In The Sandman’s first season, Lord Morpheus (Tom Sturridge) escaped from 106 years of captivity and immediately got to work rebuilding his realm and reestablishing his place in the grand cosmology of powerful, god-like entities. So what does Morpheus (AKA Dream) do in season 2? He tears it all back down. In the wildly fantastical and wide-ranging six-episode volume 1 of the second and final season, Dream discovers that the only way to atone for past mistakes is to make some devastating choices. Though the story sometimes feels like it’s rushing to the conclusion that’s coming all too soon, the way this show continues to combine the imagination of old fairy tales with stories about deeply broken characters provides a lot to savor.

In season 2, The Sandman develops into a twisted kind of family melodrama as Dream tries to settle some long-standing feuds. In season 1 we met three of the other Endless: the oddly cheery and down-to-earth Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), the perpetually miserable Despair (Donna Preston) and the mischievous, manipulative Desire (Mason Alexander Park). Season 2 begins with a family meeting called by the solemn Destiny (Adrian Lester), attended by the flighty youngest sibling Delirium (Esmé Creed-Miles). Absent, as always, is Destruction (Barry Sloane), who abandoned his realm and responsibilities eons ago. These characters are all very different in personality and purpose, and one of the big sources of tension in The Sandman – to its benefit – is the way these various embodiments of human nature struggle to coexist.

Volume 1 (which is made up of six of the 12 episodes of season 2) is itself roughly divided into two halves. The first operates – quite well – in maximalist mode, as Dream plays host to a room full of angry gods and other mythological beings. After his old nemesis Lucifer (Gwendoline Christie) simultaneously blesses and curses him, the show swings between dark comedy and grotesque horror as a series of strange and often hideous-looking creatures arrive in Dream’s realm to make their offers and show off The Sandman’s impressive special effects. There’s a poignant side to all this bedlam too, given that this whole underworld adventure begins with an attempt by Dream to rescue an ex lover, Nada (Deborah Oyelade), the first of many old acquaintances he has to make apologies to in these episodes.

This theme continues in the even more emotionally resonant second half of volume 1, as Dream reckons with the ways he has been unintentionally cruel to the people he believed he loves. When Delirium asks him to help her find Destruction, Dream soon realizes that the only way to find his brother may be reconciliation with another family member. This three-episode arc begins as a mystery, but it becomes more of a deep-dive into Dream’s complicated relationships as it progresses.

Amid these larger stories the show’s primary writer, Allan Heinberg, boldly weaves in fragments of some of the better-known short stories from the comics, usually inserting them as flashbacks. (Want to see how and why Dream inspired Shakespeare to create A Midsummer Night’s Dream? That’s here in season 2.) Collectively, the six episodes of volume 1 are about Dream’s most significant unfinished business, accumulated over thousands of years of him coexisting with humans and deities. That’s what gives volume 1 its drive: The women he wronged, the creatures he irritated, the family members he disappointed… all of these mortals and immortals now expect Dream to atone.

All the while, The Sandman is one of the more visually distinctive TV series on Netflix, with what must’ve been a large chunk of its budget going to creating strange-looking beasties and opulent kingdoms. This first half of season 2 includes a lot of scenes set in Dream’s own magnificent, mercurial castle, which its master can change to suit his moods and whims. Here, the screen is filled with spectacle when a host of supernatural beings – including Norse gods, hideous demons, and angels from the literal Heaven – descend on Dream’s home to make their case for becoming Hell’s new rulers. The images are properly overwhelming, immersing us in a place far removed from the mundane.

The frequent flashback sequences include scenes from the French Revolution and ancient Greece, giving a sense of how long the Endless have been meddling in human affairs. Even more than season 1, season 2’s first half is crammed with incidents, as Heinberg and company introduce all of the relevant characters and history that factor into The Sandman’s ending (which will show up on Netflix later this month). It’s effective, though: Fans of the comics may appreciate getting to see live-action versions of all the oddballs and ogres they remember from the page, while people who only know The Sandman from its first season are getting everything they need to understand the plot.

The way this story is structured is very intentional on the part of the TV series’s creators, who skip about half of creator, executive producer, and accused sexual assailant Neil Gaiman’s comics in order to streamline all of their events into a tighter story that’s focused almost entirely on a simple arc: Dream’s return, Dream’s rebuild, Dream’s regrets, and Dream’s amends. Nevertheless, it is unusual for a show only in its second season to spend so much time setting up a farewell, given that its first only ran for 11 episodes. Given that the graphic novels have plenty of material that the show could’ve adapted into more episodes, it seems like a lot was left on the table.

Sometimes the quickened pace and the abundance of action works well, and sometimes it doesn’t. A point of failure is when The Sandman unreasonably expects us to be deeply invested in some characters – like Nada, or Dream’s chauffeur Wanda (Indya Moore) – who we barely get much of a chance to know. That said, the richness of the world Gaiman created does mean that even the most minor characters – like Destruction’s wryly humorous dog, voiced by Steve Coogan – are uniquely entertaining. Nothing about this show feels bland or generic, so it’s at least making good use of the shortened time it has.

As was the case with season 1, season 2 gets a lot of juice from showing how the Endless aren’t that different from us, lifespans aside. These powerful beings also worry that the world is sliding into chaos and mayhem and feel the need to change with the times, however glacially. Amid all the dazzling fantasy trappings, The Sandman effectively hits its emotional moments, especially when it shows how someone like Dream – a shaper of realities – can feel powerless.

In one of the more touching moments in volume 1, a man who has been alive for over 12,000 years – since the time of the saber-toothed tiger – is killed in a dumb accident. When Death comes to collect him, she’s not that impressed by his longevity. She says he only lived a lifetime, “no more, no less.” The Sandman is at its best in scenes like these, which weave together the supernatural and the everyday, giving all these scattered stories a point. In this case, it’s the fact that whether you’re one of the Endless or an ordinary human mortal, you have to make the best of the time you have.

I’ve always been skeptical of Persona spin-offs. How can you twist such rich games into new shapes while maintaining the intricate details that make the series so beloved? Well, when it comes to the most recent addition to the family, Persona5: The Phantom X, the team at Perfect World appear to have done just that – or, at least, that’s how it seems on the surface. With beautifully animated cutscenes and a goosebump-inducing soundtrack, The Phantom X makes it clear early on that it isn’t keen to shake up the Persona formula. What it does do, however, is infuse that already excellent base with the all too familiar premium currencies of a mobile-focused gacha game. I have a more to play before my final review, but no matter how close it comes to recapturing the magic, there’s already a creeping sensation that this walk down memory lane is going to make way for endless grinding eventually.

Despite being a Persona 5 spin-off, The Phantom X doesn’t centre around Joker and his crew – instead, you’ll be playing as a fresh protagonist, Nagisa Kamisiro (though you can still pick your own name), in an alternate timeline version of that story. A seemingly average student, Kamasiro’s life changes when an adorable owl called Lufel calls on them to fight back against the misery and hopelessness enveloping the world, and to turn the tables against the great despair that clouds the hearts of the public. Unable to refuse, Kamasiro learns to wield their inner Persona and travels to the shadow world to help clear out the collective unconscious, one monster at a time. If you’ve played Persona 5, you’ll quickly notice that The Phantom X is following its formula beat by beat.

To fight off the aforementioned evil, you’ll bounce between beautifully recreated Tokyo neighborhoods and the monster-filled Metaverse, seeking out misbehaving fiends and infiltrating their minds while learning to master the series’ trademark turn-based combat that centers around elemental weaknesses. And because Kamisiro is a teen, you’ll also have to balance studying, part-time work, and home life, too. With all of its obvious derivations, The Phantom X struggles to conjure fresh ideas or immediate excitement in the shadow of a nearly decade-old modus operandi, but it at least manages to successfully clone the Persona formula, and that will be enough for some.

Thankfully, where the gameplay itself feels overfamiliar, the surrounding cast of characters provides enough mystery and warmth to keep things interesting. Alongside Kamisiro, you’ll meet the baseball-loving Motoha Arai, your husband-obsessed neighbour Kayo Tomiyama, and adorable schoolmate Tomoko Noge, to name a few. With energetic voice acting to back up their emotive and often humorous dialogue, it’s clear there’s been an effort to give the NPCs a sense of self, or at least the ones I’ve met so far. It didn’t take me long to forge an emotional attachment to them. Morgana’s anthropomorphic owl counterpart, Lufel, is a particular standout, and I am thoroughly enjoying a running gag about their somewhat archaic vocabulary confusing the school-aged NPCs.

You’ll spend most of your days in Kamisiro’s shoes doing time-progressing tasks like studying for school in local cafes, working at the Konbini for cash, and buying groceries that you can use to cook back at your home. I’m still scratching the surface on how integral these side tasks feel in the scope of saving the world, though I’ve been enjoying making shopping lists and gawking at iconic Tokyo landmarks all the same. Particularly, wandering through the bustle of Shibuya Scramble and spotting its famous puppy mascot amongst the beaming electronic signs felt like a wonderful ode to a city I’ve come to love in both real life and games.

Aside from being a typical teen, much of your time in The Phantom X is spent in battle, and your combat expeditions launch from the Metaverse app located on Kamisiro’s phone. You can access these challenges anytime from the overworld, but you’ll need to use a naturally refreshing currency called Stamina to reap the rewards. Focusing on the mainline story missions will help keep you on track in terms of difficulty, though you can also explore a variety of combat challenges as you please to stockpile loot and earn experience, too. This is where the first hints of grinding come into focus but, mercifully, the combat in The Phantom X is very moreish and easy to sink time into.

The Phantom X bases its combat system on Persona 5, meaning it's turn-based with engaging reactive elements. When you roll up on a baddie, you’ll cycle through your party one member at a time, choosing between melee attacks, ranged attacks, and special Persona abilities. Similar to Pokémon, the enemies you’ll face, as well as the Personas you deploy, all have elemental strengths and weaknesses (like fire or ice) that can be exploited for extra damage. It’s a tried-and-tested system with enough diversity in its moveset to keep battles fresh, and even if you are starting to tire of it, the imagination-stoking enemy designs pull a good amount of weight throughout. What makes Persona combat truly unique, though, is the series’ bold interface design and legendary battle themes. I promise, no matter how many times you’ve already heard Persona 5’s Last Surprise, it just doesn’t get old.

Sadly, no amount of vocal flair from singer Lyn Inaizumi can make up for the sizable array of gacha systems and currencies you need to balance in The Phantom X. While there are characters and Personas you can unlock through the story, the quickest way to bolster your team is to engage in the lucky dip Contracts menu. In line with most other Gacha games on the market, you can earn the currencies you need to pull by grinding, or cut to the chase and pop in your credit card details to get an instant boost. I’m still only about 10 hours into my playthrough, and I’ve not hit any obvious roadblocks, but I can see them coming. At my current level, I have enough cash to buy health items, as well as a plethora of unique currencies to upgrade my Personas, weapons and more. Plus, when it comes to actually engaging with the gacha spins, I don’t feel like the boost they provide are hugely necessary to my success yet. Inevitably, this won’t last, though, and I can see cash-shaped hurdles on the horizon.

Outside of the inclusion of premium currencies, perhaps my biggest issue with The Phantom X so far is that it feels more like an uncanny reflection of Persona 5, rather than a unique take on its established lore. Other spin-offs like Persona 5 Tactica or Persona 5 Strikers feel like strong additions to the series that come at it from a completely different angle, whereas The Phantom X is more of a well-executed imitation. It’s not to say that I’m bored, and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed both its combat and getting to know the characters so far. The first few chapters of its story are well-written, appropriately shocking, and do well to hook you into the world. But The Phantom X’s “do-over” take on the story The Phantom Thieves just isn’t providing a new enough experience to warrant the amount of time (or possibly money) I’ll need to invest to see it through when Persona 5 and its predecessors are readily available and feel far more curated and engaging.

While I’m mostly enjoying my time with Persona5: The Phantom X so far, there’s still so much to explore before delivering my final review, like investigating the depth of the upgrade systems and the long-term impact of premium currencies as you progress. As a fan of the series, it’s hard to look a gift horse in the mouth when it comes to fresh Persona 5-related content. But as of right now, I’m just unsure about how The Phantom X can deviate enough from the core material to compel me to invest in it long term – only time will tell.

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