Appearing in "Sand Blasted"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Betty Brant 
(Appears in flashback and main story)- J. Jonah Jameson
- Students
- Charlie Murphy
- Flash Thompson
- Jason Ionello
- Liz Allan
- Sally Avril
- Tiny McKeever
Adversaries:
- Sandman (Flint Marko) (Appears in flashback and main story)
Other Characters:
- Human Torch (Johnny Storm) (Only in flashback)
- Officer Perez
- Aunt May
- Mrs. Stone, school nurse
- Avengers (Cameo)
- John Jameson (On the phone)
Locations:
- Manhattan
- Daily Bugle Building (Appears in flashback and main story)
- Bank
- Elegant Avenue Dinner Club
- Grabois Aerospace Laboratories
- Queens
- Aunt May's House
- Midtown High School
- Nurse's office
- Hoboken (Mentioned)
Items:
- Spider-Man's Web-Shooters
- Iron Man Armor MK III (Cameo)
- Daily Bugle newspaper
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Sand Blasted"
Two cops are driving Sandman to jail following his defeat at the hands of the Human Torch when they notice he's no longer with them. When one cop wonders aloud who can stop Sandman now, we switch scenes to Spider-Man exuberantly swinging through town, excited that he was finally able to muster the courage to ask out Betty Brant, and not only that but she actually said yes. His jubilation is cut short, however, when he spies Sandman walking out of a bank carrying two moneybags. Sandman says that he doesn't have a problem with Spider-Man, since he's bean beaten by both Spidey and the Torch, and offers Spider-Man a truce, but of course the web-swinger will have none of that. Spider-Man tries to stop him, but Sandman wins this battle. Following the fight, Spider-Man jumps into the sewer to evade an over-eager police officer, intent on collecting the reward which has been placed on Spidey's head.
The next day, Peter awakes still weak and covered in bruises. He makes an excuse to his Aunt May, and then goes to school where he is the subject of the usual derision from Jason and Flash, but this time Tiny sticks up for him. Even still, Jason pushes Peter into a locker, knocking Peter out cold. Peter wakes up in the nurse's office, worried that he has a concussion, but of course that would be too hard to explain to the other kids so he must allow them to continue thinking he is just a weakling.
When Jameson assigns the headline "Is This The End Of Spider-Man?" to the story of the Sandman/Spidey fight, Peter starts to think that it really might be the end. He is so distraught he even snaps at Betty Brant when she merely tries to make conversation. Over the next few days, the Sandman's crime wave continues, but Peter is too scared and upset to go after him again.
It isn't until Peter and Betty's date that Peter finally gets the motivation he needs. Betty tells Peter about her brother, and the trouble that he had, and how he gave up on himself, and Peter knows he can't make the same mistake. He thanks Betty, puts some money on the table, and walks out, telling his date that he hopes he'll see her again soon. And then he changes to Spider-Man and is once again on the trail of the Sandman.
When Spidey does find the Sandman, rather than fight fist to fist, he tries a strategy of avoiding Sandman's attack while simultaneously throwing enough insults at him that Sandman stays mad enough to not figure out what Spidey is really trying to do... lead him in front of a giant experimental wind turbine, which sucks Sandman inside of it. Just before Sandman completely disappears into the turbine, he says that he had been willing to let bygones be bygones before, but from now on it's personal. Spider-Man and the scientists wonder if Sandman is dead.
The next day, Peter tries to ask Betty for another date, but this time the phone rings at Betty's desk, cutting him off. It's John Jameson, J. Jonah Jameson's son, who says he's on his way to New York. This story is continued next issue.
Notes
- This story follows the events of Amazing Spider-Man #7 when Peter Parker finally revealed to Betty Brant how he felt about her.
- The fight between Sandman and the Human Torch which is referenced by the police took place in Strange Tales #115.
- The ending of this story, in which Sandman is sucked into a wind turbine, is most likely a tongue in cheek reference to the very first battle between Spider-Man and the Sandman in Amazing Spider-Man #4. Spider-Man won that fight by sucking Sandman into an ordinary janitorial vacuum cleaner.