Check out my introduction to the Endless in case you missed it!
In anticipation of Netflix’s new series The Sandman coming out, and just because I love them, I am introducing you to the Endless. Up first is the main character, and who the story is about, Dream. He is also referred to as Morpheus. Morpheus has six siblings, Death, Desire, Destruction, Delirium, Despair, and Destiny. We will get to know each of them later. Today is all about Dream.
Dream has many names. Dream, Morpheus, Lord Dream, Sandman, Oneiros, and Kai’ckul are a few names I know of. Of the Endless, he is the third to come into being. Night and Time are the “parents” of the Endless siblings. Night is the mother, naturally. Time is the father, like Father Time, get it? I think it’s a rather clever way to name a parent. Morpheus has a son named Orpheus that he had with Calliope. This Orpheus is the one from Greek mythology that went to Hades to retrieve his wife, Eurydice. Morpheus killed Orpheus and Dream himself died for that. Dream did not end, his essence funneled into Daniel Hall.
The way Morpheus looks usually makes sense to me as the Lord of Dream. He is tall, pale, and thin. Dream has black hair that I have never seen in a combed hairstyle. He wears long black robes that on the inside you can see the stars in. It matches really well with his eyes which often look like twin stars and can be all the colors that stars can be. That being said, he can shapeshift, take on any appearance he chooses, even if it isn’t of this world.
Each of the Endless is connected irrevocably to their realms. It isn’t just a job. It also isn’t the same as being a God(dess) and having dominion over it. Dream is literally dreaming. It is his purpose for being. Obviously, Morpheus’s realm is Dream.
Each Endless also has a sigil. Morpheus’s symbol is his mask. The actual mask is made of the skull and backbones of an old God that had beef with Dream. His mask is one of his objects that hold some of his power. He also possesses a ruby and a pouch with special sand. John Constantine helped him get his pouch back after his imprisonment. His helm was in Hell and his ruby ended up destroyed by Dr. Destiny.
Speaking of his imprisonment, on June 10th, 1916, Dream was summoned and imprisoned by Roderick Burgess. Roderick was attempting to do that to Death, not Dream. Roderick kept Dream in hopes that Dream would reveal to him how to summon Death. Eventually, he was passed to Roderick’s son Alex. Alex continued to fail like his father in getting Morpheus to talk. Alex’s wheelchair made Dream’s escape possible and he took his revenge.
Dream is able to take the souls of the dead to his realm instead of Death’s realm. I am unsure if it has to happen as Death is escorting them to her space or if he can get to the souls of the long dead. I know there are souls such as Calliope that are long dead that he can speak with, but I don’t know if that is in his realm or The Light At the End of the Tunnel.
Daniel Hall is Morpheus’s incarnation successor. At the destruction of Dream, his essence went into Daniel and Daniel became Morpheus. There are some noticeable changes in Morpheus once Daniel became him. He is nicer and more compassionate. The “new” Morpheus has even been seen petting animals in the Realm of Dream.
I love Dream. He is my second favorite Endless with Death being my favorite. We will get to her next time. Did you enjoy getting to know Dream? Let me know your thoughts on Dream and the Endless siblings in the comments below. Until next week…
