Jimmy Olsen goes to get his hair cut, only to be bumped back in line by gangster Rick Sable. Sable turns out to be a childhood friend of the barber, Tony, who urges him gently to pursue an honest living. After stepping out to call the Daily Planet, Jimmy walks in on a bizarre scene of Sable calling the police to tell them of a robbery he planned for that day, before Tony intervenes. As it turns out, the robbery actually does occur on schedule — though it's foiled by Superman — leading Jimmy to believe that Tony has some sort of power of hypnotic suggestion. Jimmy talks White into letting him investigate further, which gets both him and Tony in a web of organized crime.
This episode contains examples of:
- Childhood Friend: Tony and Rick were friends before Rick went bad, which drives the plot.
- The Cloudcuckoolander Was Right: Jimmy's theory really is as nutty as Perry White says it is, but of course it turns out to be true.
- Heel–Face Turn: Eventually, Rick Sable not only goes straight and saves our heroes, he convinces his two henchmen to also go straight and turn themselves in.
- Hypno Fool: All the thugs act this way under the power of Tony's suggestion. In contrast to some other instances of this trope, however, Tony is no puppet master; he says he only nudges people into doing what they secretly want to do anyway.
- Self-Destruct Mechanism: The criminals' hideout is wired with a bomb for this purpose, which turns out to be plot-important.
- Tap on the Head: Lois knocks two thugs unconscious with one swing of her purse.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Tony's constant refrain to Rick.
