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The Sandman, written by New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman, was the most acclaimed comic book title of the 1990s. A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly interwoven, The Sandman is also widely considered one of the most original and artistically ambitious series of the modern age. By the time it concluded in 1996, it had made significant contributions to the artistic maturity of comic books and become a pop culture phenomenon in its own right. Now, DC Comics is proud to present this comics classic in an all-new Absolute Edition format. The first of four beautifully designed slipcased volumes, The Absolute Sandman Vol. 1 collects issues #1-20 of The Sandman and features completely new coloring, approved by the author on the first 18 issues, as well as a host of never-before-seen extra material including the complete original Sandman proposal, a gallery of character designs from Gaiman and the artists who originated the look of the Sandman, and the original script for the World Fantasy Award-winning THE SANDMAN #19, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," together with reproductions of the issue's original pencils by Charles Vess. Also included are a new introduction by DC President and Publisher Paul Levitz and an afterword by Gaiman.… (more)
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DC's Absolute editions are gorgeous, hardbound, oversized volumes that come with sturdy and handsome slipcases, supposedly of archival quality. The comics are often recolored or otherwise restored and are usually accompanied by a substantial amount of additional material. The Absolute Sandman, Volume One consists of the first twenty issues of the series, which corresponds to the first three trade collections: Preludes and Nocturens, The Doll's House and Dream Country. The first volume also collects a new introduction and afterword, Gaiman's original proposal for the series, additional artwork, the afterwords from the trade paperbacks, and the full script and sketches for the (in)famous issue #19, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (which won the World Fantasy Award for Best Short Fiction in 1991, the only comic to ever win the award. Rumor has it that the rules were changed after the win, prohibiting comics from qualifying, though this is denied by the World Fantasy Convention. However, while it does look like comics have been restricted from the Best Short Fiction category, they may still win in the category for Special Award: Professional.)
The primary story arc of the first volume focuses on the capture and eventual escape of Dream of the Endless (aka the Sandman). Both he and the world have changed dramatically due to his imprisonment, and the widespread ramifications are great. Dream must struggle to regain control of his powers and his realm. Through this quest we are introduced to most of the other Endless, his siblings: Destiny, Death (with whom I'm not just a little in love), Desire, and Despair. In addition to the main story line there are several other related but separate side issues that grant further insight into the world that Gaiman has created.
For the most part, the artwork itself doesn't do much for me in this first volume. For me, its really the storytelling that does it. Of course, the illustrations are an integral part of that. Seeing as different artists worked on the different issues, I don't necessarily expect the artwork to be consistent from issue to issue, but I do expect it to be within a single issue, which is unfortunately not always the case. However, I do appreciate the different "feels" and visual interpretation that the various artists bring to the series.
One thing that I absolutely love about Sandman is the fantastic mix of established mythology, legend, history, pseudo-history, popular culture, reality and fantasy with ideas and approaches that are completely new. In these earlier issues it is sometimes painfully obvious that the series is still trying to establish itself and find its niche. But, at the same time, this first Absolute volume also contains what is arguably one of the best single issues of the series ("A Midsummer Night's Dream," illustrated by Charles Vess). The stories range from horror, to fantasy, to just plain strange and are definitely meant for mature readers. Newcomers might want to read the series through before making the investment, but for fans it's a no-brainer--though hefty in size (not to mention price), The Absolute Sandman is, absolutely, the best edition out there.
Issues included: "Sleep of the Just"; "Imperfect Hosts"; "...Dream a Little Dream of Me"; "A Hope in Hell"; "Passengers"; "24 Hours"; "Sound and Fury"; "The Sound of Her Wings"; "Tales in the Sand"; "The Doll's House"; "Moving In"; "Playing House"; "Men of Good Fortune"; "Collectors"; "Into the Night"; "Lost Hearts"; "Calliope"; "A Dream of a Thousand Cats"; "A Midsummer Night's Dream"; "Façade"
Experiments in Reading
In Preludes & Nocturnes, we first meet Dream, one of the Endless, as he is imprisoned by a secret occult society who had been hoping to bind Death. For 70 years he was kept prisoner, while a strange sleeping sickness emerged worldwide, and the Dreaming fell into decay. He finally escapes, but before he can regain his full power, he must track down his possessions that had been stolen from him - his bag of sand, sold to John Constantine; his helm, in the possession of a demon; and his ruby, which is being used by the insanely murderous Doctor Destiny.
In The Doll's House, while the Sandman works to repair the Dreaming after his long absence, a mortal girl named Rose Walker is off in search of her younger brother, who is being held captive - both physically, by abusive relatives, and mentally, by demons who have sequestered his mind into a twisted pocket of the dreaming. Rose, too, is more than she seems - not only does she have to face a convention of serial killers in real life, but she can't even escape into her dreams - for she is a Dream Vortex, with the power to destroy the Dreaming permanently.
Dream Country, in contrast, isn't a single story arc with one or two one-offs added in; rather, it's a collection of four independent tales showing Dream - and his sister Death - interacting with people, animals, and gods across time.
Review: I've been putting off writing this review, because I'm having a hard time deciding exactly how I feel about the Sandman series. To start with, I didn't realize until I was about halfway through this volume that it was a collection of one-offs as well as several longer story arcs instead of one continuous story, and that every 25 pages or so, I would be thrown into a completely new plot. (Consequently, I spent the first half of this book rather befuddled. Smart, I know, but I'm new to this whole comic books thing.) The stories (and the overarching Story) are sprawling and ambitious, bringing in elements of classical and modern mythology, horror, literature, history, and other bits of the DC universe (Arkham Asylum, for one), while simultaneously inventing much of the characters and the world they move through from whole cloth. On the one hand, this gives Gaiman a huge range of stories to tell; on the other, it means that any individual piece might never be fully explained or integrated.
I'm similarly unsure how I feel about the artwork. It's incredibly creative and beautiful in its way, especially in the large, re-colored format: sprawling across the page, frequently breaking away from traditional angles and standard panel format. At the same time, it's "sketchier" than I'm used to, relying on pencil-hashing to convey dimensionality and shading. It's absolutely a preference thing, but I think I like art with cleaner lines a bit better, although I can't quite say why. Less smudgy-looking, maybe? In either case, this is not a comic to read right before bed - its horror roots show up quite prominently in the artwork, which does not shy away from the disturbing or gruesome, which this series has in spades. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: Whenever anyone talks about the modern age of comic books/graphic novels, The Sandman invariably comes up, and I'm glad to have finally read some of the series. I enjoyed it, and while I've been converted into a Reader - I'm definitely going to go find the next volume in the series - I don't think I've yet been converted into a Fan.
It is.
The stories are presented in an oversize format, beautfully colored and presented on glossy stock. That sort of classy presentation alone should be worth the price of admission -- but there's more here than that.
Also included are Gaiman's original pitch to DC Comics (attention writers: See? Even Neil Gaiman had to pitch editors in his day!), which includes his vision of the character, an outline for the first story arc, and some potential future stories, some of which never saw light of day. The pitch also includes rough sketches by Gaiman of the look of the character, as well as more polished drawings by Leigh Baulch and Dave McKean.
The real gem in here, though, is Gaiman's complete script for "A Midsummer Night's Dream," the first (and only) comic to win the World Fantasy Award. Like Alan Moore's script for WATCHMEN (included in both the Graffitti and Absolute editions of WATCHMEN), Gaiman's script -- a "full script", with action and dialogue broken down panel by panel -- is full of literary asides, inside jokes, commentary on what CD he's listening to, and observations on mythology, character motivation, and backgrounds.
It's not only a peek behind the scenes, to give you an idea of how complicated it is to write a comic, but also a great look at the creative process, as you'll see how -- and why -- Gaiman breaks down some scenes the way he does, and why he has characters act the way they do.
The story begins with Dream's capture by mystics in Britain between the world wars and takes off at his release in modern times, following his struggle to rebuild his realm, shattered and abandoned for his absence. While the first few issues touch at the edges of the traditional comic universe, Gaiman quickly departs this and enters his own deep textual musings. While a thread binds all the tales here together, a passion play of rise, fall, and self realization, what one finds here most pleasurable are the stories. Dream is the keeper of tales and many are to be found here. Shakespeare's troop performing a Midsummer Night's Dream for the real King Oberon, a man gifted with eternal life, another of a writer who captures and holds bound a muse for her stories, yet another of the trials of ruling hell, and many others.
Nor does this volume stand along on its prose, for the art too may be some of the most lovely in any modern graphic novel, rich and varied. While the book comes pricey, fans will love the oversized format and those beginning the collection will quickly notice that the price is only nominally higher then buying the individual soft back volumes. Of one thing I am certain, no one will likely regret taking this fine work home.
I first read some of Gaiman’s Sandman series years and years ago.
And there are also pretty pictures to look at.
I particularly like the Cereal Convention, brilliantly evil. And the loved A dream of a thousand cats.
Hmmm, I think this review is beginning to show why I should have admitted defeat before starting it, because I really don’t want to spoil aspects by telling you about stuff I loved. And I’m not even going to try and offer any sort of analysis because, damn, there is a lot in there. Let’s just say that Gaiman does his usual wonderful job blending horror, fantasy, myth and history into a wonderful story with so much going on that any amount of rereads will most likely be satisfying.
Before I go, the whole “absolute” deluxe treatment, can I just say that it really works here. Although it does mean you won’t be using this for commuter reading :) Now I just have to go buy Volume 2 and get stuck in to that
Although I love the
First of all, I love the hefty feel of the tome. I like the leathery covers, and back-bindings. I am not that sure about the new art by McKean on the cover, even though I am a devout McKean fan...
The three major things that this book has in favor of it
The larger page size makes it easier to see the amazing art, which the new size brings out better. The new colouring is just great. You actually don't notice it that much (I even thought "what was all that fuzz about the colouring about?"), but when you compare it to the old, the difference is amazing. This is how comics colouring should be done. The last but not least is the new paper. It just feels classier when you hold it. You know that you are holding a piece of art.
Don't get me wrong - if you have never read the Sandman, please buy the paperbacks first, and see if you'll like it. But if you like the King of Dreams already, The Absolute Sandman is the only way to fly...
The only gripe I have with it is that when I read it in the bed, it weighs heavily on my lower abdomen... ;)
Re-reading this has been enormously fun.
Preludes and Nocturnes, even with all of its DC baggage is still a surprisingly good piece of literature. A Doll's House is also excellent.
It occurred to me that when I first read Collectors, I had never been to a convention, and rereading it having been to several makes it both funnier and more tragic.
I still don't really get A Midsummer Night's Dream, even having now re-read the play. Yeah, it's alright, but I don't really get why it's meant to be so brilliant. Though having the script has helped me appreciate it a bit more.
Neil's original outline for Sandman, published in its entirety at the back of this volume, is also quite enlightening. Did you know that the Etrigan's dialogue was meant to be a sestina? I would have been very impressed had he managed to pull it off.
Finally, the introduction to the volume is one of the poncier introductions to Sandman I have read.
Plus, the edition I've seen looks really, REALLY nice on a book shelf!
Dark, myth, disturbing, at times very much
I would not recommend this to everyone. Has some disturbing images. The art gets better as the story goes on.
As for the book, Gaiman is always at his best when humanizing concepts and ideas (usually, quite literally). Dream and Death are great characters who have been surprisingly well-indoctrinated into popular culture, despite hailing from a critically-acclaimed, but not terribly popular comic book.