The Sandman (DC Comics Modern Age)

The Sandman was a comic book series written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics for 75 issues from 1988 until 1996. It became the flagship of DC's Vertigo imprint, and is kept in print as a series of ten graphic novels. It is widely considered one of the most original, sophisticated and artistically ambitious comic book series of the modern age. By the time the series had concluded, it had made significant contributions to the artistic maturity of comic books and had become a pop culture phenomenon in its own right.

Impact

The Sandman was one of the most widely respected comic book series of its time, finding recognition not only within the comic book industry but in the general literary world. A few years prior to Sandman, works such as Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, ' by Frank Miller, and Maus by Art Spiegelman conferred a new respectability on comics, but no unlimited series has ever gained as much acclaim as Sandman. This helped support the notion that comic books could be high-quality literature or art even in a long-running series with no preset number of issues (i.e., the format comic books are usually published in).

Related Topics:
Watchmen - Alan Moore - Dave Gibbons - Frank Miller - Maus - Art Spiegelman

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The Sandman also demonstrated that a comic book series does not have to be a superhero series to be successful. Along with Alan Moore?s Swamp Thing stories, Sandman helped establish "sophisticated suspense," a genre which is meant for older readers, includes elements of horror and fantasy, and tackles controversial topics. In 1993, the success of Sandman inspired DC comics to launch the Vertigo imprint, which specialized in this genre and published some of the most acclaimed series of the 1990s, including Preacher and Animal Man.

Related Topics:
Swamp Thing - Sophisticated suspense - Vertigo - 1990s - Preacher - Animal Man

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The Sandman also strengthened the importance of the writer in comic books. Before Sandman, writers were often overshadowed by superstar artists such as Todd McFarlane and Jim Lee. Gaiman became one of the most popular comic book creators of the era (launching his career as a novelist), and DC did not dare to continue The Sandman after he felt the series had come to a suitable conclusion. Almost universally, popular, corporate-owned comic book series continue long after the original creators have left (which may be decades for especially popular series).

Related Topics:
Todd McFarlane - Jim Lee

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Sandman also helped popularize individual typescripts for the word balloons of certain characters, a technique that had been used in Cerebus the Aardvark and scattered other places. Gaiman particularly used unique styles for the Endless, such as Morpheus? word balloons being black and irregular with white lettering and Delirium?s being irregular, abstract and multi-colored.

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In addition to its impact on comic books, The Sandman has had a significant influence on pop culture. The series was mentioned in songs by Tori Amos, Alice Cooper and others, Sandman posters can be seen in the background of the sitcom Roseanne, and Extreme Championship Wrestling star Raven is fond of wearing Sandman T-shirts. Dave Sim parodied the characters (Dream became "Swoon", Death "Snuff" and so on) in his Cerebus the Aardvark. Sam Kieth also parodied the character Death and Sandman fans in his comic, The Maxx.

Related Topics:
Pop culture - Alice Cooper - Roseanne - Extreme Championship Wrestling - Raven - Dave Sim - Cerebus the Aardvark - Sam Kieth - The Maxx

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Sandman has also gained a decent amount of attention outside the comics world among other subcultures.

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Because of its dark, often macabre style and pale-skinned characters, Sandman has become very popular within the goth subculture.

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Occasional covers and work with Japanese artist Yoshitaka Amano has brought the title to the attention of fans of Japanese art and pop culture, as well as videogame fans familiar with Amano's work through the Final Fantasy series, as well as other game and anime projects he has contributed too.

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