Just as Neil Gaiman’s original “The Sandman” comic series would occasionally sidestep the story of Morpheus to feature standalone stories, the Netflix series is apparently going to do the same thing.
In a pleasant surprise for fans of the hit adaptation, the streamer quietly dropped an eleventh “bonus” episode on Friday to join the already-released ten-episode first season that came out exactly two weeks ago.
This episode is double the pleasure for fans of the original comic book series as it features adaptations of two classic tales from Gaiman’s original run, “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” and “Calliope.”
In keeping with the differing artistic styles and approaches Gaiman utilized with his collaborating artists, the first adaptation is actually an animated take on “Cats” with an incredibly star-studded cast.
“We endeavored to make the animated version of ‘A Dream of a Thousand Cats’ as mesmerizing and hypnotic as we could by utilizing the magic of real oil paintings on canvas,” said director Hisko Hulsing in a statement received by Variety.
“We combined the paintings with classically drawn 2D animation, based on realistic 3D animation of telepathic cats in order to create a trippy world that feels both grounded and dreamy at the same time.”
David Tennant and Michael Sheen (from Gaiman’s “Good Omens” television series and the audio “Sandman” adaptation) are joined by Sandra Oh, James McAvoy (who portrays Morpheus in the Audible version of the graphic novel series) and even Gaiman himself. Tom Sturridge reprises his take on Dream.
The other half of this special two-part episode returns to live action and again features Sturridge, this time joined by Melissanthi Mahut, Arthur Darvill, Derek Jacobi and more.
“The Sandman” has not yet been renewed for a second season, but certainly this could be seen as a good sign for fans of the classic original series. There’s certainly plenty more material to mine for future seasons, and more one-off special episodes like this!
All eleven episodes of “The Sandman” are currently streaming on Netflix.
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