Sandman is DC. Martian Manhunter, Doctor Destiny, Scarecrow and Batman all appear: the former three - right in the first few issues, the latter - during Dream's funeral. Bast is also the DC's version of the goddess. So on. Sandman was set up to be within the DC continuity, but the idea was slowly abandoned later, while connections still remain. It's very good. If the 2003 film is a 2 or 3, the series is 7 or 8. Characters are all fleshed out and well done, production quality is very high and the story is quite interesting.Sandman takes place in the Marvel universe, but the Marvel superheroes have almost no part in it.
I've heard the new TV series is good, but I haven't seen it, so I can't say.
...oh. my. god. I haven't heard about it before you've mentioned it. Jesus. I was hopeful when it came to the part where the Soviet Union has collapsed so the "superheroes" had to blend in as ordinary people. "That's an interesting twist. So, the Union is no longer able to sustain their cover and/or give them job, so they have to flee from and to their own country and settle down". This is what happens with spies, after all. But then, "But the Evil once again will come out of the shadow"... Hoo. Spooky. /s That being said, we're moving forward as a superhero-embracing culture. It is as if the first X-Men film was just introduced and people need to understand what's going on and why's one guy capable of slicing up cars. Russia doesn't have the same history with superheroics as the US does, so there won't be a leap of quality akin to the MCU's because there's no one to guide it yet. I wonder what comes out of it. I doubt that a film that shows a roaring bear will be very creative, though. Either way, thanks for linking the trailers to me.