Portraits From The Sandman Universe

Daniel Bustamonte

2012-01-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

Daniel Bustamonte fell asleep in 1916 and didn't awake until 1988.

He was one of the many people who had the sleeping sickness, which was a result of Morpheus being captured by Roderick Burgess. Once the King Of Dreams was escaped from his prison, Daniel awoke along with the others who slept.

Daniel Bustamonte's Father

2012-01-27T13:00:00.000-08:00

Daniel Bustamonte was one of the many children who succumbed to the sleeping sickness in 1916.

Daniel Bustamonte's father is in one panel of Preludes And Nocturned (Sandman # 1, Page 3, Panel 2). He is sleeping on top of a table.

Little is known about Daniel Bustamonte's father aside from the fact that he owns an inn in Kingston, Jamaica.

The Criminal

2012-01-25T11:04:00.000-08:00

How is this for an obscure character....

This criminal is barely visible in one panel of Preludes And Nocturnes...Sandman # 1, p 18, panel 5, to be exact. He is laying face down on the ground as Wesley Dodds, in his Sandman outfit, stands over him triumphantly.

So, here he is...The Criminal.

Young Ox Drover

2012-01-24T15:48:00.000-08:00

This character is known only as a Young Ox Drover.

As Destiny flips through the pages of his book he sees a brief moment of Death, on the day she is mortal sitting, at the edge of the Yangtze River, with this young ox drover. He is telling her of his "grand schemes and plans."

There is another moment in The Wake when this boy MIGHT appear again. As Dream is floating down the river into his afterlife, there is a young Asian boy who throws blue roses into the river. Based on the clothing, I think this might be the same boy, but they appear to be different ages (but age is just a perception in dreams) and so I am not 100% sure it's the same character. I guess we will all need to wait until one of the future Annotated Sandman volumes is released.

Anyway, here is the Young Ox Drover.

Breschau

2012-01-17T10:35:00.000-08:00

Breschau of Livonia appeared in Sandman # 23, which was Chapter 2 of Season of Mists.

He was one of the inhabitants of Hell when Lucifer evicted everyone, locking the doors behind him.

When Lucifer and Dream approach Breschau he tells them that he deserves to be in Hell, chained to the rock, being tortured. He describes his vicious crimes to Lucifer, which include cutting the nose off his mistress and wearing it as a necklace, raped his mother, strangled his sister just to name a few. He refused to leave Hell.

Lucifer calmly told him that he's been in Hell for eleven hundred years and that nobody remembered Breschau, that he has been forgotten and probably didn't even know where Livonia used to be.

Breschau vanished from his slab and was forced to leave Hell with the others.

Headmaster Parkinson

2012-01-16T16:01:00.000-08:00

Headmaster Parkinson was the headmaster at St. Hilarions from 1901 until his death in 1916.

Under his authority, N.K. Cheeseman, L.T. Burrow and Skinner were students at the school.

Headmaster Parkinson ran a very disciplined and strict school and so it is not surprising that Cheeseman (and possibly the other two bullies) was expelled from the school.

Headmaster Parkinson's cause of death is unknown.

Demon # 15

2012-01-13T16:53:00.000-08:00

Once again we have a demon who was imprisoned in The Globe Of Sulaiman Ben Daoud from the classic Sandman # 50 (Ramadan).

I really like this one...

Dead Man & Dead Woman

2012-01-11T08:47:00.001-08:00

When Orpheus descends into the Underworld, he encounters many dead people.

These are two of them.

I really like how these turned out. What do you think? Should Scott do all of them?

Gorilla

2012-01-10T13:40:00.000-08:00

In Ramadan, Dream and Haroun Al Raschid use a flying carpet to travel around the Baghdad marketplace.

The marketplace is filled all manner of people and creature, including this gorilla.

The gorilla is being led on a leash through the busy street.

Scott did a fantastic job with this one, I think.

Dead Boy # 03

2012-01-09T17:25:00.000-08:00

This Ghost Boy is one of the boys attending the speech given by Headmaster Parkinson as the ghosts of the alumni of St. Hilarions begin returning to the school when the gates of Hell are closed and all the residents are evicted.

Bondage Boy # 1

2012-01-08T06:19:00.000-08:00

In Brief Lives, Delirium goes into a S&M club to get out of the rain.

Upon entering the club, this man is very visible, kissing a girl with a cone shaped bra.

Scott originally sketched this almost a year ago, but then changed the design.

Here is the original sketch idea as well as the finished painting.

Demon # 19

2012-01-07T13:32:00.000-08:00

This demon was one of the many demons, ifrits and Djinn imprisoned in The Globe Of Sulaiman Ben Daoud, which Haroun Al Raschid threatened to shatter if Dream did not come to his summons when he called him.

Thankfully Dream did visit Haroun Al Raschid.

N.K. Cheeseman

2012-01-06T13:56:00.000-08:00

N.K. Cheeseman was one of the three bullies who tortured and eventually caused the death of Charles Rowland.

Cheeseman was expelled from St. Hilarions and was killed in the trenches during World War I.

Fitch

2012-01-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

When Scott gave me this painting I honestly had no recollection of who he was, which is a little surprising since I remember most of the characters with names...but Fitch...I had no clue. So I had to look him up.

Fitch is the editor of The Evening Bulletin, a San Francisco newspaper which was printed in 1859 (actually 1855-1895). He is the editor who received and printed the letter from Joshua Norton proclaiming himself to be the Emperor Of The United States.

Emissary # 04

2012-01-04T19:14:00.001-08:00

This Emissary is one of the many who entered the Dreaming in hopes of gaining the key to Hell.

This Emissary is seen in only one panel. He is in the second to last chapter of Season Of Mists listening to Dream begin his speech, which would announce the new rulers of Hell.

Demon # 104

2012-01-03T09:49:00.000-08:00

This demon is one of the many demons who attended the duel between Dream and Choronzon in the Hellfire Club.

This demon can be seen in only one panel, gasping at the seemingly fatal blow that Choronzon deals when he says "I am anti-life, the beast of judgment. I am the dark at the end of everything. The end of the universe, gods, worlds...of everything."

It is even more surprising that with three simple words, Dream is victorious.

Here is the demon...

Charon

2011-12-30T14:47:00.000-08:00

In Greek mythology, Charon is the ferryman in Hades who takes the dead across the River Styx. Generally the dead must give a coin to Charon in order to cross from the land of the living into Hades.

In The Song Of Orpheus, Neil Gaiman takes Charon and places him within the Sandman universe. In this story, Orpheus enters Hades in hopes of rescuing his recently deceased wife Euridice. When he encounters Charon, Orpheus gives him a sprig of Mistletoe, which is the payment from a living person to enter Hades. Along the way, Charon asks Orpheus to play his lyre and the music was so moving that it made Charon weep.

Demon # 01

2011-12-29T10:02:00.000-08:00

Since we are on a roll with the characters from Ramadan I thought it might be nice to show another Demon from the story.

Like the others, this demon was imprisoned in The Globe Of Sulaiman Ben Daoud, which Haroun Al Raschid threatened to shatter if Dream did not visit him.

The Enchanters

2011-12-28T10:26:00.000-08:00

In the time of Haroun Al Raschid Baghdad had "Enchanters from China and the Mongol lands, with high fur hats and log sleeves filled with secrets."

Here are the four Enchanters who frequented the palaces of Al Raschid.

Demon # 17

2011-12-26T20:10:00.000-08:00

This is one of the demons trapped within The Globe Of Sulaiman Ben Daoud.

The Grape Seller

2011-12-25T17:03:00.000-08:00

When Haroun Al Raschid and the King Of Dreams walk through the Baghdad market place this Grape Sellers sells some grapes to the Caliph for two dirhams after some negotiations.

Ghost Boy # 04

2011-12-21T05:39:00.000-08:00

This ghostly boy is one of the many boys listening to Headmaster Parkinsons speech at St. Hilarions when the dead return to earth in the Season Of Mists storyline.

Emissary # 02

2011-12-20T05:16:00.000-08:00

This Emissary is one of the guests of The Dreaming who hope to gain control of Hell from the King Of Dreams.

He is in attendance when Dream announces who will take the key and become the new rulers of Hell.

Demon # 18

2011-12-19T20:12:00.001-08:00

This demon is not a demon from Hell. Instead, this demon was imprisoned within The Globe Of Sulaiman Ben Daoud. Inside the globe were nine thousand and nine Demons, Ifrits and Djinn.

This is one of the demons.

Chamberlain To Emperor Norton

2011-12-18T11:08:00.000-08:00

The Chamberlain to Emperor Norton appears in Three Septembers And A January in the Fables And Reflections collection.

The Chamberlain brings a message to Emperor Norton that is presence is requested at the Cobweb Palace. The Chamberlain accompanies Norton to the bar where they meet with The King Of Pain, an envoy of Desire.

The Hunchback

2011-12-17T11:24:00.000-08:00

When Haroun Al Raschid was the ruler of Baghdad things he would often wander the city at night.

On one occasion he witnessed the death of a hunchback. Seven strangers claimed to be the one who murdered him, but in actuality the hunchback choked on a fish bone.

Here is the hunchback. I hope you enjoy him.

The Old Ones

2011-12-16T20:15:00.000-08:00

In the third chapter of Brief Lives we are introduced to the concept of The Old Ones (Bernie Capax is one of them).

"There are, for example, less than ten thousand humanoid individuals alive on this planet today who have personal memories of the saber-toothed tiger, the megatherium, the cave bear. There are today less than a thousand who walked the streets of Atlantis (The first Atlantis. The other lands that bore that name were shadows, echo-Atlantises, myth lands, and they came later). There are less than five hundred humans who remember the human civilizations that predated the great lizards. (There were a few; fossil records are unreliable. Several of them lasted for millions of years.) There are roughly seventy people walking the earth, human to all appearances (and in a few cases, to all medical tests currently available), who were alive before the earth had begun to congeal from gas and dust. How well do you know your neighbors? Your friends? Your lovers? Walk the streets of any city, and stare carefully at the people who pass you, and wonder, and know this: They are there too. The Old Ones.

Here are some of the unnamed Old Ones who appear in the fourth panel of the third chapter of Brief Lives.

The Old One # 1

The Old One # 2

The Old One # 3

The Old One # 4

The Old One # 5

Ghost Boy # 02

2011-12-15T15:34:00.000-08:00

This is one of the several ghost boys who appears at St. Hilarions when Hell is empties and locked by Lucifer.

This ghost boy is sitting in the auditorium listening to the dead Headmaster Parkinson speak at the assembly.

He is sitting in the front row between Roland and Paine.

Demon # 104

2011-12-10T18:40:00.000-08:00

This Demon is from the Hellfire Club in Preludes And Nocturnes.

He is visible in the panel where Dream is triumphant in his duel with Choronzon.

Weirdzo Lila

2011-12-05T20:03:00.000-08:00

Weirdzo Lila was a character in the Hyperman comic, which Wanda read when she was a little boy.

During the A Game Of You storyline, Weirdzo Lila appears to Wanda in a dream caused by the messengers of the Cuckoo,

Here is Weirdzo Lila. I really like this one!!!

Ogre

2011-11-30T19:37:00.000-08:00

Like the Eggman from yesterday, this Ogre appears in only one issue of A Game Of You...and it's even the same panel as the Eggman. The Ogre can be seen walking toward the Isle of Thorns and into oblivion as the skerry is uncreated.

The Eggman

2011-11-29T18:12:00.000-08:00

Nope...this is not John Lennon.

This character, who I have called The Eggman, appears in one panel of A Game Of You. He can be seen, slightly off panel, walking along the causeway to the Isle Of Thorns and into Dream's embrace.

And by the way, I think Eric Burdon was The Eggman. John was the Walrus (according to his song "God").

Serial Killer # 20

2011-11-28T17:42:00.000-08:00

This serial killer is one of the many serial killers sitting in the audience listening to The Corinthian's speech at the Cereal Convention.

This killer is very easy to spot. He has super flat '80's hair. Scott modernized him a bit...and made him a bit more gloomy than the super excited killer in the published comic. I sort of liked the '80's hair.....

Dickon Hawksthorne

2011-11-26T19:23:00.000-08:00

While Dream, Destruction and the original Corinthian visited the waking world, Dickon Hawksthorne attempted to steal Dream's ruby. When caught, Hawksthorne spoke rather harshly to the Dream King. He threatened "Hold Your tongue, sir, or I'll whet my needle and sew your lips together."

Dream was not pleased with this mortal and Dream tells Hawksthorne that he rarely tells fortunes, but in this instance he will. He tells the thief "Tyburn tree haunts your dreams, Master Hawksthorne, and it will continue so to do, until you are hung there in chains, without benefit of clergy. And your death shall come as a relief to you. For every night, from now until then, you will dance on air with a hempen rope around your neck, and the jeers and catcalls of all those you have ever cared for echoing in your ears..."

Dickon Hawksthorne quickly returned the jewel to Dream.

Scott did a great job with this one. If you look closely you will see Tyburn tree in the background....

The Clown

2011-11-24T17:36:00.001-08:00

This Clown is one of the citizens of Barbie's world.

This clown appears in one panel from the A Game Of You storyline and can be seen as Barbie is being marched through town by The Black Guard.

I really like this one.

The Black Guard

2011-11-22T17:49:00.000-08:00

The Black Guard is an elite army who serves the Cuckoo.

The Black Guard were sent out in search of Barbie and her friends and at one point they came close to finding her. Thankfully Barbie, Primando, Luz and Wilkinson were able to avoid detection by hiding under a snow drift.

Eventually the Black Guard captured Barbie while being directed by the traitor Luz. She was marched through town and into the clutches of the Cuckoo.

Egyptian Bird Creature

2011-11-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, I seriously have no idea what to call this character and so I'll just stick with the "Egyptian Bird Creature."

This creature is in only one panel of A Game Of You and is seen in a group of citizens of Barbie's world marching toward the Isle of Thorns and entering Dream prior to the skerry being destroyed.

Yellow Fuzzy Creature

2011-11-17T20:05:00.000-08:00

This Yellow Fuzzy Creature appears in one panel of A Game Of You.

You can spot him in the scene where Barbie is being marched through town on her way to the Cuckoo.

This is a particularly cool painting because the character in the published comic is seen from the back and so it's face isn't visible at all. Scott took the character and did his own interpretation of what the character will look like. This is one of my favorite things about this project and Scott did a fantastic job with this character.

I hope you like it.

Rednecks

2011-11-16T20:13:00.000-08:00

When Barbie visits Wanda's home town to attend the funeral, she meets Wanda's Aunt at a diner and these two rednecks are sitting in a booth and as Barbie walks past them, one makes a rude comment to her.

Scott painted these two rednecks in suck a way that they can be combined into one single painting. I really like redneck # 2. He sort of reminds me of Elmer Fudd.

Here are the rednecks...

Redneck # 1

Redneck # 2

Here are the rednecks combined into a single image.

Snake Creature

2011-11-14T20:23:00.001-08:00

This snake creature makes a brief appearance in A Game Of You as Barbie is being marched through town on her way to the Cuckoo.

He is one of the many strange creatures in Barbie's world.

Aisleen

2011-11-13T18:47:00.000-08:00

Aisleen is Pharamond's receptionist at Farrell Travel.

She informs Mr. Farrell (Pharamond's current name) that he has two incredibly odd visitors, who just happen to be Dream and Delirium.

She appears in only a few panels in the Brief Lives storyline.

Egg Headed Man

2011-11-12T19:15:00.000-08:00

This character is one of the characters that is standing on the sidelines while Barbie is marched through town after being captured by the Black Guard.

This character appears in only one panel of A Game Of You, but he's still a very striking and memorable character.

Weirdzo No. 1

2011-11-10T20:08:00.000-08:00

Today is Neil's birthday and I wanted to try to find something special to post here (I really wish I had Neil's portrait...but not yet, maybe next year) and so today I thought that I would share Weirdzo No. 1.

I chose this character because Wanda read the Weirdzos comic, Hyperman, when she was a little boy and and the characters really stuck with her, much like Neil's characters in the Sandman universe have stuck with us...at least that's why I'm assuming you are here.

Anyway, Happy Birthday, Neil!!!

Serial Killer # 21

2011-11-07T18:44:00.000-08:00

This killer is in the audience listening to The Corinthian's speech at the Cereal Convention.

This guy could be anyone....he looks completely normal and unsuspecting.....

I like that Scott used a bit of blood splatter on these recent serial killers. It sort of makes them a bit for frightening.

Serial Killer # 22

2011-11-04T19:38:00.000-07:00

Of course this guy is a serial killer...it's pretty obvious even without the blood splatters!!!

This killer is in the audience listening to The Corinthian's speech at the Cereal Convention.

Serial Killer # 10

2011-11-04T06:12:00.000-07:00

This is one of those characters that Scott REALLY out did himself.

This character is one of the many serial killers listening to Nimrod's speech at the Cereal Convention.

Scott took this random and background character and made him severely creepy, in my opinion.

I hope you enjoy him!

Kris and his Son

2011-11-01T20:15:00.000-07:00

Today we have two characters.

Kris and his son, along with Andros help protect Orpheus from danger.

Kris' son (who is never named) is the first one to encounter Dream and Delirium as they arrive on the island.

After Dream has a conversation with his estranged son, Kris takes Dream and Delirium to Destruction's island.

Dream and his sister return to the island one final time to grant Orpheus his greatest wish, his death, and afterwards, Kris' son digs the grave for Orpheus.

Here are Kris and his son...

Demon# 144

2011-10-31T16:16:00.000-07:00

As Morpheus leaves Hell, a sea of demons part to let him pass.

This demon is one of the many demons who moves aside to let the King Of Dreams leave Hell.

Happy Halloween!!!!

Demon # 112

2011-10-31T05:28:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!!!!

This demon appears in Preludes And Nocturnes and is one of the demons who appears in the Hellfire Club.

He is in the audience and is stunned by Dream's victory over Choronzon.

Serial Killer # 23

2011-10-30T19:26:00.000-07:00

This serial killer is in the audience watching the Religion panel at the Cereal Convention.

While he is watching the panel, The Corinthian is talking to Philip Sitz, asking him to have a chat in his hotel room.

Serial Killer # 25

2011-10-27T20:14:00.000-07:00

This serial killer appears on the title page of this incredibly creepy, but awesome story.

Serial Killer # 19

2011-10-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

This serial killer attended The Corinthian's speech at the Cereal Convention.

This particular had the unique pleasure of sitting next to Morpheus as he sat in the audience listening to the speech.

Demon # 120

2011-10-24T19:42:00.000-07:00

This demon is one of the Demons from The Hellfire Club.

This horse-faced demon is easily visible and can be seen holding the chain, which is around the neck of a penis-shaped demon.

Isn't Hell such a goofy place???

Serial Killer # 11

2011-10-22T19:30:00.000-07:00

This serial killer is sitting in the audience listening to Nimrod's opening speech at the Cereal Convention.

I always thought it was interesting that there were a handful of female serial killers at this convention. I wonder how they were treated at the convention since a majority of the serial killers were male and some serial killers only killed women. Were these women at risk or is there some sort of bond between serial killers that prevents them from killing each other.

Demon # 162

2011-10-21T20:02:00.000-07:00

This demon is listening to Azazel give his speech about reclaiming Hell for demon-kind.

Now, I want to know....in the particular panel he appears in, all of the demons are very bizarre looking, but way in the back there is this blue haired punk looking guy. Does anybody else think he doesn't quite fit in with the other demons???

Serial Killer # 3

2011-10-20T20:17:00.000-07:00

This serial killer is one of the many killers who attended the Cereal Convention.

This man is most recognizable by his conversation with a few other men saying that he could "murder a steak, a good bloody steak."

I think Scott did a great job making this guy seem super creepy. Maybe it's the bloody backgrounds....

Demon # 122

2011-10-19T20:15:00.001-07:00

So, today I met up with Scott and he gave me some fantastically horrifying characters to round out the month of Halloween and so within the next few days I'll start sharing some bloody wonderful characters....in the meantime here is another demon.

This demon is sitting at a table in the Hellfire Club.

He (or possibly she) is super easy to spot. She (or possibly he) is enjoying a martini while watching the show.

Demon # 62

2011-10-18T20:09:00.000-07:00

Here is a demon who is surprisingly NOT in the Hellfire Club, as it seems most demons are lately.

This demon is standing in a crowd of demons as the King Of Dreams searches for his missing helmet.

He is easily missed, but very obviously in the crowd once you start looking for him.

Can you find him?

Demon # 117

2011-10-17T20:05:00.000-07:00

Wow....is this guy weird.

This character appears in The Hellfire Club. He's sitting at a table and isn't really very detailed. You'll recognize him by his oversized hands.

Scott gave this character more detail and more life than the original published version.

It was nice of this demon to sit still long enough to give Scott a chance to paint his portrait.

Demon # 131

2011-10-14T20:14:00.000-07:00

This demon is in the Hellfire Club and witnesses Choronzon's defeat at the hands of the Dream King.

This demon is close to the stage and has her back turned to the rest of the audience. She's pretty easy to spot.

Demon # 129

2011-10-13T20:10:00.000-07:00

This demon is in The Hellfire Club when Agony and Ecstasy take Choronzon away to his ultimate judgement for losing the contest with Morpheus.

Demon # 105

2011-10-12T19:17:00.000-07:00

This demon is easy to spot. He is in the Hellfire Club and in the audience when Dream wins the contest with Choronzon.

Scott did a fantastic job with this demon!

Demon # 86

2011-10-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

For the next few days I'm going to be posting lots of demons. It seems appropriate since it is October and Halloween is just right around the corner.

This demon is in the Hellfire Club. He's in the background as Chronzon announced the game that he and Morpheus are about the play.

I described this demon as having an "hour-glass head and many eyes."

Robert

2011-10-03T20:30:00.000-07:00

At Worlds' End, Mister Gaheris recounted a story he was told by a man named Robert, to Brent, Charlene and the others gathered at his table.

Robert liked the city. He would often walk through the city on his lunch break and enjoy looking at the buildings. In the evening he would walk throughout the city and admire the city at night.

On one particular night Robert saw a glimmering alleyway he had never noticed before and he went down the alley. He found himself in an unfamiliar place, which was unusual since Robert knew every doorway and every alley of the city.

Robert spent a lot of time wandering this city, hoping to find his way back home to the city he knew and loved.

Robert rarely encountered people, but one day he encountered another man who had been trapped in the city for a long time. The old man had a theory about where they were. He told Robert "Perhaps a city is a living thing. Each City has its own personality, after all. Los Angeles is not Vienna. London is not Moscow. Chicago is not Paris. Each city is a collection of lives and buildings and it has its own personality. So if a city has a personality, maybe it also has a soul. Maybe it dreams. That is where I believe we have come. We are in the dreams of the city."

Eventually Robert found his way out of the unfamiliar city.

When Mister Gaheris met Robert he was living in a small village in Scotland. After Robert told his tale to Mister Gaheris he disappeared in the foggy evening explaining that he was afraid of the day when the city might awake...

This is a fantastic chapter from the Worlds' End storyline....very haunting and beautiful and Scott did a fantastic job with his interpretation of Robert. I can't wait to see him explore the other characters in this story.

Sol

2011-09-29T19:32:00.001-07:00

In Heart Of The Star, Dream and his lover Killalla attend a gathering with stars, celestial bodies, dimensions and delegates from various groups of people such as faery and many seemingly unknown alien races.

Sol attended the gathering as a helper, often clumsily dropping drinks and talking to guests. He is too young to be a part of the parliament.

At one point Sol has a conversation with Killalla and tells her that his planets are all asleep and that when they wake up he hopes the dominant life form will look like her.

As Dream is preparing to leave the gathering he talks to Sol and mentions Sol's sleeping planets are dreaming and that the "dreams are very lonely, and beautiful."

Scott originally started drawing Sol in early June 2010, but was not happy with his preliminary sketch and so he tucked him aside to work on at a later date. Fifteen months later Scott drew his final version of Sol.

Here is both his original attempt and the finished version of an innocent and charming character from one of my favorite Sandman stories.

Demon # 114

2011-09-27T20:15:00.000-07:00

This demon is barely visible in the panel where Dream defeats Choronzon in the Hellfire Club.

If you look hard enough you'll spot him....

Emissary # 09

2011-09-26T20:19:00.000-07:00

This emissary is one of the many people who travelled to the Dreaming in an attempt to gain control of Hell.

As funny as it may seem, this emissary is not one of the three Egyptian emissaries.

So, who does he represent?

Ghost Girl

2011-09-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

This is one of the ghosts who returned to St. Hilarions when the dead returned to Earth after Lucifer closed Hell.

She can be seen chasing Alfred, the school groundskeeper, with a ghost boy (who was previously posted here on the blog).

The thing that I find interesting is that St. Hilarions was a boys school....so who is this ghost girl and why is she haunting the school?

As I have said before, I absolutely love Scott's ghost children. This one is probably one of my favorites...but I think I've said that about all of the ghosts so far....

Demon # 102

2011-09-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

As Dream and Choronzon battle it out in the Hellfire Club, this demon gasps as Choronzon issues the, seemingly, killing stroke by saying "I am anti-life, the beast of judgment. I am the dark at the end of everything. The end of the universes, gods, worlds...of everything."

Demon # 163

2011-09-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

This fly demon is one of the many demons listening to Azazel's speech about reclaiming Hell.

This demon is not easy to spot because he's sort of in the middle of the crowd, but he's there, listening to Azazel, with his six arms and his beady little fly eyes.....

You know, flies are pretty creepy....

Emissary # 5

2011-09-20T20:26:00.000-07:00

This is one of the emissaries who travel to The Dreaming, hoping to convince Morpheus to give them the Key to Hell.

This is a particularly exciting emissary. In the published comic, we cannot actually see this emissary's face. We only see his back, as he's facing the King Of Dreams as he speaks to the guests of his realm.

Scott interpreted this character and gave him a personality that was not shown in the published comic.

This is one of my favorite things about this project.....

Serial Killer # 15

2011-09-17T17:32:00.000-07:00

This Serial Killer is one of the many killers that is visible in the audience during Nimrod's speech.

In the published comic he sort of reminds me of a bald Fat Tony (from The Simpsons). Scott took a few liberties with him, which makes him a lot less stereotypical, which is cool.

Take this opportunity to read "Collectors" again. It's a fantastically dark story...and while you are reading it be sure to keep an eye open for this Serial Killer.

Demon # 96

2011-09-15T20:19:00.000-07:00

This Demon is one of the many demons in The Hellfire Club watching the contest between Chronzon and Morpheus.

This demon can be seen talking to a weird rectangular headed demon and standing near an oafish demon with an exposed brain.

You gotta love Hell and all those wacky demons....

Emissary # 07

2011-09-14T20:17:00.000-07:00

This is one of the Emissaries that came to The Dreaming hoping to obtain the Key to Hell.

This emissary is clearly visible in one of the panels and I would love to know more about this character. He's obviously not a demon, but what exactly is he?

Any ideas?

Simon Mould

2011-09-13T17:43:00.000-07:00

Aren't these ghost kids so adorable???

Simon Mould attended St. Hilarions, like the other ghost children.

He died in 1953.

He hung himself.

He claimed that he didn't mean to.

Comic Shop Guy

2011-09-12T20:07:00.000-07:00

This comic shop guy appears in the final chapter of A Game Of You, which is one of my favorite storylines from the series (of course, depending on the day of the week I could say that about pretty much all the storylines).

Barbie goes into a comic shop to buy a copy of Hyperman as a farewell gift for her friend Wanda. The comic shop guy was, in her words, a "big greasy guy." He was extremely unhelpful and made some comment about not seeing breasts as small as hers in a comic shop, referring to the fact that most women in comics have oversized breasts (check out Power Girl, as an example).

I can honestly say that I have never been a comic shop that has had an employee and rude and disgusting as this particular comic shop guy. I'm sure they are out there somewhere, but I have been fortunate to have never encountered one.

Emissary # 3

2011-09-11T19:34:00.000-07:00

There are some emissaries that make sense...there's the emissaries from Faery and the Norse Gods and some Egyptian Gods...but then we have this guy. I have no idea who he is supposed to be representing, He was talking to one of the knights and so maybe he is somehow affiliated with those guys.

Demon # 142

2011-09-09T05:59:00.001-07:00

This demon is one of the many demons who heard Morpheus speak of the power of Hope as he was about to leave Hell in Preludes And Nocturnes.

Skinner

2011-09-07T20:11:00.000-07:00

Skinner attended St. Hilarions and was killed in the Great War sometime between 1914-1918.

He died of Diphtheria.

When he left Hell, as a result of Lucifer leaving his realm, he returned to St. Hilarions and was reunited with his friends Cheeseman and LT. Barrow and they tortured a living boy names Charles Roland and ultimately caused his death.

Once again, Scott did a fantastic job with this ghost.

Emissary # 08

2011-09-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

To complement the previous character, tonight we are posting Emissary # 8.

This emissary, like Emissary # 6, is visible in the double page spread from Sandman # 27.

I believe that this emissary is also a Native American gods.

Emissary # 06

2011-09-06T05:29:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned previously, there are tons of emissaries who travel to the Dreaming in hopes of claiming the Key To Hell as their own. Some of them are recognizable and others are not.

This emissary is one that is visible in the beautiful double page spread in the penultimate chapter of Season Of Mists.

I can only assume that he is an emissary to the Native American gods, but exactly who he is was never revealed. Perhaps his identity will be revealed in the Annotated Sandman books due out at the end of the year.

Tortured Man # 03

2011-09-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

This could have been a lot more graphic, but thankfully Scott kept it pretty simple.

This is one of the tortured men in Hell from the final chapter of Season Of Mists.

Ghost Boy # 1

2011-09-03T20:10:00.000-07:00

This is one of the ghost children who returned to St. Hilarions when the inhabitants of Hell were forced to leave.

This ghost boy chased Alfred, the school's grounds keeper, one night along with a ghost woman.

It is unknown who this ghost boy was and why he and the ghost woman were chasing Alfred.

I must say, I absolutely love Scott's ghost children. They are cute and sort of creepy at the same time!!!

Emissary # 1

2011-09-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

There are many emissaries to travel to the Dreaming in hopes of claiming the Key To Hell as their own. Some are recognizable and significant while others are primarily just background characters.

This emissary is one of the many background characters that can be seen throughout the scenes with the other emissaries.

I really like this one...

Demon # 161

2011-08-31T21:06:00.000-07:00

This demon appears in Season Of Mists and is one of the demons listening to Azazel give his rousing speech about reclaiming Hell for demon kind.

Demon # 146

2011-08-31T11:08:00.000-07:00

This demon was a tough one to find (due to a bad description on my Sandman character list). Thankfully Scott and I saw down and figured out where I went wrong and found the demon without any problem at all.

This demon is in Preludes and Nocturnes and is one of the demons listening to The King Of Dreams speak about hope in Hell.

He may be a bit difficult to find...Scott's version doesn't look quite as terrifying as the published version of the demon...but that doesn't mean he won't eat you if he gets the chance.

Peter Hinchcliffe

2011-08-29T19:58:00.000-07:00

Peter Hinchcliffe was a student at St. Hilarions.

He choked on his own vomit in 1977 as a result of a lethal combination of alcohol and drugs.

Ketele

2011-08-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

This demon is Ketele.

He challenged Lucifer's decision to leave his realm and "abandon the war with Heaven."

Ultimately Ketele, along with all the other demons, was forced to leave Hell.

Ketele is a particularly interesting demon. His upper body is that of a wolf and his lower body is similar to a praying mantis. His lower body is, of course, not entirely visible in the portrait, but he is a truly unique and horrifying demon.

Headmaster Theodore's Mother

2011-08-27T19:37:00.000-07:00

When Lucifer left Hell, all of the inhabitants were also forced to leave, which meant that all the tortured souls once again walked upon the earth.

Headmaster Theodore's mother was one such ghost. Died in January 1942 and returned to St. Hilarions on December 1990 after having spent a significant time in Hell. It is presumed that she returned to Hell once Duma and Remiel became the caretakers.

Demon# 127

2011-08-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

When Scott gave me this character I had a tough time finding him in the original published comic, which lead to a delay in posting him here (along with life getting in the way of my updating).

Eventually Scott and I sat down to figure out who this guy was and it turns out that I mislabeled his page on my character master list and once I saw him it was super obvious what what happened.

This demon appears in the Hellfire club and is sitting, with his back to us, at a table with several other demons that Scott has already drawn...and perhaps one or two that he hasn't gotten to yet.

I hope you enjoy him.

Serial Killer # 24

2011-08-20T20:37:00.000-07:00

This serial killer is one of the first serial killers that we see from the Cereal Convention. This killer is sitting in the lobby of the hotel talking to another serial killer saying that he travelled for five days to get to the convention and that the "journey was a real killer."

Scott made him look a lot more sinister than the published version...and I really appreciate that.

LT Barrow

2011-08-11T19:24:00.000-07:00

This ghostly bully is one of the kids who torments Charles Rowland at St. Hilarions as all the demons and ghosts are forced to leave Hell by Lucifer when he gives up his kingdom.

LT Barrow attended St. Hilarions and was killed in The Great War sometime between 1914-1918.

Demon # 138

2011-08-08T20:38:00.000-07:00

This demon is one of the demons from Preludes And Nocturnes.

Like several of the demons we've posted recently, this demon is one of the many demons blocking the path as Dream leaves Hell.

I always thought this demon reminded me of the female Cenobite from Clive Barker's Hellraiser movies.

Demon # 165

2011-08-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

Since the previous demon posted on the blog was from Season Of Mists I thought it would be appropriate to post another demon from the same storyline, and the same panel, as the previous demon.

This demon appears in the panel where Azazel is telling all the demons that he intends to reclaim the key to Hell for demon kind and that they will rule without Lucifer.

This demon is awesome. Scott did a fantastic job with this demon, who is mostly off panel.

Demon # 164

2011-08-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

This Demon is one of the demons listening to Azazel's speech about reclaiming Hell for demon kind.

This demon is pretty recognizable.

I really like that Scott picked up on the details of the "gaps" within the demon's arms.

Chris

2011-08-04T19:58:00.000-07:00

Chris is a serial killer.

Like all the other serial killers in the Sandman comic series he attended the Cereal Convention.

Chris can be seen talking to Serial Killer # 9 (who was previously posted).

Demon # 134

2011-08-03T19:30:00.000-07:00

This demon appears at the end of the scene in the Hellfire Club.

As Choronzon is being taken away by Agony and Ecstasy this demon can be seen. He is mostly off panel, but you can catch a glimpse of him.

Serial Killer # 9

2011-08-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

In the published comic, this serial killer was significantly older than Scott's interpretation. Since the character's back is facing the reader in the comic, Scott interpreted this character as he envisioned he would look.

This serial killer is talking with another serial killer (named Chris) saying that the tv version was butchered, but that it's possible to find the unedited version in Canada. What exactly he's talking about is unknown. Perhaps it is a made for tv movie depicting the life and actions of this serial killer or perhaps it is something more innocent and we, the reader, assumes it's something more unsettling simply because the person speaking is a ruthless serial killer.

Demon # 125

2011-08-01T20:59:00.000-07:00

This demon is one of the demons from The Hellfire Club.

Scott has really dissected this panel over the last month. I think he's drawn nearly every demon from this particular panel.

I always thought this demon was pretty weird. I mean, what is that thing coming out of his mouth? Is it an arm? His intestines? Whatever it is it certainly is phallic?

Serial Killer # 5

2011-07-31T20:50:00.000-07:00

Like all the other serial killers in the Sandman universe, this serial killer attended the Cereal Convention.

He is standing in the background, but is easily recognizable.