The Sandman is finally out on Netflix. The show is based on popular author Neil Gaiman’s comic book with the same title. The Sandman is a story about the Endless, particularly the Sandman or Dream of the Endless. And throughout the first season of The Sandman, there are a couple of references to the “The Prodigal”” mentioned by Dream’s siblings. Spoilers ahead!
Spoilers ahead!
When the Sandman starts, Dream of the Endless, played by Tom Sturridge, is captured by a British warlock named Roderick Burgess. The warlocks original plan was to capture Death in his efforts to revive his dead son, but instead he ended up capturing Dream. Dream is then locked up for over a century. Once escaping his prison, Dream sets out on a quest to retrieve his tools or symbols of his office: his red ruby, his helmet and his pouch of dream sand.
We are also introduced to a couple of Dream’s siblings who make up the other members of the Endless. There are a total of 7 members of the Endless. Death is shown in episode 6, while the more nefarious twins that were revealed to be pulling the strings following the series of events in the show are Desire and Despair. The rest of the Endless, such as Delirium and Destiny, have not made their appearance in the first season. And neither does The Prodigal.
The Prodigal becomes an interesting point of interest of many since we understand the functions of the Endless whereby it exists to serve humanity in a specific facet of their lives, and keeping it from wiping out from existence. Even Dream serves a vital purpose to humanity and the universe, keeping it in a state of balance. Every Endless has a purpose. So, when an Endless is hinted to have abandoned their function, it is a curious plot point that had viewers wondering who that might be and what function did the Endless serve before leaving.
The identity of The Prodigal is apparent to those who have read Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman: Brief Lives, the seventh collection of issues in the DC Comics of the series. The Prodigal is Destruction. Destruction is the fourth-eldest member of the Endless. Destruction is Destiny, Death, and Dream’s younger brother and the older sibling of Desire, Despair, and Delirium. Like all of his siblings, he was an anthropomorphic personification of necessary change. He also has powers over the action and process of making, inventing or producing.
Why Destruction Left The Endless
In the Brief Lives story arc, Dream and Delirium went on a road trip to find their brother who had left his post in the 1700s. They succeeded in finding Destruction and learned the reason why he had left his post. Destruction has foreseen the capability of humanity to destroy everything with the advancements of technology in warfare in the Age of Reason which will give birth to atomic bombs, thus increasing their capacity for destruction. The entity decided that he no longer wants to be a part of it, although this does not stop from destruction to take place in the universe. Destruction, also known as Olethros, has set out into the world to understand the essence of his existence, and to learn about his nature in his attempt to control over it. To learn more about the Endless known as Destruction, check out this wiki page.
Destruction in The Sandman Series
Based on the source material and how much of it is covered so far, we won’t be seeing The Prodigal introduced to the audience till Season 3. So far Season 1 has covered the first two books in the series. However, there might be a chance of seeing hints of him in Season 2 should the showrunner decide to put it there, or perhaps in the last few scenes of Season 2. This is all speculation at this point however, since there have been some changes to the characters in The Sandman live-action series as compared to the comics.
The Sandman Season 1 is now available on Netflix. The reviews are great. Check it out today!