“Stargirl” just wrapped season 1, and it went out with a bang! The episode picked up with Pat Dugan suited up in S.T.R.I.P.E. and under the influence of the Injustice Society’s mind control. It just ramps up from there. This entire season was setting up the final confrontation of the newly branded Justice Society and their evil counterparts the ISA.
Throughout the final two episodes, we learn more and more about the plans behind mind-controlling most of the country. The gang finds out that the ISA plans to reprogram most of America to think like responsible citizens. They are looking to abolish racism, violence, crime, promote clean energy; it was enough to give pause to the gang and wonder for a second if they were indeed on the right side, but all this would come with a caveat. Roughly 25 percent of the population would resist and have their brains shut down. That was enough to get the kids back into the fight.
Icicle has a few telling scenes that illuminate his motivation behind the plan. In one scene he speaks to a scared little girl, letting her know her father will wake up and be a better person, which is followed up by her succinct reply that her dad is already a good man. We get a peek into the insanity brewing being Icicle’s eyes. Later towards the climax, he is holding Courtney’s mom atop a building with his plans falling down all around him and letting loose all the anger and grief of his wife’s death—the motivating factor behind his plan to reprogram the country. Any loss of life towards this end was a rational approach, for the ends justify his means. This was a humanizing moment as we see his pain unfiltered and clear. It played to the MCU’s top villain, Thanos, and his plot to erase half the universe in order to save it. Using loss and grief as the motivation rather than evil for evil’s sake.
Pat himself steps up to the plate and takes on Solomon Grundy. The CGI here should be praised as the fight was well mapped out, kept in confined quarters, and quite literally played out as if itjit from the pages of a comic book. Grundy dismembers S.T.R.I.P.E with unbridled rage, peeling back the torso to reveal a battered Pat until Hourman steps in. We finally see Pat go from sidekick to full-on hero. That right hook he lands on Icicle as Pat steps in to save his wife cements that.
From here, we finally get the confrontation we’ve been waiting for. Rick Tyler confronting the monster that killed his parents. As the fight between Rick and Grundy continues, it’s clear that Rick has the upper hand. Hourman pummels Grundy into submission and here’s where Rick’s arc this season wraps. Rick wants to end this monster, but it won’t fight back and Rick himself is realizing beating this whimpering thing is not making him feel any better. It’s not taking the pain of his parent’s death away and in a moment of mercy, he lets Grundy run.
Wildcat comes face to face with Brainwave’s son Henry. The gang saw him die episodes earlier as he sacrificed his life for theirs. Yolanda spent the season hating him for the nude pics of her circulated through school. She funneled all her negative emotions down to him. He tried to apologize before, but it was not accepted. Then, at the moment before his death—at the hands of his father—he apologizes again and this time, it hits home. However, that wasn’t the end of her story arc. Yolanda becomes the only member of the Justice Society to take a life. When she kills Brainwave, after he’s revealed to be taking on the image of his dead son, there is a sense of karmic retribution. Avenging the death of someone she finally learned to forgive. While there will be ramifications from her taking a life, the lesson Yolanda walks away with is about forgiveness and the time wasted hating.
Chuck and Beth take on the Gambler, and it’s a great battle of wits. A brilliant idea to use his greed against him, attacking his wealth, and giving it all to charity. Notably, here she’s not in the Dr. Midnite garb but she is wearing the goggles housing Chuck. It changed the dynamic of Beth from wearing a costume as more of a Barbara Gordon/ Oracle type of hero. And it worked really well. Icicle destroying the goggles and seemingly killing Chuck was surprisingly emotional. Somehow, to the credit of the writers, the A. I. Chuck became a bonified member of the team and through Beth, you feel the loss of a friend.
Courtney has a number of character-defining moments. She helps Pat break the mind control by admitting to him she considers him her father. It was an unexpected turn and the emotion evoked was universally received. Here, she takes what would have a been superhero showdown and turned it around with honesty, love, and faith. Faith that Pat is the man she now knows him to be: her dad. Courtney later gets a showdown with Shiv, but this is handled quickly as Shiv is slated to be a big bad next season and she wasn’t the immediate danger.
Stargirl and Icicle finally come to blows and it was a fantastic fight sequence. The great choreography and camera work made the scene fluid. Yet, interestingly enough, Stargirl isn’t the one to deliver the death blow. Her little brother ramming the truck through the ice form of Icicle was a jaw-dropping moment. At the end of the episode, seeing Courtney flying through the town with S.T.R.I.P.E and sitting on the water tower was such a great scene. There were a peace and acceptance of the whole thing. She’s now free to be herself. To be Stargirl. No more secrets to hide from her family. It’s in this truth that Courtney finally finds fulfillment.
The episode is a win on so many levels. It wraps up everything the show has been taking time to build, as well as setting up the next season. Even as a stand-alone episode, it is a hit from start to finish.
Fair warning to all the other superhero shows out there: The bar, or rather, the cosmic staff has been raised pretty high, so good luck.
Written by Victor Mercado
