Postscript: The Sandman

I did it.  I've come to the end of Neil Gaiman's amazing, horrifying, heart-rending, gorgeous series about Morpheus, Lord Dream of the Endless.  I haven't read a whole lot of comic books, but the people who write the forewards to each of the Sandman volumes have, along with a lot of other books, and they all say the same thing:  what Gaiman has created here is not merely a pop culture masterpiece, but fine art and literature.  The fact that Gaiman created a whole new mythology while interweaving myths and legends and fairy tales and stories from across the globe, the fact that these stories were released one book at a time, month after month, and yet by the end of it all the characters tie together, reconnect, even the ones whom the reader considered unimportant one-offs, the fact that the main character of these comic books is largely unlikeable and standoffish and yet moves through an incredible arc, compelling readers to return again and again, just to see what comes next ... I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again:

Neil Gaiman is a frickin' genius.  Even if you are sure you don't like comic books, you should read these.