The Sandman: Act III

By: Neil Gaiman, Dirk Maggs

Narrated by: Neil Gaiman, James McAvoy, K.J. Apa, Kat Dennings, Shruti Haasan, David Harewood, Regé-Jean Page, Kristen Schaal, Wil Wheaton

Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's Summary

The groundbreaking audio production of what Los Angeles Times Magazine called “the greatest epic in the history of comic books” continues. Leading perhaps the best cast ever assembled in audio, James McAvoy returns to voice Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams, in The Sandman: Act III, the third installment of the New York Times best-selling audio saga. Award-winning audio trailblazer Dirk Maggs adapts the blockbuster DC graphic novel series written by Neil Gaiman (Good Omens) into another fully immersive listening experience, presented for the first time in breathtaking 3D audio.

In Act III, we follow Morpheus on a grand journey to take care of family business. He visits with his son Orpheus (Bridgerton’s Regé-Jean Page), an act that brings with it profound consequences. Accompanied by Delirium (Kristen Schaal, Bob’s Burgers), he tracks down their estranged brother, Destruction (David Harewood, Supergirl), the only member of the Endless ever to abandon their post. And at an inn at the intersection of all worlds, a group of travelers are forced together by a storm that threatens to destroy reality itself, with grave repercussions for Morpheus and the rest of the Endless.

All the original cast returns, including Kat Dennings as Death, Aidan Turner as Cluracan, and Neil Gaiman himself as The Narrator, joined by Harewood and other new cast members Wil Wheaton (Star Trek: The Next Generation), KJ Apa (Riverdale), Shruti Haasan (Race Gurram), and more.

It’s time to close your eyes and listen. Once again.

Please note: This content is not for kids. It is for mature audiences only. Just like the original graphic novels, this audio adaptation contains explicit language and graphic violence, as well as strong sexual content and themes. Discretion is advised.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2022 DC. All Rights Reserved. DC logo, The Sandman, and all related characters and elements © & ™ DC. (P)2022 DC and Audible

Truly Epic!!!

These are all amazing and I literally jumped with joy with the announcement of this one. I'm not at all disappointed and it's just as awesome as the others. These have ruined all other audio books. I need them all to be this epic!

Neil Gaiman could read me the phone book

I don't usually like ensemble cast readings but I look forward to this one. Loved it!

Bit too disconnected. Didn't feel epic, bit boring

So, I know this series is usually a bunch of short stories but previous entries always had some sort way to connect several of these stories into one larger picture story that felt really epic.

This never quite went anywhere and that epic larger picture story or something to sorta connect all these short stories never really came, or at least to me, maybe the stories felt a bit too loosely attached to eachother that I just didn't recognize it.

I really never got anything that felt particularly epic and the stories that were delivered felt like the quality went down severely. None of these stories really felt like there was enough time for any tension to build up and none of the characters particularly stood out.

What I did like about this book was one of the short stories. The only one that stood out as something that was good enough to remember was the story about Moroheus's son and his attempted rescue of his wife. I liked the production I think more then the plot thread as the use of sound effects and a singer was really really well done. The plot was alright, felt weirdly similar to what we've already seen but I think the production really made that stand out more then the rest. I didn't like how his sons character was written off though, that felt lazy and out of nowhere.

Other then that single plot thread, everything else sorta was forgettable. I really just didn't have a very good time with this. I wish some of these plots had a higher impact or something particularly shocking would have happened. The writing style just feels so different from the first season of these books.

Weird to say but the first season of this series was so memorable that I could legit gush about particular threads of plot and can get into the nitty gritty details about what I loved. I just can't do that here, there were fun moments, but nothing so wildly conceptual that it'd stick with me for years like the first season of this series managed to do.

I honestly think I'm done with this series point forward, the quality dips are just getting worse and worse that it's totally lost my interest now.

Just amazing

I’ve enjoyed all 3 of the Sandman Audiobooks, but I think this one is my favorite! Love the full immersion through sound effects, music, and all the voice actors are fantastic!

Dream comes true & the best so far

Another Gaiman's Dream (book) brought to life. The stories are fantastic, the performance superb, and the sound effects dramatic. I think this one is the best in the series so far, and here's why.

First, each character is clearly indicated when he/she speaks, and there's little guessing who's talking. I found most of the mulit-cast audible books hard to follow because I can't tell one character from another easily. Each Sandman book does it better than the previous one. Not only each character has his/her distinct voice, the narrator or the story identifies the person clearly. In this book, I need to guess very little.

Second, I know the characters better, care about them deeper, and thus enjoy their journey more. The characters are well designed and act in consistent ways, with the storyline pushing the character development naturally.

Third, the dramatic and realistic sound effects help tell the story clearer and push the story's emotion higher. For example, the rapid splashing sound tells me that the character is in the water and probably struggling. One thing this book has more than before is music and songs, not just dramatic sound effects. Orpheus definitely lives up to his reputation as the god of music, and his performance is dreamy (Dream is also dreamy, so I guess it runs in the family.)

Lastly, the individual tales are all great and contribute to the overarching storyline and character development. The stories are engaging and full of imagination, dramas, and surprises. Even on the rare occasion I know how the plot will end, the journey there is still deeply enjoyable.

Gaiman is a master in building fantasies, and this one is another dream comes true.

I like it.

Got this with my audible credit. Pretty good stuff. I give it two thumbs up. (=•D)

A collection of short stories

This is a collection of short and unrelated stories. Morpheus is not a central character and often doesn't even appear. The reviews and ratings that call this epic with 5 stars, most likely did not even read it. Act 1 was phenomenal. Act 2 started good and fizzled out. This Act 3 fizzled out after only 1 hour. I had expected/hoped that this would be a production centered around Morpheus. It started with his son, which was a good start and then ended after 1 hour. What follows is just short stories, like Act 2. If you like a bunch of disconnected short stories for 10 hours, then you'll like this. I had to stop listening. I was a real story with character arcs and stuff. I don't recommend any Sandman except Act 1.

May all your dreams come true

The Sandman is an incredible production of the book made for Audible. The cast legendary the story timeless this series was what Audible fans have been asking for. The story was fantastic and characters so well developed I felt as I knew them. I true book lovers dream come true.

Disconnected

Fantastic production and voice acting as usual. The actual meat of this book though is a different story. Yes, the original is a collection of short stories but this book felt like more of a set up for what's to come based on the actions of a few individuals. At least the previous books masterfully wove the short stories to all connect in some way but this book did not give off that feel and felt rather disconnected.

Overall some interesting bits if you listened to the previous two but otherwise was just boring and in the grand scheme of things not alot of things in the universe moved forward. World's end was just 4 hours of drivel that could be completely cut out and you wouldn't feel like you missed a thing.

A little disappointing

I found the first two Acts much more engaging. The primary storyline in Act III has its moments of excitement, but I felt like the conclusion was rushed. The Worlds End storyline seems completely unnecessary. If you are already committed to finishing the trilogy…nothing is going to stop you…the polish and production value is still off the charts.

I am heartbroken

My heart is broken and I still have so many questions. I feel like a part of my life has ended with the ending of this audiobook.

This is one of the best pieces of fiction to have ever fallen into my hands(well, ears).

Everything is played out so well, good job everyone.

Extraordinary

As with Act 1 and 2, Dirk Maggs continues to pull off the seemingly impossible by adapting this seminal Vertigo comic into Audio form.
This is the act where the disparate threads of everything that's come before start to bear fruit.
This is where we begin to see where the story is headed and we must harden our hearts to it.

James McAvoy is a treasure and gives his otherworldly best, he's been good til now, here's where he'll break your heart.

Honestly, can't get enough. Delighted to live in a world where this exists.

It is perfectly The Sandman in audio.

One of the finest graphic novels ever created is being brought to life by one of the finest producers of audio drama.

Of course none of this will make much sense if you haven't listened to the first 2 acts and it sort of ends without a conclusion as there is much more to come.

With those caveats, this is superb listening - the vast cast know that this is special, no-one is phoning it in.

Since Act II dropped last year, we've had the 1st Netflix season, which in no way diminishes the audiobooks, but compliments them beautifully. The compromises required by a television adaptation (by nature of the beast) are not so necessary for audio - at least when Dirk Maggs is making it sound easy. It's not quite true to every panel, but much more than you'd expect.


So, if you've listened to the first two, you'll want this one. If you've never listened to them, don't start here. If you're a Sandman graphic novel fan, you should love this entire project. If you've come from the Netflix show, this is a different take, but the same story.

It is complex and adult, never dumbed down. It's The Sandman in audio format.

A masterclass in adapting for audio drama.

Simply amazing

I've been listening to the audio adaptations of Dirk Maggs for over 20 years. The Sandman towers above everything in an already amazing career of audio adaptative storytelling. Everything else before has lead to this. A great story, beautifully acted and scored. Act IV can't be dreamed up fast enough.

Another great performance!

A thoroughly enjoyable listen, although I thought Acts 1 and 2 were more enjoyable stories.

A Crock of Gold-dust

In 1953, Walter de la Mare wrote a foreward to ‘The Crock of Gold’ by James Stephens, a book he had favourably reviewed in the Times Literary Supplement in 1913. Not wishing to attempt to out-Walter de la Mare, I here employ it, piecemeal and particulate and without permission, to the present work, credited to the fecund partnership of Neil Gaiman and Dirk Maggs.
De la Mare said, “Like half the best books, it is more than a little mad and crammed full of life and beauty. It is a hymn to Nonsense – and real ‘Nonsense’ is only wisdom turned inside out, and so beyond only an unwise understanding… Unlike the other half of the ‘best’ books, it is not a book at all but a crazy patchwork stitched, zigzag, loosely together - a kind of motley over-all in which one may sit in one’s bones on the verge of time and space and contemplate everything and nothing…”
Pick the bones (very possibly your own) out of that!

Another one knocked out the park!

Great acting, great stories and excellently executed. What a fantastic series this is. Thank you Dirk Maggs and Neil Gaiman.

The greatest audiobook ever made

Act 1 a masterpiece. Act 2 a triumph. Act 3?
The greatest audio recording I’ve heard in my life

Another mesmerising telling of the Sandman tale

Totally immersive audio adaptation of the much loved comics. As always a perfect performance and soundtrack. Thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend

Brilliant

Absolutely loved this. Wonderful stories and great acting. Very atmospheric. Neil Gaiman is a magical storyteller.