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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
Overall a very interesting read. Getting more perspective on each of the endless besides Dream was very intriguing. Except... g-d Despair. Very glad Gaiman only did 15 of her because it was almost too much -- brilliant and beautiful, mind, but let's just say he nailed the concept.
I didn't necessarily love all these chapters (Despair's was particularly triggering) but overall, I absolutely adored seeing each of the Endless getting some time in the light. Having art from a different artist to represent each chapter was also a fun way to differentiate each story.
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
We don't deserve Neil Gaiman and with this, I believe I said it all.
An interesting concept - All the chapters of this TP focuses on The Sandman's family. Some stories work and some fall flat. All have different artwork. One for the collectors really.
Death, Desire, Dream, Despair, Delirium, Destruction and Destiny. I was especially fond of Death's, Dream's and Despair's stories.
As ever, this collection was lovely. I was very fond of Death's story, as it did things on multiple levels. On the face of it, Death as a character is very alluring, and I find it kind of funny that she has a string of people who fall in love with her. She kind of trades on that to get some things done, but it seems to me the character of death loves in each and every one of them, in her own way. On a very different level, the character introduced in this story falls in love with Death, not just the character but the force, as so many do, and grows up to live a life which inherently rests upon death, seemingly as a military man who deals in wetwork. That his work is 'sending people to her', like gifts to a lover... well, that one didn't hit me until later. Then, the villa, where the revelers hide from death, despite, maybe (timey-whimeyness being what it is) already being dead... I liked it a lot.
Desire's story was equally sweet and vicious. I'll admit, I had some issues with the historical anachronism, specifically in their costume.... But as ever, desire is an odd beast which in some ways, defies explanation. It was a love story, simply put, pure in it's own strange way. I liked that the character knew the fickle nature of desire, and learned not only to bend others desire to her, but to balance that desire with respect... it was nice. Desire xemself wasn't in the story much, but it worked.
Dream's story was really cool. You got to meet Delight, Destruction before he went AWOL, the rift between Desire and Dream, and erm, the galaxies and suns and stars were personified at an epic universe meeting. It was bloody awesome. It was really really cool. And the whole thing with Sol? Too cool. The actual plot involved Dream kind of getting shafted, but, you know, he's the poster child for unlucky in love I think. There's a reason he's so emo... I say that with love, of course. But Dream's story was my favorite, and it wasn't because it had the Sandman himself in it, but really because of everything else it was doing. So cheers to that.
Despair's story was... really good. 15 portraits of Despair. Gaiman said in the introduction it was a good thing it was only 15. I have to agree. They were really perfect, I think, but they were full of despair, which was what made them so excellent, and also, what makes it so difficult to actually enjoy them. Some of those portraits were really... spot on. They nailed it.
Delirium's story was... mixed. I liked that she went too far and disappeared, and they had to find her by sending in a group of 'crazies' from around the town. But it didn't really talk about where she was, why she was there. And the 'crazies' they recruited- hmm. Well, there are many types of madness. I guess I was just hoping for some different types, not just the ones who are silent and vacant or who mutter to themselves. I think I have a lot of hopes for things Delirium could do, and this wasn't quite what I'd been hoping for, that's all.
I was really disappointed by Destruction's story. He was scarcely in it, it was post-AWOL, and... yeah, he was barely in it. Destruction is so shrouded I was hoping for a little more to be shown. The story was fine, but I'll admit I went in with a lot of hopes.
Finally, Destiny's story is appropriately ominous. It was also a perfect ending to the anthology, I think. He's another of the Endless you wish you could get more from, but at the same time, you understand you can't possibly get any more of him. It worked out.
Overall, it was a great anthology.
As ever, this collection was lovely. I was very fond of Death's story, as it did things on multiple levels. On the face of it, Death as a character is very alluring, and I find it kind of funny that she has a string of people who fall in love with her. She kind of trades on that to get some things done, but it seems to me the character of death loves in each and every one of them, in her own way. On a very different level, the character introduced in this story falls in love with Death, not just the character but the force, as so many do, and grows up to live a life which inherently rests upon death, seemingly as a military man who deals in wetwork. That his work is 'sending people to her', like gifts to a lover... well, that one didn't hit me until later. Then, the villa, where the revelers hide from death, despite, maybe (timey-whimeyness being what it is) already being dead... I liked it a lot.
Desire's story was equally sweet and vicious. I'll admit, I had some issues with the historical anachronism, specifically in their costume.... But as ever, desire is an odd beast which in some ways, defies explanation. It was a love story, simply put, pure in it's own strange way. I liked that the character knew the fickle nature of desire, and learned not only to bend others desire to her, but to balance that desire with respect... it was nice. Desire xemself wasn't in the story much, but it worked.
Dream's story was really cool. You got to meet Delight, Destruction before he went AWOL, the rift between Desire and Dream, and erm, the galaxies and suns and stars were personified at an epic universe meeting. It was bloody awesome. It was really really cool. And the whole thing with Sol? Too cool. The actual plot involved Dream kind of getting shafted, but, you know, he's the poster child for unlucky in love I think. There's a reason he's so emo... I say that with love, of course. But Dream's story was my favorite, and it wasn't because it had the Sandman himself in it, but really because of everything else it was doing. So cheers to that.
Despair's story was... really good. 15 portraits of Despair. Gaiman said in the introduction it was a good thing it was only 15. I have to agree. They were really perfect, I think, but they were full of despair, which was what made them so excellent, and also, what makes it so difficult to actually enjoy them. Some of those portraits were really... spot on. They nailed it.
Delirium's story was... mixed. I liked that she went too far and disappeared, and they had to find her by sending in a group of 'crazies' from around the town. But it didn't really talk about where she was, why she was there. And the 'crazies' they recruited- hmm. Well, there are many types of madness. I guess I was just hoping for some different types, not just the ones who are silent and vacant or who mutter to themselves. I think I have a lot of hopes for things Delirium could do, and this wasn't quite what I'd been hoping for, that's all.
I was really disappointed by Destruction's story. He was scarcely in it, it was post-AWOL, and... yeah, he was barely in it. Destruction is so shrouded I was hoping for a little more to be shown. The story was fine, but I'll admit I went in with a lot of hopes.
Finally, Destiny's story is appropriately ominous. It was also a perfect ending to the anthology, I think. He's another of the Endless you wish you could get more from, but at the same time, you understand you can't possibly get any more of him. It worked out.
Overall, it was a great anthology.
This collection of stories actually comes well after the series ended. In the introduction, Neil Gaiman mentions that he had always considered revisiting the characters at a later date, and this is the result of that revisitation. I thought it was interesting how each chapter was a look at one of the "family", the Endless. I liked getting a glimpse into each of their worlds/realms/lives.
A story for each of the Endless from Death to Destiny. Each has a different artist and some tales work a bit better than others. It was a nice revisit, and it's nice to see everyone get their own story.
Strange little anthology to close (open?) the Sandman comics series that reminds me why I've enjoyed reading it so much.