The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes

It’s been about a decade since I formally revisited Gaiman’s most influential graphic novel publication, and after a month of reading (mostly) non-fiction I felt like nothing would end November better than a touch of Dream. As Lizzo would say: it’s about damn time. Late 1980s graphics aside, it’s not really surprising that the series was quickly classified as “something else” in the world of superhero and detective-focused comics. We begin with Dream trapped in a ritual-gone-wrong by Magus Richard Burgess, spending the first issue of the comic bringing to life the world in which Dream inhabits and what he will go back to after his (inevitable) release. The story is an incredible slow-burn narrative, even within this first show more single issue, but it builds a solid foundation for the adventure quest that will unravel. The hero story is on the surface a pretty typical narrative, wherein Dream must regain the raiments of power to resume control of his kingdom, but Gaiman brings a decidedly unique touch to the expected. Delving deep into the complexities of the human condition and our relationship with dream, Gaiman’s story brings out dark themes that lay uncertain groundwork for a story that won’t finish weaving for another dozen volumes (if it ever truly ends at all). As Dream completes his quest we almost expect the story to end neatly there, but the final issue is one of the series’ most impactful and reopens the narrative to a more thoughtful story that is pure Gaiman. Dream is far from alone as one of the Endless, and while he has almost infinite power there is much that he still has to learn about truly living - even if it takes a dressing down from big sister Death to make him beging to realise it. This first narrative volume may not be the magnum opus of the Sandman chronology (being brought slightly down by an author who is just beginning to find his voice and the borderline tacky typical late-1980s comics aesthetic), but it plants the seeds of what will become one of the comic world’s most influential series. show less

Valgekraede pildiraamat*
Minu selle aasta suurimaks elamuseks on päris kindlasti Neil Gaimani “Sandman”. Kui aus olla, siis polegi tegelikult tegu mitte “päris” raamatu, vaid koomiksiga, aga mingil kummalisel moel raputas see mind põhjalikult. Ja ma ei ole kunagi koomiksite sõber olnud – reeglina on need minu jaoks tüütud. “Sandman” on erand suure algustähega.
On isegi raske öelda, mis mind selle teose/koomiksisarja puhul enim köidab – Gaimani geniaalne loojutustamise ja maailma loomise oskus, või kummastavalt köitev ja mällusööbiv pildimaterjal. Iroonilisel kombel on see koomiks – mille peategelaseks on Morpheus ehk Unede(Ulmade?) Jumal –, üks väheseid kirjandusteoseid, mis ikka ja jälle end ka minu show more unedesse sisse murrab.
Gaiman segab oma lugudes talle ainuomast fantaasiat, õudust, iidset ja tänapäevast mütoloogiat ning sünget huumorit moel, mida on võimatu unustada. Ja tundub, et ma pole ainuke, kes sarja lootuselt armunud on: Wikipedia väitel on Sandman ainus koomiks, mis on kunagi võitnud maineka World Fantasy Award´i ning üks kolmest, mis on jõudnud New York Times´i bestsellerite nimekirja (teised kaks on “Watchmen” ja “The Dark Knight Returns”).

* Norman Maileri kommentaar koomiksi kohta oli: “comic book for intellectuals”. show less

With all the good things I've heard about this comic series, and having had them sit on my shelf for the last few years, I figured it was time to sit down and read them.

I don't have much experience with comics or graphic novels, having only read The Walking Dead and The Watchmen previously, and I didn't really get into the superhero shtick until Marvel started popping out all of their movies, and even then, it wasn't until just recently that I've really started to appreciate the nuances of superheroes and villains. The Walking Dead wasn't bad, but having seen the show first, it didn't really do it for me. The Watchmen though, that hit the spot. Dark, real, full of superheroes as they would be in the world today, just people trying to show more do their best, it was my favorite (albeit only) graphic novel that I'd ever read. Until now.

Preludes & Nocturnes blew past The Watchmen and ignited into my soul as a forever lingering flame of life. As Patrick Rothfuss said, it lit me up inside. It's wild, it's weird, it's dark, and sometimes (oftentimes) confusing, forcing you to read just a little further until that light bulb goes off and the sun appears from behind the clouds to bless you, the reader, with clarity and understanding.

This volume introduces the characters, the world, and has a nice plot that bends and weaves around until you've got yourself questioning your sanity. The lines of reality cross into the realms of the underworld and dreamworld, and it's all thoroughly enjoyable. I've always been a fan of Gaiman's work, particularly the novels, but I can now say that the Sandman is my all-time favorite character that he's ever created. Dreams is dynamic and compelling, and so much more human than I was expecting.

And then there's the art itself. Expertly done, it's dark and gritty, both real and surreal at the same time. Like The Watchmen, different styles lend a hand in portraying the scene being conveyed, whether that be through subtle text changes or panel art. I was surprised and even a bit squeamish at how gory some of the scenes were, but it only added to the tension and undertones of the plot.

All in all, I'm sad that I waited so long to start this series, but so grateful that I finally did. Highly recommend. show less

Sandman is a graphic novel series by Neil Gaiman. I haven’t read many graphic novels; I think this is only the third that I’ve read as an adult. It’s probably safe to say at this point that graphic novels are not for me.

This volume collects the first 8 issues together, but it mostly felt like a longer, cohesive story because each issue follows up on the previous one. The last issue wrapped things up pretty well. The story centers around a character called the Sandman or “Dream”. At the beginning of the first story, he’s captured by some evil person who had actually been trying to summon Death to control them for their own wicked purposes. Instead, they accidentally got Dream and didn’t really know what to do with him. His show more capture affects the dreams of humans, and he has powerful artifacts that get stolen by people who misuse them.

I prefer words to pictures and have trouble understanding what some of the pictures are attempting to convey, so I’m pretty sure there were layers to this story that went over my head. I also really struggle with keeping the characters straight when I’m expected to recognize them based on their pictures. I’m not good at facial recognition in real life, and apparently that even extends to drawn faces. The clever nuances that the artists try to add to make characters look different based on their current emotional state or the lighting of their environment just makes it worse for me, leaving me confused about whether I’m looking at the same character or a different one. At least the Sandman character had reverse color word bubbles (white text on a black background) which made him easy to keep track of, but he was also the most recognizable character for me so I’m not sure I needed it in his case.

Also, the random bold and italic words sometimes drove me crazy. I would find myself just staring at them, probably longer than I stared at the pictures, and asking myself, "Why?!"

The story was ok. It held my interest, but I wasn’t hooked by it. I did like it better as it went on, maybe in part because I finally started to get better at figuring out what the heck I was looking at in the pictures, and maybe in part because the author and possibly the illustrators were finding their footing with the series. I imagine future volumes probably improve more, but I don’t think I like the graphic novel medium enough to justify trying to continue. I wouldn’t recommend this to anybody who is bothered by violence or gore or dark themes. It gets pretty dark at times, and some of the gore seemed gratuitous to me. The pictures of course “enhance” that element, but I personally found the words and the mental images they created more disturbing than the pictures themselves in most cases. show less

Graphic novels and comics: I get them now. Before this, their pictures were vaguely interesting but I often didn't even look at them, I was just reading the text and speech bubbles to get the story the fastest way I could. I wanted the story fast (I was a glutton for stories). But when I merely glanced at, or even skipped, the pictures, it felt like I was missing out on something.... because I was. And then this book. This book. When I saw the cover page of "Sleep of the Just" I gasped out loud. The pictures of Morpheus and Alex in the tower, Morpheus riding peoples' dreams, and so many more, they gave as much power to the story as the words. And those words, that story - I am in awe.

The Audible dramatization of The Sandman was my gateway to the DC Comics originals. I got lost trying to follow the plot in the audiobook because I couldn’t see that it was a series of interconnected story arcs and standalone episodes. So I got a digital copy of The Sandman: The Deluxe Edition, Book One and suddenly everything fell into place. The comic book graphics added a visual structure that helped shape the stories and the audiobook narration gave them dramatic depth. The five stars I’m rating this says it all as far as how good it is; my review is just to suggest trying both versions of this wildly imaginative horror/fantasy classic.

The influences of classic mythology and folklore on this story are easy to see, and it is better for it. The creative team behind this comic takes the idea of the Sandman and fleshes him out as a character. He has human depths; he feels sadness, and mercy, and there are some things he says that are straight-up hilarious.

The arc of the ruby is delightfully subverted in the end - only by destroying what he wanted to regain can the Sandman truly realize his full potential again - and the commentary on authors and the stories was pretty insightful. (The part about the author re-writing a lesbian couple as straight was particularly damning, as far as commentary goes.)

I am totally hooked on this series and would love to read more. This is show more probably my favourite of Gaiman's writing so far, and I love the fitting illustrations. show less