TCCDM Dig & Flip: "The Sandman Overture" - Neil Gaiman and J.H.Williams III (2015)

The Sandman Overture (Deluxe Edition)
by Neil Gaiman (writer), J.H.Williams III (artist) 
DC Vertigo 2015
Hardcover, 224 pages

NO SPOILERS:
     When I was introduced to Neil Gaiman's Sandman series, it felt like I was almost getting a glimpse behind the curtain.  The mystical hidden machine.  The story was just too smart, too magical, too dangerous.  And still, to this day, I've yet to meet a more beautifully dysfunctional family than the Endless Family.  Dream and his six siblings...Destiny, Death, Destruction, Despair, Desire, and Delight/Delirium are each a mind-blow and a conundrum.  The other characters that populate this epic telling are a puzzle, too.  The ten-volume graphic novel is this and much more.  Each panel meant to be read and relished.  Mythology dipped in sci-fi and heavily dusted from the brittle pages of ancient folklore.  It's all a mental treat.

The Sandman Overture (inside)

     With that winded preface aside, The Sandman Overture, released 17 years after the series was completed, is a mind-blowing experience, too.  This graphic novel is a stand-alone prequel and explains what Dream dealt with right before the original series took off.  More than anything, this graphic novel displays the amazing osmosis between writer and artist.  The meshing of story and art is jaw-dropping with both talents holding up their ends.  A newcomer will certainly enjoy the story.  However, even though this is a prequel, the pleasure will be more tangible if one dives into this epic series with both feet.  Start with The Sandman Volume 1-10 and then savor The Sandman Overture.  It's a win-win either way, but the payoff is a bigger Easter egg from Neil Gaiman if you wait.  But hey, don't shoot the messenger.  Highly recommended.

"#9 Dream" - John Lennon / "Walls and Bridges" (1974)

Good stuff.

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