Death is Dream's wiser, nicer, and much more sensible sister in the Endless family.
History[]
Reaping souls[]
Death telling Dream to find purpose
After tracking Dream down to a local park and advising him to find a new purpose now that he'd settled his vendetta against his captors, she invited him to join her for the day as she made her rounds and reaped the living. Their first stop, an elderly man named Harry. Afterward, Dream informed Death that the men who captured him were actually after her, which she claimed to already be aware of before taking off her shoes and heading to her next appointment: a young man named Sam on honeymoon with his wife, who had just drowned in the lake. Dream wondered how Death was able to be there for all of them. She replied that she had a job to do. When the first living thing existed, she was there. And when the last living thing dies, she'll put the chairs on the table, turn out the lights, and lock the universe behind her when she leaves.
Death reaping souls
Death used to think that she had the hardest job among the Endless. Humans feared her, and yet they entered Dream's realm every night willingly. Death considered giving up and walking out, but that was long ago, even before the existence of the current world. The job got to her and she got hard and brittle inside, given humanity's reaction to the Sunless Lands. But eventually, she learned that all they needed was a kind word and a friendly face. Death and Dream had made their way into the home of a mother with an infant child. Death had unfortunately come to take the baby. She used to think she had to do this by herself, but in the end, she was there with them. They were holding her hand, and she was holding theirs, applying the same logic to Dream. The only reason the Endless existed was to serve humanity. And since figuring that out, she realized that she needed them as much as they needed her. Dream thanked Death for the insight and teaching him something he had long since forgotten.
In 1389, disguised as a nun and priest, Death brought Dream to a tavern to interact with humanity on their terms. There, they overheard a man named Hob Gadling speak of seeing Death and how he decided he would never die. As Dream wondered why anyone would desire an eternity of human life, Death suggested that she grant his wish of eternal life as an experiment.[1]
World War Ghost[]
After the Dead Boy Detectives free a hundred year old scorned war veteran's soul, Death appears before him and tells him how she had once visited him a century prior when he had first died, though she did not take him as he seemed too confused and filled with rage. Now that his world was at peace, Death took him over to the other side.[2]
Physical Appearance[]
Death appears as a young black woman with brown eyes and long, curly black hair. She tends to wear black leather and a necklace with her sigil on it.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Death Personification: As one of The Endless, Death is the metaphysical manifestation of Death itself and is afforded immense power due to her role and status in maintaining the universe. As the personification of the state of Death, Death has divine, omnipotent authority and absolute control over the event and state of Death and is linked to everything related to it. With these powers, she is almost completely omnipotent.
- Magic: like the rest of her siblings, Death is able to perform magic. Her spells and enchantments revolve around the scales between life and Death.
- Limited Omniscience/Omnipresence: As part of her job/function, Death knows information pertaining to upcoming Deaths and can appear and go anywhere and everywhere in creation in order to do her job of collecting and managing souls. As shown where she is able to manifest where and when she is needed, and can selectively interact with humanity.
- Psychopomp: Death’s main duty and job is releasing the souls of the dead from the physical world and bringing them to their afterlives. Due to this, Death is able to freely appear anywhere in both the physical world and all the afterlives in order to do her job. This duty also allows Death to travel across the afterlives and even transport a soul that has already been sent there to another afterlife. As shown where after Simon had stopped tormenting himself in Hell after Edwin’s words of encouragement and forgiveness, Death appeared to take him away to a different afterlife.
- Transformation: Able to summon wings that usher mortals onto the afterlife.
- Necromancy: Death has the power to control the souls of the dead, Roderick Burgess claimed that he could bring his son back to life if he forced her to. As shown with Ghosts, Death herself can chose not to take a mortal soul to the after life if she feels they are not ready to move on yet. As she explained why she didn’t initially collect Wilfred’s soul when he originally died in WWI after Edwin and Charles helped him let go of his earthy attachments and pass on to the afterlife.
- Immortality: Death is ageless and possesses the ability of immortality,
- Grant of Immortality: Death can choose to stay her hand and not touch a mortal soul if she desires, granting them immortality. As shown in the case of Hob Gadling.
Weaknesses[]
- Magic: Despite being an Eternal, Death is susceptible to the effects of magic and can be summoned and imprisoned through specific spells and rituals, in fact she was the one who was originally going to be imprisoned instead of Dream.
Appearances[]
The Sandman[]
Season 1[]
Dead Boy Detectives[]
Season 1[]
Gallery[]
Promotional Images[]
Episode Stills[]
