The Sandman Vol 5: A Game of You

The Sandman Vol 5: A Game of You (1992) Neil Gaiman

Barbie, who we first met in The Doll’s House, has moved to New York City after her break-up with Ken. She hasn’t dreamed for two years, when she was pulled into the dream vortex created by Rose Walker, but Barbie’s Dreamworld is not content to remain lost.

A Game of You is also where we are introduced to Foxglove and Hazel McNamara, who appear briefly in Death: The High Cost of Living, and are the center of Death: The Time of Your Life. I believe that I read all three of those out of order, beginning with The Time of Your Life and ending with A Game of You (because that was the order I got them.)

Like Season of Mists, A Game of You tells a single story, although multiple threads run through the story. Morpheus is almost incidental to the story, appearing only briefly. The first time I read this I was annoyed. I wanted to read more about Morpheus not about Barbie and these other characters. Reading it again later I don’t mind, and I actually found the story quite compelling, the same as the characters. Except perhaps for Thessaly, who seemed to have lost much of her compassion the more she learned.

One bit that I particularly liked was where Dream remembers to tell Nuala that she did the right thing. It’s a very small bit, but the way Dream walked away and then returned to tell her that was perfect. It also shows a very different Dream from the one who treats Lyta Hall so cruelly and casually–oblivious to her pain.

So despite the fact that Dream is only a minor character, I still quite like A Game of You.
Rating: 8/10

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