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Tweak says, "pop goes the weasel"

icon_uk (icon_uk) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-06-08 22:29:00

Entry tags:

char: dream of the endless, creator: neil gaiman, publisher: vertigo comics, series: one perfect moment week, title: sandman

One Perfect Endless Moment - #1 Dream
From Sandman #64 comes this two page sample of a "Week in the ~~life~~ being" of Morpheus, the Oneiromancer, the Prince of Stories, also known as the Sandman...

To me this highlights the true nature of Dream; strange, alien, arrogant, a touch pretentious and (and this is the important part) neither necessarily a nice being, nor always on our side. (Compare and contrast with how Death is presented, and she's next in the series of these I have planned)

I just love the way Gaiman can throw enough ideas out in two pages to keep a short story writer dribbling happily for months (I was tempted to use as my moment the scene where Dream curses a writer with a madness inducing, neverending stream of imaginative stories, as punishment for kidnapping the muse Calliope, but I thought I'd keep use this one because it's not as well known.) And little things like the pilot of the boat being an Easter Island statue with a body.

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	crinosg 2009-06-08 04:51 pm UTC (link)
	So, giving a sea turtle bad dreams about its lost mate take precedence of giving a little girl a dream that will help unite an entire nation. Dream, thou art a dick. (Reply to this) (Thread)

icon_uk
2009-06-08 05:09 pm UTC (link)

Well, he is, but not here I think.

It would appear to be a good dream he gives the turtle (The dream is of their love, not the turtles demise), and it's possible the little girl might do important work as a nurse.

As I said, that's what I like about this sequence, it highlights that Dream does not have human priorities because... well, because he's not human. He's the Lord of Dreams, but takes as much pride in his role as Lord of Nightmares, he created the Corinthian to scare humanity, and his only regret when he unmade the mass murdering monster was not for the lives lost, but that the Corinthian had failed in his design.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

neuhallidae
2009-06-08 05:33 pm UTC (link)

Well, the other thing is that we aren't actually told what his decision was. The "had no appeal" part implies he might have refused, but then, who's to say that there weren't tribal gods who didn't want the girl to unite the country, and would argue if he'd said yes? The rest of this part of the story is pretty plainly cut and dry, so I think the point is that we're not supposed to know for sure.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	icon_uk 2009-06-08 05:41 pm UTC (link)
	Oh indeed, there's also the possibility he refused BOTH of them, they are only tribal gods, HE is Dream of the Endless. :) (Reply to this) (Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2009-06-09 11:42 am UTC (link)
	Perhaps being a nurse was her dream. Letting tribal gods mind-whammy her might have been distasteful to Dream. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	skywaterblue 2009-06-08 05:35 pm UTC (link)
	A great choice. I think this book is underrepresented; it has my favorite Sandman moments. (When Nuala summons him to Faerie, Thessaly in general.) (Reply to this)

	aaron_bourque 2009-06-08 06:45 pm UTC (link)
	The boy in Hong Kong? The reincarnation of Dream's first human lover. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	icon_uk 2009-06-08 07:12 pm UTC (link)
	And the three bodied nightmare is one we saw him sculpting in the first part of "Dolls House" story, nice to know it went on to a successful career! :) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	meatwhichdreams 2009-06-09 11:46 pm UTC (link)
	Ahh....they grow up so fast! ~snifff~ I always got happy horrible shivers from their carved out faces. :D What cuties! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	meatwhichdreams 2009-06-09 11:45 pm UTC (link)
	Damn, I always forget that! Thanks for reminding me. :L I love that feeling when you rediscover another little nuance Gaiman has sewn into the story - it's not necessary that that little boy is Nuala for the point of the passage to get across, and yet... (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kingrockwell 2009-06-09 07:22 pm UTC (link)
	The Kindly Ones, prolly one of my oldest trades... I've always thought it was funny the boy from Hong Kong dreams with Japanese imagery. (Reply to this)

	meatwhichdreams 2009-06-09 11:44 pm UTC (link)
	Slam dunk again, Neil Gaiman, wooooosh woooooosh woooosh. OHH HOW I LOVE THIS ART TOO. (Reply to this)