Just like with Watchman, I was never a reader of Sandman when it hit the comic shelves in the late 80's. I remember I bought issue #1 but wasn't so thrilled to continue picking it up. Now, I know it is a brilliant series and Neil Gaiman really weaved an incredible tapestry over the book's run. I just never got into it. That is, until I picked up the first collected volume at the library last week.
Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes collects issues 1 through 8 of the Sandman book from 1988 and 1989. As even Neil points out in the Afterwards, the first few issues jump around a bit in theme, style and approach. One could easily tell he was trying to settle in a bit to something beyond the first story arc - the tale of how Morpheus, the god of Dreams, is captured and then escapes and has to reclaim his lost power. This first arc tries to tie-in basic DCU elements like the hosts of the 60's/70's mystery books, the Demon, the JLA and such. The book really seems to find a solid voice in the eighth issue which we see a conversation between Morpheus and his sister Death.
Now, I am not sure yet if my local library carries more of the volumes. If they do, I will certainly check them out. I enjoyed the first one enough to invest the time in reading more if/when I can. It definitely is not your typical comic book and that is probably why over the years it has appealed to many of the non-traditional comic book fans.
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