderous tendencies. Boyd Holbrook was incredibly charismatic playing this nightmare who inspires others to become serial killers. He’s very smooth, self-confident, and that little head dip he does when he says “Let’s find out” in his final scene, for whatever reason, lives rent free in my head. It’s such a small gesture but it just sticks with you when you watch it. The Corinthian is beautifully acted and I can’t see anyone else playing that role any better.
One of the aspects of Morpheus that the audience sees right away is how closed off he is to humanity, not just humans themselves but even towards his own realm and those in it. He pushes Lucienne back to her library even though she’s an incredible asset, he banishes a nightmare who wants to become more than what she was created for, he wants absolute control of his realm with no questions asked, and no personal connections to anyone because he feels he has such an enormous responsibility that’s all on him. If he loses any control at all, he thinks it will all fall apart. His imprisonment only reinforced this idea when he came back and it was all destroyed and everyone but Lucienne left. Throughout his journey, he begins to realize this isn’t the case. Even though he’s an Endless, he grows. Three important scenes show the realization that he doesn’t have to push everyone away. His much-needed apology to Lucienne. Allowing the nightmare to become a dream. And seeing Hob, who was granted immortality by Death so Dream could meet up with him every hundred years and learn about humanity. About why someone would want to remain in the human world. Up until their last scene together, the last time they spoke Dream was angry at Hob because Hob had stated Dream sees him because they’re friends. Dream didn’t think he could be friends with anyone, let alone a human. He was above them. He didn’t need friends. His time finding his tools and dealing with The Corinthian and the Vortex, everything that was involved in that, made him realize that maybe it wasn’t so bad to be close to people and start trusting. To have friends. While imprisoned he had missed their scheduled meeting, making Hob think maybe they weren’t friends after all. However, he never gave up. When the bar closed they used to meet at, he bought his own and left a message for Dream to follow for their next meeting. Instead of waiting for the timing of 100 years after they were supposed to meet last, Dream seeks out Hob and finds him in the new bar. Not only does him seeking Hob alone show growth, but he calls Hob a friend and even gives a rare smile with an apology. I hope we get to see these two in future episodes together because it would be great to continue to see how Dream improves in their friendship.
Dream: “It seems I owe you an apology.”
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I know I’m missing a ton more incredible aspects of this series. I would go through every single episode and character if it wouldn’t wind up turning more into a novel than a blog post. But hopefully anyone who hasn’t watched the series is intrigued enough to check it out and those who have seen it, especially fans of the comics, I really hope agree with these statements. And even more, I hope I did justice to everyone involved – especially Mr. Gaiman and all the actors. The Sandman has become an instant favorite of mine and I already can’t wait for season 2.
The Geektacular Collective 
Wonderful review of a wonderful series. I had not read any of the comics prior to the Netflix series but already had bought a Sandman collection and will be reading it next. I did “arm” myself with just enough information about the premise and characters so I didn’t go into watching it completely uninformed. The series was excellent, and I feel Episode 6 in particular was one of the finest episodes I’ve seen on television in a long, long time. For the most part, I felt the characters in the series were flawlessly cast as well. Tremendous acting. So looking forward to a Season 2, as well as diving into the source material.
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Thank you so much!! It is such an amazing show for sure!!
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