Sandman: Netflix surprises its subscribers with a bonus episode

Fantastic novelty of the Netflix platform, Sandman unveiled its ten episodes at the beginning of August, mesmerizing viewers with its supernatural and dreamlike atmosphere. And while fans thought they would have to wait many months before falling back into the arms of Morpheus, the American giant unveiled an eleventh and final bonus chapter to extend the dream.

It’s not over, there’s more! Two weeks after the arrival of Sandman on Netflix, the platform offers a small gift to its subscribers by adding an eleventh episode to the series. A hybrid format between animation and live action, the latter is inspired by the chapters Calliope and A dream of a thousand cats comics by Neil Gaiman. Two distinct and deeply philosophical adventures that bring new reflections on the existence and place of dreams at the heart of our lives.

Sandman morphs into a cartoon

The first part of the episode, which therefore takes up the plot of A dream of a thousand cats, comes in cartoon form. Directed by Hisko Hulsing, known for his work on Undone, Junkyard and Seventeen, this part stages the speech of a prophet cat, who has come to tell his comrades his story and his spiritual revelation. A dark and deep dive into the world of small felines, forced into submission to men.

As for the voice casting, we find well-known actors from the small and big screen, starting with Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy), who plays the great orator, James McAvoy (X-Men: The Beginning) who plays the blond-haired man, David Tennant (Doctor Who) who plays Don or Michael Sheen (Prodigal Son) who camps Paul. The rest of the cast is made up of Rosie Day (the kitten), David Gyasi (the gray cat), Joe Lycett (the black cat), Georgia Tennant (Laura Lynn), Lundberg (Marion), Nonso Anozie (Wyvern), Diane Morgan (Gryffin) and Tom Wu (Hyppogriff).

Morpheus facing his past in Calliope

The second part of the episode, directed by Louise Hopper (The Witcher), revolves around the story of Calliope and her captors. Muse of epic poetry, the latter has the power to inspire authors, which is why it is particularly coveted. So when a writer out of ideas finds a way to submit her to his services, the young woman unfortunately finds herself a slave, trapped on the land for several decades. His only hope then lies in Morpheus, one of the ghosts of his past.

With Tom Sturridge, Melissanthi Mahut (Eurovision Song Contest) and Arthur Darville (doctor who) as headliners, this episode also features Derek Jacobi (Good Omens) as Erasmus Fry, Amita Suman (Shadow and Bone) in Nora’s or Kevin Harvey in Larry’s. Just over an hour long, this episode comes to close season 1 of Sandmanwhich has, for the moment, still not been officially renewed by Netflix.