Neil Gaiman's Sandman is one of the most respected comic books in the history of the medium, the trade paperback collections being read widely by the sort of people who would never dream of picking up your average superhero title (more bully them) (also they are almost certainly the sort of people who insist they're reading graphic novels, not childish comics, and even though it is Christmas you should still be mean to them). He wasn't the first character in DC history to wield that title, however. Before there was Morpheus, Lord Of Dreams, there was Wesley Dodds, a superhero Sandman who began as a dude in a fedora who shot criminals with sleeping has before being promoted to a full-time man in tights, with a sidekick named Sandy, and being recruited by the Justice Society of America. Right around the same time that the iconic creators of Captain America, Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, took over the character. For some reason, though, it took some five years for the pair's masterpiece. Originally slated to appear in Sandman #7 but eventually published in 1981's Best Of DC Digest #22, The Seal Men's War On Santa Claus is exactly what it sounds like. Sandman and Sandy team up with Father Christmas to fend off an attack by half-men, half-seal hybrids. Drawn by the man who co-created most of the Avengers.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
