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sophiahelix 's review for:

The Absolute Sandman, Volume One by Malcolm Jones III, Mike Dringenberg, Kelley Jones, Michael Zulli, Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, Colleen Doran, Charles Vess, Steve Parkhouse, Chris Bachalo
5.0

We held out on buying this because it's pretty expensive... but oh my god, the recoloring is fabulous. No longer will I hesitate to recommend the series to people with the caveat that "Um, the first three look terrible, please ignore the art," although I guess it means I will have to loan them this Giant Book (seriously, I think it may be the largest one I own). Sandman on a larger scale is equally fabulous.

I don't think I've reread the first three volumes in a while, since the series really heats up on volume four, but it's actually been a joy to find the seeds of so many later stories -- Lita Hall, Calliope, Orpheus, Lucifer, the Faeries, Nada -- and the beginnings of the characters as well. It's amazing to see how assured Gaiman was, the way the characterizations snap into place almost immediately. He does take Dream a little too seriously at first, but part of the joy is later when other characters take him lightly, so it all balances out.