When Netflix announced that they were adapting Neil Gaiman's graphic novel, The Sandman, fans of the literary work wondered how the colorful cast of characters would be adapted to the small screen. That task fell upon showrunners Neil Gaiman, David S. Goyer, and Allan Heinberg, who were responsible for making Dream (Tom Sturridge), The Corinthian (Boyd Holbrook), and Lucifer (Gwendoline Christie) among others, come to life on screen.
Two important characters in the world of The Sandman and the DC comic universe are Cain (Sanjeev Bhaskar) and Abel (Ashim Chaudhry) who have been adapted from the pages of the bible to the pages of some of DC's most important dark tales. The two figures were important parts of DC's Mystery comics in the 1960s and 1970s that eventually became known as Vertigo Comics, a line intended for mature audiences in the 1990s.
The two were truly established as important DC figures when they were reintroduced in Gaiman's The Sandman #2 and played a key role in the early part of the first season of the series as inhabitants of The Dreaming. Based on the biblical story of the first murderer, Cain murdering his brother Abel, the two have become a kind of morbid comic relief in the comic and series. Cain, unable to control his temper and desire to hurt his brother is always killing Abel, only for his brother to rise from the dead, and for the deed to continue in a seemingly endless cycle.
The brothers are the polar opposites of each other in terms of their personalities, which makes the loop of murders that much more heartbreaking or comedic, depending on which perspective you're looking at things from. Cain, the older of the two is cruel and very short-tempered, while his younger brother Abel is depicted as being good-natured, tender, and often scared of the world around him.
Their role in the comics is an interesting one, as they are responsible for aiding Dream when he returns from his imprisonment in the waking world, and they nurse him back to health. The brothers have a deep bond with Dream and work with him, including Dream sending Cain to Hell as his representative in a meeting with Lucifer.
Even though their relationship is stained with murder, there is a genuine affection or twisted love between them that makes their bond eternal. While Cain takes out his frustrations on Abel, he does seem to need his brother in his life. In fact, in one comic storyline, when it appears as though Abel has been killed and will not return from the grave, it is Cain who seeks out Dream and asks him to recreate his brother.
As demonstrated in both the Netflix series and in their comic history, the brothers share affection for a large gargoyle named Gregory. Gregory acts as a kind of conduit between the two, having been raised by the brothers and their relationship with the creature demonstrates their differences as brothers while uniting them at the same time. Cain tentatively shows affection to the gargoyle, while Abel showers it with love.
In the biblical story, Cain kills his brother Abel and therefore commits the world's first murder. In the comics, Cain is constantly taking his brother's life in a darkly comedic way, which adds to the lore and richness of the world Neil Gaiman created in The Sandman.