Every resident of The Dreaming we meet in ‘The Sandman’

The Sandman is one of the most widely ambitious fantasy series you’ll see anywhere. As based on Neil Gaiman’s seminal comic book saga, the brand-new Netflix series follows Dream of the Endless, an immortal being more powerful than a god, as he traverses multiple realms and dimensions, literally going to hell and back. But the most important location from the show is arguably the Dreaming.

The Dreaming is the plane of existence that humans inadvertently travel to when they sleep, and the Sandman is its monarch. Over the course of The Sandman‘s 10-part first season, we encounter many beings that dwell in the Dreaming, from Morpheus’ loyal staff to some of the Dreams and Nightmares that populate the place. Not to mention those that have gone rogue and escaped into the waking world.

There are so many characters in the show that it’s hard to keep track, in fact, so here’s a handy guide to every resident of the Dreaming that’s introduced in The Sandman season one.

Dreaming residents

Dream

The most notable resident of the Dreaming is, of course, Lord Morpheus himself (Tom Sturridge). Sandman has a symbiotic relationship with his realm as the world of dreams decayed and his castle fell into disrepair when he was imprisoned on Earth for a century, only healing when he eventually returned.

Lucienne

Lucienne (Vivienne Achaempong) is officially the chief librarian of the Dreaming, watching over the realm’s vast libraries which contain every book ever written and those that will be written. Unofficially, she is the de-facto ruler of the Dreaming in Dream’s stead, something he eventually comes to accept.

Cain and Abel

The biblical Cain (Sanjeev Bhaskar) and Abel (Asim Chaudhry), the world’s first murderer and victim, dwell in the Dreaming, in their matching Houses of Mystery and Secrets. The temperamental Cain frequently murders his meek brother. They were the only two residents to remain in the realm after Dream’s incarceration.

Gregory and Goldie

Cain and Abel initially lived with their loyal pet gargoyle, Gregory, until Sandman reluctantly had to uncreate him in order to refuel his power. To make it up to them, Dream stole a serpent’s egg and brought it to life as a baby gargoyle which Able named Goldie (not Irving).

Merv Pumpkinhead

The janitor of Dream’s castle in the Dreaming is Mervyn “Merv” Pumpkinhead (Mark Hamill). With a thick Brooklyn accent, Merv has a laid-back, jaded demeanor. He appears to have grown close to Lucienne during Dream’s incarceration as he defers to her and not Morpheus during times of crisis.

Martin Tenbones

Martin Tenbones (Lenny Henry) is a giant canine-esque beast and the constant companion to Rose’s friend Barbie in her dreams, in which she is a princess on a bold quest in a fantastical part of the Dreaming known as The Land.

Jessamy

Tradition dictates that the Sandman is always accompanied by a raven, a human soul who has been reborn into bird-form to serve the Dream King. Jessamy was his raven during the early 20th century, until she was killed by Alex Burgess while attempting to free her master.

Matthew

When he returned to the Dreaming, Lucienne assigned Dream a new raven — namely, Matthew (Patton Oswalt). Despite admitting to being a not-so-good person in life, Matthew quickly adjusted to his new role as Morpheus’ faithful companion and (mostly) fearlessly accompanied him on his multi-dimensional quest for his missing tools.

Rogue dreams

Corinthian

Though nearly all of the Dreams and Nightmares returned to the Dreaming once Sandman returned, three rogues did not. At the top of the list was The Corinthian (Boyd Holbrook). A particularly cruel Nightmare, with mouths instead of eyes, he was determined to destroy his master so he could be free to live — and murder — on Earth.

Gilbert/Fiddler’s Green

Though Fiddler’s Green — a sentient paradise-like dreamland — was loyal to the Sandman, his longing to live among humanity was too great to resist. In his human guise as Gilbert (Stephen Fry), Fiddler’s Green unwittingly befriended the Dream Vortex Rose before voluntarily returning to the Dreaming.

Gault

Like The Corinthian, the shapeshifting Gault (Ann Ogbomo) was another Nightmare that went rogue. Unlike The Corinthian, she did so because she no longer wished to scare people. Although Dream initially intended to punish her disobedience, he ultimately granted Gault her wish and recreated her as a Dream.