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The Sandman (TV Series): Difference between revisions
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* [[Abusive Dad]]: Roderick Burgress is not winning any father of the year awards. He physically abuses Alex, blatantly using him as a servant rather than a son.
* [[Actually Pretty Funny]]: When he and Rose manage to enter {{spoiler|Jed's mindscape, Dream smiles when he sees a little boy in a cape and mask approach him, saying that ''he'' is the Sandman who must face the King of Nightmares. Dream is very amused and asks if that's what Gault told Jed what Morpheus was. It's implied he finds Jed adorable in the getup. Rose is more down-to-earth, reassuring Jed that she's here to help her little brother and they're not going to fight him.}}
* [[Adaptation Distillation]]: Neil freely admits that he was making up as he went when writing the first comics' run of ''Sandman'', hence why stuff like the Vortex's true vortex had inconsistent details. Forty years and hindsight allow him to tighten the timeline. Namely, Dream and Lucienne, rather than admiring Rose as the vortex, are cautious about if her powers will awaken.
* [[Adaptational Attractiveness]]: John Dee in the comics was a shriveled man with a haunted expression in his eyes. As David Thewliss plays John, he is fairly handsome, just looking lost before realizing he can get his ruby back.▼
* [[Adaptation Expansion]]: The Corinthian gets more to do here by appearing in the first arc rather than being the [[Arc Villain]] in ''Doll's House''. Dream ended up on Earth hunting down the Corinthian, who escaped to become a real-life nightmare. That allowed Roderick Burgess to capture him.
▲* [[Adaptational Attractiveness]]: John Dee in the comics was a shriveled man with a haunted expression in his eyes. As David Thewliss plays John, he is fairly handsome, just looking lost before realizing he can get his ruby back.
* [[Adaptational Heroism]]:
** For what little it's worth, John Dee has a smaller body count compared to his comic counterpart. He doesn't want to kill anyone stopping him from getting his ruby, and {{spoiler|spares Rosemary, giving her his amulet of protection}}. And indeed when he gets the ruby, rather than {{spoiler|use it to kill people [[For the Evulz]], he notes how everyone in the diner has dark secrets and uses its power to make all the negativity and resentment come out, along with the passion and confessions}}.
** One for Dream; while he does save {{spoiler|Rose's life in the comics, he does plan to kill her if her Vortex powers awaken which they do, explaining that if he doesn't, she'll have the power to destroy Earth and infinite worlds. Here, he's adamant that despite her powers, she's not the one causing the problems in the Dreaming and agrees to help train her on how to use them to find Jed, if she helps him track down errant dreams. Lucienne and Gilbert know that he will ''have'' to kill the vortex eventually, but Dream delays it because he doesn't like killing and becomes fond of Rose's company. Rose is the one who offers to sacrifice herself so that she doesn't hurt her friends or family, realizing that her powers are too dangerous after they inadvertently empower the Corinthian}}.
** One thing in the Corinthian's favor: he does not prey on children, and he doesn't kill everyone that he meets. Heck, he even sleeps with Carl when the latter hits on him, and refuses to eat his eyes. His [[Establishing Character Moment]] in the comic is showing him preparing to murder a teenaged kidnap victim in a hotel tub. One thing to his credit is that when {{spoiler|he kidnaps Jed after murdering Clarice and Barnaby, he does not lay a finger on the kid, and even treats him to ice-cream while bargaining with his sister}}.
* [[Adaptational Personality Adjustment]]:
** Lucien in the comic was more of [[The Caretaker]] of the Dreaming, who fusses over Morpheus when the latter collapses. Lucienne, in contrast, is portrayed as a [[Hypercompetent Sidekick]] that is not afraid to speak her mind to Dream about if it's safe for him to travel to Earth alone, has been running the Dreaming when he's held captive for a hundred years, and sends a raven to help him when he hunts down his tools. While Lucienne reasonably fears that if Dream loses his temper that he will send her and {{spoiler|Fiddler's Green}} to Eternal Darkness, she also stands up to him if he's being unreasonable or narrow-minded.
** Joanna Constantine II is more flippant than her comic counterpart John Constantine was with Morpheus. When Dream showed up on John's doorstep, he tiredly agreed to help the King of Dreams. Joanna tells Dream that he has to wait while she handles another exorcism and negotiates to get her fees tripled. Unlike John, who is fairly careful with his artifacts, Joanna reveals she left Dream's bag of sand at an ex's place after ghosting her. {{spoiler|She goes [[My God, What Have I Done?]] after learning this careless act led to Rachael trying the sand due to not knowing any better, getting poisoned and dying}}.
** Hob Gadling was a [[Technical Pacifist]] in the comics; he loses any fights where someone targets him. The show has him take on Lady Johanna Constantine I's goons with his fists, to protect Dream.
** Greek muse Calliope in the comics is a [[Broken Bird]] and all-around [[Nice Girl]]. While she is nice in the show, she's much more defiant towards Erasmus when the latter has imprisoned her, and later Richard Madoc when he takes ownership of her. Calliope outright tells Richard that if he wants her ideas honorably, he would free her and then worship her, as the muses used to be worshipped. She also more actively plays [[The Long Game]] when the Fates tell her that only her ex Dream can save her; Calliope reads the newspaper and sees the Sleeping Sickness has ended. Knowing what that means, she contrives a [[Distress Call]] by writing "Morpheus" on a piece of paper. When Richard says the name aloud and burns the paper, she doesn't react, because saying Dream's name will summon him. Calliope also tells Morpheus she wants to be free, but doesn't want him to think that he still owns her as a wife. She specifies that she doesn't want Richard to be hurt later. Unlike in the comic where Calliope looks at Richard with pity after Dream curses him, she gives a tiny smile.
* [[Adaptational Villainy]]: The Burgesses had one thing in their defense in the comic book; they had no idea about the harm they were causing to the world and had mistaken Dream for Death during his centuries-long captivity. When the Corinthian tells Roderick, as well as Alex, what they really imprisoned, Roderick uses Dream's items to make himself rich. Alex has it worse in that he nearly frees Dream a few times, but hesitates.
* [[Adaptational Weakling]]:
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** Rose's quest to find her little brother Jed after their parents separated in a divorce. Since their parents died recently, she wants to to become his guardian and reunite with him. The foster care agent is no help, refusing to give information because she says that Rose can't raise Jed with her lack of income. {{spoiler|She finds out belatedly that his foster parents were abusive, and a serial killer kidnaps him as bait. Rose has no choice but to meet with the Corinthian at a designated spot, preparing to exchange herself for her little brother}}.
* [[Ain't Too Proud to Beg]]: One man begs Death to let him talk to his wife, to say goodbye and give her the code to his phone so she has the travel information for their vacation. She apologetically shows him that he drowned a few minutes ago, so it's too late.
* [[Ambiguous Gender]]:
*
** Much like in the comics, Desire has no set gender; mortals view Desire as whatever they find ''desirable''.
* [[Bait and Switch]]: When Dream tells Rose that Matthew will help her in the real world, serving as his eyes and ears, Rose spots a bird on the beach. She goes to talk to it. Matthew is a few feet away; he corrects her that she was talking to a crow, while he is a raven. Good thing too, since {{spoiler|the Corinthian was a few feet away as well}}.
* [[Becoming the Mask]]: Downplayed; {{spoiler|Gault's intention}} was always to {{spoiler|protect Jed, but she took the form of his mother Miranda Walker to make his dreams sweeter and more comforting. She goes [[Mama Bear]] when Dream breaches her barriers, ordering Jed not to confront the "King of Nightmares" and later seething to Dream that Jed is being abused in the waking world}}.
* [[Bigger Bad]]: {{spoiler|The finale of season one makes it clear that Dream's sibling Desire orchestrated almost all the hardships and trials he went through up to then, and is likely plotting even more.}}
* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: How season one ends, much like the first two comic arcs. Rose and Jed reunite, and {{spoiler|Unity instructs her solicitor to ensure that Rose becomes Jed's legal guardian so that foster care can never take him away again, no matter where they reside. Rose mourns Unity when the latter dies to save her as well as the fact that Unity never got to meet Jed, but Unity says she doesn't regret giving her great-granddaughter a chance to live. Hal moves in with Lyta, Carl and Rose to pursue his stage dreams in New York while Lyta and Rose commit to raising Lyta's baby as a platonic couple, with Jed as the unnamed baby's uncle. Barbie and Ken may have broken up, while Chantal and Zelda buy Hal's house. Rose also mourns saying goodbye to Gilbert who has resumed his place as Fiddler's Green, but Gilbert promised that she could always visit him; she writes a book about what happened, which is quite good according to Lucienne. Lyta lives in fear that Dream will eventually claim her baby, as he said he would, while the Lords of Hell pressure Lucifer to take revenge against Morpheus for humiliating her. Dream remakes Gault into a dream as an apology for being so callous to her while planning to save the Corinthian as a WIP; the season ends with Gault flying into the Dreaming, excuding sheer joy}}.
* [[Black and White Insanity]]: John Dee has this problem; his mother was a [[Consummate Liar]], and his nightmares indicate that she tried to kill him. As a result, he hates liars. The reason why he spares {{spoiler|Rosemary, however, is she explains that people lie out of fear. Fear that they will die, or their loved ones will be hurt. Realizing that he's scaring her, John gives her his amulet of protection, promising that now she won't ever have to lie anymore or live in fear}}. In the diner, {{spoiler|this mindset and his power with the Ruby leads to multiple heart-to-hearts between characters, an orgyfest, and eventually violence where John Dee compels everyone to die}}. Dream has to point out the obvious: if you see their deceptions in a black-and-white context, it means that you don't see {{spoiler|their hopes and dreams. Because dreams are fundamentally lies with grains of truth, and they motivate people to act and improve their lives}}.
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** Despite the fact that {{spoiler|Gault}} was meant to be a nightmare, {{spoiler|she instead deserted the Dreaming to protect Jed and give him an escape from his nightmarish existence in foster care by posing as his mother Miranda. She surrenders to Dream without a fuss when he breaks through her barriers with Rose's help, spending her last moments before her punishment explaining she wants to inspire people, not scare them.}} Even Lucienne disapproves of her punishment, telling Dream that in his absence, many of his subjects had to take on duties and make hard decisions. {{spoiler|Dream, after he helps Rose and Jed escape the Corinthian and Unity dies to save Rose, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfZp13aBY8o| realizes that Gault is right and remakes her as a beautiful dream]. Lucienne is pleased, and Gault enters the Dreaming with a smile and laugh. Dream also apologizes to her, saying it was wrong of him to expect that everyone would be the same after a hundred years.}}
** It's revealed that Gilbert is actually {{spoiler|Fiddler's Green. He surrenders to Dream when the Corinthian is preparing to exchange Jed for Rose, saying he'll accept any punishment but please save Rose and her brother. He also gives their location, allowing Dream to track down Corinthian and take him down with Rose's help. Dream doesn't punish Fiddler's Green for desertion, merely ordering Gilbert to resume his place in the Dreaming. Thanks to Unity, Rose gets a chance to live, and Gilbert can provide a haven for her in his world when she sleeps}}.
* [[Large and In Charge]]: Lucifer, ruler of Hell, as portrayed by [[Statuesque Stunner]] (6'3'') actress Gwendoline Christie, is certainly this.
* [[Living MacGuffin]]: Rose Walker becomes this for the Corinthian in the present day. The reason? {{spoiler|She is a Vortex, a rare mortal imbued with the powers of the Dreaming. The Corinthian can siphon those powers away from her to become strong enough to defeat Dream. He forgets something, however: Rose can also empower ''Dream'' and the Dreaming now that she knows how to use these gifts. Rose quickly turns the tide when Dream tells her how powerful she is}}.
* [[Luke, I Am Your Father]]: Dream realizes with horror that {{spoiler|Desire was the one who impregnated Unity in her sleep. He says aloud after Unity dies that it means that Rose and Jed are descendants of the Endless, his great-niece and nephew. No wonder she had a connection to the Dreaming. He tells Rose she's free of future torment now she's a normal girl, and advises her to live her life}}.
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* [[Pragmatic Villainy]]: The Corinthian tells Roderick Burgress how to keep Dream captive indefinitely as well as who he really is. He says it's in their best interest that Dream ''never'' escapes because he knows his creator will not be nice the minute he gets his powers back.
* [[Punch Clock Villain]]: The modern-day guards that accidentally free Dream are paid grunts. One even theorizes that he is a Dracula, a vampire. When he is free, he simply knocks them out before going to avenge himself on Alex.
* [[Race Lift]]: Death usually takes the form of a Caucasian woman in the comics; here she appears as African-American. Also true for many minor characters, including Rosemary (Caucasian to African-American, episode 4), Grace and Kelly (both Caucasian to African-American, episode 5) and "Dog Soup" (Asian to African-American, episode 9).
* [[Rebellious Prisoner]]:
** Dream himself refuses to cave into Roderick Burgess's demands to give him his son back, or Alex's later pleas to not hurt him or his lover if they free him. He remains silent, determined to wait them out until an opportunity to escape appears.
** Unlike in the source material, where Calliope was a [[Broken Bird]] after decades in captivity, this Calliope remains willful despite {{spoiler|Erasmus Fry and later Richard Madoc raping her for ideas to finish their books}}. She tells Richard outright that muses reward worshippers, and don't respond to bribes of flowers or perfume when he attempts that. When the Fates tell her that only Dream can free her, and Dream is in captivity she figures out Plan B: play [[The Long Game]] by waiting until Dream gets free a few years later and sending a [[Distress Call]] to him. Richard sees her writing Morpheus on a piece of paper and says the name aloud before burning it, not knowing that saying Morpheus summons him, and so does the smoke from his chimney. When Dream comes to help Calliope, he says he will if she lets him, and not because they used to be married but because Richard hurt her. Calliope specifies she doesn't want Richard hurt, just persuaded to free her because technically he broke no pre-established law and he has to free her of his volition. {{spoiler|Dream curses Richard with an abundance of ideas, when Richard refuses to release Calliope, saying he needs her inspiration, until he agrees to release the muse}}. When Richard feels the onset of the curse and confronts Calliope, asking what that strange man in a nightmare did to him, she gives a defiant smile before revealing he met ''The King of Dreams'' and the father of her son Orpheus. She said she didn't want Richard hurt, and technically Dream does not hurt him. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN4phCOfm88 View the scene in its gloriousness].
* [[Refuge in Audacity]]: What is one way to get the Corinthian's attention? Copycat his kills. Corinthian tracks down the copycats and asks why he shouldn't murder them in turn. They [[Squee]] and reveal they are big fans of him, explaining they run a "collectors" convention. Would he like to be the guest of honor? Corinthian accepts, amused by their audacity.
* [[Replacement Goldfish]]: Subverted. Because Jessamy died trying to save him, Dream is not into taking a new raven with him on Earth. Matthew acknowledges that he's not Jessamy, whoever she was, but he knows humans better than Dream does. Dream eventually concedes when Matthew refuses to leave his side.
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