B Singleton

This is a beautiful adaptation of the comic series, and I am absolutely hoping for and looking forward to a season two. I am grateful that Mr. Gaiman has gotten to take the time to create this masterpiece of a first season, and that this is the adaption that made it onto screens. It has been worth the wait. For anyone new to the series, this is a very good place to start as it starts from the very beginning. The actors are well chosen and go above and beyond in their roles: each ones breathes new life into the narrative carrying this wonderful story into the current age and into working memory. The production quality and visuals are stunning. The gates of horn and ivory will give you goosebumps along with many of the other shots of the Dreaming and other locations. For readers of the comic, there are absolutely shots that were lifted straight from the panels. The story itself hits all of the beats of the comics. When speaking languages, they say that a good translation is not a literal, word-for-word translation, but one localized to the target language. The same is very much true switching between mediums: comics to TV series. Not everything from the comics makes it into the show: that is okay. The plot, spirit, and message is still The Sandman. In some cases, the changes made from comic to TV series fixed pacing from the original or clarified the plot a bit more. Changes in some character relationships gave the characters themselves more meaning and made for more impactful interactions overall because, while those characters never met in the comic, they met and forged relationships in the show. At the very least, the changes added new angles to the narrative. In other cases, graphic (read: gory) scenes from the comic felt balanced between mindfully retaining the horror of those scenes, while still not crossing into slasher/torture porn gratuity. None of the changes, when it really came down to it, affected the main message the comic was also trying to deliver, nor did they divert the story so much that the ends reached were not the same as in the comics. Each of the many plot lines was laid with intention, and at the end, they all tied up with satisfying conclusion and a teaser for what’s to come. If asked if there was anything I desired? It would be season two. To all reading, enjoy the show