The Sandman – Picture: Warner Bros. Television / Netflix
Netflix’s The Sandman is finally upon us. The 10-episode season covers the first two volumes of Neil Gaiman’s seminal comic, “Preludes and Nocturnes” and “The Doll’s House.” Here’s a look at everything we know about a season 2 of The Sandman on Netflix.
What we see in the first season of The Sandman merely scratches the surface. The Sandman comic spans 10 core volumes, plus a prequel and many spinoffs in the wider “Sandman Universe.” If Netflix wants to complete the saga, there’s potential for many seasons.
The Sandman Season 2 Netflix Renewal Status
Official Renewal Status: Pending
Our Renewal Prediction: Likely renewal
The Sandman has not yet been renewed for a second season, but that could easily change in the next few weeks.
The debut season ends on something of a cliffhanger, and the team is keen to adapt the rest of the comics.
A season 2 will ultimately come down to many different factors, some of the important ones being how well it performs on Netflix, including how many people start and, perhaps more crucially, how many people finish the show.
Many will no doubt be comparing the show’s performance against two other huge fantasy shows coming out over the Summer of 2022, House of Dragon for HBO Max and The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power for Amazon Prime.
Google Trends for The Sandman vs LOTR: Rings of Power and House of Dragon
We don’t yet have any data on how well the show is performing on Netflix but we’ll update this post in the coming weeks with all the top 10 data, hourly data, and more.
Regarding when we might see a season 2 announcement, it may come in September. That’s when Netflix will host its second TUDUM event on September 24th. Perhaps that’s when we’ll hear news of a renewal. Until then, or whenever the renewal may arrive, let’s talk about the storylines that we could see in season 2.
Could we get a The Sandman season 1 bonus episode?
You read that right: the Sandman community has gone wild over the idea that we could get a bonus episode. At the moment, this is just a rumor, but we have plenty of evidence to back it up. Firstly, back when Netflix issued their original press release, they revealed the episode count as “10 (plus one)”. Of course, the press release was sent out back when the show was announced in 2019, so plans may have changed since then. That said, creator Neil Gaiman has hinted on his Twitter that the show will tell some of the short, one-shot stories from the “Dream Country” story arc.
Calliope
Firstly, back in 2021, Gaiman teased a prop from the Calliope storyline, which is not covered in the first 10 episodes. He shared a picture of a book, “Here Comes a Candle,” written by Erasmus Fry. In the story, Calliope — one of the nine muses from Greek myth — is captured by a Fry, a struggling writer. He keeps her prisoner for decades, using her powers as a muse to give him the inspiration to write best-selling novels. One of these novels is “Here Comes a Candle,” which Gaiman holds in his hands:
Everything is just going fine. We finished principal photography. There’s a lot of VFX work and such to go. There are things you could read and listen to while you’re waiting for news, though. You could get an Erasmus Fry book out of the library, for example… https://t.co/9e1Nw93Osv pic.twitter.com/9qJC6gKcIW
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) August 14, 2021
Plus, if that wasn’t enough, there’s the time he revealed one “wonderful” thing that happened during the production of Sandman. Apparently, three women cried over Calliope:
I watched three young women who had never read the comics crying, first with anger then with joy at the story of Calliope.
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) July 31, 2021
Ultimately, it would make perfect sense to cover the stories of Dream Country in a standalone episode. They are all short, standalone tales. Here are the three other stories that are told within the volume:
- A Dream of a Thousand Cats: In this story, a small cat is called away from her house to an event in a graveyard, where a group of cats is told a story. We see Morpheus appear in the form of a cat.
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream: In which Dream watches the first-ever performance of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, performed in front of an audience of fairies.
- Façade: In this tale, forgotten DC hero Element Girl has retired from being a superhero. She wears a fake face to cover up her skin disease when she goes out. She does not know how to kill herself since she is invulnerable.
Is it possible to squeeze all of those into one episode? Possibly, but it may well throw the pacing off. We may see some of them saved for season two. That is, if this mystery eleventh episode does exist.
What to expect from The Sandman Season 2 on Netflix?
Warning: Spoilers for the comic book are ahead!
Remember in episode four, when Morpheus is being escorted to Lucifer, and he comes across his old love, Nada, imprisoned in Hell? This side-story only lasted a minute or so and isn’t really mentioned again in season one. That said, this scene sets up a story that will no doubt be covered in season two. Tales in the Sand is set in Africa, in a city ruled by a woman named Nada. She has never found love. But when she briefly crosses paths with a stranger, she instantly falls for him, so much that she’s unable to sleep. However, the next morning she learns that the man has disappeared and she hunts for him. Eventually, Nada realizes that the man she lusted after is, indeed, Dream of the Endless — and he loves her too.
After seeing that Dream had fallen in love with a mortal, the sun burns Nada’s glass city to the ground. Nada, in her guilt, kills herself and enters the realm of Death. There, she is greeted by Morpheus, who offers her to be his queen, but she denies it. As a result, he condemns her to Hell for eternity.
Tales in the Sand is a love story that ends in tragedy. And it’s not the first failed relationship for Dream. He’s very, very bad at relationships.
Picture: Netflix
Potential The Sandman Season 2 storyline: Season of Mists
Season of Mists will undoubtedly be the largest story arc of season two. One of the most popular storylines from the entire comic run, it begins with an Endless family meeting. This will be the first time that we see the family all together, except for Destruction, but that’s an altogether different story. Bear in mind that so far, we’ve only met four of the seven endless: Dream (Tom Sturridge), Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), Desire (Mason Alexander Park), and Despair (Donna Preston).
During the meeting, we once again see Desire scheming. They tease Morpheus about his treatment of his former lover Nada, whom he condemned to Hell. Eventually, he gives in and travels to Hell to free her. Yet, when he arrives in Hell, he finds that the realm is empty.
Turns out, Lucifer has grown tired and abandoned Hell — passing the Key to Hell and therefore the responsibility of it to Dream. Of course, Morpheus has his own realm to rule over; he cannot rule Hell. As a result, back in The Dreaming, he is greeted by various immortal beings, each vying to become the next Ruler of Hell.
Picture: Netflix
Potential The Sandman Season 2 storyline: A Game of You
Season of Mists is followed by A Game of You.
Given that season one covered two volumes, it seems natural that the second season would do the same. Should this be the case, we’ll see A Game of You get adapted. This volume continues the story of Barbie, who is a tenant of Hal’s residence in season one. In the show, we see her living as a princess in her own fantasy realm, known as The Land: which feels inspired by Jim Henson’s Labyrinth. In The Doll’s House, we see her alongside her wise companion, a dog-like creature called Martin Tenbones. This volume has a little of everything from talking animals to a severed head that talks. What’s not to love?
Would you like to see season 2 of The Sandman on Netflix? Let us know in the comments down below.