# Is "The Sandman: Overture" by Neil Gaiman & J.H. Williams III a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Sandman: Overture by Neil Gaiman & J.H. Williams III (DC Comics / Vertigo, 2013) is identified by: Six-issue miniseries 2013-2015 written by Neil Gaiman and drawn by J.H. True first is the single issue Overture #1 (October 2013).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Six-issue miniseries 2013-2015 written by Neil Gaiman and drawn by J.H. Williams III. Overture #1, released October 30, 2013 (cover-dated December 2013), is the true first appearance
- The standard first-printing Cover A is the helmeted-Morpheus art by J.H. Williams III; a Dave McKean Cover B was distributed in comparable quantity, with scarcer allocated variants including the black-and-white 'red jewel' Williams cover and the CBLDF Jim Lee variant
- Correct publisher/imprint: DC Comics / Vertigo

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Neil Gaiman & J.H. Williams III |
| Publisher | DC Comics / Vertigo |
| Year | 2013 |
| True first | world edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | Six-issue miniseries 2013-2015 written by Neil Gaiman and drawn by J.H. Williams III.… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Six-issue miniseries 2013-2015 written by Neil Gaiman and drawn by J.H. Williams III. Overture #1, released October 30, 2013 (cover-dated December 2013), is the true first appearance. The standard first-printing Cover A is the helmeted-Morpheus art by J.H. Williams III; a Dave McKean Cover B was distributed in comparable quantity, with scarcer allocated variants including the black-and-white 'red jewel' Williams cover and the CBLDF Jim Lee variant.

## Is this the true first?
True first is the single issue Overture #1 (October 2013). The deluxe hardcover collection is a later first-thus.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Variant covers are simultaneous first-printing variants, not later printings; second and later printings are separately marked.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Sandman: Overture* by Neil Gaiman & J.H. Williams III a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-sandman-overture
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.