untitled, 2013
Heiner Luepke
Kate Moss by Bruce Weber for US Vogue June 1996
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thenightling
The Castle (Sandman)
Morpheus AKA The Lord of Dreams, in Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, has a rather unusual castle. The castle changes it’s form. This is possibly to fit the mood of the inhabitants of the castle.
The first time the castle appeared was in the 1970s when it was called Ghost Castle. According to DC Wikia that is still the official title of The Castle. The caretaker of the castle was Lucien AKA Mr. Raven. Later, in 1988 ,when Sandman was first published, Ghost Castle and Lucien along with two other DC horror anthology characters- Cain and Abel with their House of Mystery and House of Secrets- became part of The Sandman lore. Lucien became Morpheus’ librarian while Cain and Abel took up residence within The Dreaming realm (With their houses able to occasionally and almost randomly appear in the waking world). When the castle appears in the waking world it’s often in Transylvania.
In the second issue of Sandman Morpheus’ castle has taken a beat up yet blatantly more phallic appearance.
In Season of Mists we learn that when Morpheus is feeling anti-social he moves the castle up on to a mountain. This is not the last time we will see him place the castle on a mountain. Here it has a more fantastical and less Earthly look.
A scene in Season of Mists shows the castle with a lake in front of it.
Later when Morpheus is sulking over his breakup with the witch Thessaly his castle has taken on a more Gothic appearance, almost resembling something out of a Hammer Horror movie or an old English manor house ala Jane Eyre.
When Morpheus agrees to help Delirium the castle takes on a more happy and fantasy / fairy tale style (Bavarian) appearance and is easily accessible (not on a mountain) meaning Morpheus is in a friendly and socialable mood.
At the start of The Kindly Ones storyline the castle has almost a fairy tale / Bavarian appearance but is now high on a mountain. Morpheus has become antisocial.
Later in that same storyline the castle is still high on a mountain but bears a striking resemblance to the traditional Dracula castle AKA Poenari castle of Romania.
And it changed form slightly through the story, sometimes looking more imposing and other times looking Gothic and even Gothic Catholic church Cathedral-like, almost spiritual and brooding.
At the start of Sandman: Overture the castle took on yet another new look. This time of a more traditional European castle, possibly Scottish design, similar to Wyvern castle of Disney’s Gargoyles.
In a flashback during Overture The Castle yet again takes on a phallic appearance, coincidentally while Morpheus is with a lover.
Why am I posting all of these?
1. To prove a point to a friend who thought it only looked phallic in the 2nd issue because it was in ruins. (You wish.)
2. To point out (in advance) that if they make a Sandman film or TV show then the castle can literally look like anything. So please don’t complain if it doesn’t precisely match your favorite part of the story.
Personally, I like it best when it looks like an authentic medieval European castle (Bavarian, Romanian, Scottish or English).
Controversial opinion below:
I, personally, do not think slavish faithfulness is a good idea in regard to how the castle looks in Prelude and Nocturns (the early Sandman comics). If it looks too phallic it could be distracting for casual viewers and take them out of the story, especially when it only looks like that maybe twice in the continuity but usually looks like an authentic European castle.
I honestly think it would be a bad idea to use the phallic castle design in a movie or TV show. Even if the possible TV show is done by Stars or Showtime. There’s plenty of adult content already in Sandman without “Hehe penis and balls Castle” distracting viewers from an important scene.
That is all.