NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Neil Gaiman’s transcendent series SANDMAN is often hailed as the definitive Vertigo title and one of the finest achievements in graphic storytelling. Gaiman created an unforgettable tale of the forces that exist beyond life and death by weaving ancient mythology, folklore and fairy tales with his own distinct narrative vision. In PRELUDES & NOCTURNES, an … NOCTURNES, an occultist attempting to capture Death to bargain for eternal life traps her younger brother Dream instead. After his seventy-year imprisonment and eventual escape, Dream, also known as Morpheus, goes on a quest for his lost objects of power. On his arduous journey Morpheus encounters Lucifer, John Constantine, and an all-powerful madman. This book also includes the story “The Sound of Her Wings,” which introduces us to the pragmatic and perky goth girl Death.
Collecting issues #1-8, this new edition of PRELUDES & NOCTURNES features the improved production values and coloring from the Absolute Edition.
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I gave this graphic novel three and a half stars.
I’m relatively new to graphic novels, but having read a number of Gaiman’s books, I thought I had a fairly decent idea of what I was getting myself into.
Note to self, don’t make assumptions like that again!
This graphic surprised me in many ways, some of them good, some of them not so much.
In a nutshell this graphic novel is about an occultist that captured Dream, Death’s brother. Once Dream escapes his prison he embarks on a journey of revenge as he seeks his objects of power to return to his kingdom.
First off, I have to mention the cover (the new one). Can you just say creepy? It reminds me of the Necronomicon and instantly made me want to read it.
The artwork was decent overall, just keep in mind this was made in the 80’s. It had an overall gritty, gruesome kind of feel, which was really interesting. That being said, sometimes the artwork border lined on an acid trip and I didn’t tend to enjoy those parts as much, though I understood why they were presented that way. I just didn’t completely mesh with the style of artwork.
Dream was a great character to follow along. At first, I kept thinking to myself “Oh god, he’s gonna murder everyone”, but he ended up having a lot more depth to him than previously imagined. It’s not all black and white with the king of dreams, and it was refreshing.
There were other minor perspectives present that were interesting and some that could’ve been left out in my opinion.
The plot … was crazy! I mean, Dream goes to places I never thought he would end up (not going to spoil it for you). I was also delightfully surprised that this tied into the DC universe. Surreal fantasy definitely defines this story, and it was fun. From time to time, the characters would say or do something that didn’t make sense to me, but all in all, 95% of it made sense to me.
In the end, this was an enjoyable journey, and though I don’t think I’ll continue on with the series, I can certainly understand the appeal of this blast from the past.
The Sandman series is an inspiration and a marvel!
After being imprisoned for 70 years, Dream, also known as Morpheus, is on a quest to find his lost objects of power. Throughout the journey he encounters Lucifer, John Constatine, and a powerful madman who controls dreams.
The Sandman is a comic that I have been meaning to read for years but am just now getting to. This was a weird and interesting world filled with gods, superheros, and crazies. I was surprised at all the characters Dream interacts with that are from other DC franchises, especially Martian Manhunter and Scarecrow.
This is a very dark and gritty story. I really enjoyed this journey with Dream and really want to know more about this world. Death, his sister, was a very interesting character as well. We only get one issue with her in it but I really want to know more about her now.
Overall, this was fascinating and dark. I can’t wait to read the next volume.
I found some of the art unclear, and the storyline is a bit muddy.
I wish all comic books were written this well.
OMG THISSSSS DREAM AND DEATH AND DELIRIUM ARE MY FAVOURITEEEESSSSSS
Magical. Astounding.