Jump to content

The Sandman Universe

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by MarkoPhoenix (talk | contribs) at 08:26, 22 April 2019. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The Sandman Universe
Publication information
PublisherDC Vertigo
GenreDark fantasy
Publication dateAugust 2018
Main character(s)Dream
Lucien
Matthew Cable
Lucifer
Dora
Timothy Hunter
Erzulie

The Sandman Universe is a line of American comic books published by DC Comics under its DC Vertigo imprint. The line celebrates the 30th anniversary of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman (1989—1996) and Vertigo's 25th anniversary. The Sandman Universe features a titular one-shot and four new ongoing series—House of Whispers, Lucifer, The Books of Magic, and The Dreaming. Each comic is overseen by Gaiman but written by new creative teams. The line launched on August 8, 2018.

Conception and development

The Sandman Universe celebrates the 30th anniversary of DC Comics' The Sandman[1] and the 25th anniversary of the launch of the DC Vertigo imprint. The line was conceived and is overseen by the series' creator, Neil Gaiman, but produced by new creative teams. The Sandman Universe expands The Sandman's part of the DC Universe[2] using new characters and concepts.[3] The line was announced by Entertainment Weekly on March 1, 2018 and was accompanied by a trailer featuring Gaiman. It launched with the one-shot The Sandman Universe #1 on August 8, 2018, with the other series following on later dates.[3]

When asked why he returned to The Sandman, Gaiman said he began to feel guilty that almost no one had been able to return the series since its conclusion and liked the idea of reviving it, as well as letting new writers play with his "toys". Gaiman assembled the writing team for the line with the Vertigo editorial team. Both parties suggested writers who they thought would be good for new Sandman stories. Samples by writers were then read by Gaiman, who decided whether or not they were proficient. Deciding writers also involved choosing which comic suited which writer best; Gaiman cited Nalo Hopkinson's science fiction work as an influence for assigning her to House of Whispers. Gaiman chose Kat Howard, who he has worked with for several years, to reboot The Books of Magic because of her handling of magic in her stories, and Dan Watters to write Lucifer because he was up to the challenge of recreating the character.[3]

Overview

The Sandman Universe

The Sandman Universe is a one-shot plotted by Neil Gaiman and set after the conclusion of The Sandman. In The Sandman Universe, the titular Dream has disappeared since the conclusion of Dark Nights: Metal,[4] leading to chaos in his homeland of the Dreaming. Each ongoing series part of the line will follow a storyline from the one-shot.[1][3][2]

House of Whispers

  • Writer: Nalo Hopkinson
  • Illustrator: Dominike Stanton
  • No. of Issues: 8

The Houses of Mystery and Secrets are joined by the House of Whispers, after a woman named Latoya's girlfriend and sisters accidentally conjure the voodoo deity Erzulie, steal its essence, and cause their home to crash into the Dreaming.[1]

Books of Magic

Books of Magic is a sequel to the 1990 limited series. Timothy Hunter is torn between using his magic skills for good or evil. Magic gets in his way at school, but a substitute teacher offers to teach Tim how to master his powers.[1]

The Dreaming

  • Writer: Si Spurrier
  • Illustrator: Bilquis Evely
  • No. of Issues: 8

The Dreaming focuses on supporting characters from The Sandman, such as Lucien the librarian, Matthew the Raven, and Nuala of Faerie. In the series, these characters try to search for Dream as his kingdom falls into darkness.[3]

Lucifer

  • Writer: Dan Watters
  • Illustrators: Max Fiumara and Sebastian Fiumara
  • No. of Issues: 7

Lucifer Morningstar—blind, suffering from amnesia, stuck inside the body of an old man, and living in poverty—is trapped in a town where no one can leave. However, a policeman suffering from brain cancer in Los Angeles has made it his top priority to find Lucifer and kill him.[3][1]

Collected editions

The comics have been collected into a number of trade paperbacks.

Title Material collected Publication date ISBN
House of Whispers
Volume 1: Power Divided House of Whispers #1-6 and Sandman Universe Special #1 July 30, 2019 978-1401291358
Books of Magic
Volume 1: Moveable Type Books of Magic #1-6 and Sandman Universe Special #1 July 16, 2019 978-1401291341
The Dreaming
Volume 1: Pathways and Emanations The Dreaming #1-6 and Sandman Universe Special #1 June 11, 2019 978-1401291174
Volume 2 The Dreaming #7-12 January 14, 2020 978-1401295639
Lucifer
Volume 1: The Infernal Comedy Lucifer #1-6 and Sandman Universe Special #1 June 25, 2019 978-1401291334

Reception

According to the review aggregator Comic Book Roundup, the line has an average rating of 8.9/10 based on 20 reviews.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Bishop, Bryan (March 1, 2018). "Neil Gaiman is turning The Sandman into an expanded comics universe". The Verge. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Polo, Susana (March 1, 2018). "The Sandman Universe is Neil Gaiman's next comics project". Polygon. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Holub, Christian (March 1, 2018). "Neil Gaiman announces new Sandman Universe line of comics — exclusive". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  4. ^ Shiach, Kieran (August 10, 2018). "How Doomsday Clock & Dark Nights: Metal Affect The New Sandman Universe". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  5. ^ "The Sandman Universe Comic Series Reviews". Comic Book Roundup. Retrieved August 10, 2018.

Further reading

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Sandman_Universe&oldid=893569866"