"Wake up, sir. We're here." It's a simple enough opening line--although not many would have guessed back in 1991 that this would lead to one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comics of the second half of the century.
In Preludes and Nocturnes, Neil Gaiman weaves the story of a man interested in capturing the physical manifestation of Death but who instead captures the King of Dreams. By Gaiman's own admission there's a lot in this first collection that is awkward and ungainly--which is not to say there are not frequent moments of greatness here. The chapter "24 Hours" is worth the price of the book alone; it stands as one of the most chilling examples of horror in comics. And let's not underestimate Gaiman's achievement of personifying Death as a perky, overly cheery, cute goth girl! All in all, I greatly prefer the roguish breaking of new ground in this book to the often dull precision of the concluding volumes of the Sandman series. --Jim Pascoe
Having read Gaiman's American Gods I was ready to be impressed. After being urged to read Sandman-one I know I willbe reading the rest of the comic series. Gaiman uses words to enhance the story not just leaning on the artwork to advance the story. The artwork works on many levels and is so striking that it forces the reader to slow down the reading process, thus making the reader think more about the story. Fantastic work by a great master of this medium. Why has the Matrix made the big screen and Sandman has not?
