The Sandman: Overture

Sandman was my gateway drug into comics. I already loved Gaiman's novels and wanted to read everything I could get my hands on, which meant looking at a medium that had not held too much interest for me previously. I think I'd be a different person today if I hadn't read it.

That said, if you're holding Overture in your hands, you've probably read Sandman too, and you're probably wondering if going back to that world so many years later is a good thing. I don't think I can answer that. It was for me, even with new artists and new themes. It has Morpheus and the gang. It has experimental visuals that recall the original while forging new grounds. It has answers to questions I've always wondered about. And it has cats. I love when Gaiman writes cats.

So, I think the answer is yes, it's a good thing. I'm sure it was challenging for the original production members involved, and I'm glad they did so. While I picked up the floppies as they came out, the Deluxe version has tons of extras about the process which is fun if you're interested in that sort of thing. As someone who tends to read comics too fast, these interviews and articles were a good place to make me slow down and observe the subtler bits of magic.

If you like Sandman, you should read this. That's about the sum.