‘The Sandman: Season 1’ Review (Netflix)
When a magician traps The Sandman (Tom Sturridge), our world and the world of dreams suffer. When he finally manages to escape, he has to collect his reclaim his tools of power and regain control. With some nightmares missing, it is the Corinthian (Boyd Holbrook) who fights to stay free from the kingdom of dreams and The Sandman’s control.
There is something about the writing of Neil Gaiman that sends you off to fantasy worlds that feel truly original. The Sandman is one of his most famous pieces and has finally made it to the screen in the form of a Netflix series. The question is, does the show live up to the hype?
I guess I should state in this review that I’ve not read The Sandman so came into this completely cold. What I will say though is that the show left me wanting to read it, and learn more about the world. There is so much to learn about the world that is created in The Sandman that this first season cannot provide all of the answers, though it does introduce many things.
One thing that the show is very good at is the story telling. Between The Sandman and his family, with the highlight of these being Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) we are given a history of The Sandman that creates a full and fleshed-out character, even if he is a bit of an asshole at times.
One of the other highlights is The Corinthian himself, the sun-glass wearing, charismatic killer who fits the very thing that he is, a nightmare. He, along with the other nightmares that are loose and have to be found often come across as more likeable than The Sandman himself, even if The Corinthian should be somewhat of a hated character. His charisma makes it hard to not like him though and even feel a little sympathy for his plight.
While it is fair to say that The Sandman does struggle in the second half of the season, it is still a strong show with a very good cast who never let the audience down with their performances. The Sandman feels unique and shows some real warmth where it matters, to make the characters likeable and keep the audience interested. It also has some real heart-string-pulling moments with payoffs that are worth the viewing.
After watching the first season of The Sandman you’ll be left wanting more because the fact is there is so much more to it. This feels like an introduction to the world of dreams and nightmares, and there are hints of so much more to come. Hopefully, the show will continue the quality we see here, and maybe even raise to even higher heights. This is a very good start to hopefully a very good show.
The Sandman is available on Netflix now.
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