Neil Gaiman

Collects every volume of the "Sandman" comic book along with miscellaneous information about the creation and production of individual titles and the contributing artists and previously unpublished graphic stories by Neil Gaiman.

Absolute Sandman

The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1

Maggie Gordon

I recently reread Gaiman's American Gods works, and once I finished that delightful tour through some old favourites, I decided it was time to revisit the series that first got me into comics way back when. And since I have only read my Absolute versions once, it seemed only fair to let them see the light of day again. 

So before I touch on the series itself, I want to express just how amazing the Absolute volumes are. They are massive books, several pounds each, with beautiful leather covers. The colouring has been remastered (and some of the inking from what I hear), and there are interesting additions to the end of each volume that can't be easily found elsewhere now. If you are a fan of the series, I would recommend considering shelling out the money for these wonderful editions.

The Sandman remains, even after all of these years, one of my favourite graphic stories of all time. The art isn't very fantastic, and the visuals are definitely very 1990s, but the story. The story is phenomenal. It takes a while for the series to get there though. The first few issues of the series, detailing the kidnapping of Dream, subsequent escape, and then quest for his missing tools, are pretty traditional comic stories. They aren't terrible, but they do not present the strongest opening that such a powerful series could have save for the issues dealing with Doctor Destiny. These two issues are such a strong example of Gaiman's skill with horror that the series started really coming alive for me even though Gaiman doesn't invoke this particular tone that frequently. 

Most people say that the series really starts coming into its own with the 8th issue where Dream meets with his sister Death. Oddly, it's not one of my favourite issues, though I do enjoy the way that it presents an interesting foil to some of the last issues in the series. It gives readers hope for Dream that perhaps he might learn and change. That hope is misplaced :D

The rest of the first Absolute volume introduces Desire's machinations against their brother. Long ago, Dream fell in love with a beautiful queen, Nada (and who exactly controls such things as falling in love?). When she rejected his advances (for good reasons), Dream sentenced her to an eternity in hell. Remember that as it comes up again later! 

The narrative then flashes to the story of Rose Walker. Back in the initial few issues, readers find out that during Dream's captivity, some people fell asleep for years. One of these people is Unity Kinkaid, and she has called Rose and her mother to Britain so that she can reveal a shocking family secret. Rose is then sent back to the US to find her younger brother Jed so that the entire family can be reunited, but boy is being used by some of Dream's escaped nightmares. Poor Rose runs into a serial killer convention while she tries to complete her task, but she succeeds in saving Jed only to be drawn into the Dreaming so that Dream can kill her. Rose, as it turns out, is a Vortex and Vortexes have the power to destroy the Dreaming. Unity steps in as a proper sacrifice, Dream realises Desire is being a douche, and now Rose has no heart. It's a great standalone story that introduces many characters that become hugely important.

Gaiman is a master of narrative construction. Every story has a purpose, though readers will often not find out about what that purpose is until much later in the series. Once you have a chance to return to the story, you can see just how much of Dream's behaviour is leading to his eventual demise. I also love how almost all the characters we meet come back and are intertwined through the entire series. Even though The Sandman starts with a fairly stereotypical dark fantasy/occult plot, it quickly expands into something much bigger and stranger that defies genre stereotypes.

Ken Yuen

My second read through this series. It's still great! Imaginative, twisted, dark, brilliant, creative. Neil Gaiman truly creates worlds worth exploring. I should grab a copy of the regular edition to compare the art. But I'm pleased with the quality of the book and art.

Absolute Sandman

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