The Dark History Of The Sandman

One of the most universally acclaimed and highly influential comic book series of all time is "The Sandman," created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg in 1989. Published by DC Comics, the dark fantasy series featured ambitious world-building and incorporated groundbreakingly mature subject matter for a mainstream publisher within the comic book medium. Inspiring a line of spinoffs and earning a growing fanbase, "The Sandman" has since been adapted into a well-received television series produced by Netflix, with Gaiman as a writer and executive producer.

"The Sandman" follows the tale of Morpheus, the living embodiment of Dreams, within a group of mythical beings known simply as the Endless, linked tangentially to the DC Universe. The Endless personify aspects of sentient life, including Death, Desire, and Delirium, as they navigate their complicated relationships with each other and humanity across millennia. Though Morpheus is the seemingly noble protagonist of Gaiman's story, here's a look at the darker elements of the character's history and inspirations across the sweeping fantasy story.

Though the Endless are unaffected by the ravages of time and possess a significantly greater degree of endurance than humans, they are not completely invulnerable, still prone to being killed by external measures. The first of the Endless to die is Despair, who perishes approximately 100 millennia before the events of the main story in the 20th century. In the immediate aftermath of Despair's death, the surviving Endless unleash their wrath on an ancient city that refuses to honor its funerary agreement with the demigod.

A flashback to this time period in "The Sandman" #55 — by Gaiman, Shea Anton Pensa, and Bryan Talbot — has the Endless attempt to inter their late sibling into the necropolis of the city of Litharge. When the city refuses to give Despair a proper burial within its tombs, Dream and his siblings within the Endless renounce their protection over Litharge, causing its total destruction. With the Endless maintaining a detached regard for human life, the razing of Litharge showcases them at their most furiously genocidal should they become offended.

Morpheus has several notable love interests over the course of his long life, but the one that visibly haunts him the most is Nada, an African princess who lived 10 millennia before the 20th century. Falling in love with Nada, Morpheus takes on the physical form of a man she refers to as Kai'ckul, and the two embark on a torrid romance in "The Sandman" #9. However, a love affair between one of the Endless and a mortal comes at a steep price, with this illicit relationship ending in tragedy and heartbreak.

After Kai'ckul and Nada's romance is consummated, the Sun obliterates Nada's kingdom in retribution for this forbidden love taking place, reducing it to glass. When a distraught Nada discovers what has become of her home, she kills herself out of guilt and shame, leaving Dream to approach her in the afterlife. Immensely regretful of what she caused, Nada spurns Dream's romantic overtures to continue their love in the Dreaming, resulting in him condemning her to eternal torment in Hell over his wounded pride.

Without his father's support, Orpheus' life further descends into tragedy, with the mythological figure losing the will to live after failing to recover Eurydice during a botched visit to the underworld. Sometime later, Orpheus is torn to pieces by the Maenads but, because of his previous journey to the underworld, this incident doesn't kill him as he survives in a tortured existence as a severed head. For millennia, Morpheus does nothing to alleviate his son's suffering, still resentful that Orpheus would dare reject to recognize him as his father.

In "The Sandman" #29 by Gaiman, Stan Woch, and Dick Giordano, Morpheus tasks Lady Johanna Constantine in recovering Orpheus' head during the height of the French Revolution in 1799. While keeping Orpheus alive, Morpheus has his son's head relocated to the remote island of Naxos and cared for by an order of priests. Though the father and son remain estranged, the incident demonstrates how much Morpheus tacitly cares about Orpheus while refusing to play a more active role in his affairs.

Morpheus not only creates and inspires good dreams among all sentient beings, but also their most terrifying nightmares, drawn from the subjects' subconscious. The most murderous nightmare of all is the Corinthian, a charming mass murderer with ravenous mouths for eyes (and an appetite for others' eyes). Created by Gaiman and Dringenberg in "The Sandman" #10, the Corinthian left a bloody trail behind him after escaping from the Dreaming after Morpheus was imprisoned in the early 20th century.

In the interim period, before Morpheus frees himself decades later, the Corinthian's exploits are revealed to have inspired generations of serial killers to follow in his footsteps. When the Corinthian makes his presence known to a gathering of notorious murderers, he is revered by them as the most influential figure among them. In creating the Corinthian, Morpheus was attempting to create a dark mirror for humanity's impulses. Upon his escape into the waking world, this nightmare inspired unspeakable evil before Morpheus intervened and destroyed his own creation.

Morpheus takes on many lovers across his life, from mortal women to mythical demigoddesses, almost always ending in tragedy and disaster for those around them. Morpheus' last romance seen in the comic book series is no different as the Lord of Dreams becomes involved with an ancient, ageless witch named Thessaly. Introduced in "The Sandman" #32 by Gaiman and Shawn McManus, Thessaly has taken up residence in an unassuming apartment building in New York City by the late 20th century where she eventually encounters Morpheus.

After nearly being killed by one of Morpheus' malevolent creations, Thessaly enters the Dreaming by using the Moon, leading to disastrous consequences back on Earth in the interim. Impressed by Thessaly, Morpheus offers to return her and her friends back home, but the magic involved inadvertently destroys their apartment and kills their friend Wanda. Morpheus and Thessaly would try to continue a serious romance but, with Thessaly not as serious about the relationship, she would break things off, sending Morpheus spiraling.

Apart from the malicious nightmares, not all innocent extensions of the Dreaming are stable, with some powerful enough to destroy all of reality if left erratic and unchecked. Morpheus refers to these entities as dream vortices and, because of the threat that they pose to the waking world, he has been forced to track them down and execute them as soon as their existence becomes known to him. Age and agency make no difference to Morpheus as he moves swiftly to eliminate these vortices before they can grow out of control.

"The Sandman" #15 by Gaiman, Dringenberg, and Kieth introduces teenage vortex Rose Walker, the secret daughter of Desire, effectively making her Dream's niece. Though Morpheus moves to kill her, Rose's grandmother Unity Kincaid takes on the vortex qualities moments before she dies of natural causes to save her granddaughter and avert catastrophe. This incident demonstrates just how mercilessly lethal Morpheus can be in his duties, even when confronted by an innocent child as his potential target.

The story of "The Sandman" does not end with the death of Morpheus, but lives on as the mantle of Dream is passed to the young man Daniel Hall, who is born at the comic book series' start. However, Daniel's importance to the Endless does not go unnoticed and he is targeted by the Norse God of Mischief, Loki, and the malevolent fairy, Puck. After learning that Loki and Puck have kidnapped Daniel, Morpheus undergoes drastic measures to rescue his successor by rebuilding his worst nightmare, the Corinthian.

Morpheus reconstructs a new Corinthian who is no less lethal and monstrous than the prior iteration that escaped from the Dreaming during Morpheus' imprisonment. The Corinthian successfully rescues Daniel, killing Loki in the process and eating the trickster's eyes as part of his unnatural hunger. The adventures of the new Corinthian have been explored in comics set after Gaiman's story, with the nightmare adding to his own body count as a murderous loose end left behind by Morpheus.