When he finally escapes in the modern day, he finds his realm, , in shambles. Most of his subjects have fled, and the physical world is suffering from "The Sleepy Sickness." The first half of the season follows his quest to reclaim his tools:
Retreived with the help of occult detective Johanna Constantine . The Sandman (S01)
The story begins in 1916 when an amateur occultist, Roderick Burgess, attempts to capture Death to bring back his fallen son. He fails, instead snagging her younger brother, . Morpheus is imprisoned in a glass basement for over a century, stripped of his "tools of office"—his sand, his ruby, and his helm. When he finally escapes in the modern day,
It contrasts Morpheus’s cold dedication to his duty with the human needs of those he affects. He fails, instead snagging her younger brother,
Recovered from the unstable John Dee , who uses the stone’s power to force people into a horrific "truth-telling" massacre in a 24-hour diner. The Dream Vortex
The second half shifts focus to , a young woman who is a "Dream Vortex"—an entity capable of breaking down the walls between every individual’s dreams, which could inadvertently destroy the universe.
The central conflict for Morpheus is whether an immortal being can actually change his nature.