The Sandman: The Kindly Ones

Last updated
The Sandman: The Kindly Ones
Kindly Ones.jpg
Cover of The Sandman: The Kindly Ones (1996), trade paperback collected edition, art by Dave McKean
Publisher DC Comics
Publication dateThe Sandman
February 1994 - July 1995
Vertigo Jam
August 1993
Title(s) The Sandman #57-69
Vertigo Jam #1
Main character(s) Dream
ISBN ISBN   1-56389-204-9
Creative team
Writer(s) Neil Gaiman
Artist(s) Dave McKean
Kevin Nowlan
Marc Hempel
Glyn Dillon
Charles Vess
Dean Ormston
Teddy Kristiansen
Richard Case
Penciller(s) Kevin Nowlan
Marc Hempel
Glyn Dillon
Charles Vess
Dean Ormston
Teddy Kristiansen
Richard Case
Inker(s) Kevin Nowlan
Marc Hempel
D'Israeli
Glyn Dillon
Charles Vess
Teddy Kristiansen
Richard Case
Letterer(s) Todd Klein
Kevin Nowlan
Colorist(s) Daniel Vozzo
Editor(s) Karen Berger
Shelly Roeberg

The Kindly Ones (1996) is the ninth collection of issues in the DC Comics series, The Sandman . Written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Marc Hempel, Richard Case, D'Israeli, Teddy Kristiansen, Glyn Dillon, Charles Vess, Dean Ormston and Kevin Nowlan, coloured by Daniel Vozzo, and lettered by Todd Klein.The volume features an introduction by Frank McConnell. [1]

Contents

The issues in the collection first appeared in 1993, 1994 and 1995. The collection first appeared in paperback and hardback in 1996.

Marc Hempel is the primary penciller, inked variously by himself, D'Israeli and Richard Case. He is relieved at different points in the story by Teddy Kristiansen, Glyn Dillon and Dean Ormston, and Charles Vess draws a story within a story sequence. Kevin Nowlan draws a short story which originally appeared in a Vertigo promo book.

It was preceded by Worlds' End and followed by The Wake .

Synopsis

The Kindly Ones belongs with the second collection, The Doll's House , and the seventh, Brief Lives , in that it finishes off a story that mostly originated in these collections; but includes elements of Season of Mists and the story of Orpheus, told mostly in Fables and Reflections . A character from A Game of You , which also has its roots in The Doll's House, also appears. The most structurally ambitious of the collections, The Kindly Ones is a single storyline written as a Greek tragedy, with Morpheus as its doomed hero and an aspect of the triad of witches, the Erinyes, as the Greek chorus. It pulls together various threads left dangling throughout the series, notably the grudges against Morpheus of several characters: Hippolyta Hall; the witches themselves; the Norse god Loki; and the witch Thessaly. The Kindly Ones also continues several other stories, including that of Cluracan of Faerie and his sister Nuala; that of the Corinthian; and that of Rose Walker and her former landlord Hal.

After Daniel is kidnapped by Loki and Robin Goodfellow, his mother Lyta convinces herself that Morpheus has killed him and resolves to destroy Morpheus where she finally persuades the Erinyes to do so. In many places, Lyta is depicted as Medusa, and even encounters Medusa's two sisters, Stheno and Euryale. Unbeknownst to Lyta, Daniel is recovered alive and well by Morpheus' servants, the raven Matthew and a restored Corinthian who does not act like his predecessor. In a misunderstanding of tragic proportions, the Erinyes continually accuse Morpheus of having killed his son where they also kill Mervyn Pumpkinhead, Fiddler's Green, Abel, and the Griffin member of the Gate Keepers. While this is not true in Daniel's case, it is true in the case of Orpheus which weighs on Morpheus greatly. At length, Morpheus yields to the Erinyes and the main story ends with Morpheus and his sister Death on a desolate peak with a flock of pigeons; echoing a sequence from one of the series' early high points, "The Sound of her Wings" (issue #8). Death asks for Morpheus' hand, and he disappears. Immediately upon the death of Morpheus, Daniel becomes a new aspect of Dream, with white clothes and hair, and an emerald suspended on his neck and chest.

Issues collected

IssueTitleWriterPencillerInkerColoristLettererAst EditorEditor
Vertigo Jam #1The CastleNeil GaimanKevin NowlanKevin NowlanDaniel VozzoKevin NowlanShelly RoebergKaren Berger
57The Kindly Ones - 1Neil GaimanMarc HempelMarc HempelDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
58The Kindly Ones - 2Neil GaimanMarc HempelD'IsraeliDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
59The Kindly Ones - 3Neil GaimanMarc HempelD'IsraeliDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
60The Kindly Ones - 4Neil GaimanMarc HempelD'IsraeliDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
61The Kindly Ones - 5Neil GaimanMarc HempelMarc Hempel / D'IsraeliDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
62The Kindly Ones - 6Neil GaimanGlyn Dillon / Charles Vess / Dean OrmstonGlyn Dillon / Charles Vess / D'IsraeliDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
63The Kindly Ones - 7Neil GaimanMarc HempelMarc HempelDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
64The Kindly Ones - 8Neil GaimanTeddy KristiansenTeddy KristiansenDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
65The Kindly Ones - 9Neil GaimanMarc HempelRichard CaseDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
66The Kindly Ones - 10Neil GaimanMarc HempelRichard CaseDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
67The Kindly Ones - 11Neil GaimanMarc HempelRichard CaseDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
68The Kindly Ones - 12Neil GaimanMarc Hempel / Richard CaseRichard CaseDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger
69The Kindly Ones - 13Neil GaimanMarc HempelMarc HempelDaniel VozzoTodd KleinShelly RoebergKaren Berger

Reception

Steve Faragher reviewed Sandman: The Kindly Ones for Arcane magazine, rating it a 9 out of 10 overall. [2] Faragher comments that "This is still one of the greatest tales ever told in a graphic novel and is essential reading for anyone who wants to try and tell believable and yet fantastical episodic stories. Gaiman is a master of his craft." [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Sandman: Dream Country</i>

Dream Country is the third trade paperback collection of the comic book series The Sandman, published by DC Comics. It collects issues #17–20. It is written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Kelley Jones, Charles Vess, Colleen Doran and Malcolm Jones III, coloured by Robbie Busch and Steve Oliff, and lettered by Todd Klein.

<i>The Sandman: Season of Mists</i> American comic book miniseries

Season of Mists is a 1990–1991 American eight-part comic and the fourth collection of issues in the DC Comics' The Sandman series. It collects issues #21–28. It was written by Neil Gaiman; illustrated by Kelley Jones, Mike Dringenberg, Malcolm Jones III, Matt Wagner, Dick Giordano, George Pratt, and P. Craig Russell; coloured by Steve Oliff and Daniel Vozzo; and lettered by Todd Klein.

<i>The Sandman: A Game of You</i> Collection of graphic novel

A Game of You (1993) is the fifth collection of issues in the DC Comics series, The Sandman. Written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Shawn McManus, Colleen Doran, Bryan Talbot, George Pratt, Stan Woch and Dick Giordano, and lettered by Todd Klein. The volume's introduction was written by Samuel R. Delany.

<i>The Sandman: Fables & Reflections</i>

Fables & Reflections (1993) is an American fantasy comic book, the sixth collection of issues in the DC Comics series The Sandman. It was written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Bryan Talbot, Stan Woch, P. Craig Russell, Shawn McManus, John Watkiss, Jill Thompson, Duncan Eagleson, Kent Williams, Mark Buckingham, Vince Locke and Dick Giordano, coloured by Daniel Vozzo and Lovern Kindzierski/Digital Chameleon, and lettered by Todd Klein. The introduction is written by Gene Wolfe.

<i>The Sandman: The Wake</i>

The Wake is the tenth and final collection of issues in the American comic book series The Sandman. It is written by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Michael Zulli, Jon J. Muth and Charles Vess, colored by Daniel Vozzo and Jon J. Muth, and lettered by Todd Klein.

<i>The Sandman</i> (comic book) Graphic novels by Neil Gaiman, 1989–1996

The Sandman is a comic book written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics. Its artists include Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Jill Thompson, Shawn McManus, Marc Hempel, Bryan Talbot, and Michael Zulli, with lettering by Todd Klein and covers by Dave McKean. The original series ran for 75 issues from January 1989 to March 1996. Beginning with issue No. 47, it was placed under DC's Vertigo imprint, and following Vertigo's retirement in 2020, reprints have been published under DC's Black Label imprint.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corinthian (comics)</span> Comics character

The Corinthian is a fictional character in Neil Gaiman's comic book series The Sandman. He first appeared in The Sandman #10, which is part of the second story arc, The Doll's House. The Corinthian is an anthropomorphized living nightmare created by Dream, who destroys him in the same collection for going rogue and failing to fulfill his original design. Dream later recreates him with "some changes", though the exact nature of these changes is not explicit. His most notable physical feature is his lack of eyes: in their place, two rows of small, jagged teeth line each eye socket, which he often covers with sunglasses. He can speak, eat, see, and even breathe through these mouths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vertigo Comics</span> Imprint of comic-book publisher DC Comics

Vertigo Comics was an imprint of American comic book publisher DC Comics started by editor Karen Berger in 1993. Vertigo's purpose was to publish comics with adult content, such as nudity, drug use, profanity, and graphic violence, that did not fit the restrictions of DC's main line, thus allowing more creative freedom. Its titles consisted of company-owned comics set in the DC Universe, such as The Sandman and Hellblazer, and creator-owned works, such as Preacher, Y: The Last Man and Fables.

<i>Sandman</i> (DC Comics) Pseudonym of several DC Comics characters

The Sandman is the pseudonym of several fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. They have appeared in stories of various genres, including the pulp detective character Wesley Dodds, superheroes such as Garrett Sanford and Hector Hall, and mythic fantasy characters more commonly called by the name Dream. Named after the folklore character that is said to bring pleasant dreams to children, each has had some thematic connection to dreaming, and efforts have been made to tie them into a common continuity within the DC Universe.

Hob Gadling, also known as Robert, Robbie, or Bobby, is a fictional character from the Sandman comic book series by Neil Gaiman. Gadling first appears in issue #13, "Men of Good Fortune". A soldier who has recently fought in the Hundred Years' War, Gadling argues with friends about the nature of death in an inn located in what will become modern-day London. He develops significance both as a recurrent character in the series and friend to Dream, appearing in a total of seven issues spanning six hundred years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Vess</span> American fantasy and comics artist

Charles Vess is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau painter Alphonse Mucha, and comic-strip artist Hal Foster, among others. Vess has won several awards for his illustrations. Vess' studio, Green Man Press, is located in Abingdon, VA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">D'Israeli (cartoonist)</span>

Matt Brooker, whose work most often appears under the pseudonym D'Israeli, is a British comic artist, colorist, writer and letterer. Other pseudonyms he uses include "Molly Eyre" for his writing, and "Harry V. Derci"/"Digital Derci" for his lettering work.

Dean Ormston is a British born comic book artist. His most notable work has been for the British comic 2000 AD and for DC Comics' Vertigo imprint.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Gaiman bibliography</span>

This is a list of works by Neil Gaiman.

Glyn Dillon is a British costume designer, as well as a comics and film storyboard and concept artist, best known for his work on the Star Wars films The Force Awakens and Rogue One, designing the batsuit for Matt Reeves' 2022 The Batman ...as well as his 2012 graphic novel The Nao of Brown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Endless (comics)</span> Sandman comic characters

The Endless are a family of cosmic beings who appear in American comic books published by DC Comics. The members of the family are: Death, Delirium, Desire, Despair, Destiny, Destruction and Dream.

<i>The Sandman</i> (TV series) Fantasy drama television series

The Sandman is an American fantasy drama television series based on the 1989–1996 comic book written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics. The series was developed by Gaiman, David S. Goyer, and Allan Heinberg for the streaming service Netflix and is produced by DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television. Like the comic, The Sandman tells the story of Dream / Morpheus, the titular Sandman. The series stars Tom Sturridge as the title character, with Boyd Holbrook, Vivienne Acheampong, and Patton Oswalt in supporting roles.

The Sandman is an audio drama written by Neil Gaiman, directed by Dirk Maggs, with music by James Hannigan, and produced by Audible.

References

  1. "Vertigo" . Retrieved April 14, 2010.
  2. 1 2 Faragher, Steve (May 1996). "The Great Library". Arcane (6). Future Publishing: 82.

Further reading