Sandman: Fables and Reflections
The sixth volume in Neil Gaiman's Sandman series is another
collection of short stories. This volume actually collects the issues
slightly out of order, as some of them were originally released before
the Game of You arc began. But the ordering in this volume works
quite well. Actually, since this is the order I was introduced to the
comics in, I can hardly imagine a different order.
I'm just going to go through this story by story.
Fear of Falling: The first issue is incredibly short. It functions as a prologue to the volume, appearing even before the table of contents. But it remains one of the more powerful messages in the whole series. This is one of the stories that sticks with me.
Three Septembers and a January: This issue tells the story of the first and only emperor of the United States of America: Emperor Norton I. Remarkably, this is a mostly true story. There was a man living in San Francisco in the late 1800s who styled himself Emperor. The story drops in on him at four different points in his life.
Thermidor: Thermidor takes place during the French Revolution. Lady Johanna Constantine (possible relation of John Constantine) is tasked with rescuing the head of Orpheus. Along the way she meets both Robspierre and St. Just, whose revolution has become no better than the government they were attempting to overthrow. It's a great little glimpse of history.
The Hunt: One of the fables in this collection of fables and reflections. This story is about werewolves. It's also about tradition and knowing what you want. The story is told by a man to his granddaughter, so you also get her reactions to the story and her grandfather's denial of her interpretation. It adds a nice twist to the story.
August: Another month, another historical leader. This story follows Augustus Caesar for a day near the end of his life. He muses on his choices, on the changes he's made to Rome (changing her from Republic to Empire), and on his relationship with Julius Caesar, his uncle.
Soft Places: Soft Places combines a few timelines in the desert. Marco Polo is on his very first journey and is accidentally separated from his father and uncle during a sandstorm. While wandering the desert, he meets a man from twenty years in the future who knows him and a character from the Dreaming who alludes to what's going on in the present day (1992). There's not a lot to this story, but it fits into the overall arc of the series quite nicely.
The Song of Orpheus: In this issue, Gaiman retells the story of Orpheus and his journey to the underworld to retrieve his wife, Eurydice. He alters the story so that Orpheus is the son of Morpheus and shows how pride destroys their relationship in the wake of tragedy. The art is beautiful and, I think, really brings the story to life.
The Parliament of Rooks: There are actually three tales in this issue. Well, three main tales, with a few others bits and pieces of story thrown in here and there. In the first, Cain describes one of the mysteries of rooks. In the second, Eve talks about Adam's first two wives (some Jewish scholars believe that Adam had three wives, the first of whom was Lilith). And Abel tells the story of his quarrel with Cain, the angers Cain by giving away the mystery from his story. The stories are all interesting, though again the issue makes more sense when taken as a part of the entire series arc.
Ramadan: The final "month" story is probably my favorite in the entire volume. The artwork and lettering are just amazing here, and it really adds to the story. P. Craig Russel is amazing (and currently working on a graphic adaptation of The Graveyard Book which I may need to check out). This is a beautiful story about Baghdad during it's golden age, and the king who sells it to Dream in an effort to prevent the city from fading.
I'm just going to go through this story by story.
Fear of Falling: The first issue is incredibly short. It functions as a prologue to the volume, appearing even before the table of contents. But it remains one of the more powerful messages in the whole series. This is one of the stories that sticks with me.
Three Septembers and a January: This issue tells the story of the first and only emperor of the United States of America: Emperor Norton I. Remarkably, this is a mostly true story. There was a man living in San Francisco in the late 1800s who styled himself Emperor. The story drops in on him at four different points in his life.
Thermidor: Thermidor takes place during the French Revolution. Lady Johanna Constantine (possible relation of John Constantine) is tasked with rescuing the head of Orpheus. Along the way she meets both Robspierre and St. Just, whose revolution has become no better than the government they were attempting to overthrow. It's a great little glimpse of history.
The Hunt: One of the fables in this collection of fables and reflections. This story is about werewolves. It's also about tradition and knowing what you want. The story is told by a man to his granddaughter, so you also get her reactions to the story and her grandfather's denial of her interpretation. It adds a nice twist to the story.
August: Another month, another historical leader. This story follows Augustus Caesar for a day near the end of his life. He muses on his choices, on the changes he's made to Rome (changing her from Republic to Empire), and on his relationship with Julius Caesar, his uncle.
Soft Places: Soft Places combines a few timelines in the desert. Marco Polo is on his very first journey and is accidentally separated from his father and uncle during a sandstorm. While wandering the desert, he meets a man from twenty years in the future who knows him and a character from the Dreaming who alludes to what's going on in the present day (1992). There's not a lot to this story, but it fits into the overall arc of the series quite nicely.
The Song of Orpheus: In this issue, Gaiman retells the story of Orpheus and his journey to the underworld to retrieve his wife, Eurydice. He alters the story so that Orpheus is the son of Morpheus and shows how pride destroys their relationship in the wake of tragedy. The art is beautiful and, I think, really brings the story to life.
The Parliament of Rooks: There are actually three tales in this issue. Well, three main tales, with a few others bits and pieces of story thrown in here and there. In the first, Cain describes one of the mysteries of rooks. In the second, Eve talks about Adam's first two wives (some Jewish scholars believe that Adam had three wives, the first of whom was Lilith). And Abel tells the story of his quarrel with Cain, the angers Cain by giving away the mystery from his story. The stories are all interesting, though again the issue makes more sense when taken as a part of the entire series arc.
Ramadan: The final "month" story is probably my favorite in the entire volume. The artwork and lettering are just amazing here, and it really adds to the story. P. Craig Russel is amazing (and currently working on a graphic adaptation of The Graveyard Book which I may need to check out). This is a beautiful story about Baghdad during it's golden age, and the king who sells it to Dream in an effort to prevent the city from fading.
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