The SANDMAN (1989) issue #1 by Gaiman, Keith & Dringenberg

Sandman #1 introduces us to self-styled “magus” Roderick Burgess and his attempt to summon and imprison DEATH in a magical ritual held in England in 1916.

If you have been reading this blog for a while you will probably know I’m a big fan of Neil Gaiman’s SANDMAN comic. It ran for 75 issues plus one Special from 1989 to 1996. I still have the original comics. I brought them over to Japan with me. I have read the comics many times and will no doubt read them again in the future. I’m particularly fond of the first half of the series and count The Doll’s House and A Season in Hell among my favourite story arcs.

With the release of the Netflix Sandman Series, I wanted to go back to the source and reread the first issue. I recorded a kind of audio-comic of Sandman issue #1 “Sleep of the Just.” The first half of the video below is my summary of the first issue showing some of the gorgeous art from the comic. The second half of the video is me reading parts of Neil Gaiman’s essay on how he got the idea for the comic. It was originally published in the back of Sandman issue #4. I wanted to share it with you and anyone else who might stumble upon this page in the future. This was a labour of love.

My REVIEW & Summary of ISSUE #1 of The SANDMAN (1989)

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As always, thanks for reading!

-Wakizashi, *listening to an approaching thunderstorm. Man it’s been humid today. I feel like the air is about to explode.*

DC Comics H8TES You, the Customer!

I’m a big fan of comic books and have been reading them since I was a teenager, back when Duran Duran were burning up the charts. Wait a minute, they’re back in the charts now, aren’t they!? Proving, yet again, that history repeats itself. But I digress.

I bought and read comics, off and on, for over 35 years. My main focus was Marvel and especially DC Comics. I started out reading The Amazing Spider-Man and my favourite character, Batman. For any comics history buffs out there, I started buying Batman just before Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli’s brilliant “Year One” came out, so that’s issues 404 to #407. After checking on the net, I see they were published between February and May 1987. Yikes! 34 years ago!

Give us ALL your money!

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After a couple of years, I stopped buying Spider-Man but continued reading the two main Dark Knight titles: Batman and Detective Comics. I added Legends of the Dark Knight to my monthly haul when that title was launched in November 1989. Yep, I was a big Bat-Fan.

I continued reading DC Comics titles including such classics as Hellblazer, Sandman, Animal Man and Shade the Changing Man. I saw the birth of Vertigo and watched Neil Gaiman’s star rise and rise. But this is turning into a mix of a comics-history lesson and a walk down memory lane, so I will stop waffling and get to the point of this ranty post.

Sandman Mystery Theatre, Vol.1: The Tarantula (1995) by Matt Wagner & Guy Davis

‘It has been little over a year since my return to New York. What had been the greatest city on Earth is now a facade of corruption and denial. Fashionable fund-raisers abound while poverty endures and the threat of war lingers stagnant in the air.’

Publisher’s Synopsis

‘In this noir detective tale of intrigue, bigotry and incest, millionaire Wesley Dodds takes on the costumed persona of the Sandman to catch a sadistic killer in 1930s New York. Donning a gas mask, fedora, business suit and cape, Dodds goes after the Tarantula, a brutal kidnapper who is mercilessly preying upon the women of high society. But as the Sandman walks through a world of corruption and deceit, he uncovers the true secret of the murders and their implausible connection to the city’s most prominent family.’

The Sheriff of Babylon (2016) by Tom King and Mitch Gerads

“You hear?! Do you hear!?! We’re all cowboys! Pow! Pow! Pow!” (Vol. 2: p.41)

Volume 1: Bang. Bang. Bang.

Baghdad 2003. Chris Henry, a military consultant from Florida, is training a new police force. When one of his trainees is found murdered, Henry teams up with experienced local policeman Nassir, and their investigation begins.

This is a brutal, powerful and emotional look at the early effects of the War on Terror in Iraq. Writer Tom King is ex CIA and has spent time in the country. He writes of what he knows. You can feel his experience coming across in the writing.

There is a gritty realism to a lot of the scenes and dialogue, and this is backed up by the artwork. It has a cinematic look to it, from the covers to the interiors. At times the artwork is shocking in its graphic detail. The reader is exposed to the blood and guts of violence, ranging from gunshot wounds to brutal beatings. This is not for the squeamish.