The Sandman Universe
GenreDark fantasy
Publisher
StartmoAugust
Startyr2018
Endyr2024
Main char team

The Sandman Universe is a line of American comic books published by DC Comics under its imprints DC Vertigo and DC Black Label. The line launched to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman (1989–1996) and Vertigo's 25th anniversary. The Sandman Universe began in August 2018, with a titular one-shot, which was followed by four ongoing series—House of Whispers, Lucifer, Books of Magic, and The Dreaming. Each comic is overseen by Gaiman but written by new creative teams.

Conception and development

The Sandman Universe celebrates the 30th anniversary of DC Comics' The Sandman[1] and the 25th anniversary of the launch of the DC Vertigo imprint. The line was conceived and is overseen by the series' creator, Neil Gaiman, but produced by new creative teams. The Sandman Universe expands The Sandman's part of the DC Universe[2] using new characters and concepts.[3] The line was announced by Entertainment Weekly in March 2018 and was accompanied by a trailer featuring Gaiman. It launched with the one-shot The Sandman Universe #1 on August 8, 2018, with the other series following on later dates.[3]

When asked why he returned to The Sandman, Gaiman said he began to feel guilty that almost no one had been able to return to the series since its conclusion and liked the idea of reviving it, as well as letting new writers play with his "toys". Gaiman assembled the writing team for the line with the Vertigo editorial team. Both parties suggested writers who they thought would be good for new Sandman stories. Samples by writers were then read by Gaiman, who decided whether or not they were proficient. Choosing writers also involved deciding which comic suited which writer best. Gaiman cited Nalo Hopkinson's science fiction work as an influence for assigning her to House of Whispers. Gaiman chose Kat Howard, who he has worked with for several years, to reboot The Books of Magic because of her handling of magic in her stories, and Dan Watters to write Lucifer because he was up to the challenge of recreating the character.[3]

Titles

The Sandman Universe began with a titular one-shot released in August 2018. It picks up after the events of DC's 2017–2018 Dark Nights: Metal crossover event. Dream has disappeared since the conclusion of Metal,[4] leading to chaos in his homeland of the Dreaming. Each Sandman Universe series follows a story thread introduced in the one-shot.[1][3][2]

TitleIssuesWriter(s)Artist(s)Publication dateFormat
Year One
The Sandman Universe
  1. 1
Simon Spurrier, Kat Howard, Nalo Hopkinson, Dan WattersBilquis Evely, Tom Fowler, Dominike Stanton, Max Fiumara, Sebastian Fiumara2018-08One-shot
The Dreaming
  1. 1–20
Simon SpurrierBilquis Evely2018-09 – 2020-04Monthly ongoing
House of Whispers
  1. 1–22
Nalo Hopkinson, Dan WattersDominike Stanton2018-09 – 2020-06Monthly ongoing
Lucifer
  1. 1–24[a]
Dan WattersMax Fiumara and Sebastian Fiumara2018-10 – 2020-03Monthly ongoing
Books of Magic
  1. 1–23
Kat Howard, David BarnettTom Fowler2018-10 – 2020-09Monthly ongoing
Year Two
The Sandman Universe Presents: Hellblazer
  1. 1
Simon SpurrierMarcio Takara2019-10One-shot
John Constantine, Hellblazer
  1. 1–12
Aaron Campbell2019-11 – 2020-11Monthly ongoing
Year Three
The Dreaming: Waking Hours
  1. 1–12
G. Willow WilsonNick Robles2020-05 – 2021-08Limited series
Locke & Key: Hell & Gone[b]
  1. 0–2
Joe HillGabriel Rodriguez2020-12 – 2021-09Limited series
Year Four
Nightmare Country
  1. 1–6
James Tynion IVLisandro Estherren2022-04-12 – 2022-09-27Limited Series[5]
Dead Boy Detectives
  1. 1–6
Pornsak PichetshoteJeff Stokley2022-12-27 – 2023-05-24Limited Series
Year Five
Nightmare Country: The Glass House
  1. 1–6
James Tynion IVLisandro Estherren2023-04-04 – December 26, 2023Limited Series[6]
The Sandman Universe Special: Thessaly
  1. 1
Maria Llovet, Reiko MurakamiAugust 1, 2023One-shot
Year Six
John Constantine, Hellblazer: Dead in America
  1. 1–11
Simon SpurrierAaron Campbell2024-01 – December 2024Limited Series
  1. ^ Issues #19–24 were published only as a collected edition, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]
  2. ^ A crossover with Locke & Key by IDW Publishing.

Collected editions

TitleMaterial collectedFormatPublication dateISBN
The Dreaming
Vol. 1: Pathways and EmanationsThe Dreaming #1–6; The Sandman Universe #1TP2019-06-05ISBN 978-1401291174
Vol. 2: Empty ShellsThe Dreaming #7–122020-01-08ISBN 978-1401295639
Vol. 3: One Magical MovementThe Dreaming #13–202020-07-08ISBN 978-1779502834
House of Whispers
Vol. 1: The Power DividedHouse of Whispers #1–6; The Sandman Universe #1TP2019-07-24ISBN 978-1401291358
Vol. 2: AnanseHouse of Whispers #7–122020-02-19ISBN 978-1401299170
Vol. 3: Watching the WatchersHouse of Whispers #13–222020-10-27ISBN 978-1779504319
Lucifer
Vol. 1: The Infernal ComedyLucifer #1–6; The Sandman Universe #1TP2019-06-19ISBN 978-1401291334
Vol. 2: The Divine TragedyLucifer #7–132020-01-22ISBN 978-1401295721
Vol. 3: The Wild HuntLucifer #14–192020-07-28ISBN 978-1779502353
Vol. 4: The Devil at HeartLucifer #20–242021-02-02ISBN 978-1779507556
Books of Magic
Vol. 1: Moveable TypeBooks of Magic #1–6; The Sandman Universe #1TP2019-07-10ISBN 978-1401291341
Vol. 2: Second QuartoBooks of Magic #7–132020-02-05ISBN 978-1401299040
Vol. 3: Dwelling in PossibilityBooks of Magic #14–232021-02-16ISBN 978-1779503008
John Constantine, Hellblazer
Vol. 1: Marks of WoeThe Sandman Universe Presents: Hellblazer #1; John Constantine, Hellblazer #1–6; Books of Magic #14TP2020-09-29ISBN 978-1779502896
Vol. 2: The Best Version of YouJohn Constantine, Hellblazer #7–122021-03-30ISBN 978-1779509536
The Dreaming: Waking Hours
The Dreaming: Waking Hours TPThe Dreaming: Waking Hours #1–12TP2021-11-16ISBN 978-1779512734
Locke & Key: Hell & Gone
Locke & Key: The Golden AgeSmall World #1; Guide to the Know Keys #1; "Face the Music"; ...In Pale Battalions Go... #1–3; Hell & Gone #1–2HC2022-04-26ISBN 978-1684057856
Nightmare Country
Vol. 1Nightmare Country #1–6TP2023-04-04ISBN 978-1779518415[7]
Dead Boy Detectives
Vol. 1Dead Boy Detectives #1–6TP2023-11-07ISBN 978-1779523297

Reception

According to the review aggregator Comic Book Roundup, the line has an average rating of 8.9/10 based on 20 reviews.[8]

References

  1. ^ Bishop, Bryan (March 1, 2018). "Neil Gaiman is turning The Sandman into an expanded comics universe". The Verge
  2. ^ Polo, Susana (March 1, 2018). "The Sandman Universe is Neil Gaiman's next comics project". Polygon
  3. ^ Holub, Christian (March 1, 2018). "Neil Gaiman announces new Sandman Universe line of comics — exclusive". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  4. ^ Shiach, Kieran (August 10, 2018). "How Doomsday Clock & Dark Nights: Metal Affect The New Sandman Universe". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  5. ^ Kit, Borys (January 18, 2022). "New Sandman Universe Comic to Be Written by James Tynion IV (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
  6. ^ Puc, Samantha (November 10, 2022). "The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country returns next year with The Glass House". Newsarama. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  7. ^ "The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country (2023)". Comicscored.com. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  8. ^ "The Sandman Universe Comic Series Reviews". Comic Book Roundup. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
  9. ^ Dominguez, Noah (30 May 2020). "DC Cancels Lucifer, Will Release Final Issues as Collected Edition". CBR.com

Further reading