#dreamling meta

[talktolwt]

I would like to focus on the music chosen for Hob Gadling's 80s sequence.

I'm extremely late to the world of The Sandman (finally binged it two weeks ago after my mother had been begging me to watch it with her and now I'm more obsessed than her) Bottom line: I'm unbelievably glad I finally watched this beautiful piece of television.

I have yet to read the comics but as for the first season, I have to say, without a doubt, my favorite episode is Chapter 6: The Sound of Her Wings. Death's 20-min segment is a beauty unto itself, but I'll be focusing on Hob's segment today. Specifically, his 80s scenes.

Considering I'm so late to this fandom and exploring all of its wondrous details and themes, excuse me if this has already been noted. I've been thinking about these details over and over but I need to get it out there in the Sandman world and hear everyone else's thoughts.

*Also excuse the terrible photos - Netflix doesn't let you screenshot and I was too lazy to get another app to let me bypass it. Please bear with my photos of my laptop screen.*

There are three songs that play throughout this sequence.

#1 - "She Drives Me Crazy" by Fine Young Cannibals

I accidentally deleted half my post mid-writing this but here I go again.

As we can see, after the breakup scene, we open up on Hob Gadling (he looks amazing in his 80s look, by the way) and this song plays.

Here are the lyrics:

I mean - where do I even start LMAO.

*Let me just give another note - regardless if you ship Dreamling romantically or not, I will be merely analyzing these lyrics as they are and how they convey Hob's feelings for Dream in general. But, I mean, the songs are THERE, the text is THERE. So do with that what you will.*

This will go for the following two songs as well, but these songs are placed with meaningful intention. Each of these offer a unique lens and dive into Hob's feelings.

I won't be annoying and over-explain anything, but the lyrics are clear I feel:

"She drives me crazy" - cough

"Things you do don't seem real" - in Hob's view, Dream literally is an enigma. Hob has no idea the capacities, the limits, and even the name of this being he meets every century.

"This waiting 'round's killing me" - well.

"Everything you say is lies" - now I wouldn't say particularly lies, but Dream does keep and omit things from Hob. Understandably, Hob would find himself in a confused limbo with Dream.

Here's the kicker:

"I won't make it on my own/No one likes to be alone." - HELLO. I mean, if this isn't the core message and pinnacle of Dream and Hob's lesson to immortality.

As Death mentions earlier in the episode, around 18:10, "Most of us will be glad for the company of a friend."

I feel I could go on forever and ever about the beauty of this episode and how well The Sound of Her Wings and Men of Good Fortune intertwine. They beautifully complement each other as stories lamenting the dichotomy of life and death, and the joys of humanity.

But essentially, Death reteaches Dream how beautiful humans can truly be, and in this pivotal moment, she says this zinger of a line. The camera was initially on Death but for THIS line, it cuts to Dream.

BECAUSE - poor Dream is definitely in need a friend.

Which is then shown to the audience by the 30-min long Hob Gadling sequence that ensues, and we see Dream's aversion to needing someone, to needing a friend.

But I digress - back to the song, and that one line about not wanting to be alone.

That is such a poignant line, because as much as Dream felt alone and needed company, so does Hob? An immortal, constantly seeing the death of others around him, his companions and family long gone, he needs someone.

Considering this 80s sequence ruminates so heavily on post-breakup feelings, Hob is missing Dream dearly. His constant in life.

I'm rambling too much, onto the next one!

#2 - "Shattered Dreams" by Johnny Hates Jazz

Time skip to perhaps a few hours later, who knows. We see Hob still waiting for Dream, alone in the pub.

Hm.

Literally what else could I say. I'm being slapped in the face with pining and angst and longing.

Here are the lyrics:

Some noteworthy lyrics:

"So much for your promises/They died the day you let me go" - this breakup man

"Caught up in a web of lies" - another lie motif

"I thought it was you/Who would stand by my side" - the theme of Dream and Hob being constants in each other's lives

"Shattered dreams" - I could scream. The title of the song. SHATTERED. DREAMS. giggling rn.

"Woke up to reality" - I think that's a very interesting line toeing between the constant references of the Waking and the Dreaming

Basically, I've been noting these evident similarities within the songs to align themselves to Dream and Hob's situation, and it's clear that the director/writers chose these songs with intent of it paralleling Dreamling.

So that makes it even more insane when lines like "From this empty heart" are meant to parallel Hob. Like.

Okay, last song.

#3 - "Keep On Moving" by Soul II Soul

This song plays as the night progresses. It's late, it's clear Dream isn't showing up, and Hob is feeling pretty final about that, and perhaps he's accepted it at this point. Dream isn't coming.

So this is where he speaks to the bartender and that scene ensues.

Here are the lyrics:

The themes of time and clocks are super prevalent within this song, and again it's once more clear how heavily this reflects and represents Hob.

Noteworthy lyrics:

"Why do people choose to live their lives this way?" - I think this also uniquely touches on the general aspect of humanity and one's reason to live/love life. Dream battles with his confusion/slight disappointment for humanity at the beginning, as he asks Death, "Why would any sensible creature crave an eternity of this?" And then Hob helps Dream realize why there's so much to live for. (24:30)

"I know the time will come today/The time will come one day"

"Walking alone in my own way" - Again this idea of walking alone and needing company.

"You'll be in my life, my life always" - Dream and Hob being constants again.

This all goes to say - Hob cares. He cares for Dream.

And I just think that's very beautiful. The magnitude with which Dream's absence means to him and how much their friendship/companionship both means to each of them. I just think their connection is a beautiful thing that I love seeing and rewatching. Wonderfully, these songs give the audience even more layered insight into this connection.

This was super long, and I apologize if I went on some tangents. But I also just couldn't help it, The Sandman is so incredibly rich in its storytelling and its connections and dynamics that I had to write this all down. I also just very much appreciate the amount of care and detail that goes into every aspect of television, and needle drops such as these three songs are no exception.

Thank you for sticking with me through this! Can't wait for season 2!

#i have more thoughts #i think i will never fully be satisfied with this post #there will always be too much to say #but wow #they CARE #there's LOVE there #genuine love #i love them #dream the endless #lord morpheus #king of dreams #hob gadling #hob #dreamling #dreamling meta #dream x hob #the sandman #music as outlets to the soul #and emotion #music #the sound of her wings #men of good fortune #i hope whoever read this enjoyed! #thank you

[orionsangel86]

I'm sorry but why do you ship them so hard? They just have 1 episode together.. I watched the sandman expecting destiel and it was literally almost nothing there. 1 episode. Idk how you guys got so much ship content out of that.

Ah nonny, I'm sorry but if you go into anything expecting Destiel you are gonna be dissappointed. Destiel is a behemouth of 12 years worth of gradually escalating gay subtext, queer coding, and romantic tropes. Destiel is the ship that people go into expecting that Tumblr exaggerated only to be blown away by how ridiculously gay it is even when it tries so hard not to be.

But remember, once upon a time people shipped Destiel after only a few moments of interaction. The first Destiel fic was written 30 minutes after Lazarus Rising aired...everything has its time.

When I joked that Dreamling was the "Destiel of Sandman fandom" I meant in terms of popularity compared to everything else about the show. The ships share some similar traits when compared on a grand scale - think ancient cosmic entity that has very strict rules slowly changes and starts to become more "human" thanks to their friendship with one dude who just so happens to be a hedonistic stubborn ass who refuses to die - but are otherwise very different.

But if you are wondering why people ship Dream and Hob so hard, well, this post goes some ways to explaining it.

But basically, look this may only be a half hour of television, but it doesn't equate in universe to half an hour of interaction. This half hour of television spans the course of 6 centuries for these two characters. There is a totally untapped potential hidden in the gaps between centuries to explore, and on top of that, the final meeting is left completely up to the imagination of the audience. Its a sandbox ship. Its a dozen fanfiction gaps laid on top of each other. It's at least 20 different prompts for fans to sink their teeth into. Its the potential. It's the what if.

Then on top of that, if you follow the comics, you know that the future Dream x Hob meetings also have a hell of a lot of potential to turn romantic. Dream going out of his way to hunt down a specific bottle of wine that doesn't exist on Earth anymore to gift it to Hob in his dreams, the very fact that he visits Hob in his dreams (hello common Destiel trope right there). They don't meet too many more times in the comics, but each time the tension is palpable. The meeting in the Kindly Ones is heartbreaking, because you can tell desperately how much they need each other at that moment, but they are both too distracted or consumed by grief and depression to truly reach out to one another. The comics never reveal why Dream sought Hob out at that point, but given everything happening to him at the time, its not hard to assume that Dream was seeking comfort from his friend - the only person he could really turn to for comfort at that point.

Then we have Hob's dream. One of the final stories in The Sandman original comic run. After everything else has happened, after the climax and all that takes place, after the smoke has cleared and you think everyone else has moved on and you are certain the ending is set in stone, you get to Hob's dream, and your mind is once again blown, and suddenly you have a thousand more questions. So many fans hopes and dreams rely on Hob's dream right now I can't even begin to express how important that particular comic issue is to me.

It's all about the potential. There is so much potential.

Plus the 30 minute scene we got was loaded full of subtext, romantic tropes, and queer coding. I dunno if you picked up on it, but I have an extremely long meta essay still in the works that goes through everything that 30 minute sequence gives us in terms of shipping fodder (I really need to finish that). Its not just the romantic tropes, the break up and make up, its the acting choices, the eye fucking, the freaking song choices in 1989 holy fuck could they be more on the nose.

Also, consider this thought experiment: Crowley and Aziraphale in Good Omens are a hugely popular ship, where their creator Neil Gaiman has confirmed that theirs is a love story. Whatever else you may believe about Crowley and Aziraphale, their story is a love story. Creator confirmed love story.

Now, Crowley and Aziraphale are the leads of Good Omens and interact throughout the entire 6 episode show. But consider the first half of episode 3. Imagine a version of Good Omens where Crowley and Aziraphale don't really interact outside of that 30 minute opening sequence. That the story was much more focused on the Them, the Horsemen, and the other characters. Imagine then seeing that 30 minute sequence which shows Crowley and Aziraphale slowly warming to each other and becoming friends over the centuries, shows them getting to know each other, do each other favours, come to each others defence, get into fights and break up with each other, only to make up later...

Would you still ship them? Even if that 30 minute sequence was all you got? I guarantee if I asked any Ineffable Husbands fan that question they would say yes. Because THAT 30 minute sequence is what solidifies the importance of their relationship and its what MAKES IT a love story.

Guess where Neil Gaiman got the idea for that 30 minute sequence in Good Omens from? Ah Neil, plagiarising his own work all these years later!

If Neil Gaiman thought that Men of Good Fortune would work well for a canonical love story in Good Omens, I wonder what he was thinking when he then adapted Men of Good Fortune for television?

THE POTENTIAL.

I ship Dreamling that hard because it has more potential than any other ship I have come across. It has 6 centuries and all the future of the Sandman show for me to explore, to tweak, to play with. Besides they just suit each other ya know? Like Dream is notoriously bad at relationships, but Hob is literally perfect for him. The more my mind dwells on how perfect Hob is for Dream the more I want to scream about it. Give the sad wet cat man a boyfriend who is literally his opposite in every way. Dream is a character looking for a reason to keep living, and Hob is a character who refuses to die. Dream is a pessimist, Hob is an optimist. Dream is afraid of change, Hob literally changes constantly with the times. Dream is desperate for love and someone to stay by his side, Hob just wants to love someone he doesn't have to eventually leave.

Let them meet in the middle.

#dreamling #destiel #the sandman #there is a destiel quote in there somewhere #they met in the middle #lol #sandman comic spoilers #dream of the endless #hob gadling #sandman meta #dreamling meta #asks

[virgo-dream]

Thinking about the effect that Hob had on Dream after they met in 2022 like…. even though his apology was somewhat humorous (and very charming), Dream did say he owed Hob an apology. He also smiled from the moment he realised Hob was happy to see him. After that, Dream does fuck up many times, but he apologises to Lucienne and is willing to admit to his shortcomings.

He’d been depleted of hope and felt like no one cared about him. He returned to his realm to find only Lucienne had stayed. He went on a quest for his tools and refused help at every turn, but the moment those big brown eyes crinkled at the corners it was over for him and the spark inside his own eyes lit up again

#this was meant to mean something or make sense idk I’m just putting my feelings about these idiots here #the sandman #dream of the endless #morpheus #dreamling #hob gadling #the sandman meta #dreamling meta

[achillesuwu]

Let's talk about Shakespeare, The White Horse and how important they are to understand Dream & Hob's relationship.

As much as I love the "Hob hates Shakespeare" headcanon, it isn't how I saw Hob reaction in 1589.

Like for me, Hob thought "Eh, whatever" at the end of it which is SO important.

Hob, at that point, thought that Dream didn't really matter. He didn't think he would lose his son and his wife. That Hob (and still present Hob btw) thinks that he got his immortality simply because he didn't want to die. THAT is the reason why he got married and had children.

Did 1589!Hob want to impress Dream? Yes.

Does he want to impress DREAM? No. He want to show off. If Dream was any other supernatural being it would be exactly the same to Hob.

1589 Hob thought "Eh, whatever, he may be the oldest dude I know now but I have an immortal wife, an immortal son. Everything will get better and better. He doesn't matter."

Everything that happens in the 1589 meeting and after lead them to understanding what they mean to each other in 1689.

That 1689 meeting isn't only about "Dream begins to really care about that human, to see him beyond an interesting toy", it's also "Hob learns that if it was that easy to convince people that they don't have to die there would be more immortals than him & Dream*. He learns that he will continue to lose people, he learns that sometime life will just get worse and worse BUT Hob also learns that Dream will be there along the way. He won't lose Dream even if he displeases him, even if he has nothing to his name. Dream became important, he matters because Hob knows he will be there [in the white horse]. " it's them beginning to care beyond the " he is a random human" & "he is a random stranger."

(*this is important for later. )

We can see it in 1789 too, their relationship developing even further. Hob is annoyed that Dream judges him but it isn't like 1589. He doesn't just want to impress him to stroke his own ego. He doesn't do his 1589!"Eh, whatever" because Dream's opinion matters to him now. If it was someone else it would be different, I don’t think he would have really thought about it. I even bet that like many time in history (and now) Hob knew but just didn't care enough to do anything. Hob doesn't talk about Shakespeare (+joke about Dream being the Devil) because he is jealous but because it could be a shared joke between them. Hob does a bit want to reassure himself that Dream will still be here but that isn’t really what he is aiming for. Now, Hob to wants them to be close. That is the reason why he choose Shakespeare of all things, because he wants to reassure himself about the fact that he knows Dream. That he is right about what he knows about him (it’s a bit about him being right about believing that Dream won’t leave but not just that).

Hob talking about Shakespeare create a link between 1589 & 1789. In 1589 Shakespeare is what Dream use to separate them. In 1789? Shakespeare is what bring them closer. Dream doesn't leave when he disapprove Hob's choices, Dream tell him he can go back to being a great story. Which mean Dream trust him to make the right choice. This reassure Hob on their relationship and it's why their act like complete bestie (with sexual tension) after. The look™ they give each other when Johanna appears. The "you look worse" and their inside joke of Dream not being a devil but people thinking he is, them acting like a team and mutually protecting each other,... They are closer than before but they are not too close either. AND They do not leave the white Horse.

Now let's talk about 1889 but more importantly about the other immortals Hob knows (he talks briefly about them in the comic, he knows that there are other humans immortal, he encounters vampires at some point & he must know about mutants since they are in DC universe). The fact that Hob knows them but doesn't seem to care that much to go talk to them solidifies the fact that Hob changed his opinion on their relationship again.

Dream doesn't matter to him like he mattered in 1689 or in 1789. It isn't because he is going to be there. It isn't because Hob knows that he is right about Dream always coming back to him.

I don't even think that Hob conscientiously knows it at that point (1889) but it has NOTHING to do with Hob being ‘lonely’ and Dream being immortal and the ‘only’ option available to be friend with. Nor Dream being a constant. Hob could find others immortal. Hob could find others constants. Yes, I'm talking in plural. Hob is choosing Dream even when he has MANY options but that mad man does NOT want those other immortals anywhere close in his life. Hob thinks he is lonely but he isn’t. He is moping and sulking because he wants Dream.

Dream is important because Hob likes him, and it completely change Hob's attitude. In 1789 he didn't seem to be really really annoyed when he didn't get his answer. Johanna interrupting their meeting was meet with Hob (and Dream) making jokes. It was something interesting, something funny. In 1889? Oh boy, Hob doesn't just want to see Dream "along the way", he doesn't just wants to get "close", it isn't about the lack of answers. He managed just fine for 5 centuries. No, it’s what the lack of answer MEANS. Hob wants Dream to admit that he likes him back, he wants to matter like Dream matter to him.

You know what I was saying about Hob not conscientiously knowing that it isn’t about Dream being immortal or a constant but about Dream not admitting that he likes Hob? Well, Hob says it a bit in 1889 " if you here then too is because we are friends, no other reason ! Right ? Fuck.". Hob doesn’t even acknowledge that Dream imply that he won’t be there next time. He doesn’t care about that (and/or he thinks he knows Dream well enough to know that he will be there no matter what) but I don't think he really understand why he doesn't care about it.

Edit : notice how 1889 is the first time Hob meet Dream nearly outside of the White horse? How it's the first time he get out of it? Their relationship is changing.

However, I think it’s in 1989 that Hob is forced to face it because it removes everything that mattered before.

As far as he knows Dream sticks to his words and will prove him wrong. There is no more constant immortal fellow coming every hundred years. It's just him alone. The pattern is broken, Hob lost his constants. (but it’s interesting to see that Hob is ready to get back on it (Shakespeare is implied there btw ‘I’ve seen plenty of friend get in fights in pubs. Even more of them laugh about it later.’) when he says ‘maybe another hundred years’. He tries to cling to his belief in what he knows about Dream (that he will always come back to the white horse).).

The lost of his constants are symbolized by the white horse getting destroyed/abandoned but more importantly it forces him to acknowledge that they don’t matter and he don’t want them. Hob doesn’t go in the white horse every hundred years because of constants. If he did it shouldn't matter that Dream isn't there but it isn't the case and he knows it. He goes because of Dream, because he likes him. That place is only important because without the white Horse he may never see Dream again. The date is only important because it's the day they met.

For Hob, in their relationship, constants are irrelevant, when is irrelevant, the place is irrelevant. Only their friendship is relevant. What Hob wants is Dream to be his friend. He doesn’t want to keep their one hundred deal nor does he wants anyone else other than Dream to be there. That's what Hob learn in 1989.

THAT is why Hob wrote in red ‘New Inn’, why he didn’t renovate the white horse, why he was waiting 30 years later, why Hob isn’t angry at Dream for being late. Hob wants to break their habits and create new one (which they do since in non-filmed part of the script Dream visits him in his University)

#dreamling #hob gadling #dream of the endless #the sandman #my shit #dreamling meta #sandman meta

[disc0bandit]

Saw someone complaining about how so many people are shipping Dream with Hob when in canon they spend so little time together

Here's what I've got in my little pea brain:

By comparison there's a lot more in canon for other ships. DreamxCorinthian has a lot of good material, like a lot of actual stuff there about their relationship to each other. So does DreamxLucienne, So does DreamxLucifer. Not even gonna mention all the canon relationships Dream has.

What's different with Hob is that the actual relationship (whatever you infer that to be when you're watching the netflix version) doesn't start until after the end of the episode. It ends with Dream admitting that whatever this is can be friendship. They're not even friends yet. Hob OFFERS to be friends and Dream deciding to accept that offer is the end of the episode (we're not discussing the comics rn)

Everything before that is little snippets that could have so much story between them. Anything could happen.

So my diagnosis is that the suggestion of the amount of stories that could be there is the reason why so many people are writing those stories.

That episode is a collection of prompts in the shape of a meet-cute.

Of fucking course it spawned a ship. It's kinda asking to be elaborated upon

#that and they have chemistry #dreamling #dream x hob #dreamling meta #hob gadling #idk if i'm wrong feel free to tell me just don't be mean #or i'm stating the obvious #anyway thanks for coming to my ted talk

[avelera]

Was thinking about how Hob and Dream could both be insufferable in some way because, in fairness, Hob comes across as someone who could make friends with bread if left in a room with it long enough.

Then I had a thought:

What if Hob Gadling is just super fucking insufferable to other immortals?

See, Dream is... difficult for mortals to get because he's got his whole eldritch thing going on. But while he's not particularly popular with them, I imagine other immortals at least get and respect his whole deal. Like, he's the Dreamlord. Of course he's weird. But they understand the laws and principles he's referring to at least when he's being weird. He seems to at least have a pleasant relationship with the Faerie Court. It's mortals who can't really connect with Dream and find him exasperating as a result.

Whereas Hob gets along great with mortals, just swell. He's Just A Guy who happens to live forever and people get along with him. But immortals? We don't really see it much but immortals positively loathe this guy.

Dream's reaction to the whole, "I've made up my mind, I've decided not to die!"? Hob tossed out in 1389? That's the teeth-grinding level of irritation Hob engenders in every immortal he comes across (before they have centuries to get to know him) and it is exactly why Death just had to make this man immortal because it would be hilarious.

Why doesn't Hob hang out with other immortals besides Dream? Because the minute he opens his mouth about how great life is and how he's never had even a moment's doubt about how much he wants to live, every immortal in the room starts to make the gagging motion.

You're an immortal just trying to have a bit of a kvetch about Kids These Days and how much times have changed and how it was better in your day, and there's Hob fucking Gadling again ready to throw down about how amazing antibiotics and automobiles and the latest iPhone number whatever are and like, sure, but you were just trying to say back in your day things were better, right? Not objectively maybe but you're just trying to indulge in a bit of immortal nostalgia and Hob fucking Gadling is not having any of it and is ready to argue you into the dirt about it.

You're immortal but haven't quite kept up on today's slang? Hob Gadling will absolutely call you out and he's a teacher now so he's going to be super nice about it but you know he's judging you for saying groovy unironically and thinks you should get with the times already.

You're a vampire living off centuries of generational wealth? Hob keeps talking about how you should get a job and get out of the spooky mansion more, and maybe you wouldn't feel so much existential angst. You like your existential angst!

Hob doesn't have a single ounce of patience for immortals who want to wax poetic about wishing they were mortal again. Diseases, he says, have you ever had diseases? Like even a cold? It sucks. It really fucking sucks. The Plague? The fucking worst. You don't need to be mortal to get involved in mortal life, Hob fucking Gadling keeps pointing out at the monthly eldritch coffee meetups. You can just live as a mortal and share in their problems and enjoy the fact you don't have to deal with the shit parts like getting sick. Completely missing the point of the futile lamentation of regretting one's lost mortality is something you enjoy.

Hob harshes the vibe of every single immortal out there. They are so goddamn sick of him. There's a reason he has no apparent immortal friends or connections to the supernatural world despite (in the comics) seeming to have met other immortals and having the occasional supernatural encounter that he immediately brushes off as dull when compared to what the normal, every day world has to offer.

No other immortal can fucking figure out what Dream of the Endless sees in this guy, and how he can stand to talk to him even once a century without storming off (which, in fairness, Dream has done on 2/7 occasions). Dream, not otherwise known for his patience, is seen as a saint in the eldritch community for even spending as much time as he has over the course of 600+ years with Hob fucking Gadling.

#hob gadling #the sandman #sandman meta #dreamling

[hardly-an-escape]

just thinking about Hob and Dream and acts of service as a love language and how Hob would react as Dream gradually reveals more details about just how horrifying his imprisonment was…

Hob realizing exactly how long it’s been since Dream was touched by another person and deliberately seeking out opportunities to touch him in casual and gentle (and plausibly deniable) ways. passing him a mug of tea and just briefly cupping the back of his wrist. a gentle hand on his shoulder as he points at something. Hob’s knee against Dream’s under the table or his toes tucked under Dream’s leg on the couch. after a while he starts hugging Dream hello and goodbye and each hug lasts a fraction of a second longer than the last.

Hob makes a random comment about breathing and Dream mentions that the glass sphere was basically airtight - mentions it in an offhand, ‘it didn’t really matter because I don’t technically need to breathe anyway’ kind of way - but it matters to Hob. so wherever they are he starts making sure there’s a window cracked or a door propped open so Dream can feel fresh air.

Hob, thinking about how cold and hard glass is, starts offering Dream his coziest sweaters and softest, most worn-in t shirts and pajama pants. fleece blankets and fluffy pillows multiply in his flat like there’s an infestation. he considers buying a four poster bed with curtains, like in the olden days, in case Dream ever wants to sleep with him take a nap.

Hob just doing everything he can to fill Dream’s time in the waking world with pleasant sensations. beeswax candles and delicious cooking smells. there’s always music playing on his stereo when Dream is over. fresh colorful flowers on the coffee table every week (sometimes he makes Dream come along to the farmers market and pick them out).

and Dream knows what he’s doing, of course, because subtlety is not Hob Gadling’s middle name, and at first it almost offends him, and then it amuses him, and finally it unlocks something inside him - because he comes to understand that Hob is not trying to fix him; he’s trying to fill in the holes that Burgess drilled in him with something new, something warm and kind.

and one fall afternoon they’re coming back from the farmers market with flowers and this spicy chili oil Hob has been wanting to try, and it’s raining so they’re crowded under one umbrella and Hob’s shoulder is pressed warm against Dream’s, and Hob is extolling the virtues of a hot bath on a chilly day. and they come inside and shed their wet jackets (because it was a rather small umbrella) and Hob immediately gets a fluffy towel to wrap around Dream’s shoulders.

and Dream just can’t help it anymore, he’s in this space that has been filled with soft, warm things for him and he’s looking into Hob’s soft, warm eyes which are brimming with love for him and he leans in and kisses him. and Hob’s mouth is as soft and warm as his eyes. and the last vestige of that cold glass sphere that was lodged under Dream’s ribs cracks and dissolves under the warmth of Hob’s care.

and it turns out Hob didn’t need to get a four poster bed after all because his bog standard ikea one serves its purpose just fine.

#dreamling #tooth rotting fluff tbh #the sandman #dream of the endless #hob gadling #my writing #sandman meta #these two live rent free inside my head

[gabessquishytum]

Eleanor Gadlen is most certainly not stupid.

She had asked Robert, long before they were wed, in what year he had been born. It was a reasonable enough question for a woman to ask the man she very much intended to marry, and she had been rather surprised by his faltering smile. He had said I don’t remember, and his face had flushed. It was strange to see him lie so openly, but at the time she was too much in love to let it bother her. After all, he couldn’t be more than 30, and he seemed even younger than that. Eleanor herself was 25 at the time, and ready to be married. The matter passed from her mind as their betrothal was finally secured and eventually followed by a wedding.

Now, she sits across the fireside from her husband, and observes a face that hasn’t aged. He has grown his beard in accordance with the fashion, and his hair is less wild than it might have been a decade ago. But the face beneath is the very same. His body is no different, still as firm and strong as the night she first saw it.

Robert Gadlen hasn’t aged a day in all of the time that Eleanor has known him. Eleanor’s body has changed meanwhile, shaped by their child and by the passage of 10 years, and she is beginning to wonder why his has not.

He loves her just as ardently as he did on the day they married. Each night he takes her in his arms as though he can’t believe that she is his. His eyes have never strayed toward another woman. He always desires her, sometimes too openly for her modesty to allow. His ways are strange, sometimes. He drifts into long daydreams where he feels unreachable. And yet he always comes back and presses his kind face to Eleanor’s breast in search of comfort.

She wonders, occasionally, as she watches him. He is so human. Clumsy, loud and foolish. No demon has ever tripped over a doorstep and smacked its forehead into the wall in the way that she has seen Robert do, over and over. No witch or familiar has ever held a child in the way that Robert holds their little Robyn.

A fairy prince, then? That seems just as unlikely. She feels herself smile at the mere thought, and Robert catches her eye from the other side of the fire. His smile is just the same.

In her dreams Eleanor sits beside the same black-clad stranger each night. They both watch Robert, together. Eleanor thinks that this stranger must be a friend, because she sees the way he looks at Robert. Wondering, surprised, amused. He, too, is trying to figure out the puzzle.

Sometimes she is sure that her Robert is no more and no less than a man. And that, after all, is why she loves him.

Dream of the Endless, in all of his wisdom, can only agree.

#the sandman #dreamling #hob Gadling #eleanor gadling #dream of the endless #hob x eleanor #dream x hob #sandman meta

[valiantstarlights]

Reasons Why the 2nd Half of The Sandman S01E06 (The Sound of Her Wings) is a Romantic Comedy:

The protagonist's sister wants her awkward protagonist brother to go out and meet people.

The protagonist has had several relationships in the past, and most (if not all) of them ended badly, enough for his sister to want to intervene.

The protagonist's sister already has someone in mind for him to meet, and she just knows her brother is going to love him. They're gonna be so cute together.

The protagonist does not want his sister to matchmake him with anyone. He's fine! He has a stable, successful career and he's not lonely at all.

The protagonist is reluctant to go out and have fun with his sister, but she manages to drag his ass out of his house.

The two of them are supposed to be having fun, but all the protagonist talks about is his job, and his sister scolds him a bit for being a workaholic and encourages him to live a little.

The love interest makes a bad first impression. (In this case, he calls the protagonist's sister stupid.)

The love interest is unlike the protagonist's previous partners (because he's male and a normal mortal human with no special abilities whatsoever).

The love interest is basically someone the protagonist will never ever in a million years fall in love with. (Or so he thinks.)

A bet happens between the protagonist and his sister concerning the love interest.

The love interest falls in love with the protagonist as soon as their eyes meet.

Because of the bet, the protagonist proposes that he and the love interest must have a series of dates. The (smitten) love interest doesn't know why this beautiful creature wants to see him again, let alone for dates (plural), but he agrees.

This just tackles Dream and Hob's 1389 meeting, but feel free to add more reasons from their later meetings. 🙇‍♀️

#the 2nd half of the sandman S01E06 is a romcom and this is a hill i will proudly die on #bonus reason: the protagonist starts out looking like he needs a hair makeover stat #dreamling #the sandman #the sandman meta

[orionsangel86]

Subtext Glorious Subtext! A Dreamling on Netflix analysis in The Sandman - Masterpost

Introduction

Shortly after realising this show was going to become my new obsession, I decided to throw myself into all things Sandman, which meant actually reading the comics (several times over) and listening to the audio book on Audible. The one thing that struck me most after consuming all Sandman media, was how different the tone of the Netflix show was. In particular, the choices made in the show for the Men of Good Fortune sequence in episode 6 The Sound of Her Wings which is the reason I fell head first into shipping Dreamling. The Netflix show portrays Dream and Hob’s relationship in a whole different way to the comic and the Audible book.

Whilst it IS possible to pick up certain moments in the Men of Good Fortune comic which can be interpreted with a queer lense, (the rose, Death’s knowing expression, etc) there isn’t really much to work with until we get to Hob’s dream in Season of Mists (and I’m losing my mind thinking about how the Netflix show will adapt THAT).

The queer coding in the show however is laid on so thickly, it’s difficult to ignore it. Like with most popular fandom ships, the reason Dreamling has suddenly become SO popular, is because viewers all collectively watched this 30 minute sequence, and had the eyebrow raising realisation that this was actually all very romantic and subtextually very queer.

I have yet to see a full meta analysis of the episode, so thought I would write a breakdown of Dream and Hob’s meetings over the centuries and outline how their differences from the comics have had such an impact on Dream and Hob’s relationship. How everything from the tweaks to the dialogue and additional scenes, the acting choices made, music cues, and the use of classic love tropes in TV have all come together to give us a subtextual masterpiece of queer coding and very much turned a friendship into something more. Even if you don’t ship Dreamling, I believe it would be very difficult for anyone versed in fandom culture (and anyone with a good knowledge of film and TV analysis) to ignore just how thickly the queer subtext is laid on.

Besides, its also writer acknowledged that there was intention there among the creative team, whatever they may decide to do with that going forward.

Initially I was going to put this entire analysis into one long post, but it is far too long and Tumblr was getting angry with me for the amount of gifs I was using. Instead I have broken my meta essay down into 8 parts as follows under the cut:

Chapter 1 - A Walk with Death and the Return to the White Horse

Chapter 2 - 1389 and 1489

Chapter 3 - 1589

Chapter 4 - 1689

Chapter 5 - 1789

Chapter 6 - 1889

Chapter 7 - 1989

Chaper 8 - Reunited

I have been writing this meta essay very slowly over the space of 7 months and I would love to know your thoughts, feedback, comments, or questions on it! Tagging those who may be interested and those who have asked to be tagged:

@notallsandmen @academicblorbo @just-cosmere-fan @seiya-starsniper @littledreamling @altair214 @lulusolier @joyce20091234 @zenkitty714 @tickldpnk8 @timeuntravel @marlowe-zara @mr-sadman @duckland

#dreamling #dreamling meta #the sandman #sandman analysis #sandman meta #dream of the endless #hob gadling #sandman comic spoilers #my meta #dream x hob #dreamling week #dreamling week 2023

[wyvernquill]

Now, this may be obvious to others, but I haven’t seen much discussion of it here on Tumblr, so I thought I’d draw some attention to it!

In my n-th rewatch of the 1389 scene (I keep checking and re-checking the details for accuracy in my fics), I noticed something interesting towards the beginning of the scene: I think Dream was about to “poach” Geoffrey Chaucer, similarly to what he did in 1589 with Shakespeare.

It’s subtle, but you can see Death and Dream pause in front of his table, listen to their conversation, and Dream is noticeably interested - and why wouldn’t he be, Geoffrey here is practically catnip for the Lord of Stories! So he steps closer, he leans in, we can even see him open his mouth as if to strike up some conversation about those “tavern tales”...

...and then Hob Gadling says “Look, I’ve seen death”, and both Dream and Death stop in their tracks, and the scene proceeds as we all know and love it.

Now, I really adore this little moment for multiple reasons:

1) I suspect Death planned this. She dragged Dream into the tavern and led him over to Chaucer’s table, and was going to make her silly little brother talk to a promising storyteller in the waking world for once - but then they found an even more interesting human to spark Dream’s curiosity instead, which, still a win in Death’s book.

2) It’s just so Dream. Of course he wouldn’t be able to resist a storyteller in the wild, of course he would be drawn to that conversation. Of course he would do his whole “oh, is this your wish then?” spiel and play patron of the arts for a little while. This is what he does and is, which only makes it more interesting that he then turned towards Hob instead (and didn’t talk to Chaucer after, I’m pretty sure we see Dream leave at the end of the scene?) Which brings me to

3) IF ONLY HOB KNEW. Hob “probably still mad at Shakespeare for stealing his date once” Gadling would be OVER THE MOON to know that Dream of the Endless snubbed Geoffrey Fucking Chaucer to talk to him, albeit only because he mocked Dream’s sister within earshot. Please, somebody tell him, it would be the highlight of his century, I just know it.

#the sandman #dream of the endless #death of the endless #hob gadling #the sandman meta #dreamling #the level of detail in this series is astonishing #i keep discovering new fascinating tidbits every time #so much storytelling in blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments like this #and gosh i really want hob to find out about this now #it'd give him a massive ego boost i'm sure #gadling (1) - chaucer (0) #let's forget about will shaxberd (1) though #he doesn't count #(look at me making an original post that isn't art for once)

[landwriter]

Hob is not the daylight to Dream's darkness. He is not the sun to Dream's moon.

Dream is a night sky, Dream is darkness that swallows you whole, Dream is the pale brushstrokes of the moon spilling into your home while you are sleeping, yes -

But Hob is not the day. He is not the yellow glow of a distant star, but the heat and light right here, the heat and light of men. He is fire. He is the hearth. He is the heat we make and the light we tame. Hob is no sunrise. Hob wants.

Hob is the hot roar under the stars, licking into darkness and swallowing it back. Hob is the wild flickering light upon walls that makes us want to tell strange stories. Hob is the steadfast hunger of the most sated fire, burnt down to lazy embers, tracing orange veins into blackened wood, and ready, always ready, to burn for more.

Hob is no star. Hob is a light that is, in comparison, terribly young and terribly human. Hob is a warmth that comes from loving something so much you would consume it forever. It is the opposite of a sun. Hob asks for more. Hob says, Oh, yes.

Hob does not banish the night. He lights it, and he lights it from the ground. He is comfortable in the darkness. But if he is a light of any kind, it is this.

Dream is night. Hob is fire. They both consume. They both desire.

#dreamling #the sandman #hob gadling #meta #leapt out of bed in a cold sweat to write this #no explanation at all sorry gang

[questing-wulfstan]

Listen, I can't blame y'all when His Excellence Neil Gaiman hisself compared it to Dream walking out on his date with Hob to hit it off with Shaxberd upon learning about Eleanor and Robyn, but I feel like fixating on this interpretation only of the scene is a disservice to Morpheus' overall characterisation over the season.

Have you noticed how Hob calls "his friend" over to his table and that doesn't phase Morpheus at all then Dream doesn't even ask him whether he still wants to live before putting an end to their meeting ? It's unexpected from someone otherwise so strict and set on protocols ー even when he storms out in 1889, he already had Hob's answer to that question. Yet he leaves 1589 Hob without having formally asked the one question that justifies their centennial meetings.

That is because Dream knows, oh he knows what Hob's Heaven is like. He's had a wife and a son of his own once, and he knew what eternity by their side would be like, once. And he knows Hob has everything but Death on his mind then. He also knows ー or so he thinks ー what Hob's answer will be the next century. For Hob Gadling alone was granted immortality, not Eleanor, nor Robyn. And Morpheus knows what outliving one's son is like.

Morpheus' work in this tavern of the White Horse is done, but he's also taken back to the most traumatic event of his existence, one he won't recover from in two millennia and he can't look Hob in the eyes anymore, he needs a distraction, something, anything but having to confront his revenant grief. And there's that playwright loudly willing to strike a bargain with higher entities for the ability to create timeless dreams for humanity and there's his distraction, there's an escape ...

Comes 1689, Morpheus is certain of the outcome of this meeting. Sure, it will have taken the bugger three time the hundred years Dream had predicted Death, but no matter because it is true : nobody can bear an endless existence.

Then Morpheus learns about not only the expected death of Hob's son, but that it happened much earlier than it should have, devoid of a fulfilling lifetime for Robyn and of psychological preparation for Hob. Scythed in the prime of life, much like Orpheus. And within a close time frame to his wife's departure, too. Hob is holding up a mirror to Morpheus' own misery and the King of Dreams finds himself on the verge of tears. He is no longer smug as he offers Hob what he thinks of as an eventual relief.

Yet ... Hob doesn't take it. Somehow, somewhere, Hob Gadling finds it in himself to resist the tragedy of his life, to chose tomorrow, to decide that whatever the future holds, it is worth being there to see it.

And that is really when something kindles within Morpheus. No longer mere curiosity but a devouring fascination for Hob Gadling, his hopefulness and his resilience. He latches onto that man who shares his misery yet seem to have overcome it, or anyhow accommodated himself to it.

And when they meet again in 1789, and fortune has smiled upon Hob Gadling once again, Morpheus is much more open, much more attentive, much more interested. Who knows if he might not have given Hob his name even, hadn't lady Johanna Constantine interrupted him ?

By all means, Morpheus doesn't process their blooming bond. He's the anthropomorphic incarnation of the human or really, the living unconscious : there are numerous things passing through his mind at all time that he does not process. To him, he's merely monitoring the puzzling glitch that is Robert Gadling's will to live still, and waiting for him to eventually, inevitably renounce his immortality.

So when another century has passed and Hob asserts that their meetings are unnecessary for he won't ever renounce being alive but proposes his friendship, Morpheus is left reeling, faced with how much he has in common with this 'mortal' and his envy for Hob's resilience and capacity to forge ahead.

Naturally he takes flight and makes for an escape, lest he finds himself ensnared by his own grief ...

#sandman #netflix the sandman #dreamling #morpheus #dream of the endless #hob gadling #hob x morpheus #hob x dream #this is such a mess does it even makes sense ?? #anywho I've spent way too long writing this out #meta #which admittedly slid towards poetic flourish but meta nonetheless #sandman meta #userlyde

[avelera]

I love how the power levels of Sandman obscure just how insanely powerful Hob actually is.

Like, most of the normal people in the Sandman world have no idea that any of this cosmic stuff is happening. Then you've got the Endless: massively powerful cosmic entities that literally embody metaphysical concepts. Then you've got your rogues gallery of Dreams and Nightmares, most of whom don't interact directly with the human world, those that do basically turn the world of the humans they interact with upside down. Rose Walker straddles the line between normal human and insanely powerful force of nature but again, only a few other normal humans even know of her existence.

So in this crazy landscape of insanely high peaks of power but which, realistically, make up some .000000001% of what anyone on the world is directly aware of, it's easy to forget the weird place Hob occupies.

Despite being arguably the best friend of one of the seven cosmic metaphysical entities that govern a chunk of this universe, he has no idea who Dream is. As far as he knows, Dream might be a minor demon or sorcerer. Heck, he might be a local ghost haunting the White Horse Tavern, for all Hob really knows. Hob is adjacent to Dream though and he has no idea that Dream tangled with Lucifer, or stopped John Dee, or controls the dreams of everyone alive, OR that Hob is possibly still alive only because of a wager between Death and Dream. He is that close to those events, and yet totally disconnected ffrom them, as are all but about six people on Earth.

Conversely, if you never met one of these insanely powerful cosmic entities or humans empowered by their devices like John Dee, Hob Gadling would be the most insanely powerful being you've ever met. He can't die. In just about any other story, that power alone makes him a minor deity.

And yet, in the relationship between Dream and Hob, Hob is the normal everyman type with this guy! Hob is the grounded, low-power one by comparison but it's such a nutty comparison because, for anyone else besides an actual beyond divine being, Hob would be the supernatural immortal entity in the relationship, like a vampire or a god or something.

I don't know, I'm just tickled by the fact that Dream is so insanely powerful in this otherwise low-power world that the indestructible immortal character looks like his cozy little boy-next-door boyfriend.

#sandman meta #the sandman #hob gadling #I should sleep i'm clearly delirious #dreamling

[hardly-an-escape]

tonight I am thinking thoughts about retired!Dream. about human Dream, weak and exhausted, dropped off on Hob Gadling's doorstep like an abandoned housecat.

I am thinking about Hob and Dream not immediately falling into bed, into a relationship, into orbit around each other. I am thinking about Hob turning his office into a spare room, teaching Dream how to be human, how to be independent, introducing him to new experiences and new people, and then basically sending him out free in the world once Dream knows enough to survive on his own. about Dream wanting this, wanting that freedom, that self-determination.

about Dream renting his own flat. cooking his own meals. choosing his own experiences, trying out everything under the sun completely on his own terms because he’s an adult with agency despite technically being less than a year old in human terms.

I’m thinking about Dream traveling. sending postcards and letters back to Hob in London from Cambodia, from Chile, from Butte, Montana. about Dream dating; about his first sexual adventures in a human body being with people he met in pubs or at the library or on Tinder. about Dream falling in reckless human love and getting his heart broken when the other person didn’t feel the same. about Dream making mistakes, making bad choices, getting hurt – never so badly that it scars him, never so deeply that it really damages him, but enough that it hurts – about Dream learning how to come to terms with that pain in his own right.

I’m thinking about Hob stepping into his role as Dream’s steadfast touchstone instead of the other way around. about Dream continually returning to the safe harbor of Hob’s care before he strikes out again on his own. I’m thinking about the patience and devotion and the longing Hob feels as he watches Dream explore; the highs and lows he experiences alongside him; how he wants Dream so fucking badly and will never, ever, push to have him until Dream comes to him of his own free will. because he will not have Dream if he feels beholden. I’m thinking about the iron lid Hob has to clamp down on his own desire, because that’s not what Dream needs from him.

until… it is. because there’s only one way this can end. I’m thinking about Dream realizing that none of his explorations, none of his liaisons, have brought him as much joy and satisfaction as Hob has simply by being his friend, by being there for him. I’m thinking about Dream, returning to Hob, choosing Hob, because he independently comes to the conclusion that they are, in fact, meant to be. about how much deeper, how much more meaningful that choice will be, coming after months or even years of journey and growth and self-discovery.

about what it will mean to Hob, to know that Dream has come back to him, has chosen him, over everything else; that after all his myriad human experiences he has determined that Hob is who will complete his human life and bring him the most joy. and then they make out disgustingly and live happily ever after.

#dreamling #the sandman #sandman meta #dream of the endless #hob gadling #my writing #retired dream