World Famous Comics NetworkWorld Famous Comics Network Action Is My Reward.comWorld Famous Comics CommunityComic Book ClassifiedsMid-Ohio-Con
WFC Home | About | Columns | Comics | Contests | Features | Freebies | Gallery | Links | News | Podcasts | Shop
SHOP >> David Mack | Andy Lee | Amy Allen | Michonne | Dean Haglund | Virginia Hey | WFC Published | WFC Auctions



ScheduleUPDATED TODAY! Thu, 24-Jul-2008
Anything Goes TriviaAnything Goes Trivia
Bob Rozakis
Megaton ManMegaton Man
Don Simpson
Tony's Online TipsTony's Online Tips
Tony Isabella
TrevorTrevor
Piper & Lee


NewsNEWS 24-Jul-2008 4:06am
This Joker's serious in The Dark Knight
Comic-Con draws fans of comics, the fant...
Warner, Deadline Games team for Watchmen...
Comics, film and figurine fans flock to ...

Comic Book - Movie - Video Game - Anime 

Your Name Here! Click Here for Advertiser Info!
Friends & Affiliates
Adobe Store
Amazon.com
Anime Studio
Apple Store
Dick Blick Art Materials
eBay
GoDaddy.com

StarWarsShop.com
TFAW
World Famous Comics: The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country
The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country
By: Neil Gaiman, Malcolm Jones III, Charles Vess, Steve Erickson
Publisher: Vertigo
Average Rating:4.50 out of 5.00 stars
Binding: Paperback
Label: Vertigo
Number of Items: 1
Number of Pages: 160
Publication Date: September 24, 1991
Release Date: September 24, 1991

More Comics By: Neil Gaiman, Malcolm Jones III, Charles Vess, Steve Erickson
Enlarge Image
The Sandman Vol. 3: Dream Country
List Price: $14.99
Used Price: $7.25
Collectible: $18.00
3rd Party New: $7.95
Amazon's Price: $10.19

You Save: $4.80 (32%)
Usually ships in 24 hours


Similar Items

The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House

The Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists

The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes

The Sandman Vol. 5: A Game of You

The Sandman Vol. 6: Fables and Reflections
More Similar Items...

Editorial Comments

Amazon.com:
The third book of the Sandman collection is a series of four short comic book stories. What's remarkable here (considering the publisher and the time that this was originally published) is that the main character of the book--the Sandman, King of Dreams--serves only as a minor character in each of these otherwise unrelated stories. (Actually, he's not even in the last story.) This signaled a couple of important things in the development of what is considered one of the great comics of the second half of the century. First, it marked a distinct move away from the horror genre and into a more fantasy-rich, classical mythology-laden environment. And secondly, it solidly cemented Neil Gaiman as a storyteller. One of the stories here, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," took home the World Fantasy Award for best short story--the first time a comic was given that honor. But for my money, another story in Dream Country has it beat hands down. "A Dream of a Thousand Cats" has such hope, beauty, and good old-fashioned chills that rereading it becomes a welcome pleasure. --Jim Pascoe

Product Description:
The third book of the Sandman collection is a series of four short comic book stories. What's remarkable here (considering the publisher and the time that this was originally published) is that the main character of the book--the Sandman, King of Dreams--serves only as a minor character in each of these otherwise unrelated stories. (Actually, he's not even in the last story.) This signaled a couple of important things in the development of what is considered one of the great comics of the second half of the century. First, it marked a distinct move away from the horror genre and into a more fantasy-rich, classical mythology-laden environment. And secondly, it solidly cemented Neil Gaiman as a storyteller. One of the stories here, "A Midsummer Night's Dream," took home the World Fantasy Award for best short story--the first time a comic was given that honor. But for my money, another story in Dream Country has it beat hands down. "A Dream of a Thousand Cats" has such hope, beauty, and good old-fashionedchills that rereading it becomes a welcome pleasure. --Jim Pascoe


Customer Reviews
Average Rating:4.50 out of 5.00 stars

4 out of 5 starsA Collection of One-Shots
After reading Preludes and Nocturnes and The Doll's House, I began to wonder if the hype behind Neil Gaiman's long-running "The Sandman" series had any substance to it. Both volumes had their fair share amount of good points and bad points, evening out at a 7/10 each. I saw none of the astonishing writing people were talking about, but I did notice one thing. Gaiman is way, way better at writing one-shots than he is at writing story arcs. So I was very pleased that "Dream Country," the third volume, wouldn't just feature one one-shot like the previous two books did... it is entirely composed of four very different one shots.

Calliope: I liked this story a lot. The art is a big sketchy and at times even ugly, but Gaiman's script is able to keep the issue afloat. The tale is tragic and really creepy, delving into the darkest corners of a writers mind and what that writer will do to get recognition. It's a disturbing tale, but also one of my favorites.

Dream of a Thousand Cats: This might be the single most original concept I've ever read about. It's fantastically written and drawn well too, and is easily the best Gaiman story I've ever read. Finally, I'm starting to see what everyone is gushing over.

A Mid-Summer Night's Dream: It's a good concept that Gaiman got a bit carried away with. In this story, Shakespeare performs A Midsummer Night's Dream for Morpheus and the various fair folk that are featured in the play. It's interesting watching the fair folk's reaction to their depiction, but that's about as far as the issue goes. It's tedious and filled with "Alright, I get it" moments. Some praise it is Gaiman's best, but for me it felt like a surprisingly soft spot in an otherwise solid work.

Façade: Like he did in "Preludes and Nocturnes," Gaiman gives a very dark take on a DC superhero here. Element Girl is the star of this comic, and Gaiman utilizes her horrified appearance (think the female version of Metamorpho) to craft a story about self-loathing that really hits a tender note. The end felt a bit fast, as if Gaiman should have cut down on the "woe is me" narration a bit from the beginning so he could really sell the end, but other than that, this is a very solid story.

This edition also includes Gaiman's script to "Calliope" which is, the say the absolutely least, a very... unique way of scripting comics. It's mildly interesting to read, and anyone who really loves Gaiman's writing will be thrilled to get a glimpse (actually, "a long stare" is more appropriate) into his writing process.

Overall, this is the best volume in the Sandman series thus far. If the comics are able to maintain this level of quality, I'll definitely stick around to the end.

8/10



4 out of 5 starsGraphic SF Reader
A few stand alone stories are in this volume. William Shakespeare produces the first play that Morpheus has requested, and puts on a live performance in the wild for Titania and Auberon.

A man literally gets his muse from another writer, we see the Dream of Cats, and the final fate of an Element Woman who has had enough.



4 out of 5 starsHighly original and beautifully written
Gaiman is an original in every sense of the word. The first couple of volumes I read in the "Sandman" series didn't impress me all that much, I have to admit. At least, not uniformly. But the average quality in this one is very high indeed. The four stories all share the theme of dreams, from a novelist enslaving Calliope the muse to provide ideas for his books, to a cat's revelation of what the real world used to be like, to a piece about a woman who only wants to die but can't (the only "comic book" story you'll find here, and the least successful, in my opinion), and the award-winning story of the first performance by Will Shakespeare's company of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" -- for an audience from Faerie (and that one alone is worth the price of the book).



5 out of 5 starsDream Country
Excellent book, it is a few seperate stories but there is some background of the main characters not to be missed.



2 out of 5 starsI dreamed that this volume didn't exist in the series...
When one walks into a movie theater, they expect to see a movie. When one walks into a pizzeria, they expect to be served pizza. When one plays paintball, you should expect to be hit by at least one paintball. So, one could draw the conclusion that when one reads any of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series, you should expect to be pulled into a bizarre world where your heroine (or dark figure leading the show) happens to be the actual Sandman ... right? Apparently, the answer is closer towards the "no" theory than one could expect. I understand the concept of building a stage and allowing readers to see the entire universe, and not just one small figure, but that isn't why I purchased this series. I purchased it for the sole reason that I enjoyed the first two in this collective series. I find the character of the Sandman to be one of the greatest literary figures in graphic novels today. His words will entice, his patience will amaze, and his strength will force you to think of Superman as the weakest man alive. The Sandman is intelligence, boldness, and heroics all boiled together into one shaded character. He is the epitome of "cool", if one were to phrase it that way. Yet, why would anyone who loves this series think that without the main character, the central focus of the show, would a series be able to survive? If I had started with this collection, I don't believe I would have gone any further.

I know, I seem to be an odd voice in this collection that seems to have garnered award after award for possibly the dullest story ever dreamed by Gaiman. For those fan boys out there that are drooling over the ingenuity of "A Midsummer Night's Dream", I would say - not rudely - but get over it. Sure, there were moments of fun and inspiration, but for the most part this story seemed to go on longer than needed and gave this avid Sandman reader a chance to catch up on some well deserved rest. I had seen Gaiman twist the story of Shakespeare earlier in one of the early collections (I think it was when the Sandman was talking with his "friend", Hob Gadling), but I didn't think he would dedicate half a collection to the birth of an idea. Again, I am not knocking the creativity of the piece, because I saw the premise well, it just felt overly-dramatic coupled with an overall sense of "blah". It was too much for this reader to enjoy. I wanted the fantastical coupled with sinister, and before you say it, this just didn't have it. Sure, there were creatures, but they did not come anywhere close to what I witnessed in the first two collections. I just missed the tone that Gaiman had captured with his creation in the first two collections; obviously this was a completely different step.

How did I enjoy the other stories? I thought that "A Dream of A Thousand Cats" was decent, but again lacking that panache that lingered from the first two books. "Facades" was utterly fun, but diabolically confusing. Who remembers Element Girl? To me, it just seemed too outdated for the rest of the series. My personal favorite was "Calliope", a truly frightening tale of imagination that reminded me of why I am such a big Gaiman fan. It was dark and spooky all at the same time. It was the epitome of what the Sandman represents, then we are left with nothing more a ramshackle of other stories that don't fit the bill. They were a hit or miss with me, as I have read, it seems to be the case with other Gaiman fans. I wanted, and desperately needed, more Sandman. I wanted my character back. I wanted something to breathe life back into this short collection. For those of you wondering where most of the pages remain, there is a huge development of the "Calliope" story at the end which nearly takes up 20 pages. This was a waste of time and space. Obviously, this was the weakest link pertaining to the series.

Overall, I cannot suggest this book to friends or family. If one asks which collection they should start learning about our heroine, the Sandman, in Gaiman's eyes, I would tell them to stay clear of this collection. Dream Country may be giving us a hit of what is to come, but for me it felt tired, bored, and over inflated. While "Calliope" will pull you in, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" will confuse you to the point of insanity, or at least give you a good nights rest. Dream Country was weak, and it is obvious with the fact that there was what I like to call "filler" at the end of the collection. If one doesn't have anything worth saying, don't waste my time. This collection will anger any fans of the series that loved the first two. Read through this one quickly, and get to the next. I promise ... it will only get better from here.

Grade: ** out of *****


Related Categories:Similar Items

The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House

The Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists

The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes

The Sandman Vol. 5: A Game of You

The Sandman Vol. 6: Fables and Reflections
More Similar Items...

Books
 Comics
  Comic Strips
  How to Draw Comics
  How to Draw Manga

 Graphic Novels
  AiT/Planet Lar
  Alternative Comics
  Archie Comics
  Avatar Press
  DC Comics
    Batman
    Justice League
    Superman
  Dark Horse Comics
    Hellboy
    Sin City
    Star Wars
  Drawn & Quarterly
  Devil's Due Publishing
  Dreamwave
  Fantagraphics Books
  Gemstone/Gladstone
  IDW Publishing
  Image Comics
  Kitchen Sink Press
  Marvel Comics
    Fantastic Four
    Spider-Man
    Wolverine
    X-Men
  Oni Press
  SLG/Slave Labor
  TwoMorrows
  Top Shelf Productions

 Manga
  ADV Manga
  Antarctic Press
  Central Park Media
  Digital Manga
  Gutsoon
  TokyoPop
  Viz Communications

 Books
  Animation
  Antiques & Collectibles
  Art Instruction & Ref.
  Art Reference
  Arts
  Business
  Cartooning
  Children's
  Computer Graphics
  Computers & Internet
  Digital Business
  Drawing (general)
  Entertainment
  Entrepreneurship
  Figure Drawing
  Games
  Graphic Design
  Horror
  Humor
  Literature & Fiction
  Movies
  Music
  Mystery & Thrillers
  Nonfiction
  Photography
  Pop Culture Collectibles
  Popular Culture
  Publishing & Books
  Reference
  Role Playing & Fantasy
  Sci-Fi & Fantasy
  Screenwriting Film
  Screenwriting TV
  Sketchbooks/Journals
  Stationary
  Teens
  Television
  Toys
  Video Games
  Writing

 Calendars


WFC Home | About | Columns | Comics | Contests | Features | Freebies | Gallery | Links | News | Podcasts | Shop



World Famous Comics Network
Action Is My Reward.com
ActionIsMyReward.com
World Famous Comics Community
ComicsCommunity.com
Comic Book Classifieds
ComicBookClassifieds.com
Mid-Ohio-Con
MidOhioCon.com

GO SHOPPING >>

© 1995 - 2008 World Famous Comics. All rights reserved. All other © & ™ belong to their respective owners.
Advertiser Info . Terms of Use . Privacy Policy . Contact Info
World Famous Comics Network