Batman '66 #5

Issue Details

Synopsis

THE SANDMAN SAYS GOODNIGHT After Chief O'Hara inexplicably disappears one morning, thieves ransack a bank van whose route only he was entrusted with. Though Commissioner Gordon suspects the worst, Batman concludes otherwise upon finding traces of sand on the Commissioner's desk - a telltale sign of the Sandman.  Indeed, the Sandman has launched a new crime spree, now armed with a sleep-sand formula that can not only knock victims unconscious, but hypnotize them enough to obey his every command. Unsatisfied with the bank proceeds, the Sandman soon orders his gang to hijack a firetruck and Gotham's emergency alert system, using the former to spread the sand and the latter to issue commands.   By the time Batman and Robin find the Sandman, most of the city has succumbed to the sand - a fate they soon find themselves sharing, when the Sandman's moll forces them to breathe the sand as well. Once the Dynamic Duo have fallen, they are taken into Sandman's hideout, alongside millions in cash and valuables; there, the Sandman concentrates his hypnosis on Batman, looking to extract the location of the Batcave.   Upon noticing several irregularities in his dreams, however, Batman resists Sandman's manipulations, and employs lucid dreaming to regain control of his body - just enough to trigger an ultrasonic alarm in his utility belt. The sound instantly wakes both the Dynamic Duo, allowing them to beat Sandman's gang senseless. The Sandman himself tries to flee, only to be knocked out by a waking - and still unaware - Chief O'Hara. THE TAIL OF THE TIGER TOPAZ Visiting the Museum of Science with her father, Barbara Gordon becomes suspicious upon glimpsing the exhibit designer for the museum's latest acquisition, the priceless Tiger Topaz. After hours, she returns to the museum as Batgirl, and finds her suspicions correct: the designer was really a disguised Catwoman, gathering information on the museum's security in order to steal the Tiger Topaz.   After deliberately triggering an alarm, Batgirl fearlessly pursues Catwoman, who proves more than formidable in hand-to-hand combat. The two women brawl to a standstill, neither able to overcome the other - but this, in itself, stalls Catwoman long enough for Commissioner Gordon to arrive and cuff her by surprise. The stolen topaz is soon restored, and Batgirl makes a quick exit, her father remaining blissfully unaware of his daughter's nighttime hobbies.