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315 of 331 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Here your learning begins, March 15, 2004
This review is directed mainly at those of you who are not widely experienced with modern (one can hardly use the word `adult' without erotica coming to mind) comics, because I do not know many comics aficionados who are not familiar with the Sandman saga - the Citizen Kane of comics, or the Sgt. Pepper, or the War and Peace - and have not read, at the very least, this first installment in the series. So - you haven't read comics in a long time, have you? Sure, you read it when you were a kid, like everyone else, but then you outgrew them. You went on to read real books with no pictures. But suddenly a couple of people tell you that there have been some interesting things going on in comics in the last twenty years, and you should check it out. You decide to give the ol' funnybooks a chance. In that case, this book right here is one of the half-dozen masterworks you should start with to get a general idea of what comics are capable of, at least in the English speaking regions of the world (there are some fascinating things going on in Japan and France that I won't even begin to discuss). The Sandman, the ENTIRE Sandman saga, altogether ten books long - collected from magazine-form comics that were published regularly throughout most of the 90s - is one of the truly glorious, shining, perfect creations of, I'll say it, adult comics. That Preludes & Nocturnes, the first story-arch in the series, is the only one that can stand rightly by its own right, other than being a convenience for new readers which may make it easier for them to deal with the size of this saga, is a sure sign of the wisdom of the creator, the brilliant Mr. Neil Gaiman. While completely revolutionizing what people though about comics, Neil started doing so in small doses to make it easier to swallow for audiences and editors alike. Thus, he started here with a story that is a classic folk tale, of a dethroned monarch who goes through a series of quests and challenges in order to earn back his rightful place in power. More help is given by cameo appearances of old and popular characters from the DC Comics universe - such as the Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, the Scarecrow and John Constantine. Such appearances will become quite rare as the series continues, and the story becomes, rather than a folk tale, a mythology as grim as any Greek tragedy - which, doubtlessly, was in the author's mind from the very beginning. However, though the storyline of Preludes & Nocturnes is schematic and the drawings are often bland, Gaiman's already famous storytelling skills are fully developed, and the books is one of the most fantastic stories he had penned. The hero of the series is, simply, Dream. His identity is a rather philosophical matter, as he is not so much a god of dream, but rather, the embodiment of the very concept of dream itself. At the beginning of the story, Dream is summoned by a human mystic, and caged. Seventy years later, when he escapes from his prison, he finds his kingdom in ruins, and must return to himself the symbolic garments of his reign to rebuild it. Along the way we have the pleasure to meet some of the most fantastic and fascinating characters in any literary creation, and also some characters who, small though their part may be now, will be crucial in the complete creation of the saga, such as Lucifer Morningstar, Cain and Abel, and the three Furies (also known as the Graces, the Fates, or the Kindly Ones). Though much more fascinating as part of the whole, Preludes & Nocturnes by itself is a perfect piece of fantastic storytelling. However, it is the final magazine issue in this collection, titled `The Sound Of Her Wings', that gives it more worth than the rest of it put together. Sam Keith's surreal, deformed image of Dream and dark, heavy, brooding lines move over to make place for Mike Dringenberg's realistic backgrounds, light-hearted lines and recognizable human faces. Dream's flowing black robes make way for a t-shirt and a black jacket; the dark and towering Sandman is given a whole new perspective. He now seems like a depressed, bored teenager, sulking in the park and feeding the pigeons. He is then granted a visit by none other than his sister - Death, which is the single most brilliant creation in Gaiman's universe. Death is a perky, cheerful, beautiful, wise, mature goth-girl who confronts Dream and show to him his own pettiness. Completely without any action or suspense, it is this story that paved the way for the revolution that the Sandman series began. And this story alone remains one of the handful true perfect masterpieces of the medium. It is this story alone that makes this book a milestone in modern comics - and literature - and essential reading for everyone interested in the medium. And, oh, I said half dozen masterworks, right? So, to complete the list, let's say: Alan Moore's `Watchmen', Art Spiegelman's `Maus', Scott McCloud's `Understanding Comics', Frank Miller's `The Dark Knight Returns' and Kurt Busiek's `Marvels'. Or, to make it a top ten, let's add Peter Kuper's `The System', Garth Ennis's `Preacher', Grant Morrison's `Arkham Asylum', and anything by Robert Crumb. Enjoy!
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50 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Sandman, June 18, 2002
I love this series and am slowly acquiring all the books in it. It's fairly expensive, but, if you like the Sandman series, it's a lot cheaper than buying each individual comic. This book isn't the best in the series, but it's still very good. It's not like most comic books. There's no superhero intent on defeating an evil supervillain for the good of mankind. A group of magicians want to capture Death but instead capture Dream. He stays caged for decades, and, when he finally escapes, he has to find his tools (a bag of sand, his helm, and his Dreamstone). This first book relies too much on guest appearances made by DC characters, but Gaiman does manage to move beyond that by the eighth issue, "The Sound of Her Wings". I really enjoyed that issue, which has the first appearance of Death. She's the reason I started reading the Sandman series. I'd read The High Cost of Living, and I loved the idea that Death could be a perky goth girl who you could really get to like. Mike Dringenberg, who does the pencils for the eighth issue, does an excellent version of Sandman and Death. I don't really like Sam Keith's version of Sandman that much, but his depictions of horrific things, like Hell, are wonderful. I also liked "Dream a Little Dream of Me", in which Dream has to find his bag of sand and is getting help from John Constantine, and "24 Hours", in which Doctor Destiny has Dream's Dreamstone and is driving the world mad. I consider both of those issues to be top horror. It's definitely worth it to get this book.
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44 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Dreaming of Greatness..., July 8, 1999
By A Customer
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.
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