It is Sandman part of the DC Universe?
The show, based on the cult-favorite comic written by Neil Gaiman, premieres August 3 on Netflix, and the question of whether it can tie into any of DC’s other current movies and film adaptations may be at the bottom of your mind. mind. .
While we can’t say for sure if the Netflix show will have larger DC connections, the comics do have an answer to the question of whether the Sandman and his characters are part of the larger DC Universe.
The short answer is “Yes, but…”, and as you might guess, the longer answer is not that simple.
Sandman in the DC Universe
When Sandman was first conceived, the story’s main character was initially intended to be an update on an older DC hero of the same name, a legacy character of sorts. But after some creative changes, Morpheus (also known as the eponymous Sandman) was created with a whole new mythology to go along with it.
But at the time of the debut of sandman #1 (opens in a new tab) in 1989, the title was still a solid part of the DC Universe proper, albeit in a small, far-flung corner of its own. The first title arc even included a somewhat humorous appearance by the main Justice League of the time, with Morpheus appearing to J’onn J’onzz as the Martian god of dreams.
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More DC references peppered Sandman’s early years, with the characters of Lyta and Hector Hall (aka superheroes Fury and Silver Scarab) eventually playing key supporting roles in the title.
Similarly, some of the other characters like Destiny of the Endless, Cain and Abel of the House of Mystery, and a few others had roots in long-defunct DC Universe titles and stories. And of course, John Dee aka Dr. Destiny, the villain of one of the most memorable stories from the first Sandman arc, is an old foe of the Justice League.
But in 1993, things changed with the introduction of DC’s now-dormant Vertigo line of comics.
Launched in 1993, DC’s Vertigo line of comics was intended as the de facto new home for the publisher’s titles that included more mature “R-rated” type content, including its trio of flagship titles, swamp thing (opens in a new tab), Infernal (opens in a new tab)and Sandman, all of which were long-running series previously published under the main DC banner.
Sandman moves to Vertigo
With the change to Vertigo, the Sandman and his characters were separated from the core DC Universe, including Lyta and Hector Hall (although they also appeared in somewhat alternate versions in the core DC Universe from time to time).
This gave Sandman even more freedom as a title to delve into mature themes and explore a whole universe of its own, which was expanded with spin-off titles from the Death and Lucifer incarnations of the Sandman (the version of the character later adapted into the TV show). of the same name).
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Interestingly, when the title came to an end in 1996, it included cameos from various DC Universe characters, including the villainous Darkseid.
We won’t spoil the exact details of why they’re coming to visit, for those who haven’t read the comic before the Netflix series, but the following snippet contains a light spoiler for the end of the Sandman comic story.
At the end of the original Sandman run, Morpheus appoints a replacement as the Dream in the Endless incarnation, choosing a baby named Daniel whose birth and childhood have been a subplot throughout comic book history.
The Sandman Universe Begins
The change from Morpheus to Daniel as the Sandman opened the door to an unprecedented level of connection between the Sandman continuity and the mainstream of the DC Universe, with Daniel appearing later in 1998. J.L.A. #23 (opens in a new tab)and various current issues JSA (opens in a new tab) title.
In 2009, Dream’s sister Death appeared on Action Comics #894 (opens in a new tab), crossing over with Lex Luthor. And then in 2011, with DC’s ‘New 52’ reboot, the characters of John Constantine and the Swamp Thing, and their accompanying titles, returned to the DC Universe proper.
Most recently at the 2017 event dark nights metal (opens in a new tab)Batman has an encounter with Daniel during the Multiverse-spanning event.
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Then in 2018, DC released a fluctuating lineup of Sandman-related titles under the ‘sandman universe (opens in a new tab)‘, which started at Vertigo before moving on to DC’s current line of adult content, Black Label. This seemingly separated the ‘Sandman Universe’ into its own continuity once again, but there has still been some crossover since then.
Since that change, it’s unclear where the Sandman and his cast exist in direct relation to the DC Universe, though thanks to the recently established Omniverse, all DC stories from all eras and imprints are now considered canon somewhere in their structure that it encompasses everything.
This means that it’s entirely possible that Morpheus, Daniel, Death, or the other Sandman characters could return to the DC Universe one day, in some capacity.
And this also means that, if DC and Netflix decide to go there, there’s plenty of precedent for the crossover between the Sandman Universe and the mainstream DC Universe, even in the current era.
Read everything you need to know about the history of comics from Morpheus the sandmanbefore his Netflix show.