Welcome back to another edition of Demanded Characters. With Wave 8 and members of the JSA almost here, today we take a look at one of the Legacy characters in the DCU. He started out as a sidekick, and has grown into a hero with some leadership experience on the JSA. This week we look at the current Sandman, Sanderson “Sandy” Hawkins.
Last week it looks like the little guy took the poll. Ch’p won, but this is a bad week to be talking about little characters in the DCU.
Growing up in the DCU can be dangerous. If a kid doesn’t lose one or both of their parents before they hit their teens, or become part of a crime fighting duo or team that puts your life at risk daily, you’re not normal. Sanderson Hawkins was one of those kids. At a young age he lost his family and had his life put at risk more times than he could count. After his parents died he was sent to an orphanage, where he spent his free time reading all about the adventures of the Sandman in the paper. While there Sandy met Dian Belmont and her boyfriend Wesley Dodds, the Sandman. Sandy did not know his hero was Dian’s boyfriend, but he was determined to help the crime fighter.
Sandy decided to make a costume of his own and try to solve a case, just like his hero. When the Sandman and Sandy crossed paths working on the same case they teamed up, and became an almost unstoppable duo. The heroes fought all kinds of villains, but it was science experiment that led to a tragic downfall for Sandy. Wesley was conducting an experiment, and a miscalculation gave his partner powers, though not the ability to control them. Sandy was turned into a silicon monster, and had to be put into suspended animation until a cure could be found. During this time he was in a dream state, where even though he was asleep he saw visions of the world going on around him. Decades went by, and finally the JLA was able to turn him back to normal, though he kept the ability to alter his physical form and the dreams he had did not stop.
He was like the Captain America of the DCU, tying to fit into modern times. Sandy has learned to control his powers and has gained some abilities that allow him to control parts of the earth, from rocks to lava. He also gained the ability to see a limited time into the future through his dreams. Let’s take a look at some of the outfits that he has worn over the years.
As Sandy the sidekick he was like most sidekicks, brightly colored. Wearing only a small mask he fought crime, and stood out allowing his partner to sneak up on the bad guys.
You could almost see Sandy evolving into his mentor. Instead of a fedora, he decided to wear a hat similar to a baseball cap, but kept the mask.
As he became more comfortable as an adult, he tried to set himself apart from his past. This look is much more James Bond, but still shows some respect to Wesley with the mask.
The most recent look Sandy wears is almost exactly like Wesley. This look could probably use the new suit body the Horsemen have done for Gentlemen Ghost, and could also give us an easy Wesley variant, satisfying both the modern and classic fans of the character.
So what do you think: which version of Sanderson “Sandy” Hawkins do you want in the DCUC line?
Some images courtesy of comic vine.
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