The Japanese Sandman: While in Japan for a story, Superman comes to the rescue of beleaguered businessman Mr. Kamoto and faces off against a mystical foe with a yen for black pearls.
The Great Kryptonite Caper: An attempt to trap Superboy backfires on the villains, leaving their Kryptonite in the hands of Superboy's friend Lana Lang and causing massive problems for everyone.
The Japanese Sandman includes examples of the following tropes:
- Aside Glance: The end-of-episode glance at the camera gets lampshaded when Jimmy asks Clark who he's winking at. Clark claims he had a bit of sand in his eye.
- Dutch Angle: The camera tilts after Superman gets sleep sand in his eyes.
- Femme Fatalons: The Sandman is a rare male example; his fingernails look more like claws and extend far past his fingertips. However, he doesn't use them as weapons.
- Forced Sleep: The Sandman can put people to sleep in seconds with magic sand. Even Superman can't No-Sell it. However, he does manage to fight off the effects long enough to spin the sand out of his eyes.
- Giant Squid: Superman saves a pearl diver from a giant octopus.
- Hair-Trigger Explosive: The two villains enclose the snooping cub reporter in a case of explosive bricks, which they put on a conveyor belt. Superman has to figure out how to stop the thing from falling and get Jimmy out without causing a shock that could blow up the bricks.
- I Lied: The Sandman says only he knows how to extricate Jimmy from the Death Trap, and he offers to do so if Superman will give him the black pearl. Superman complies...and the Sandman blows sleep sand at him.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Suji wants to quit after Superman starts interfering, telling the Sandman that they both have what they want. Unfortunately, the Sandman likes destroying Kamoto's property too much to stop.
- Playing Sick: Jimmy pleads out of investigating Mr. Kamoto's auto plant with him and Superman by complaining of a stomachache. He's actually hoping to find proof that Suji is bad news.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: The titular monster (who commits evil acts in return for a black pearl) has red eyes.
- The Strength of Ten Men: The Sandman wants the black pearl because having it in his possession would give him the strength of a thousand men. It also makes him much bigger.
The Great Kryptonite Caper contains examples of the following tropes:
- Hoist by His Own Petard: The villain plan to set off small explosions to attract Superboy...only for the explosions to ignite an underground oil deposit, causing one to drop and lose the Kryptonite.
- Vehicular Kidnapping: Lana gets kidnapped in a fairly realistic way. The villains sit waiting in a car on the roadside and pull her in when she passes on her way home.
