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SANDMAN

SANDMAN: THE DREAM HUNTERS HC December 1999 [$29.95] (Vertigo: Suggested for Mature Readers) Cover Credit: Yoshitaka Amano (painted art); Nancy Ogami (logo design)

Story: "The Dream Hunters" (128 Pages)

Credits: Neil Gaiman (plot, script); Yoshitaka Amano (painted art); Jennifer Lee (assistant edits); Karen Berger (executive edits); Georg Bremer (design directions); Amie Brockway (art directions)

Feature Character: Morpheus (in the aspects of 'the King of All Night's Dreaming' and 'the Fox of Dreams')

Supporting Characters: A Monk, A Fox (first appearance of both, both die), Three Oracles (a Japanese aspect of the Three Witches/the Triple Goddess), A Talking Garden (possibly an aspect of Fiddler's Green), Cain, Abel (both in Japanese versions), the Itsumade (a Japanese aspect of the Gryphon of the Gate), a Raven (possibly Aristeas, next in Sandman Vol. 2 #24 - see Comments)

Villains: The Master of Yin-Yang (a.k.a. the Onmyoji), three demons, an evil Lord, the Lord's retainers (first appearance of all listed)

Other Characters: A Badger, the Baku (a.k.a. the Dream Eaters), the Monk's father, the Monk's grandfather (both in dreams only), a monkey, Binzuru Harada (the first of Buddha's disciples), the Master's Wife, the Master's Concubine, the Master's Servants (first appearance of all listed)

Comment: This is an illustrated text story rather than a comic, and was later reprinted as a softcover.
  The characters' placement in continuity is unclear since the date of this story is never mentioned. However, since Kyoto is a prominent city in this tale, it must take place after the year 794 A.D., when the city was founded.
  Dream's raven is never mentioned by name, but since he claims to have been a poet in life, he is possibly Aristeas of Marmora (alive in the 7th century B.C. and Dream's raven for centuries afterwards).
  The book doesn't have a cover date. It was printed in October 1999, but was listed with and came out at the same time as DC's "December 1999" cover-dated books.

Synopsis:

In ancient Japan, a fox falls in love with a solitary monk. When the monk's enemy, the Master of Yin-Yang, prepares to kill the monk in his dreams, the fox travels to the Dreaming and pleads before the King of All Night's Dreaming for help to stop the crime...