Hob Gadling
| Hob Gadling | |
|---|---|
| The Sandman character | |
| First appearance | The Sandman vol. 2, The Doll's House, issue #13, "Men of Good Fortune" |
| Created by | Neil Gaiman |
| Information | |
| Full name | Robert Gadling |
| Occupation | Soldier, businessman, slaver |
| Nationality | British |
Hob Gadling, also known as Robert, Robbie, or Bobby, is a fictional character from the Sandman comic book series by Neil Gaiman. Gadling first appears in issue #13, "Men of Good Fortune". A soldier who has recently fought in the Hundred Years' War, Gadling argues with friends about the nature of death in an inn located in what will become modern-day London. He develops significance both as a recurrent character in the series and friend to Dream, appearing in a total of seven issues spanning six hundred years.
Gadling first appears in vol. 2, The Doll's House issue # 13, “Men of Good Fortune” in 1389, sitting in a smoky tavern in what will eventually become London's East End. Gadling is arguing that if he refuses to die, he will have eternal life. Dying, he argues, is merely a habit, something that people do simply because everybody does. It is, as Gadling puts it, "a mug's game." This catches the attention of Death, who encourages Dream to listen. Death agrees, at the request of her brother, who says that "it might be amusing" to grant Gadling eternal life. Dream strikes up a conversation with Gadling who agrees to meet him again in the same inn once every hundred years.
They do so, and Gadling recounts each century of his life. In the century following his initial appearance and meeting with Dream, Gadling continues fighting as a soldier and gets into the new field of printing (1389-1489 AD). In the next century, he becomes rich, marries and is knighted (1489-1589 AD). Over the course of the next three hundred years, he falls into disgrace following the premature death of his wife and child (1589-1689 AD), enters the slave trade to again become wealthy (1689-1789 AD), and exits it after Dream comments on its immorality (1789-1889 AD).
In 1789 their meeting is interrupted by the arrival of magician Johanna Constantine, ancestor of John Constantine, who says she heard it rumoured that once every hundred years The Devil and The Wandering Jew meet in a tavern.
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