Summary
Wesley Dodds: The Sandman challenges the old Comics Code Authority with a renegade U.S. military general villain.
The series bravely subverts the Comics Code by portraying the U.S. military in a negative light, going against established authority.
The new Sandman storyline weaves complex commentary on comics history and the Comics Code Authority into an entertaining superhero story.
SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT
WARNING! Spoilers ahead for Wesley Dodds: The Sandman #5The original Sandman Wesley Dodds is back in the world of comics, and his latest challenge is a brilliant subversion of the old Comics Code Authority. While many modern fans are familiar with DC’s Sandman thanks to the legendary Neil Gaiman series and its subsequent Netflix adaptation, the concept stretches all the way back to the Golden Age of comics, which is where the controversy that led to the creation of the Code all began.
Coming from the creative team of Robert Venditti, Riley Rossmo, Ivan Plascencia and Tom Napolitano, Wesley Dodds: The Sandman finds the original Sandman of the Golden Age. Created in 1939 by Gardner Fox and Bert Christman, the original Sandman was a vigilante who devised a special sleeping gas to use on his villains.
The new series purports that, before inventing his sleeping gas, Sandman Wesley Dodds stumbled upon a deadly nerve agent. The series also sees him attempting to foil a plot by a renegade U.S. general to steal Wesley Dodds’ formula. By including a villain who is a member of the U.S. military, Wesley Dodds: The Sandman directly goes against the Comics Code Authority’s strict moral guidelines.
Wesley Dodds: The Sandman Brilliantly Subverts the Classic Comics Code
The Comics Code Authority was established in 1954 following the moral panic created in the wake of Frederic D. Wertham’s Seduction of the Innocent, which blamed comic books as the leading cause of juvenile delinquency in America. Fearing government regulation over their industry, the leading comics publishers of the day got together to form the Comics Magazine Association of America. This organization then instituted the creation of the Comics Code to self-regulate content published in comic books. Aiming to create wholesome comics that wouldn’t offend young readers (or more importantly, their parents), Code regulations were incredibly restrictive as to what could and could not appear in titles bearing the CCA seal.
One of the original tenets of the Comics Code saw figures of authority always being portrayed with respect, with the Code stating, “Policemen, judges, government officials, and respected institutions shall never be presented in such a way as to create disrespect for established authority.” As such, the U.S. military would have never been portrayed in a negative light during the Code’s heyday, which is what makes the new Sandman storyline so brilliant. Ultimately, superheroes can be read as upholders of the status quo and institutionalized figures of authority in their own right. So it’s very interesting to see the Wesley Dodds Sandman taking the fight directly to the U.S. military.
Wesley Dodds’ Sandman Fights Conspiracy Within the U.S. Military
Ultimately, the Comics Code was more than just a way to “protect” children from adult content in comics, but rather to perpetuate outdated notions of a problematic past. Code restrictions would ultimately be relaxed in the decades following its inception, and the Code would cease to exist in 2011 after the last few publishers using the seal dropped it from their comics. The creators of the Wesley Dodds: The Sandman series should be commended for weaving all this complex commentary on comics history and the Comics Code Authority into an entertaining superhero story.
Wesley Dodds: The Sandman #5 is on sale now from DC Comics
Wesley Dodds: The Sandman #5
Writer: Robert Venditti Artist: Riley Rossmo Colorist: Ivan Plascencia Letterer: Tom Napolitano Cover Artist: Riley Rossmo & Ivan Plascencia