The Sandman (Netflix)

[lonestar]

Right?

[Volante99]

3 Episodes in…

Not to be contrarian but I just can’t get into it so far.
Haven’t read the comics but I am aware of the basic lore and enjoy the Dave McKean art, so take my thoughts with a grain of salt.

Intriguing premise but (so far) the show’s “look” just seems too slick for me- like a network television show mixed with Harry Potter.

Dream is giving me emo, Robert Pattinson vibes and his ASMR vocal delivery is a bit over the top, but maybe this is consistent with the character. I’m also not convinced the actor who plays Lucienne can act. Only a couple episodes in and we’ve already had two gay characters; one explicit, one implied- which seems like try-hard wokeness. As a bisexual libtard, I think I’m allowed to say this. (again, this may be consistent with comic).

Going to try to power through another few episodes though based on the plot alone, though.

[ariich]

(again, this may be consistent with comic).

It is, and "wokeness" was not even a thing at the time. It's not "try-hard" anything. just the stories that Gaiman was telling as far back as 1989.

[lonestar]

Seems they dropped an extra episode today....

[hefdaddy42]

Seems they dropped an extra episode today....

A 2-parter.  For fans of the original comics, the two parts are “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” (animated!) and “Calliope,” both self-contained stories.

Check out the actors working on this!

Netflix’s ‘The Sandman’ Drops New Episode Starring Sandra Oh, James McAvoy, David Tennant and Michael Sheen

[faizoff]

I caught up to this show yesterday and also watched the bonus episode today (great timing!) I haven't read or seen any work of Neil Gaiman prior to the show though did hear of all his work. I have to say as a first time indulger of Neil this show was something else. I wasn't sure what to expect but seeing as this series was written in last 80s to the mid 90s I thought it would be a bit dated. I really loved the show, story telling was really unique, I loved the Devil, 24/7 and Death episodes the most. those three were flat out amazing, I see most didn't like how it ended but I thought it was great. Wasn't like some massive showdown, was
 quite straight forward I thought.

I also found out that I have the audiobook for the Sandman, I will be checking out all the chapters and maybe leave the ones that weren't covered on the show. To those that have read the comics, are the TV episodes with their respective chapter names strictly from that episode? Did they add stuff from other episodes not listed in the name of the episode?

[hefdaddy42]

To those that have read the comics, are the TV episodes with their respective chapter names strictly from that episode? Did they add stuff from other episodes not listed in the name of the episode?

They did some combining here and there.  But it's in mostly the same order as the comics.

[chknptpie]

Finished this last night and I'm pretty meh about it (never read the comics). The imagery and production value were pretty stunning. Definitely like the main character and the actor. Thoroughly hated the diner episode. I felt like I was watching a stage play written by a high school student and acted by amateurs. Thought the last story with Calliope was boring. The pacing is a bit slow across the board. However, I do enjoy that not everything comes to a climax at the same time like we see in so many other fantacy/sci-fi stories. Loved the cats episode. Enjoyed seeing so many familiar faces too.

[gmillerdrake]

Finished this last night and I'm pretty meh about it (never read the comics). The imagery and production value were pretty stunning. Definitely like the main character and the actor. Thoroughly hated the diner episode. I felt like I was watching a stage play written by a high school student and acted by amateurs. Thought the last story with Calliope was boring. The pacing is a bit slow across the board. However, I do enjoy that not everything comes to a climax at the same time like we see in so many other fantacy/sci-fi stories. Loved the cats episode. Enjoyed seeing so many familiar faces too.

This is me as well. I mean, I'm not upset about investing the time to watch the show....it was good enough. But after seeing such high praise for it I guess I expected too much from it. But, most of the praise came from folks who are familiar with the source material...so...maybe there is a connection or appreciation there I just don't have.

I'll watch a S2 and didn't 'hate' it....but...it was just another show to me. Nothing special.

[ZirconBlue]

Finished this last night and I'm pretty meh about it (never read the comics). The imagery and production value were pretty stunning. Definitely like the main character and the actor. Thoroughly hated the diner episode. I felt like I was watching a stage play written by a high school student and acted by amateurs. Thought the last story with Calliope was boring. The pacing is a bit slow across the board. However, I do enjoy that not everything comes to a climax at the same time like we see in so many other fantacy/sci-fi stories. Loved the cats episode. Enjoyed seeing so many familiar faces too.

This is me as well. I mean, I'm not upset about investing the time to watch the show....it was good enough. But after seeing such high praise for it I guess I expected too much from it. But, most of the praise came from folks who are familiar with the source material...so...maybe there is a connection or appreciation there I just don't have.

I'll watch a S2 and didn't 'hate' it....but...it was just another show to me. Nothing special.

The first part of the comics series isn't the best part, so there may be some built-in anticipation of how well they can execute some of the later arcs.

[The Letter M]

I watched the whole series over the last week and a half, finished it up on Saturday, and really enjoyed it! I liked how the main 10 episodes were neatly divided into two 5-episode arcs, though had I known that from the get-go, I wouldn't have stopped at episode 4 on my first night watching! 

The acting and performances were quite captivating, though I took some getting used to to some of them at first. I really enjoyed how some plot points of the first arc came back around in the second, and how things just sort of weaved in and out of the story, but it was all purposeful as well.

I've heard of the comics before, but never was interested in checking them out, but seeing the stories played out on the screen really made for an engaging story. I'm not sure how accurate the show is to the source material, but nothing felt too off or rushed, as far as pacing went. Episode five was definitely a highlight, it felt very Twilight Zone-ish with its single setting and array of varying characters, whom we never see again. And episode 6 with Death was so emotional and heart-breaking as well, and the side-story with Hob Gadling was very memorable as well.

The 11th episode was a fun addition as well, which helped flesh out the world a bit but still root it in to Dream's world as well. I am eager to see more of this series so hopefully another season is on order! If it's already been greenlit, it definitely cannot come soon enough!

-Marc.

[hefdaddy42]

It's pretty accurate to the source material, with the occasional change (for good reasons).

[Lethean]

I'm watching this now - I think I have 3 more episodes to go.  I was really loving the show, especially the contest with Lucifer, but the last couple episodes focusing on the dream vortex have been kind of meh.  I hope she rescues her brother, I hope she doesn't destroy the universe, but those episodes feel like a let down compared to the rest.  I hope the Sandman gets more screen time again in the last few episodes and it finishes strong.

[hefdaddy42]

I'm watching this now - I think I have 3 more episodes to go.  I was really loving the show, especially the contest with Lucifer, but the last couple episodes focusing on the dream vortex have been kind of meh.  I hope she rescues her brother, I hope she doesn't destroy the universe, but those episodes feel like a let down compared to the rest.  I hope the Sandman gets more screen time again in the last few episodes and it finishes strong.

I get that.  Honestly, that particular storyline was my least favorite in the comics.

[MirrorMask]

Mega bump!

Yup, seen The Sandman at last. I don't even remember how I stumbled upon a collection of comics and I immensely enjoyed my first exposure to the world, a story about Death trying to reach a "time capsule" of Venice where an alchemist or whatever managed to relive the same day over and over even centuries after their supposed expiring time. And I checked some comics here and there but I never really read the stories so I don't know how faithful the adaptation was.

Overall, I liked it quite a lot, maybe it didn't give me a "Sandman frenzy" (not  sure I'm gonna check the comics now) but it was very, very well done and I'll definitively be returning for season 2.

David Thewlis was great as a minor villain, he was so nice as Lupin in the Harry Potter saga, and yet he's very convicing in portraying a disgusting person, someone you wouldn't want sitting next to you in the subway or at a restaurant. I read something about Tom Ellis' Lucifer being in the same universe, but I think it was a good choice to not use him even if they could, this Lucifer is way too menacing and angry to be portrayed by Tom Ellis' version of Lucifer.

My favorite episode was Death's one - the merging of the storylines of Death visiting people and then Dream making friends with the immortal was very lovely. It made me wonder how in this day and age he would manage to fake his death every 40-50 years, it was easier in the middle ages  but overall an amazing storylines.

So basically we got 10 "real" episodes, and the eleventh one was.... just because? I mean, I liked the cat story and the Calliope one, but they felt like an unnecessary encore to a 10 episodes season. Anyway, they were good so who cares, more content is appreciated!

Incidentally, it got me thinking about other Neil Gaiman adaptations. American Gods started solid but went a bit weird. But Neil wasn't really involved in that. Stardust and Good Omens were top notch but very much on the lighter end of things. Coraline was again different (a kids book/film but definitely not light - actually super creepy).

(EDIT: Forgot about MirrorMask, that was decent if a bit budget.)

(EDIT 2: Also the adaptation of Neverwhere, which was also pretty budget. Ah the good old days.)

Took me a second to realize that my username there was not a mention of me 

I more or less agree with you, here are my takes:

AMERICAN GODS - What a wasted potential. Ian McShane was perfect as Wednesday. They had a story all mapped out for them, and they completely messed it up to the point it looked they didn't even know what they were doing. Game of Thrones' final season was bad, but there was a story. It was bad, it was rushed, it was too simplified, but at least there was a story. I can't even begin to summarize what they were thinking to do by the time season 3 came out. Such a crying same, I hope for a reboot in the future.

STARDUST - As you said kinda light, but I enjoyed a lot the movie. In retrospect it's a bit cheesy but it was fun.

GOOD OMENS - Loved also this one.

CORALINE - Amazing.

MIRRORMASK - Been a while since I watched it and I guess it would feel quite dated watching it now, but I loved it. Wouldn't have picked a username after that if I thought it sucked, mh?  it felt great to me and I wouldn't mind seeing it redone with a big budget.

NEVERWHERE - Now THIS is what I want to see with a proper budget! I absolutely adored the book and I hope its get the amazing adaptation it deserves.

[ariich]

Incidentally, it got me thinking about other Neil Gaiman adaptations. American Gods started solid but went a bit weird. But Neil wasn't really involved in that. Stardust and Good Omens were top notch but very much on the lighter end of things. Coraline was again different (a kids book/film but definitely not light - actually super creepy).

(EDIT: Forgot about MirrorMask, that was decent if a bit budget.)

(EDIT 2: Also the adaptation of Neverwhere, which was also pretty budget. Ah the good old days.)

Took me a second to realize that my username there was not a mention of me 

Yes well, you're decent, if a bit budget.

Glad you liked season 1 of Sandman! I know what you mean about the side stories in the bonus episode. They did a fantastic job in adapting them and I'm glad they did because they do add to the world building and characterisation, but having them simply as episode 11 is probably a little jarring for people watching now for the first time! Made more sense for those of us who had already watched the season proper by the time they added the extra episode.

[ZirconBlue]

And I checked some comics here and there but I never really read the stories so I don't know how faithful the adaptation was.

The show is very faithful to the comics.  Lots of minor changes to update to modern day and for a few other reasons, but the basic story and the feel is very true to the comics.

Overall, I liked it quite a lot, maybe it didn't give me a "Sandman frenzy" (not  sure I'm gonna check the comics now) but it was very, very well done and I'll definitively be returning for season 2.

The volumes covered so far are possibly the weakest part of the run, especially the first half.  It took Gaiman a while to really get fully comfortable with the world and characters he was building.

I read something about Tom Ellis' Lucifer being in the same universe, but I think it was a good choice to not use him even if they could, this Lucifer is way too menacing and angry to be portrayed by Tom Ellis' version of Lucifer.

The Lucifer tv series was based on the comics that spun off from Sandman, but they took the story and characters in wildly different direction.  Turning the series into a police procedural sounded like madness when it was announced, but I actually did end up really liking the show, even if it bore little resemblance to the comics.  That Lucifer definitely would not have fit in the Sandman series, though.

My favorite episode was Death's one - the merging of the storylines of Death visiting people and then Dream making friends with the immortal was very lovely. It made me wonder how in this day and age he would manage to fake his death every 40-50 years, it was easier in the middle ages  but overall an amazing storylines.

So basically we got 10 "real" episodes, and the eleventh one was.... just because? I mean, I liked the cat story and the Calliope one, but they felt like an unnecessary encore to a 10 episodes season. Anyway, they were good so who cares, more content is appreciated!

In the comics there a several longer story arcs (we got 2 of them in the first season) interspersed with various one shot (single issue) stories.  Episode 11 was basically 2 of those one-shots from early in the series.  As ariich mentioned, that episode was released later than the original 10, so more of a "bonus" episode.  I expect we'll continue to see more of those dropped in as the series progresses. 

[MirrorMask]

Thanks for the insight let's look forward then to an even stronger season 2!

[Nick]

We recently watched through this with no prior knowledge of the source material.

There were certain jumps and things that I found a little odd, but overall I loved the story and thought it was very beautifully presented.

Of course Dream being imprisoned for a century invoked only a fraction of the hate that the husband in the mini-episode of the finale did.