Not all live-action adaptations show much promise, but Netflix’s upcoming take on Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman does seem to be off to a good start. The first glimpses of the show saw Tom Sturridge in action as protagonist Morpheus / Dream of the Endless, and now, a new trailer unveiled at San Diego Comic-Con has teased a welcome embrace of the macabre.
In the two-and-a-half-minute reel, Morpheus is seen newly-freed from his imprisonment by mortals and in need of restoring his past power. He tracks down a number of sacred magical items and makes a return to the Dreaming, his very own realm where people go to dream, but also has to hunt down escaped nightmares like Corinthian (Boyd Holbrook) with Librarian Lucienne (Vivienne Acheampong), and battle against noted demons like Lucifer (Gwendoline Christie).
While it’s still difficult to tell just how much Dream’s siblings Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) and Desire (Mason Alexander Park) will factor into The Sandman’s core story, it appears that the trailer has perfectly nailed the surreal tone of the original work with a nicely-executed balance of mystery and dread.
The series will consist of 10 episodes, with the first season covering from the first two graphic novels. “What’s been so interesting about Season 1, which is basically the first two graphic novels — ‘Preludes and Nocturnes’ and ‘The Doll’s House’ — is how we keep going back to the comic,” Gaiman, who developed the show and executive produces alongside David Goyer and showrunner Allan Heinberg, said in a promotional interview. “The comic is the place we go for problem solving. When we get ourselves into trouble in the script, we’ll go back and go, ‘Well, what happened in the comic? How was that told?’ And pretty often that will give us the key to get out of trouble.”
The supernatural anthology has lingered in the popular consciousness for more than 30 years, and it’s nice to see it receiving a new lease of life on television. It’s a tall order to expect that it’ll live up to expectations, but everything looks to be on the right track for now, and hopefully that carries over to the whole series.
The Sandman hits Netflix on 5 August 2022, and will feature additional cast that includes Charles Dance as Roderick Burgess, Jenna Coleman as Johanna Constantine, David Thewlis as John Dee, Stephen Fry as Gilbert, and Patton Oswalt as the voice of Matthew the Raven.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
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