Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Episode 11 of The Sandman.The latest episode of The Sandman has the honor of adapting one of the most chilling and compelling tales in Neil Gaiman's comic book opus, "Calliope". Said tale centers around the titular muse Calliope (Melissanthi Mahut), who's been trapped on Earth and forced to support the writing career of author Erasmus Fry (Derek Jacobi). Fry eventually gives Calliope to Richard Madoc (Arthur Darvill), so that he can take advantage of her powers. Soon, Fry is found dead - and Calliope wins her freedom when she calls upon the help of her former husband Morpheus (Tom Sturridge). When one of Madoc's assistants named Nora (Amita Suman) is told to free Calliope by Madoc, she finds the muse's room empty - save for a copy of Fry's first book, Here Comes a Candle.
Why Does Calliope Leave 'Here Comes a Candle' In Her Room?
Here Comes a Candle plays a major role in both the comic and the episode, as it was the first book that Fry wrote before he started abusing Calliope to take advantage of her powers. When he "gifts" Calliope to Madoc, Fry has only one request: that Here Comes A Candle be put back into print. "I was particularly proud of that one," he says before taking his leave of the two. Madoc never takes him up on it. Calliope leaving the book behind could serve as a reminder that creators don't necessarily need gifts from the gods to be great or a warning to others who might attempt to follow in Fry and Madoc's footsteps.
In the comic version of the story, a close-up on the dust jacket of the book reveals a damning quote: "She was his muse - and the slave of his lust!" Such a proclamation lays bare the indignities that Calliope suffered at Fry's, and later Madoc's, hands. All the work produced by their divine "inspiration" came at a terrible price and serves as Gaiman's commentary on how some authors will abuse and mistreat others in order to gain a modicum of fame. But surprisingly, there is also a real-life book titled Here Comes a Candle - and its contents provide a chilling parallel to the events of the episode.
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The Real Life 'Here Comes a Candle' Provides a Chilling Parallel
The real-life novel is written by Fredric Brown, and is often regarded as ahead of its time for its unorthodox structure as well as the many twists and turns contained within the narrative. The novel centers on a young man named Joe Bailey, whose life is about to change for the worst. Bailey works for a racketeer named Mitch until he gets involved with a girl named Ellie whose uncle runs the diner he frequents. But Bailey is also attracted to Mitch's girlfriend Francine, and schemes to win her over. On top of that, he's dealing with long-repressed trauma surrounding his father's death. Brown was a prolific writer - in fact, one of his short stories "Arena" served as the genesis for the Star Trek: The Original Series episode of the same name - but Here Comes a Candle stands out due to its dark nature and horrific ending.
The book takes its name from the old British nursery rhyme "Oranges and Lemons," specifically the ending verse: "Here comes a candle to light you to bed/And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!/Chip chop chip chop the last man is dead." This simple rhyme fittingly describes the fate that befalls the character in Brown's novel, as well as both of the authors in "Calliope." All of Bailey's baggage comes crashing down on him with lethal results. Fry, who collected ancient relics known as bezoars to protect himself, winds up taking his own life.
The most unsettling fate befalls Madoc, when he encounters Morpheus. When Madoc refuses to let Calliope go because it would hurt his career, the Lord of Dreams is none too pleased with his actions. "She has been held captive for more than sixty years," he growls. "Demeaned. Abused. Defiled. And you will not set her free because you need ideas? Well, if it's ideas you want, then you shall have them. In abundance." True to his word, Morpheus places a curse upon Madoc so that he cannot stop spitting out ideas - even cutting into his own flesh and writing them down in blood. Morpheus removes the curse at Calliope's insistence, but this leaves Madoc where he was at the start of the episode - without ideas. And leaves him to wonder if he ever had any talent for writing at all.
