Writer Denny O'Neil, known from his memorable runs on the Batman books and Green Lantern/Green Arrow and artists Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson began the "Sandman Saga" in this issue.

The story would open up with an archetypal situation where a scientist is trying to create an engine powered by kryptonite when the experiment goes awry.

[3] The same incident opens a portal to another dimension, leading to the creation of a sand version of Superman called Quarmer.

After the conclusion of the storyline, DC pulled the plug on this "new" incarnation and Cary Bates came in to script Superman #243.

In January 2009, the storyline was collected as Volume 1 of the DC Comics Classics Library and titled Superman: Kryptonite Nevermore (ISBN 978-1401220853).