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Title: Preludes and Nocturnes (Sandman, Book 1) by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg ISBN: 1-56389-227-8 Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 December, 1998 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.29 (65 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Dreaming of Greatness...
Comment: Preludes and Nocturnes is easily the weakest of the individual Sandman novels... but still better than most of the funny-books out there. The first chapter is a self-contained story dealing with Morpheus' seventy-year imprisonment by an amateur English magician, and his escape. The rest of the novel deals with his adventures re-claiming his three tools: his sand pouch, his ruby, and his helmet. The second chapter is set-up for the rest of the story, featuring DC Comics' horror mainstays Cain & Abel. The third story is one of the best in this book, guest-starring Hellblazer's John Constantine, whose ex-girlfriend is in possession of the bag of sand. Part four is one of my all-time favorite Sandman stories: "A Hope in Hell", where Morpheus goes to the pit, running into Lucifer Morningstar (one of the best characters in the series), and challenging a demon to regain his helmet. Parts five through seven involve a super-villain named Dr. Destiny (not to be confused with the real Destiny, Dream's brother) escaping from a madhouse, going on a murderous rampage in one of the most horrific stories I've ever read in a comic. Part six "24 Hours," especially so, where Dr. Destiny slowly drives the customers in an overnight diner mad, eventually killing each other. But chances are, if you're buying this, and you've heard of Neil Gaiman's Sandman before, it's for part eight, "The Sound of Her Wings", the introduction of the most famous (and nicest) member of the regular cast, Dream's big sister Death. She shows up to take her depressed brother with her for a hard day's work of taking people to the next life, quoting Mary Poppins all the while. This is a fine story, a nice promise of the kind of story that there are to look forward to later on.
Neil's style was just coming onto its own here, but his lyrical, poetic style is for the most part intact, as well as his original, and at times terrifying ideas. The superhero stuff really doesn't work all that well. Surely Gaiman could have thought of some more interesting hero than Mister Miracle to aid Sandman in his search, and the cameo by Martian Manhunter, while nicely handled by having him recognize Morpheus as the Martian god of dreams, left that character grossly mischaracterized. On the other hand, I was impressed that so many characters that would be important later on were introduced here, given the feeling that Gaiman was still cutting his chops in this book.
The art style is a bit weak, compared to the other novels in the series. "Preludes" is the one that looks the most "four-color", more like a traditional comic. Sam Keith's (who was absolutely right when he describes his work on Sandman as "Jimi Hendrix playing with the Beatles") work is a little too cartoony, though I must admit, the man draws one mean Hell. Mike Dringenberg's style, on the other hand, works very well with Sandman, despite being a bit too sketchy, and not having enough detail in faces.
In closing, I'd recommend to anyone thinking of purchasing this book to either read it before the others, because it won't seem as diminished as it would after reading some of the other classics later on in the series, or after the others, since there are other books in the series that give the reader much more bang for your buck.
Rating: 4
Summary: The Beginning of a Dream
Comment: Gaiman's incredible Sandman series starts with this collection. While trying to capture the personification of Death (a tried and true fantasy convention) a magician captures instead the King of Dreams, who remains his prisoner for seven decades until he (Dream) is finally given an opportunity to escape. Comic book conventions come into play at the beginning with guest appearances by John Constantine and Etrigan as Dream pursues his lost tools of office. But when Dream finally confronts the man,(a minor DC villain,Dr. Destiny)who possesses the last of these tools the series enters a different realm far from the typical comic book. Taking his lead from Alan Moore's work on Swamp Thing, Gaiman creates an atmosphere of real horror as Dr. Destiny warps the lives of a few unlucky diner patrons, driving them to madness before he is finally stopped by Dream. It is in the scenes at the diner Gamain's talent really comes to the forefront and you realize that this is no typical comic book experience. By showing the gradual destruction of these characters Gaiman give the reader a peak at what becomes the theme of the entire series; the power of dreams in our lives.
Rating: 5
Summary: An Introduction to a Legacy
Comment: To start - Neil Gaiman is an immaculate genre writer, who blends in sophistication with the bizarre in almost all of his projects. The Sandman Series is certainly one of his best works and , of course, keeps getting better. I must admit, I'm currently on the Seventh Chapter, but the first book: "Preludes and Nocturnes" deserves a lot of recognition.
I had been warned that the first collection of his comics was one of the weaker installments. But so far, I must disagree. "Preludes and Nocturnes" is a fantastic introduction to the character of Dream. For those who have not yet read started this series, the book opens with a underground society of necromantic cultists, in England, the early 1900's. In an attempt to capture the divine personification of Death - they accidently capture her brother, Dream. Though, this doesn't ensure immortality to the cultists anymore, they keep him bound in hopes of bargaining his freedom for power. After imprisonment for almost a century, Dream finally escapes and takes his revenge on his captors. The rest of the book, finds Dream severly weakened and missing his three artifacts, and sources of his power: his bag of sand, helmet and amulet. Because of his absence, the items have fallen into the hands of others and his kingdom and responsibilities, having been neglected during his imprisonment, have all crumbled. He spends the rest of the book reclaiming his lost possessions and reestablishing his authority as the Lord of Dreams.
For a writer who really didn't know where his story was going, Gaiman has given us an intriguing world to visit. He intergrates the modern world and ordinary mortal characters with elements of the supernatural and mythology. One cannot help but be fascinated by such scenes as Dream challenging a deamon to a duel of spoken words and image, while in a 1930's style bar in Hell. The book contains a variety of colorful characters and an original storyline that really sets the stage for the rest of the series. Also, being a graphic novel really adds to its presentation. The images are sometimes beyond literary comprehension and now I just couldn't imagine just reading this story. Gaiman has a way of creating images to vivid for words, so it seems quite appropriate these stories are told in a comic book style.
In addition, the book closes on a scene between Dream and Death, who is pictured as a flamboyant happy-go-lucky Goth girl. He accompanies her as she collects the souls of the dying and brings an interesting sense of closure to Dream's experience. The world has changed in his absence and there is much more for him to learn and to explore.
This is an essential book in the Neil Gaiman universe. If anything, it acts as a much needed foreward to the rest of the Sandman graphic novels and sets the stage for our expectations. But it stands on its own, the story rivaling the works of H.P. Lovecraft and Terry Pratchett.
Happy Reading!
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Title: American Gods by Neil Gaiman ISBN: 0380789035 Publisher: HarperTorch Pub. Date: 30 April, 2002 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman ISBN: 0380789019 Publisher: Avon Pub. Date: 01 November, 1998 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: Coraline by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean ISBN: 0380977788 Publisher: HarperCollins Pub. Date: 02 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $15.99 |
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Title: Good Omens by Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett ISBN: 0441003257 Publisher: Ace Books Pub. Date: May, 1996 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title:Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere ASIN: B0000A14WF Publisher: A & E Home Video Pub. Date: 09 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $39.95 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $35.99 |
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