Dead Man # 4 (illustrated by Anna Hybsier)

And here's the second character for today!!!

Orpheus descends into The Underworld in hopes of rescuing Eurydice.

As he approached the thrones of Lord Hades and Queen Persephone he found himself amongst the dead. This man is one of the many dead men in the Underworld.

He appears in The Sandman Special # 1, on page 31, panel 3.

Anna did a great job with this portrait. I like her use of colors, first with the blues used to give the character a lifeless feel and the yellows for the background. The contrast between the character and background gives the portrait a neat feel.

Demon # 225 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

Sorry for not posting in two days. I was ill and slept most of those two days and so the portraits blog suffered. Sorry.

In my attempt to apologize, I'll be posting two characters both today and tomorrow....one in the morning and one in the evening.

First up is an interesting Demon and interesting portrait from Max.

This Demon appears in Preludes and Nocturnes and is one of the demons gathered as Morpheus searches for his stolen helmet.

He can be seen near a group of other demons. In my description of him I called him a “demon with a squiggly face.”

He appears in Sandman # 4, on page 13, panel 4. He’s right in the middle…

I like this portrait because it’s completely different than any of the other portraits Max has done and it’s a unique interpretation.

Waiter # 7 (illustrated by Lars Brown)

Throughout the centuries Dream and Hob meet in a pub to talk about the events of Hob’s life that have lead him to that particular moment, both his successes and his failures as well as the loss of loved ones and how he is coping with his long life.

In the 1800’s prior to their gathering Johanna Constantine bribed the waiter at a pub to let her know when Dream and Hob meet at the pub.

On the day of their arrival this waiter stands outside the pub and shakes a white cloth to signal that Johanna and her associates can come in and speak with Dream and Hob.

He is paid handsomely.

This waiter appears in Sandman # 13, on page 17.

Lars did a great job with this portrait. I like that he captured the period of time this character was alive in his hairstyle and clothing. The clothing in particular is a subtle reminder that this character is from the 1800’s. I really like this portrait of a pretty minor character.

Bar Patron # 7 (illustrated by Jeremy Haun)

When Hob Gadling first met Dream he was in a crowded pub. This man was one of the men in that pub. He was sitting at a table with another patron.

He appears in Sandman # 13 on page 4 in panel 2.

This portrait was drawn by Jeremy Haun, who did an excellent job with this character. I really like how he looks a bit rough and not necessarily clean. During this time period people were not able to bathe regularly and this man has that appearance without looking dirty. I also really like the line work for his beard. Here is the Bar Patron…

Dreamer At The Wake # 20 (illustrated by Anna Hybsier)

At The Wake for Morpheus, everyone is present to say their goodbyes and to celebrate his life.

In turn each of the Endless, with the exception of Destruction, speak about their brother and afterwards others who were touched by the King Of Dreams tell of their memories.

While Destiny is speaking, many people sit and listen to his words. Hob Gadling is sitting near Mad Hettie and this character is sitting between them.

What is this creature? How was he touched by Dream? At this point we don’t know.

The only thing we do know is that perhaps he shouldn’t be sitting between two people who have lived for a very long time and have met, at least briefly, in passing.

This character appears in Sandman # 73, on page 5, in panels 5 and 6.

I really like this portrait. Anna did a great job with this character. He definitely has a touch of sadness about him. Perhaps it is because he is attending the Wake of Morpheus or perhaps it is because he is being squished by Hob and Mad Hettie.

Security Guard # 5 (illustrated by Max Rugers)

Throughout the Sandman Saga several security guards appear, most notably in Preludes and Nocturnes and predominately in Arkham Asylum. This guard is one of those guards.

He is stationed in the monitoring room along with another guard. They spend their evenings watching television and was on duty the night that John Dee escaped.

This guard appears in Sandman # 5, on page one in panel 4.

Max did a great job with this portrait. The background is covered with tape and then painted, adding a unique texture to the portrait. It really helps accent the character.

Alsonso (illustrated by Lars Brown)

Alonso is a fictional character from The Tempest, a play written by William Shakespeare.

Alonso is the king of Naples, who mistakenly believes his son Ferdinand has died. He also feels a sense of responsibility for Prospero’s banishment, due to Antonio deposing his brother, Prospero and exiling him to a virtually uninhabited island.

After being stranded on the island, as a result of a storm created by Prospero, Antonio and Sebastien plot to kill Alonso, but this plan is thwarted by Ariel. <>P> Alonso appears in Sandman # 75 on page 28.

This is a very lovely portrait from Lars. I like that he depicted him as a gentle king, and not necessarily as complacent as we are lead to believe from the perspective of Prospero in The Tempest.

Here is Alonso…