‘The Sandman’: Meet The Breakout Characters From Netflix’s New Hit

Fans of The Sandman have been raving about the Neil Gaiman-created character for about 33 years... ever since the comic book's first issue was released by DC Comics in early 1989. For almost as long, fans have wanted to see a live-action adaptation. On the other hand, many have said that the story is "unadaptable." But on Friday (August 5), the world finally saw the show's ten-episode season, the first of hopefully many. Forbes reports that the show immediately debuted at #1 on Netflix's top 10 list, and the show currently has an 86% approval with both critics and audience on Rotten Tomatoes. And it was trending through the weekend on social media.

Although The Sandman is based on a DC comic book, the show does not take place in the DC Universe. The comic book only rarely referenced mainstream DC characters, with brief appearances by the Scarecrow, J'onn J'onzz, Mister Miracle and the Demon. In other words, you don't need to know anything about the DC universe to enjoy the show. But if you want to check out the books that the show is based on (and it's pretty faithful), check out The Sandman, Volume 1: Preludes and Nocturnes and The Sandman, Volume 2: The Doll's House.

What comes next? Well, in the comic books, the "Doll's House" storyline is followed by "Dream Country," a series of four independent one-off tales. One of which is the fan-favorite "A Dream of a Thousand Cats," which would be a very CGI-heavy episode, if they were to do it. Another is "A Midsummer Night's Dream," which features William Shakespeare, who we met (played by Samuel Blenkin) in episode six, 'The Sound of Her Wings." After that, it's the "Season of Mists" storyline, which sees Dream further clashing with Desire, and returning to Hell where he once again encounters Lucifer (and also Nada, his former lover from thousands of years earlier, who was played by Deborah Oyelade in a brief scene in episode 4, "A Hope In Hell").

If you're looking to dive in to the series, here are some of the main characters from season one who we hope to see again: