The Sandman Teaser Trailer: Neil Gaiman's Graphic Novel Comes To Life

Fans of Neil Gaiman's comic book series "The Sandman" have been waiting for a filmed adaptation for a long, long time. The series debuted at DC Comics in 1989 and completed its initial run in 1996. There have been several attempts at adapting the mammoth work into movies or TV shows, but they've never panned out. Finally, Netflix has released the teaser trailer for "The Sandman" TV series, and fans of the Endless can truly get excited. 

A "Sandman" adaptation has been in development hell for 25 years, so it's amazing to finally see the characters of Gaiman's incredible story brought to life. The Netflix series will adapt stories from the first two graphic novels in "The Sandman:" "Preludes and Nocturnes" and "The Doll's House." Gaiman has also spoken about cats being cast for the series, so some fans think the beloved story "A Dream of a Thousand Cats" from the third graphic novel, "Dream Country," will also be shown in "The Sandman" season 1. 

So what exactly is "The Sandman?" Here's the Netflix show's official synopsis:

A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama, and legend are seamlessly interwoven, 'The Sandman' follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic — and human — mistakes he's made during his vast existence.

Morpheus is one of the Endless, seven beings who are even more timeless than gods. Morpheus (played by Tom Sturridge) is Dream, and his kingdom is the Dreaming. His siblings are Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), Desire (Mason Alexander Park), Despair (Donna Preston), Destruction, Destiny, and Delirium. He is aided in his various quests by Matthew the Raven (Patton Oswalt), a talking corvid with a sarcastic sense of humor. 

Because the Endless are, well, endless, they tend to interact with people from all periods of history — including the deities of any specific time. Gods are real in "The Sandman," but they mostly try to avoid the Endless. One of the few who doesn't is Lucifer, the Prince of Hell, one of the Christian God's fallen angels. The Lucifer of "The Sandman" comics already got his own spinoff series (also available on Netflix!), but they're going a different route for the "Sandman" series. "Game of Thrones" star Gwendolyn Christie will play the keeper of dead souls in a fun bit of gender-bending that works for the character. We're also going to get a chance to see John Constantine's glorious ancestor, the beautiful and deadly Johanna Constantine (Jenna Coleman). 

The thing I'm most looking forward to checking out is episode 6, which Gaiman revealed via Twitter is an adaptation of his most infamous story, "24 Hours." The story takes place in a 24 hour diner controlled by Doctor Destiny, using a ruby he stole from Morpheus that allows him to shape dreams. He uses the ruby to control the minds of the diner's patrons, forcing them to confess their deepest secrets and darkest fantasies, indulge in their worst instincts, and worship him as a god. Things eventually descend into total chaos and the patrons murder one another in some of the nastiest ways ever published. 

Netflix can get as wild as it wants with this adaptation, which means this could finally be the perfect time and place for it. Now we just have to wait to be horrified by the world's worst diner.