I want to talk about my relationship with The Sandman. Why? Because the Netflix TV show is getting released some time this year, so I thought now would be a great time to discuss the Lord of Dreams, and my relationship with him.
Let’s establish some facts first. When I say the Sandman, I am not referring to the Sandman, one of the villains in Spider-Man’s rogue’s gallery; one of the original members of the Sinister Six. You know, the sand guy from Spider-Man 3 and Spider-Man: No Way Home. It’s not that guy.
And no, I’m not referring to the Wesley Dodds, Garrett Sanford, Hector Hall, or Sandy Hawkins versions of the character, published by DC Comics; however great they are. I think you’re smart enough to know that I’m referring to the Sandman character from Vertigo/DC Comics; aka Dream of the Endless.
For those of you that have no idea about what I’m talking about; you’re not alone, it happens all the time. Just ask my wife, or UMC1 and UMC2. In the shortest summary of the character I can do justice to, The Sandman was the titular character of a comic book that was published by Vertigo/DC Comics, from 1989-1996.
The series was created by Neil Gaiman, with Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Todd Klein, Dave McKean, and many more.1 The Lord of Dreams and his siblings, The Endless, have appeared in multiple stories over the years, but also with characters from the Dreaming.
Alright, I have to veer off for a moment to discuss something. Yes, it’s another thing, sorry. The rest of this blog will not be donated in listing the different awards the series has won; or the cultural impacts on society it’s made, or a deconstruction analysis of the characters.
This is about my relationship with Dream; along with his dysfunctional family, and what they mean to me.
It all started with fear. I’ve been reading comic books for a long time, and over the years, I’ve dabbled in superhero, fantasy, horror, science fiction, western, and literary comics; and sadly, many others.
The point I’m very badly making, is that while I was reading all of these different titles and genres; I had never read The Sandman. To be honest, it was because I was afraid of it. Wow, this will take some explaining!
When The Sandman was being published, three things were happening to me:
1.) I had just started reading monthly comics.
2.) Through advertisement in magazines and comics, I slowly started to hear more about The Sandman.
3.) There was no way The Sandman was available to read, in my home town. Because of this, I was an observer to the never ending critical acclaim for the series, in magazines, newspapers, comics, and eventually the internet.
After moving to the South Island’s titan city of Christchurch, and years of falling into the rabbit hole of comic books, the media had given me the impression that the Sandman series was for two different kinds of people; it was a comic book for people that didn’t read comic books, and also it was a comic book for intelligent people.
It was for this stupid reason, that I had built up an image of what I thought The Sandman was: something that if I read it, I wouldn’t understand it. I hate not understanding something, so my fear was I would feel like an idiot during and after reading it.
“I don’t need to read a comic book to make me feel stupid, I can do that all myself.” That was my policy moving forward. I would avoid reading The Sandman, because I felt it will just make me feel stupid.
This carried on for years, until I found myself living back in Christchurch. One fateful day, I was looking at a very famous auction based New Zealand website, when I saw The Sandman #1 for $15 NZD. I really wanted to look away from it, but it was like passing a car accident; I couldn’t stop looking at it.
As the story goes, I ended up purchasing the issue. When it arrived, I made the awkward decision that I would actually read it. And I did and I loved it. This led me to read the trades from the library, but they didn’t have the entire collection.
This of course meant only one thing; if I wanted to continue reading the story of Dream, and if the library was unable to stock the missing trades…I was going to have to search the globe and buy the single issues.
And that is precisely what I did. I searched familiar and new websites for back issues, and even though it took me a few years, I managed to complete the series, so I could actually continue reading it. When I had collected all of them, I went back and started reading again, caught up to the point where I had to previously stop, then I kept going.
Because of this, and in my humble opinion, the story was astounding. For me, The Sandman transformed what was possible for the medium, but also for the scope of the project. From the writing, the art, inking, colouring, and the lettering, The Sandman had become an instant classic for me.
I’ve always been a slow starter, so I felt it was on point that it took me years to finally catch up with the world, on their love for The Sandman. The funny thing is that while I was reading about Dream and his world, I never felt stupid. It was honestly the opposite.
So what positive impacts has The Sandman had on me? Not counting the previously two paragraphs; it would be these:
1.) I’ve read comics through trades via the library before, and have been unable to finish the story; but this was the first time, I went out and purchased the comics, BECAUSE I needed to know how the story ended.
2.) My taste in comics has changed, because I have been more open minded about new titles. If a new title sounds and looks interesting, I’m going to try it. If it turns out that I don’t like it, then I’ll know. I am not going to have another Sandman on my hands, where I’ll think that I’m beneath the comic.
3.) Usually at some weddings, there are readings made from famous literature, to celebrate the union, like from the Bible, or a poem or a song. I asked my sister to read out Rose Walker’s Have you ever been in love? speech from The Sandman. Not the whole speech, but enough to drive the message home. Yes, The Sandman was quoted at my wedding.
4.) For the naming of UMC2, female and male names were discussed, because we didn’t want to know the gender of the baby. For the boy’s name, I campaigned hard for Daniel. Not Dan, or Danny, but Daniel. If UMC2 was going to be a boy, I really wanted him to be named after Dream. He didn’t of course, because I had to compromise by giving him a Jedi name, but the desire was there.2
5.) With any new projects connected to The Sandman or The Dreaming getting released, I’m going to buy them. Always. I’m a fan for life now.
6.) We don’t have Netflix, but I’m still excited that The Sandman has been adapted. I have no idea how I’ll ever watch the show, but after showing my wife the trailer, she mentioned that she had never read the series, and since I had the entire single issue collection, she asked if she could read mine.
I pretended not to hear her, until I gave her the reply, “I love you, but please don’t make me answer that question. You may not like the answer.”
If you have never read The Sandman, don’t be like me and put it off. After reading this blog, go out into this crazy world and find it. Your future self will thank you.
Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next week.
1 I’m very sorry if I have missed your name off.
2 Pun very much intended.
SOME GEEK TOLD ME 
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