The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes
Book Review: A good beginning
Summary: 4 Stars
So...we have dream, who has been held captive for about 60 years. We meet death, a punky, cute teenage girl. Dream seems quite appropriate, the younger brother of the nameless. I've heard so many good things about the series I decided to start it. I'm pumped for the rest and the artwork really is terrific and Gaiman's ideas are stunning. What a fabulous writer (see American Gods). Book Review: Awesome as usual
Summary: 5 Stars
Nothing beats Gaiman's 'Sandman' in the graphic novel world. Read it. Love it.Book Review: Dark. Creative. Absorbing.
Summary: 3 Stars
I had no previous exposure to Sandman and little to graphic novels when I picked this up on my brother's recommendation and didn't put it down again until I turned the last page. The story, in brief, is that an old magician seeks to trap the personification of death and accidentally captures another eternal being instead: Dream. Dream eventually escapes and seeks to regain the tools of his trade, taken from him in captivity. In the process, he must challenge a number of unsavory characters.
The art is good, and the dialogue is easier to follow than some graphic novels because Dream's dialogue bubbles are in a different color from everyone else's. Gaiman introduces all sorts of clever ideas: we meet Cain and Abel, werewolf-like brothers who live in a house where Cain occasionally kills Abel, who always manages to crawl back; Martian Manhunter, a superhero member of the Justice League; and Lucifer, who no longer rules Hell on his own but in committee with two partners.
Dream's quest for his tools and his position provide a canvas on which Gaiman paints depravity, mercy, disillusionment, and a host of other virtues, vices, and experiences. Every page intrigues.
[Cautionary note: This graphic novel has brief nudity, some violence, and several gross-looking characters.]
Book Review: Not the best of sandman but better than the rest
Summary: 5 Stars
This is not the best title in the sandman series (I am a fan of three and four) but when compared to other comics and TPB's it really stands out. The last chapter is must read for the series, introducing the character of death..buy this book!Book Review: Start of a wonderful voyage
Summary: 5 Stars
Many of you out there, who have grown with comic-books, remember "good ol' days" of linear storytelling and straight-forward art, without much complications. All it mattered was, whether the hero will save the world (and almost always he would), and will he get the girl in the end (well, this one was a bit unpredictable). But then some day, we woke up, and found things changed. There were no conventional heroes anymore. Stories needed great ammount of knowledge that you had to acquire sometimes earlier. If ou didn't, you would find yourself forever lagging behind, whilst comic book universes moved with great spead to some distant and unkonwn future.
And this was good.
Finally, something happened, that pulled comics from pulp-fiction and five cents fun that lasted for one afternoon, destined to be never looked upon again. Or is it that we just grew up? I cannot tell for sure, and I doubt that any of you can. But, new form of art emerged and we had to deal with that.
Now, that being said, if you are new to world of comic books, Sandman series isn't the one you should begin with. It's complexity, strange perspectives and editing of slides tends to divert people that throw a casual glance on printed papers. When you see something that shows itself as total chaos, somehow you doub't the whole "artistic value".
To really enjoy Sandman, you'll have to be able to drown yourself into a world so utterly stragne but yet so close to this one in which our lives are lead. You'll have to use your head and imagination (and finally, the knowledge) to fill in the gaps in storytelling that are left unfilled on purpose. This can be tiresome to someone not used to (or used to much) to conventional storytelling in comic books. But, that trouble is worth it's gains.
So if you are still interested, you'll be entering the world of Dream, world of Morpheus which suffered destruction and needs rebuilding... And just when you get yourself hooked on story and characters, book will be finished (with the apperance of Death) and you'll find yourself wanting more...
And, as they said somewhere before - "resistance is futile"