The Four Color Media Monitor

Variety announced the Netflix Sandman adaptation is ending with its 2nd season, due to the Neil Gaiman sexual assault scandal:

Netflix’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s “The Sandman” will end with its upcoming second season.

“The Sandman” Season 2 has been a long time coming. The first season debuted in August 2022, and it wasn’t renewed at Netflix until November of that year. At that time, Netflix was also hesitant to label it as a second season at all, choosing instead to say it was “a continuation of ‘The Sandman’ world,” and wouldn’t commit to an episode count. Variety has confirmed the second season of “The Sandman” was intended to be the last prior to filming in 2023. [...]

Confirmation of the show’s conclusion comes on the heels of several sexual misconduct accusations leveled at Gaiman, who created “The Sandman” DC comics and developed the TV series. However, prior to the accusations first brought against Gaiman in a Tortoise Media podcast in July 2024, sources close to “The Sandman” were already telling Variety the pricey series, produced by Warner Bros. Television for Netflix, was intending to end with its second season when production was underway in summer 2023. The reveal of Season 2 characters that were cast in May 2024 further indicated the series was jumping to the end of the comics much sooner than fans anticipated.

So it's expensive to produce? I'm sure quite a few TV shows nowadays are, but morality should play a part here regardless. This was surely to be expected at this point. A little earlier, Dexerto said it looks like Netflix is releasing the 2nd season of the adaptation with little or no fanfare:

The sexual assault allegations against Neil Gaiman has led to multiple upcoming projects being cancelled, but Netflix remained quiet about The Sandman Season 2 – until now.

[...] Netflix just dropped the trailer for its packed-out TV, movie, and gaming schedule for 2025, and in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, The Sandman Season 2 crops up on the list.

[...] It’s currently unclear how involved Gaiman has been in the production of the second chapter, which is based on the writer’s DC comic book of the same name.

[...] Alongside the confirmation, Netflix shared a new synopsis for Season 2: “Dream of the Endless – after a fateful reunion with his family – must face one impossible decision after another as he attempts to save himself, his kingdom and the waking world from the epic fallout of his past mistakes.”

That could almost easily describe the trouble Gaiman's now in, after various sources in the entertainment world distanced themselves from him following Tortoise Media's initial reports. If memory serves, Gaiman reportedly offered to resign from production staff after the scandal first came around, but even if he's not involved in this current season, what's the use of tuning in to see a TV show based on such an overrated comic series? I'll never understand what's so special about it that it's just got to be adapted to live action, or even animation. The AV Club says:

This doesn’t come as a surprise for a couple of reasons. Gaiman titles have been getting the axe left and right in the wake of horrific allegations of sexual assault published about the author by outlets like Tortoise Media and Vulture. This week, a U.K. musical based on Gaiman’s novel Coraline permanently shut its doors. Disney and Netflix canceled their adaptations of The Graveyard Book and Dead Boy Detectives respectively, while Prime Video converted the upcoming third season of Good Omens into a single 90-minute episode with no involvement from the disgraced author. Gaiman was also dropped by Dark Horse Comics, which canceled its ongoing adaptation of his 2005 novel Anansi Boys.

And Fandom Wire says:

Neil Gaiman, the best-selling author behind The Sandman, Good Omens, and American Gods has been in the headlines for unsettling reasons. Eight women have accused him of s*xual assault, abuse and coercion. The reports of these assaults span decades, with one dating back to the 80s. The first allegations emerged in July 2024 and it has since been a downward spiral for Gaiman. The champion of fantasy is now stuck in a storm of allegations.

As a result of such untoward reports, many projects based on Gaiman’s works have been halted or canceled. The people allegedly subjected to Gaiman’s diabolical acts range from fans to people working for him. Even though the British author maintains that all these sexual encounters were consensual, the multiple claims of abuse made against him do not help his case. Either way, he has suffered plenty of damage to his reputation.

And there's no need to feel sorry for him. Of course it's a shame when authors like him turn out to be wolves in sheep's clothing. But alas, this is reality, and human beings are not infallible. That's the important lesson in this whole affair.

CEO Today wrote an otherwise sugarcoated take on the issue:

Neil Gaiman, one of the most influential authors of the modern era, has captivated millions with his imaginative storytelling across multiple mediums, from novels to comics, to film and television. His knack for blending the surreal and the fantastical with deeply human themes has earned him a devoted following worldwide. But recently, Gaiman has found himself at the centre of controversy after allegations of sexual misconduct emerged, leading to the cancellation of his highly anticipated musical adaptation of Coraline. So, who is Neil Gaiman, and how have these allegations affected his career?

It may be one thing to write surreal fantasy, but the level of violence in several storylines went much too far for me, as did the sexual violence and other troubling scenes that took place there. Do we really need those kind of monstrosities in adult entertainment? Of course not. Interesting they note how Gaiman builds on surreal storytelling, considering there've been PC advocates who've ostensibly been against it, yet until recently, when men like Gaiman specialized in surrealism, all complaints were strangely nonexistant. As for "human" themes? Don't make me laugh. The way Gaiman depicted Morpheus' interactions with Lyta and Hector in the Sandman series was insulting to the intellect, as was his approach to dealing with sex offenders in the 14th and 17th issues, and there were at least a few other examples in other comics he wrote that were just as appalling. They tell about Coraline:

However, it's his 2002 dark fantasy novel Coraline that has arguably cemented his place as a master of children's literature. Although Coraline was originally considered too frightening for children, the book went on to become a beloved classic, winning numerous literary awards including the Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Awards. The success of Coraline led to a 2009 animated film adaptation, which earned a BAFTA and an Academy Award nomination.

I wonder if an author who penned a tale with happier tones would win the kind of accolades Gaiman mysteriously did 2 decades ago? If not, that just makes clear what's wrong, not the least being with how Gaiman was often stuck on darkness throughout his career. And how did he seemingly become popular?

Gaiman’s rise to fame is largely attributed to his ability to blend genres and appeal to both young readers and adults. His early career as a journalist helped him hone his writing style, but it was his work in comics that truly set him apart. His series The Sandman revolutionised the comic book world, pushing the boundaries of what comics could achieve as a literary form. With his mix of mythological references, gothic horror, and philosophical undertones, Gaiman’s writing quickly transcended the comic book world, reaching a wider audience of literature enthusiasts.

Not clearly mentioned is that he began writing short stories around the same time as he'd worked in journalism. One he wrote 3 decades ago was "Snow, Glass, Apples", and was a bizarre reversal of the Snow White & Seven Dwarfs fable, where the princess is depicted as something like a vampire. Need I continue? Decidedly not. Suffice it to say the story was intended as a charity drive or something for the CBLDF, an outfit so phony, nobody need hire any of their services for cases involving comics.

Gaiman's recent brush with scandal has raised questions about how allegations can impact even the most successful creators. While Gaiman continues to deny any wrongdoing, the repercussions of the accusations may haunt his reputation for some time. It remains to be seen how this controversy will affect his future projects and relationships within the industry.

[...] However, the recent allegations may lead to a shift in how Gaiman is perceived by both his fans and the industry. While he remains one of the most celebrated writers of his generation, the coming months may prove to be a pivotal moment in his career, as he attempts to navigate the fallout from the accusations and continue his creative pursuits.

Gee, I'm not sure there'll be more "creative pursuits" for a long time after this. There's a Kickstarter project for adapting Good Omens as a GN that's now announced Gaiman won't be getting any residuals on it:

It has also been agreed that Neil Gaiman will not receive any proceeds from the graphic novel Kickstarter. Given the project management, production and all communication has always been under the jurisdiction of the Estate on behalf of Good Omens at large, this will not fundamentally change the project itself, however we can confirm the Kickstarter and PledgeManager will now fully be an entity run by, and financially connected to, the Terry Pratchett Estate only.

Well Gaiman certainly embarrassed Pratchett's legacy. It was a mistake to co-write the novel with him, that's for sure.

Anyway, in one more related subject, The Babylon Bee wrote a satirical take on the news, where they write that Gaiman joined up with the Islamofascists who ran sexual assault gangs in cities like Rotherham over the years. While it's an interesting comment on both cases, let's still consider that sexual violence is NOT a laughing matter, and even satire/parody doesn't instantly make such items worthy. So your mileage can vary on what they've published.

That said, an interesting point can be made from the Bee's satire as to how phony Gaiman's advocacies really are. Where was he all these years when defenseless girls were being violated by Islamofascists in Britain? His failure to show the courage to speak out against these atrocities only compounds what a false "feminist" he really is, just as much as his own offenses. Gaiman's past silence on the subject definitely speaks volumes, and is one more reason why his downfall is for the best.

Update: Erik Kain at Forbes addressed the subject, and at the end, he said:

[...] even if Netflix was not planning to renew The Sandman, this is just another in a long string of blows the British author has taken since allegations first surfaced. Still, while I’ve been upset by other Netflix cancellations, I’m apathetic here. I couldn’t get into the first season and never read the comics.

He's not missing anything, IMO. The comics were tasteless, and written at the expense of at least a few characters from the DCU proper. Arguably, they even precipitated a lot of the worst moments that occurred in DC history in later years. That the stories were supposedly nods to Shakespeare is no excuse.

Labels: animation, dc comics, Europe and Asia, islam and jihad, misogyny and racism, moonbat writers, politics, violence