neilworms's Full Review: Neil Gaiman, Bryan Talbot, Kelley Jones, Todd Klei...
I thought that Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind was the greatest comic ever written, now, I am compelled to move that one down a notch for the wonderfully dark and thoughtful Sandman.
I first heard of The Sandman a few years back, when the hobby shop in town carried comics, the manager thought that all of the comics were garbage except for one, and that one, I believe was this comic. Flash-forward to 1999 when I visited Slashdot.org and happened upon a review of a new film, Princess Mononoke. In this review I learned that Neil Gaiman the author of the only comic that our Hobby Shop owner really liked, did the English adaptation (Dub Script) for that film. After watching Mononoke and reading some of his thoughts around the subject, I really wanted to read this series. Three years later and I finally have a copy of it. Even though there is a lot of hype surrounding this book, it definitely lives up to it.
Story, so far…
The story is about how an occultist group wanting to capture the power of Death, made a mistake, and captured Death's Brother, Morpheus, the king of Dreams (a.k.a. The Sandman). The group steals all of Morpheus's magical items and imprisons him. These items, through years of various scandals, end up being scattered throughout the world and in other realms. The Sandman breaks free from his imprisonment and sets out, not only to find his items, but to repair the damage caused by him not inhabiting his kingdom.
Thoughts on the Story
The Sandman is great gothic fantasy that just happens to be presented in a comic form. There are references and illusions to all sort of famous literature and myth (Including a fair number of references to William Shakespeare). With in this book Gaiman develops an engrossing tale that takes one on an epic journey from the heart of our dreams to the inner sanctums of Hell.
The story is somewhat episodic with a variety of styles within each chapter. A favorite chapters is "24 Hour Diner", a horrific tale about how terrible it would be if madman had control of your dreams. Another favorite would have to be "A Hope in Hell" with its cool mind game fight sequence. Other highlights include Death, who is actually much more upbeat and perky than Morpheus and the scenes with Cain and Able. Although the story seems somewhat episodic, there are connections to each episode, even some connections that are found in later volumes.
My only gripe with the story (and a minor one at that) is the superhero subplot, it just doesn't quite work in a comic like this, when you see the Hecateae (which I believe are the three witches that Shakespeare made famous with the line, "Double, double, boil and trouble…") saying… "Hee! Your gem passed through a mother to a son who tapped its dream magicks for his own ends…" and later "Ask the League of Justice about its present whereabouts." This last phrase seems out of place for a comic of this caliber, although I don't care for the superhero subplot, the way that they are integrated in to the story is not that bad, and fairly cleaver, just strange. Also of note, If you don't like the superhero stuff, it pretty much goes away in volume two of this collection.
Art and Direction
The art style is not what I am used to (I normally read manga and am used to the variety of styles that it encompasses), but is definitely a step above the typical American comic. It is quite realistic, with a nice amount of distortion, giving it a sort of Gothic flair. The art does vary, (due to the fact that the artists tend to rotate depending on the issue) and taking a look at a later volume the style drastically changes throughout the series. The direction (positioning of the panels etc.) is also very well done, with some insanely complex (in comparison to Japanese comics, which normally have fairly simple paneling) paneling, that although complex still work. The art and direction in this comic, while different than I am used to is still excellent and very fitting for the story.
Final Thoughts
Neil Gaiman is an excellent writer in no matter what medium you read his work in. His comic although containing a superhero subplot that I didn't care too much for, is refreshing and different for American comics. What supposedly started out as a reinvented forgotten DC superhero wound up being a philosophical tale about our dreams and very existence. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes dark fantasy and even people who don't normally read comics. I hope that I book like this (or even Hayao Miyazaki's, Nausicaä of the Valley of Wind) would help change the perception in America that comics are nothing but superhero tales, often prized more for their collectability more than the story that is being conveyed. Final Word: Highly Recommended, BUY IT!
A few of you probably noticed that this review was published earlier. I read on epinion's news, that they were having problems posting opinions, and very few (Only 2 in 2 hours!) people read my review, this is why I have reposted it.
/Neil Gaiman /Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg and /Malcolm Jones III, illustrators Critics, booksellers, and readers have spared no enthusiasm for Neil Ga...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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