Warning: This article contains major spoilers for The Sandman comics and the TV show.The Sandman is a 2022 Netflix show based on the comic books of the same name written by American Gods author Neil Gaiman. It follows the titular character, inspired by European lore, and his journey to rebuild his realm, the Dreaming, after being imprisoned for a century.

The show, much like the comics, will certainly become known for its original take on famous folklore legends. A lot of soon-to-be iconic moments transpire from paper to screen, and the surprising twists and turns are especially memorable, making The Sandman a delightful show that requires at least one re-watch to fully understand.

The First Death

The first episode delves into the background of Morpheus as he is imprisoned for a century by the "Magus".

Related: 10 Things That Only Make Sense About The Sandman If You Read The Comics

As mentioned later throughout the show, the Sandman always has a raven with him. These small companions are embodiments of dead people's souls who provide aid in Morpheus's missions and are always nearby. The only time Morpheus walks through the waking world without a raven is after Jessamy is cruelly shot while trying to free him from his cage.

What Is Constantine?

Johanna Constantine is amongst Jenna Coleman's best roles right alongside Queen Victoria and Clara Osborne.

She is introduced as a descendant of another Constantine who Morpheus had met centuries ago. She is a fighter who deals with the occult and the mystic for money and to help people. The show seemed to be following a pretty standard fantasy trope with her, until the sixth episode came along. There, the other Constantine appeared in a 1789 flashback - and it looked like an eighteenth-century version of the exact same person. More information about the Constantine family has not yet been disclosed, which means a likely focus on them in season 2.

The Ruby's Destruction

The Ruby was one of the Sandman's lost tools, and it was in the possession of the Magus's second son, John.

After unleashing chaos on a restaurant thanks to its reality-bending powers, John attempts to overthrow Morpheus with the gem. His modifications on the Ruby were not enough to prevent it from shattering as John is trying to steal the remaining of the Sandman's powers. In a surprising turn of events, the King of Dreams manages to throw them both into a dream of his own making, while in the meanwhile showing the damage John had caused with the Ruby.

Not Just Any Sleeper

When Morpheus is caged in 1916, around one million sleepers did not wake up the morning after in an epidemic of what was called "encephalitis lethargica".

Unity Kincaid was a child that fell asleep due to the "sleeping sickness". Initially, her father is shown trying to wake her up as an example of what was happening without Dream's supervision, and there was no way to deduce her future importance to the story. In her subsequent appearance, it is revealed that Unity is actually Rose Walker's great-grandmother. She had gotten pregnant while she was asleep and the child had been taken from her after delivery. Unity had been trying to locate her family for months.

The Morbid Twist

One of the many surprises within the source material was Gaiman's choice to represent the concept of Death as a female character who is arguably the series' best character, judging by the comics.

Played by Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Death is one of the Endless and an elder sister of Dream. After recovering his tools and rebuilding his realm, Morpheus is going through a sort of identity crisis, not knowing what to do with himself. Death appears and invites him to accompany her while she is collecting souls. In the process, audiences realize that, instead of the expected gloomy reaper stereotype, she has a strong and somewhat optimistic personality, managing to lift the spirits of her little brother.

The Walker Of Dreams

Unity was not the only surprise in store when it came to Rose Walker's story.

Rose is a recent orphan in search of her missing little brother. She is a vibrant character made even more fascinating after Dream and Lucienne come to the conclusion that she is the first Dream Vortex of her era. Vortexes are unexplained phenomena that function as a central point where the nearby mortals' dreams merge. Morpheus's concerns regarding her are justified, even if his methods are not: Dream Vortexes have the power to destroy both the Dreaming and the waking world.

Family Business

Every die-hard fan knows that the Endless are the children of the cosmic entities Night and Time. There are seven of them: Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Desire, Despair, and Delirium​​​​​​. Audiences had already known Dream and Death when, in later episodes, they meet Despair and Desire.

From the conversation between the two entities, it is revealed that they were behind Morpheus's capture and escape by the Magus and his circle. They also referred to some other schemes against Dream that Desire has been up to throughout the millennia with the goal of stealing their younger brother's realm.

Lyta's Happy Ending

Lyta is Rose's best friend and neighbor who travels with her to England and then to Cape Kennedy, Florida, in search of her brother Jed.

Related: The Sandman Characters Compared To Their Comic Book Counterparts

During the eighth episode, while she is asleep beside Rose, Lyta dreams of her late husband Hector, with whom she has sexual relations. After some more dreams, she becomes pregnant in her dreams and remains so when she wakes up. As if such a twist were not enough, later Morpheus reveals that Hector is not part of a dream, but rather a ghost running away from Death's realm.

The Corinthian's Interference

One of The Sandman's meanest main characters, the Corinthian is a vicious nightmare who cares for no one but himself.

One of the instances where his machinations have the worst consequences has to do with Jed Walker, Rose's lost brother. After his aggressive father died, Jed is put in a foster family with another paternal figure who is very violent towards him. When a social worker finally sets up a meeting, Jed slips a post-it note asking for help into her bag. This is the same bag probed by the Corinthian after he kills the social worker. His bloodlust knows no boundaries, and it is further revealed when he murders Jed's foster parents and trashes their place.

Gilbert Is Not A Person

Stephen Fry is a well-known British comedian and writer, as well as the new face of Gilbert. A charismatic character, Gilbert is first mentioned as one of the inhabitants of Hal's house who spends his days secluded reading. He takes it upon himself to protect and help Rose, but when he finds new information regarding the Corinthian and travels to the Dreaming, Lucienne and Morpheus refer to him as Fiddler's Green, one of the Lord of Dreams' creations.

Related: Stephen Fry’s Best Roles, Ranked by IMDbThis seemed to be all that there was to know about him, but later he and Morpheus reveal to Rose that Fiddler's Green is not a person, but a sentient place in the Dreaming - a form to which he returns, bringing back colors into the landscape.

"Golden Eyes"

Those who thought the Corinthian was the worst that the show had to offer were in for a treat.

In the final chapter of the season, Unity and Lucienne conclude that she was meant to be the Dream Vortex of her era instead of Rose. Unity then explains to Morpheus and Rose that she had been pregnant while under the sleeping sickness. It is implied that a "man with golden eyes" had taken advantage of her vulnerability.

Dream now knows that his sibling Desire had interfered with a mortal while he was away. Desire's goal was to make sure that Dream would be forced to commit an unforgivable offense: kill a family member, that is, the next Dream Vortex.

Next: 10 Thought-Provoking Quotes From The Sandman