I'm really not sure 'The Wake' was a necessary book in the Sandman series. I think it easily could have ended with the last book, The Kindly Ones. The "ending" of The Kindly Ones would have been a good one, I think. Book #10 is really kind of allows the characters to step back on stage and take a bow. And many of these characters are memorable over a ten book series! I will say Mervyn was my favorite, with his snark. I do like the double meaning of "wake" here. And there are also two other smaller stories after the Wake to tie things up. ( )

Wow, I've done it. I've finished Sandman. My overall grade for the whole work would be 4.4 /5

#70-10
#71-8
#72-10
#73-8
#74-6
#75-9 ( )

A great ending for a great series. Well worth re-reading many times, as there's so much depth in this. ( )

This didn't excite me. The story sort of shambled along and never quite got anywhere. Dream is dead, long live Dream. Is he dead? How can an idea die? Is he alive? Or is this really a new embodiment? Where did he come from? This is a book of transitions that don't transition. It seems to dilute the ending of the previous book and doesn't quite launch anything new. Skippable, unless you're a crazy fan of the rest of the series. ( )

I must preface that the writing below is very much stream of consciousness, and as Post-Completion as could be written. Thus, many of my thoughts have not fully digested. But nonetheless, I will document my initial reaction upon conclusion:

Well. I have completed the #1-#75 (vol 1-10) original run of The Sandman and....it is so incredibly bittersweet. One of the most wondrous bit of fiction I have ever read, and most definitely Gaiman at his finest. I know that it is not entirely the end; I have Endless Nights, Overture, Dream Hunters, and several other spin-offs--what joy! Yet I cannot bring myself to read them at the moment. I think I will sit with this story--this glorious story of stories, for the rest of the day--well, at least for the rest of the afternoon.

I felt such a connection to each and every character, and our guide, Morpheus, most of all. In the final issue, Shakespeare says he is reflected in each of his characters; and I believe in a recent interview for the Netflix adaptation, if I’m not mistaken, Gaiman had similar sentiments about Dream and the rest of his cast of characters. Anyways, I know I am not Writer nor Creator. But even as Reader I feel as if I was Morpheus. I was Hob and Delirium and Lucifer; I was Death and I was Rose. The depth and range of the human experience--soul-- that Gaiman revealed in this lovely feat of creation was astounding to behold. If I were perhaps more crafty--and of Greater Power--maybe I would find a way for every reread to feel like the first time; to relive its profound unfolding and its wistful closure--Oh, how I wish it! But I must persevere. The Tale will live on--in fact, it will bend and twist and change; it will branch off and evolve. But ever the phoenix, it will start anew; for don’t Great Stories always return to their original forms? ( )