By Ben Wright (@iamzavagno | www.xgeeks.co.uk)
This review is spoiler-free.
Well, this is a review I wasn’t expecting to be writing! The news broke out of the blue this morning (19/8/22) that a special bonus episode of The Sandman made its way onto Netflix!
Episode 11 features two classic tales from The Sandman comics – A Dream of a Thousand Cats and Calliope – and acts as a supplement to the series, yet it is still very much part of the canon! I thought to myself whether the intention was to add this into the series proper and there just wasn’t a natural fit or if it was always the plan to convert these two stories into a bonus episode. After watching Episode 11, I think it is very much the latter!
My first initial take, other than “HOLY COW MORE SANDMAN!!”, was the cast list. There are some big hitters in the series, including performers who appeared in the phenomenal audiobook adaption of The Sandman! Neil Gaiman returning to add his voice to proceedings is also fantastic!
In an interesting, but welcome, change of pace, the first story of the episode – A Dream of a Thousand Cats – is fully animated! The animation style is the sort of stop-motion comic animation that I really enjoy! The story itself was always an ‘out there’ concept in the comics, and a story that I never expected to see make it to the Netflix series. But making it an ‘additional’ story is a great way to get this unique, but fan favourite, tale out there and to a new audience. While I am NOT a cat person, I have always enjoyed the concept of the story and as an introduction to this bonus episode, I think it does a fantastic job! Sandra Oh (The Prophet) was perfectly cast and Rosie Day (The Tabby Kitten) was adorable. David (Don) and Georgia Tennant (Laura) were also great little additions to the story. Another minor addition was Michael Sheen (Paul) who actually played Lucifer in Audible’s adaption of The Sandman. But of course, for me, the biggest and most exciting element of the episode was the inclusion of James McAvoy (Golden-Haired Man). McAvoy masterfully performed Morpheus in the audiobooks, alongside Sheen, so to have him involved was just the cherry on top of the casting!
The second story and the majority of the episode focus on the story Calliope, one of the darker and more uncomfortable stories from The Sandman comics. There is a lot more implication here rather than coming straight out and saying, ‘yeah she’s being serially raped’, which I’m grateful for because the source material always made me feel a little uncomfortable. In terms of adapting this story and modernising it, both in terms of the setting and current social values, I think they have done a great job! It was such a tense and unsettling watch but in a very rewarding way.
I feel like I have spent a lot of time with Melissanthi Mahut (Calliope) – as she voices Kassandra in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey! This is, however, my first time experiencing her as more than just a voice performer. She was simply incredible!
I’ll watch anything with Arthur Darvill (Richard Madoc), as I’m a big fan! And when you bring Derek Jacobi (Erasmus Fry) into any production you know you’ll always get a quality performance out of him! The episode also sees the return of the Fates, Nina Wadia (Fate Mother), Souad Faress (Fate Crone), and Dinita Gohil (Fate Maiden) which adds further connectivity to the main series.
As an additional episode of The Sandman, I think it works really well! I don’t think there was space for these stories within the main story arc, but these anthology-style stories make up a lot of The Sandman comics, so for me, it doesn’t feel out of place. I will always take whatever I can get from this world and its characters!
Episode 11 of The Sandman is a great supplement to the main series and is full of great performances and a successful modernisation of one The Sandman’s darkest and most unpleasant tales.
X-Geeks 