The coronavirus is disrupting television with Hollywood production of many beloved shows being forced to shut down early and causing next season renewals to be pushed back.
Which of the precious shows are hurting from COVID-19? For starters: the entire Arrowverse. From the CW’s ‘The Flash` to the Girl of Steel, Supergirl, viewers weekly dose of DC TV was abruptly ended by the COVID-19 pandemic. I’m sure many wished upon a star for a clear sign of The CW network sending us hope during troubling times.
That wish was granted in the form of Courtney Whitmore.
The CW’s newest heroine is Stargirl. By day she is Los Angeles turned Nebraska native, Courtney Whitmore, who is portrayed by Brec Bassinger (Bella and the Bulldogs), but when it’s time to pick up that golden staff of hers, she is Stargirl.
When Geoff Johns, creator of Stargirl, first developed the star-spangled heroine, it served as an homage to his sister, Courtney Johns, whose life ended abruptly due to a plane crash. Johns brought Stargirl to life in his first comic book series, Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E, back in 1999.
Season one of Stargirl served as an introduction…no the perfect introduction to the heroes we have already fallen in love with. The brains behind season one of Stargirl did an excellent job in allowing the member of Justice Society of America, J.S.A for short, to introduce themselves to audiences one episode at time. It was a season that was essentially about a group of young heroes dealing with their own problem all while becoming a beacon of hope.
Best character introduction goes to none other than Yolanda Montez, portrayed by Yvette Monreal (MTV’s Faking it, Rambo: Last Blood). Monreal debut episode, respectively titled “Wildcat,” shows how one mistake can lead to a series of bad days.
We learned that Monreal’s character, Yolanda, was the original popular girl at Blue Valley before she allowed Henry King Jr, portrayed by Jake Austin Walker, to enter her life. When it was time for Wildcat’s spotlight during the season, we see her still reeling from her “nude photo scandal” that occurred prior to the start of the series. Yolanda represents what most young women go through: blind love.
Season one tackled themes of revenge, gaining a sense of responsibility and maturity, as each of the members of the newly formed Justice Society. While Courtney was able to adapt to her new superhero role, she also was quick to want to fight the bad guys. She had to mature considerably over the season.
Yolanda, while dealing with being an outcast at school, killed Injustice Society member Brainwave (Christopher James Baker) in a quest for revenge after he murdered his own son, Brainwave Jr. Beth Chapel (Anjelika Washington), aka Dr. Mid-Nite starts out as a social reject, even going as far to calling her parents her best friends. She relied heavily on the original Dr. Mid-Nite’s A.I. powered goggles, while gaining her hero moment when overcoming Justin/The Shining Knight (Mark Ashworth) and Pat Dugan/S.T.R.I.P.E (Luke Wilson).
But the one JSA member who really show signs of embodying all the themes of the season was none other than Rick Tyler (Cameron Gellman), son of the Golden Age’s Hourman, Rex Tyler. When Rick was given his powers, he had selfish motives, and only joined the team to get revenge on Injustice Society for taking his parent lives.
“Hourman and Dr. Mid-Nite”
“Do you know what it’s like to be so filled up with anger it feels like your poisoning yourself? Do you? I wanna hit something, anything, all of the time. Every second. You think I like that? I hat feeling this way.”– Rick to Courtney in
In the end of the season, the modern age Hourman evolved into an honorable hero and managed to beat his parent killer, Solomon Grundy. His thirst for vengeance diminished after witnessing Grundy in fear and spared the beast. To all future superhero shows, that’s how you do character development!
Overall, Stargirl is off to an amazing head-start with season one. It expertly combines the camp of comics with the reality of our world to great effects. In terms of production value, it was simply excellent.
From the characters being fleshed out and interesting to the story arc bring viewers to the edge of their seats, Stargirl reminds viewers that life has no set way of progress. The story arcs were all executed to the best of their ability.
Although the show expressed feelings of being “overstuffed,” Stargirl continued to surprise viewers. A well deserving 5/5 for the JSA. Welcome to The CW, Stargirl!
