The final season of Netflix’s acclaimed fantasy The Sandman is almost here — but before the adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s beloved comic book series hits our screens, perhaps it’s time to salute those who have come before… which is to say, the comic-books-turned-TV-shows that walked so that The Sandman could run. Or, given the source material, more ‘brood in the background ominously’ than run, but you know what I mean. Dear readers, for your consideration: the weirdo TV shows that made Sandman possible.

This is For Your Consideration, in which we try to come to terms with the inescapable fact that, honestly, there’s too much out there to have time to watch, read, or hear everything — by making some suggestions about things that you might have overlooked but would enjoy, anyway. Think of it as recommendations from a well-meaning friend.

Preacher: The Sandman for viewers who would laugh if they saw a fairy

The comic book was a contemporary of the Sandman comic, but Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon’s Preacher reached the screen years before the Dream Lord could get out of bed, running for four seasons on AMC. Thank the success of The Walking Dead, and the appeal of the high concept behind the show: a preacher who has the power to make anyone do what he says, which just so happens to lead him into a metaphysical battle that invokes religion, vampires, and the American dream. Developed by a team including Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the TV Preacher had a killer cast (Dominic Cooper! Ruth Negga! Joseph Gilgun!), a focus that the comic book bluntly didn’t have, and a fearlessness that made it seem so much more dynamic and exciting than most of the shows on TV at the same time. It only lasted four seasons, but what a ride.

Available to stream on Netflix

Doom Patrol: The Sandman for viewers who think that the Endless is a well-adjusted family

Doom Patrol was a show that repeatedly defied the odds, both surviving the app it was originally created for (DC Universe, remember that?) and managing to bring the practiced strangeness of multiple comic book incarnations of the concept to the screen in a way that felt organic, coherent, and most of all, fun. Doom Patrol was, ostensibly, a superhero show but that’s only on the surface: instead, it was about a group of outcasts working out how to build (and survive) their own families out of trauma and loneliness, and the complications that ensue as a result. Yes, all the weirdness of comics written by Grant Morrison, Gerard Way, or even original series co-creators Arnold Drake and Bob Haney is right there on the screen, but it’s window dressing for a far deeper, more emotional story that’s slowly unfolding underneath. (And again, let’s compliment a cast that includes Diane Guerrero, April Bowlby, Michelle Gomez, Matt Bomer, and Brendan Fraser, all of them bringing their A-game and then some.)

Available to stream on Max

Legion: The Sandman for viewers who believe that the Dreaming seems a little too orderly

While both Doom Patrol and Preacher share a publisher (and imprint!) with The Sandman — DC Vertigo 4 life, am I right? — FX’s Legion was a different beast altogether: a playful, over-the-top exploration of a character from Marvel’s X-Men mythology that went in wildly different directions from the source material, yet was never any less than fascinating. Dan Stevens played David Haller, a mutant with multiple personalities on the run from… well, that would be telling, ultimately, but it’s worth pointing out that a cast that also included Aubrey Plaza, Jean Smart, Jermaine Clement and Hamish Linklater were never bored (or boring) throughout the show’s three season run. Wildly inventive and playful in a way that, honestly, X-Men stories rarely are, it’s a sign of the skill of series creator Noah Hawley (Fargo, the upcoming Alien: Earth) that Legion remains as surprising and compelling as it does right up until the very end. Best piece of onscreen X-Men related storytelling yet? Honestly, probably so.

Available to stream on Hulu

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