Comic Title: Essential Vertigo:The Sandman #20
Publisher: DC (DC Comics Inc.)
Address: 1700 Broadway, New York, NY
Imprint: Vertigo
Cover Date: March 1998
On Sale Date: January 7, 1998 Direct Market Date January 7, 1998
Source: Previews, Vol. 7 #11 (#107)

Direct Market Date January 7, 1998
Source: ComicList, New Comic Book Releases List for Wednesday, January 7, 1998

Frequency: Monthly
Cover Price: $1.95
Page Count: 32
Editor: Jennifer Lee

Title: "Façade"
Pages: 24

Feature(s):
Sandman (Morpheus)

Writer: Neil Gaiman
Penciller: Colleen Doran
Inker: Malcolm Jones III
Letterer: Todd Klein
Colorist: Steve Oliff

Reprinted From:
Sandman #20 (1990)

Feature Character(s)

• Dream (no appearance)

Guest Star(s)

• Death (last appearance in Captain Atom #42; next appearance in Sandman #21)
• Element Girl (Urania "Rainie" Blackwell; first post-Crisis appearance; dies in this story; no further appearances)

Other Character(s)

• Ra (the sun god; no further appearances)
• Della Kariakis (a CIA analyst; no further appearances)
• Mulligan (a CIA administrator; no further appearances)
• Triangle (dream appearance)

Comments:
Dream does not appear in this story.

This is the first and only appearance of the post-Crisis Element Girl. The Earth-1 version of this character was last seen in Metamorpho #17. Death references Algon's death which occurred in that story. This indicates that those events, or a variation of them, may have also happened in post-Crisis continuity.

Synopsis:
Urania Blackwell is a former CIA agent who was sent to retrieve the Orb of Ra and was transformed into an Element Girl. Five years later, Rainie is a depressed shut-in. She no longer appears human and is afraid to go out in public. Her only human interaction is a weekly telephone call with a CIA administrator who handles her pension check.

One day, Rainie receives a call from Della Kariakis, one of her former friends in the company. Della suggests that they meet in person. Rainie puts on a synthetic face to disguise her appearance and meets Della for lunch. She feels awkward in public. Della tells her that she is pregnant. When some disabled children pass by, Della comments on their appearance. She hopes her child doesn't turn out to be a freak.

Moments later, Rainie's mask comes off and falls into her food, exposing her inhuman face. Rainie runs away. She gets home only to realize that she left her keys at the restaurant. She burns through the door, goes into her bedroom, and cries. She wants to kill herself, but her condition prevents her death.

Then, Death walks in the door. She sits down next to Rainie and mentions that she was passing by and offers to talk. Rainie explains her situation and her inability to die. Death replies that all metamorphae die eventually. Rainie then realizes who Death is. She is momentarily delighted, but Death says she did not come for Rainie.

The Element Girl still wants to die. Death suggests that she talk to Ra. He is the sun god, so Rainie looks at the sun and hears Ra. She pleads her case for death and within moments Urania Blackwell is transformed into a pillar of salt which gradually falls apart. After Rainie dies, the phone rings. Death answers and tells the caller that Rainie doesn't live there anymore.