Recap page for comic books featuring the Sandman. For spinoffs and other adaptations, see this page.
Prior Sandmen:
- Adventure Comics #40 (dated July 1939) is said to be the first story of the Golden Age Sandman (Wesley Dodds), although he first appeared in print in World's Fair Comics #1. He was created by artist Bert Christman and writer Gardner Fox. He continued to appear in Adventure Comics until his series ended in issue #102 (March 1945), with appearances in both issues of World's Fair Comics, and a semi-regular feature in World's Finest Comics.
The Sandman started as a pulp hero wearing a suit, cape, fedora and custom gas mask, and wielding a "gas gun" which put criminals to sleep. A number of issues in he gained a girlfriend and partner in crimefighting in the form of Dian Belmont, former safecracker and daughter of the District Attorney. In Adventure Comics #69 (December 1941), he was given a more traditional superhero costume that was yellow and purple and a sidekick called "Sandy the Golden Boy" (who later became the superhero Sand and joined the Justice Society of America). Later in 1941, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby took over the comic.
In Gaiman's Sandman, it was stated that Wesley Dodds was inspired to fight crime after dreaming about the imprisoned Dream. Stories of the Wesley Dodds' Sandman were later told in Sandman Mystery Theatre. - The Sandman: A six issue series created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby about "immortal hero" the Sandman (Garrett Sanford) who patrolled the "Dream Stream" (later "Dream Dimension") with the help of two living nightmares "Brute and Glob." The first issue was written by Simon, but later issues were written by Michael Fleisher.
In Infinity, Inc., it was explained that Garrett Sanford went insane from loneliness and there was a new Sandman, Hector Hall (formerly Silver Scarab, son of Carter Hall. The entire series (and Hector Hall as the Sandman) was later folded into Gaiman's Sandman series by making it a separate realm that Brute and Glob created to escape the Dreaming and Dream's attention.
The Sandman (1989)
The parent series, written entirely by Neil Gaiman with covers by Dave McKean. It lasted for a total of 75 issues. The comic alternated between story arcs and standalone issues.- Preludes & Nocturnes (also called More Than Rubies or Master of Dreams) (Issues 1-8): In the early 20th century, an English occult sect attempts to imprison Death with a summoning ritual, but mistakenly snares Dream instead. Following seven decades of imprisonment in the waking world, Dream must avenge his kingdom and retrieve his scattered relics of power.
- 1. Sleep of the Just
- 2. Imperfect Hosts
- 3. ...Dream A Little Dream of Me
- 4. A Hope in Hell
- 5. Passengers
- 6. 24 Hours
- 7. Sound and Fury
- 8. The Sound of Her Wings
- The Doll's House (Issues 9-16): Dream is forced to enter the waking world to track down a trio of rogue nightmares, and must get to the bottom of a mysterious "Dream Vortex" that threatens to tear apart the Dreaming. Along the way, he crosses paths with a young woman named Rose Walker, who gets caught up in a labyrinthine world of secrets after discovering the family that she never knew.
- 9. Tales in the Sand
- 10. The Doll's House
- 11. Moving In
- 12. Playing House
- 13. Men of Good Fortune
- 14. Collectors
- 15. Into The Night
- 16. Lost Hearts
- Dream Country (Issues 17-20): A collection of four unrelated one-shot stories. A frustrated writer looks for inspiration in the supernatural; a cat recalls a fateful encounter with Dream; a young William Shakespeare pays back a debt to Dream with a trippy performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream; a burned-out superhero looks to Death for respite from her tortuous existence.
- 17. Calliope
- 18. A Dream of a Thousand Cats
- 19. A Midsummer Night's Dream
- 20. Facade
- Season of Mists (Issues 21-28): Dream is drawn into a perilous game of supernatural intrigue when he decides to confront his old enemy Lucifer Morningstar, the Lord of Hell, in a bid to rescue a past lover condemned to his kingdom. Things then proceed to go in directions that none of the participants quite expected.
- 21. A Prologue
- 22. Chapter 1
- 23. Chapter 2
- 24. Chapter 3
- 25. Chapter 4
- 26. Chapter 5
- 27. Chapter 6
- 28. Epilogue
- Distant Mirrors (put in the collection Fables and Reflections) (Issues 29-31): Three standalone stories about mortal encounters with Dream, named after months of the year. The Sandman Special includes the tragic tale of Dream's last meeting with his estranged son: the legendary Greek bard Orpheus.
- 29. Thermidor
- 30. August
- 31. Three Septembers And A January
- The Sandman Special. The Song of Orpheus
- A Game of You (Issues 32-37) : Trying to put her life back together after a failed relationship, a young woman named Barbie (first introduced in The Doll's House) rediscovers the world of her old childhood fantasies in a most unexpected way, and is unwittingly caught in the middle of a struggle against a deadly being known as "The Cuckoo."
- 32. Slaughter On Fifth Avenue
- 33. Lullabies of Broadway
- 34. Bad Moon Rising
- 35. Beginning to See the Light
- 36. Over The Sea to Sky
- 37. I Woke Up and One of Us Was Crying
- Convergences (put in the collection Fables and Reflections): Three standalone stories.
- 38. The Hunt
- 39. Soft Places
- 40. The Parliament of Rooks
- Brief Lives (Issues 41-49): Dream pairs up with his unpredictable younger sister, Delirium, for a road trip into the waking world to seek out their long-lost brother: the rogue seventh member of the Endless, Destruction.
- 41. Brief Lives One
- 42. Brief Lives Two
- 43. Brief Lives Three
- 44. Brief Lives Four
- 45. Brief Lives Five
- 46. Brief Lives Six
- 47. Brief Lives Seven
- 48. Brief Lives Eight
- 49. Brief Lives Nine
- Distant Mirrors (put in the collection Fables and Reflections): One standalone story.
- 50. Ramadan
- Worlds' End (Issues 51-56): After being caught in a "reality storm," two mortal humans are forced to seek refuge at an inn at the End of the Universe, where they're treated to a night of storytelling by a procession of supernatural creatures. Heady meditations on death, deception, hope, and urban alienation follow.
- 51. A Tale of Two Cities
- 52. Cluracan's Tale
- 53. Hob's Leviathan
- 54. The Golden Boy
- 55. Cerements
- 56. Worlds' End
- The Kindly Ones (Issues 57-69) : Lyta Hall, a woman whose life was changed forever by a fateful encounter with Dream, turns to some unlikely supernatural allies when her infant son mysteriously vanishes. As Dream confronts enemies on all sides, every character introduced in the series thus far (major and minor) confronts their destinies.
- 57. The Kindly Ones, Part 1
- 58. The Kindly Ones, Part 2
- 59. The Kindly Ones, Part 3
- 60. The Kindly Ones, Part 4
- 61. The Kindly Ones, Part 5
- 62. The Kindly Ones, Part 6
- 63. The Kindly Ones, Part 7
- 64. The Kindly Ones, Part 8
- 65. The Kindly Ones, Part 9
- 66. The Kindly Ones, Part 10
- 67. The Kindly Ones, Part 11
- 68. The Kindly Ones, Part 12
- 69. The Kindly Ones, Part 13
- The Wake (Issues 70-75): In the wake of a momentous battle, the denizens of the Dreaming come together for some sober reflection as they confront the uncertain future of their world.
- 70. Which Occurs In The Wake Of What Has Gone Before
- 71. In Which A Wake Is Held
- 72. In Which We Wake
- 73. The Wake - An Epilogue: Sunday Mourning
- 74. Exiles
- 75. The Tempest
