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The Sandman Season 2 keeps pushing forward in its daring adaptation of Neil Gaiman's classic graphic novels, blending dreamworlds, metaphysical quests, and emotional realities. The most critical and tear-jerking moment, perhaps, is when Wanda's destiny is finally revealed in Episode 4. As viewers begin to question her purpose and why she died, it is interesting to note what actually transpires in the episode — and how much it actually follows the comics.
Wanda, the wonderful supporting character from the original series A Game of You story arc, is murdered in The Sandman Season 2, out of the blue. Even though fans may be aware of her comic book past with Barbie and the Dreaming, the series goes in a different direction here, altering the setting and the circumstances of her death to suit its altered storytelling.
How was Wanda killed in The Sandman Season 2?
Wanda is killed in The Sandman Season 2 Episode 4, by a supernatural explosion at a strip club — a ghastly tragedy committed by Ishtar, a goddess and one of numerous ancient objects hidden in men's world. The explosion is not a violent act of togetherness. It is the result of Ishtar's magical dance, the release of divine power so powerful that it tears apart the physical universe, claiming with it all the people at the club, including Wanda.
This is where Dream and Delirium are trying to find their lost brother, Destruction. Wanda is their chauffeur and maid at this stage in the story, driving with them and contributing to their quest. Her death occurs while riding with them, as opposed to being cut out of the action as in the comic book narrative. The explosion — and Wanda's death — are treated seriously, casting a dark shadow over the other-worldly sensibilities of the episode.
What's new in the comics of The Sandman Season 2
The show's presentation of Wanda's death is drastically different from the method in which Wanda died in the comics. In A Game of You, Wanda dies after the apartment building that she is in gets destroyed by an interdimensional storm, while Barbie stands outside in the Dreaming. She appears there, not as part of the dream journey, but in the waking world to protect Barbie's body. Upon her death, her conservative family wrongly identifies her at her burial, which is later amended on the tomb by Barbie using her true name and emblem.
In Netflix's adaptation, this specific situation is replaced. Wanda does not die during a storm or as a nursemaid. She succumbs as a dynamic character in Dream and Delirium's progression. In the most recent episodes, there is no episode where Barbie visits Wanda's grave or repairs her headstone. That pivotal moment — the comic's very heart — isn't yet there in the show. So while the emotional context of the comic is accurate, the details and timeline are newly imagined.
What does Wanda's death in The Sandman Season 2 symbolize?
Despite the modified situation, Wanda's death in Season 2 of The Sandman is rich in thematic resonance. Her death is abrupt, unjustified, and emotionally impactful, just as in the comics. It is a reminder of the costs of being involved with the Endless and the price of being in their lives. Being a character of aid, guidance, and companionship along the way, Wanda's death serves to open our eyes to the reality that even the most human and down-to-earth characters in a story are not safe from the cosmic cost of the involvement of the Endless.
The series also subtly has themes of loss, memory, and identity. While the open postmortem trans-misgendering of the comics is not shown, Wanda's trans woman identity is never questioned at any point throughout the series. Her identity is respected throughout all of her storyline, and her relationship with Delirium in particular is one of respect and understanding, just as the emotional loss she elicits when she leaves them is.
How do the other characters in The Sandman Season 2 react to Wanda's death?
The full extent of reactions toward Wanda's death is not yet known on the show, as of The Sandman Season 2 Episode 4. Even though the episode was left in a cliffhanger position when the explosion took place, the emotional response from Dream and Delirium — both having ample interactions with Wanda — is yet to be seen in later episodes. From what has been revealed, it is clear that her death does have some effect on the tone of the story afterward. The explosion is not employed merely as a plot device — it is the turning point in the quest, and an indication of the growing weight of the quest, besides the price paid in terms of human life.
Barbie, a major character in Wanda's comic book narrative, does not appear in this part of the story in the screen adaptation. Her emotional connection with Wanda has therefore not been realized in Season 2. The omission of the cemetery scene and the remembrance act by Barbie suggests that the show has chosen to diverge from Wanda's plot to follow the Brief Lives storyline rather than a literal adaptation of A Game of You in this season.
Wanda's demise in The Sandman Season 2 is tragic and climactic. Although not similar to her comic book death, it retains the emotional core that made her such a compelling character in the original material.
The show gives us a version of Wanda that's vibrant, proactive, and fearless in the presence of cosmic powers, before being cut short by her untimely death.
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While not every fact from the comics is replicated, the show is considerate and respectful of Wanda's character. Her death takes pains to define the reality of what the Endless do and the actual lives of human beings, which they transgress. As the show goes on, Wanda's absence will be missed by the fans who have loved her warmth, sarcasm, and genuineness, which made their way through in barely a pair of episodes.
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