The Sandman (comic book)

For other uses, see Sandman (disambiguation).

The Sandman
Cover of The Sandman No. 1 (January 1989) by Dave McKean
Publication information
Publisher
ScheduleMonthly
Genre
Publication date
  • The Sandman (January 1989–March 1996)
  • The Sandman: The Dream Hunters (1999)
  • The Sandman: Overture (October 2013–November 2015)
No. of issues
  • The Sandman (75)
  • The Sandman: The Dream Hunters (4)
  • The Sandman: Overture (6)
Main character(s)Dream of the Endless
Creative team
Created byNeil Gaiman
Sam Kieth
Mike Dringenberg
Written byNeil Gaiman
Penciller(s)
List
Inker(s)
List
Letterer(s)Todd Klein
John Costanza
Colorist(s)
List

The Sandman is a comic book written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics. Its artists include Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Jill Thompson, Shawn McManus, Marc Hempel, Bryan Talbot, and Michael Zulli, with lettering by Todd Klein and covers by Dave McKean. The original series ran for 75 issues from January 1989 to March 1996. Beginning with issue No. 47, it was placed under DC's Vertigo imprint, and following Vertigo's retirement in 2020, reprints have been published under DC's Black Label imprint.

The titular main character of The Sandman is Dream, also known as Morpheus and other names, who is one of the seven Endless. The other Endless are Destiny, Death, Desire, Despair, Delirium (formerly Delight), and Destruction (also known as 'The Prodigal'). The series is famous for Gaiman's trademark use of anthropomorphic personification of various metaphysical entities, while also blending mythology and history in its horror setting within the DC Universe.[2] The Sandman is a story about stories and how Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams, is captured and subsequently learns that sometimes change is inevitable.[3] The Sandman was Vertigo's flagship title, and is available as a series of ten trade paperbacks, a recolored five-volume Absolute hardcover edition with slipcase, a three-volume omnibus edition, a black-and-white Annotated edition; it is also available for digital download.

Critically acclaimed, The Sandman was among the first graphic novels to appear on The New York Times Best Seller list, along with Maus, Watchmen, and The Dark Knight Returns. It was one of six graphic novels to make Entertainment Weekly's "100 best reads from 1983 to 2008", ranking at No. 46.[4] Norman Mailer described the series as "a comic strip for intellectuals".[5] The series has exerted considerable influence over the fantasy genre and graphic novel medium since its publication and is often regarded as one of the greatest graphic novels of all time.

Various film and television versions of Sandman have been developed. In 2013, Warner Bros. announced that a film adaptation starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt was in production, but Gordon-Levitt dropped out in 2016. In July 2020, September 2021 and September 2022, three full-cast audio dramas were released exclusively through Audible starring James McAvoy, which were narrated by Gaiman and dramatized and directed by Dirk Maggs. In August 2022, Netflix released a television adaptation starring Tom Sturridge.

  1. ^ "Everything We Know About Netflix's 'The Sandman'". Thrillist. April 19, 2022. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  2. ^ Gaiman, Neil (2014). "The Sandman Summary". NeilGaiman.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2014. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  3. ^ Gaiman, Neil (1991). The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes. DC Comics. ISBN 1-56389-011-9.
  4. ^ "The New Classics: Books". Entertainment Weekly. June 18, 2007. Archived from the original on January 10, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  5. ^ Anderson, Porter (July 30, 2001). "Neil Gaiman: 'I enjoy not being famous'". CNN. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014.