Thanks to the emotional, nuanced, and formidable way Yvette Monreal plays her, Yolanda seems to be making a bigger splash in the DC fandom with her role in this series than she did during her run as Wildcat in the comic. Her time in the Wildcat costume in the comics pales next to Ted Grant's longer and better-received run as the character, but in this show, she rivals Courtney and Pat in popularity and is reaching a bigger audience. It's widely believed that her prominence and positive reception in this series is the reason comic Yolanda came Back from the Dead for a cameo in Doomsday Clock.
Similarly, Beth Chapel is probably the least popular version of Doctor Mid-Nite in the comics, due to being killed off relatively quickly (lasting about eight years), and existing in a weird middle ground where she was neither the original, “classic” version of the character (Charles McNider) nor the contemporary, “modern” version (Pieter Cross). The show using her at all was a big case of Unexpected Character, but the result has done better for giving her a fan base than anything in the comics have. To a lesser extent, though Rick Tyler was the most popular incarnation of Hourman, Hourman was still a pretty obscure legacy among the JSA due to the fairly unappealing gimmick (given that they have a pretty standard power set but with the “gimmick” being they only have them for an hour a day, with a frequent subplot about being addicted to drugs and battling cancer), so the show has still massively raised his profile. This also applies to the HourNite ship, as about thirteen years after Beth’s death in the comics, Rick Tyler would marry Jesse Quick and the two remained a prominent Beta Couple in JSA comics, and until the show started this was pretty much the only ship Rick had any fanfare about; thanks to the show promoting both and having a decent amount of Ship Tease, it’s not only popularised their ship, but created some Ship-to-Ship Combat.
Are Beth's parents really annoyed by her, or are they pulling a Cruel to Be Kind, trying to encourage Beth to make friends her own age?
Seeing Henry's Character Development and The Atoner nature in later episodes of season 1 makes one wonder how much of his original bullying was something that Cindy and his Jerk Jock friends encouraged him to do, and how much (if any) was him genuinely wanting to hurt Yolanda.
Does Brainwave really care about Project New America, or does he only want to reprogram people to all think about the same pre-ordained, tranquil things so he won't always hear a flood of diverse and unpleasant thoughts wherever he goes?
That Rick's uncle Matt is an unlikable prick who borders being a total Hate Sink character is clear. But how much of a Freudian Excuse he has for being a massive dick can be debated. Before Rick was hoisted on his lap, Matt did have ambitions of his own and he never asked to be a guardian to Rick, much less wanted the responsibility. So in that one respect, he can elicit just a tiny bit of sympathy since he wasn't even given a say in the matter of even wanting a child in his life and realistically, he was never going to make the best parental figure given the circumstances surrounding the adoption. Or... was Matt going to turn out to be an asshole even without Rick anyways? Because there are plenty of moments where he takes out his anger on people who never did him wrong before by harassing a waitress, treating Rick's teacher horribly when she shows up at his home, and using a pitbull for fighting.
While it's undoubtable that Larry and Paula have done bad things, the way they're presented in Seasons Two and Three implies that they also have a lot of trouble connecting to people other than each other and Artemis, and that this is part of why they're villains (because they don't really understand how wrong their actions are).
Sylvester's actions toward Pat come off as Condescending Compassion at times, but given how he was raised by rich parents who he implies were emotionally abusive or at the very least cold and distant, it may be that he is genuinely trying to connect with his friend and doesn't really know how to not treat him as an inferior. While he was alive, anyway...
The Gambler's words about wanting to connect with and be a better person for his daughter in "Frenemies Part One" affect Courtney very strongly. While it's later established that he's telling the truth, it's possible that he was also deliberately choosing his words to appeal to Courtney, who understands exactly what it feels like to be abandoned by your father.
In general, the Thunderbolt can be incredibly unhelpful unless someone words their wish exactly right (and even then, sometimes, his wish-granting can be less than helpful). Is it because he'd like to help but is bound to obey only the strict wording of the wish? Is he just incredibly literal-minded and genuinely doesn't understand what the person holding the pen really wants? Does he just think it's funny? Jakeem's last use of the pen onscreen seems to imply the latter.
A lot—in fact, pretty much all—of what Sylvester does throughout Season Three is cast into question by the big reveal in episode 12. Especially with the implication that there's just a little bit of him left.
For that matter, is there a little bit left of him? Or is it simply that the Ultra-Humanite got so deep in playing Sylvester that it started to think it was him a little?
Yolanda's mom is constantly hurtful and cruel. But when we hear her voice on the phone after she kicks Yolanda out, she does sound genuinely worried, and Yolanda clearly believes that there's a chance for them to reconnect. Does she care about her deep down, and is just really bad at showing it?
Courtney's absolute faith that her father was Starman, with many viewers complaining that the show's crew seem to have severely overestimated how much we'd be fooled by the misdirection so we're instead just impatient to get to the inevitable twist. Thankfully, "Shining Knight" finally put the issue to bed.
The mystery surrounding the murder of the Gambler and who's behind the surveillance cameras throughout Blue Valley in Season 3. The audience patiently waited till the "Infinity Inc" two-parter in the middle because the Season 2 stinger led them to believe Mister Bones was the culprit, but it was all a mislead.
Audience Awareness Advantage: Some have expressed a lack of sympathy towards Yolanda for her hostility towards Henry for the "selfie incident", to the point of insisting he is completely irredeemable, and going so far as to threaten to kill him. However, what fans seem to forget is Yolanda is both unaware that Henry genuinely feels remorse for the incident (not helped by him hiding said remorse and joining in the harassment of her), or that he wasn't the one who shared it publicly (that was Cindy, whom no one is aware of being the one behind it). To the viewer, she's kicking a vulnerable kid while he's down and potentially pushing him into villainy over an incident he wasn't entirely at fault for and has regretted, but to her, as far as she knows, she's standing up to the guy who committed a sex crime that ruined her life.
This is not helped by Henry never telling her that he didn't give out copies of the picture intentionally, and treating himself as the sole culprit when they are talking about it. While it's understandable he feels that It's All My Fault, the fact that Henry didn't mass email the picture to the school is never brought up by either one of them and Yolanda doesn't learn it until Cindy herself admits it in late Season 2, after Henry is dead.
Ass Pull: In season 3, Beth's goggles are somehow able to find a signal emanating from Larry's hockey mask, when there's never been any indication that it has any kind of transmission capability. It feels like the writers pulled something out of thin air simply to justify the other characters learning about the Crocks' deaths.
Rick and Beth being mentioned as getting married in the closing scene of the Series Finale. While the couple was a popular one amongst the fans, there was no indication that the two liked each other as more than friends.
Pat gets two of these. Trying to put S.T.R.I.P.E. through its paces is played to "One Piece At A Time", underscoring its cobbled-together nature. Later, when working out at the local gym, he gets a workout montage set to "You're The Best Around".
Jordan Mahkent is introduced to "The Man" by The Killers, an Awesome Ego song that both makes him sound awesome while also encapsulating his delusions that he's the hero.
The scene at the end of the first season finale where Courtney and Pat fly around the snow-covered land together with the song "GRATEFUL" being played.
"Just Wanna Have Fun" makes for a great And There Was Much Rejoicing song as Bobbie Burman celebrates her (temporary) freedom from Cindy and Dragon King.
Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: The first half of the third season had the mysterious watcher (later revealed to be Icicle) been piecing together a jigsaw puzzle of some kind of shadowy skull, which he immediately scrambles when the cameras go down. One has to wonder why Jordan would spend his time with that if it wasn't meant to be a indicate that Mister Bones, who bears a striking resemblance to the puzzle, was the culprit.
After committing one sadistic atrocity after another the entire first season, most of all killing his own son, seeing Brainwave get his throat slashed by Yolanda in the season finale is immensely satisfying. Unfortunately, Yolanda doesn't share that view.
While the scene itself was a bit horrific due to being manipulated by Eclipso, many fans found it rather satisfying to see Rick give an epic beatdown to his jackass uncle Matt.
Having Pat call out Sylvester in "The Suspects" and "The Blackmail" is nice for anyone who's tired of watching him constantly play second fiddle.
Pat: I'm not your sidekick, I'm your friend!
Season 3 manages to deal the ultimate blow to all of its villains. Dragon King in the Ultra Humanite's body is turned into a stuffed gorilla that lets Cindy finally get some overdue catharsis on her father for all the crap he put her through, Lily Makhent is crushed to death by a falling car (a la The Wicked Witch of the East) and is forced to pay for letting revenge against the JSA consume her, and the Ultra Humanite—a wicked bastard who turned the team against each other and was planning on acting as Jordan's mouthpiece—is rendered brain dead. By Pat, the person whom he arguably hurt the most, no less! And if that wasn't satisfying enough, Artemis burns Jordan alive as payback for killing her parents, ensuring he won't return to cause any more harm. For everything these psychopaths have done to ruin innocent lives for their own gain, few will mourn for their demise.
Character Rerailment: Via Character Development; Rick is introduced with severe Adaptational Angst Upgrade and was depicted as more of an angry, Nominal Hero type. Over the course of the first season, though, he starts showing more vulnerability and a kinder side, as well as more genuine heroism. In the first season finale, he even spares Grundy, and by the Christmas scene, he's shown to be happier and more upbeat. This is much more reflective of the comic version, who was generally a Nice Guy and very friendly but with a Good Is Not Soft harder edge when needed.
Cliché Storm: Courtney's first day at Blue Valley High hits several Teen Drama cliches in rapid succession: She's accosted in the hall by two cheerleaders, who turn out to be an Alpha Bitch and her sycophantic best friend. The Alpha Bitch takes her polite refusal to join the cheerleading squad personally, leading them to be enemies. When she goes to lunch, the cafeteria tables are segregated by clique, complete with a "losers" table, at which Courtney is essentially assigned a seat. No sooner has she sat down then a group of football players come over and start bullying a girl at her table for no apparent reason, prompting Courtney to stand up and defend her.
Dr. Shiro Ito, the Dragon King, is the sociopathic Mad Scientist of the Injustice Society of America who crafted plagues during World War II and once attempted to destroy New York. Ito frequently abused his daughter Cindy to turn her into a tool, subjecting her to tortuous experiments and gassing her when she objected to being imprisoned. Having captured Shining Knight, Ito broke his mind to force him to live as a mundane janitor, amused at his suffering. As part of the ISA, Ito designs a device to focus the power of Brainwave and shows no care for the tens of millions who will die to satisfy his scientific curiosity in Project: New America. Later returning after his apparent death, Ito allies with Icicle and the Ultra-Humanite to resurrect Starman and steal both his body and legacy, trapping his mind in a mental loop where he relives the painful brain transplant for months on end. Ito takes the Ultra-Humanite's body to serve as the trio's muscle and murders the Gambler, allowing the Ultra-Humanite to pit the JSA and their former ISA allies against each other as Ito plans to kill them all in his mission to become "something greater."
Season 2: Eclipso, the ancient demon residing in the Black Diamond, is a malevolent being who savors fear, negativity, and corruption. Having corrupted and devoured the souls of countless beings, Eclipso opens the season by murdering the young daughter of Dr. Mid-Nite in a flashback and assists the orphaned Cindy in forming a new group of supervillains after murdering her stepmother. Trying to corrupt the heroes into evil after betraying Cindy by killing one of her allies and trapping her in the Shadowlands, Eclipso eventually attempts to merge the world with the Shadowlands to rule it like a god and feed on the souls of humans at his leisure.
Cry for the Devil: Cindy is a nasty piece of work, but her self-titled episode "Shiv Part One" explores why Cindy is the way she is. Unlike the other ISA's kids, Cindy was raised fully aware of who her father was, was experimented on by him, and was also spoiled and had her cruelty encouraged. Cindy isn't nice because she doesn't know how to be, and it's shown when interacting with Henry, she doesn't completely understand how to do basic things like show compassion. She's also painfully aware that her father sees her as more of a tool than a daughter, and feels like she's unfairly denied a seat at the ISA's table despite the work she does for them.
And if this doesn't bring you to tears, just watch her apparent demise at the hands of Eclipso. She literally goes from arrogant evil leader to whimpering Damsel in Distress in under a minute, with Courtney doing her level best to desperately save her life and Cindy pleading with her not to let her go. It drives home the fact that underneath her conniving, murderous exterior, Cindy is still just a frightened teenaged girl. Perhaps, not surprisingly, the fact that Courtney goes out of her way to save her from the horrors of the Shadow Realm convinces her to try pulling a Heel–Face Turn at the end of Season 2.
Diagnosed by the Audience: With his turning near-feral around the Shade and later the Crocks, Sylvester Pemberton seems to be suffering PTSD in Season 3. Exploding at the sight of the ISA's picture in the fifth episode even though he knows better by now basically confirms it. Though the fact that it's not really "Sylvester", but the Ultra-Humanite in his brain begs the question if he was faking it.
Cameron Mahkent and Artemis Crock, though only minor figures so far, are getting a lot of fan love, due to the former being a Nice Guy and Morality Pet for his father, Icicle, while the latter is a fun Jerk Jock and recipient of her parents' smothering. It helps that in the comics, they followed their parents and became an Unholy MatrimonyBattle Couple themselves who were already Ensemble Darkhorses for comic fans, and that Artemis was a major character in the widely beloved Young Justice (2010).
Epileptic Trees: A lot of fans have speculated about the introduction of various comic book JSA legacy characters, like Todd Rice/Obsidian, Jennifer-Lynn Hayden/Jade, Maxine Hunkel/Cyclone, Jesse Chambers/Jesse Quick, etc. The fact that Courtney's been transplanted to interacting with Infinity Inc-era JSA legacies has, essentially, opened the door for them to use characters from both the Silver/Bronze age era JSA legacies as well as the 2000s-era JSA legacies, especially after both eras were then-recently reintroduced in the comics during Doomsday Clock.
Fortunately enough, Jennie has appeared in Season 2, with Todd being teased before eventually appearing in Season 3.
Fandom Rivalry: While the scattered nature of DC's live action universes causes a lot of friction in general, fans of Stargirl in particular seem to be at-odds with fans of the Zack Snyder-directed DCEU films. A lot of this is routed in two major points; firstly Stargirl is an overall Truer to the Text adaptation of a lesser known side of the DCU that aims to be more light-hearted in tone, compared to the more serious tone from Snyder's DCEU films that focused on the major figures of the DCU, so they attract very different fans who scoff at the other style for being immature. Secondly, Stargirl is produced and showrun by Geoff Johns, who was blamed for the problems that befell Snyder's DCEU movies, and has a lot of controversy attached as a result. When Brec Bassinger posted a selfie with Johns, and praised him as being a great showrunner, she got a lot of harassment from Snyder fans over this, showing the resentment is still very hot.
Fan-Preferred Couple: Courtney/Yolanda aka Star Cat is probably the biggest ship currently, definitely moreso than Courtney/Cameron, the current "canon" ship. It helps that Courtney's canon love interest in the comics is Billy Batson, who is almost definitely going to be Adapted Out due to SHAZAM! (2019), while her alternative love interest Al Rothstein/Atom Smasher has also been adapted out due to appearing in Black Adam (2021), and in the comics Cameron is both a villain and paired with Artemis Crock. Additionally, given that Cameron only appeared in five out of the first thirteen episodes, he and Courtney haven't shared nearly the amount of screentime or emotional connection that Courtney and Yolanda have (though this is somewhat rectified by the third season).
Fans of Doom Patrol (2019) and Harley Quinn (2019) get along great with the Stargirl fandom, especially compared to the fanbases between this show and some other DC properties, likely aided by the fact they are all produced by the same streaming service. Though those shows are more R-rated, Stargirl is welcomed as a Lighter and Softer offering from DC Universe while showing the same level of maturity about tone note as, unlike certain other DC works, all three avoid being Darker and Edgier simply for the sake of being darker and edgier, and merely focus on adapting the tone of each respective work; when one calls for something dark, it'll be dark, but it's equally open to light, humour, and idealism when warranted. Stargirl leans further towards light and idealistic but it's the same mindset that tone does not equal quality, and all largely being good at adapting their source material.
Though there's the aforementioned Fandom Rivalry in place, there's a decent number of Arrowverse fans who welcome the show, thanks to CW also airing the show (and taking over sole production for Season 2). While set in a different world from the Arrowverse, Crisis on Infinite Earths (2019) established Stargirl as being part of the same multiverse (specifically Earth-2), and though there are fans of Stargirl who dislike Arrowverse's many changes from the comics, being comic-accurate doesn't exactly put off fans who aren't comic fans so there's little reason for some Arrowverse fans to dislike the show. Many Arrowverse fans also appreciate the lack of plot-mandated friendship failures that they felt characterized other shows such as Arrow and The Flash.
Many fans are convinced that Henry King Jr. either was only wounded after being crushed by a pile of rubble or that his consciousness escaped the death of his physical body due to his telepathy.
Some fans have wondered whether Joey Zarick might have somehow inherited some of his dad's magical power and unconsciously used it to transfer his soul into the family cat and thus has the potential to be fully resurrected one day.
In the backstory, Pat was very dedicated to Sylvester, happily accepted that he was the man's sidekick, and even corrects people when they refer to them as equals. It is very easy to interpret their relationship as being strangely some sort of dom/sub romance considering this. Justin unintentionally lampshades it by referring to Stripesy as Starman's "squire", which has more than a few homoerotic connotations.
Courtney and Yolanda. First Courtney can't help but stare at her (at first annoying Yolanda), she keeps pestering her with attempts at friendship, and invites her over to her place to "show her something". She then encourages her to try on a random costume (even beckoning her to come out of the closet), after first showing Yolanda her own Stargirl costume (which Yolanda comments she looks good in), then when Yolanda's Wildcat suit becomes a form-fitting outfit, Courtney's eyes are gluedto Yolanda's boobs and butt, and the two enjoy a night of trying out her powers and going on a quick superhero mission, in what ends up feeling like a date. That is all in the first four episodes. After that, Yolanda becomes very attached to Courtney, and even begins acting like a Tsundere. Note, that far more attention ends up going into this relationship, than Courtney/Cameron, ostensibly the canon ship Courtney's set for, which ends up acting more like Ships That Pass in the Nightnote which itself is something of a reflection of the comics; Courtney's first/only friend at Blue Valley in the comics was Mary Krammer, whom she got extensive development and a lot of unintentional shippy moments with, to the point the development of her crush was pretty much non-existent and more or less abandoned immediately. Just to really hammer it home, when we see a mental montage of Courtney's loved ones at the end of Season 2, Cameron doesn't appear at all, whereas Yolanda appears twice (once by herself and once in a group shot with the rest of the JSA). While it could be argued that it's still too early for him to be lumped in with her family and closest friends, it's still very notable.
Artemis Crock is a bad-tempered Jerk Jock who's prone to physically assaulting people, but after her parents are arrested and she's put into a foster home that is clearly Fostering for Profit, it's hard not to feel bad for her. It only gets worse when Cindy and Eclipso cause her to think her parents' lives are in danger, leading to a violent freak out that costs her her future as an athlete.
Sylvester Pemberton is abrasive, self-absorbed and rude to others, especially Pat. However, he was raised by abusive parents, lost his sister, and is currently suffering with both PTSD and guilt over killing Bruce Gordon and the deaths of his friends in the JSA, as well as his own death and resurrection, which could not have been pleasant.It winds up being Subverted when it turns out that Sylvester was Dead All Along, and the Ultra-Humanite had put his brain into the late Starman's body.
Henry King Jr. is a Jerk Jock with some harsh Kick the Dog moments, but it is next to impossible not to feel a deep sense of sadness and investment on his behalf sooner or later. His frightened reactions to the coldness of his father are followed by his devastation when his father is in a coma. Then, once he finally develops telepathy, he is exposed to many of the nastiest thoughts or deepest pains (including his ex-girlfriend Yolanda's misery, which she makes it very clear that he is responsible for) of everyone around him and has to deal with the discovery that the ISA killed his mother years ago and that his dad was the one to do the dirty work.
Icicle, aka Jordan Mahkent, vowed to eliminate the "injustices" of the world after the death of his wife by forming the Injustice Society of America with the promise of a brighter future for their children. Jordan planned to use Brainwave's telepathic abilities to spread the doctrine of his "New Constitution"—killing 25% of those affected but forcing every adult in the Midwest into accepting renewable energy and social equality—and when his team subsequently come into conflict with the Justice Society he led a successful attack that utterly decimated their membership. Later returning after his defeat at the hands of the new JSA, Icicle allies with Dragon King and the Ultra-Humanite to ensure his son's place as a hero, having the former harass Blue Valley to provide an enemy to unite against while the latter steals Starman's body; with his son's happiness secured, Icicle planned to then have "Starman" run for president, acting as a mouthpiece for him to enforce his benevolent ideals on the nation. A genuinely compassionate man despite his extreme methods, Jordan nonetheless let nothing stand in the way of his mission, fighting to his last breath against what he saw as injustice.
Sportsmaster and Tigress, aka Lawrence "Crusher" Crock and Paula Brooks, are the delightfully evil yet wholesome brute killers of the ISA. Participating in Icicle's New America plan to create a better country for their daughter Artemis, the two serve as Jordan's most dreaded personal enforcers as they effortlessly battle their way through the new JSA, all while Crusher genuinely tries to befriend Pat Dugan through fitness advice. While eventually incarcerated with the ISA's defeat, the Crocks let not even prison stop them as they nonchalantly break out to visit Artemis during her college football tryouts, then break back in to appease the Whitmores. Later returning to help stop Eclipso, the Crocks legally secure their release despite their litany of crimes before moving back into Blue Valley, proving their worth as sincere friends and allies of the JSA as they reform to talk the Mahkents out of total war. Gleefully unrepentant of their past evils yet unconditionally loving and supportive of those they call their friends, the Crocks leave an undeniable impact on the Whitmore family, with Artemis continuing to carry on their legacy as she uses their lessons to avenge their deaths and become one of the greatest heroes of the new age.
The Shade, aka Richard Swift, is a charming thief and conman who retains a code of honor among his more nefarious compatriots in the ISA. Opposing the malevolent Eclipso's influence over the decades, the Shade helped the JSA kill his human host when the demon came to possess Bruce Gordon and befriended Dr. Mid-Nite in the conflict, later saving the hero's life during the ISA's attack out of disgust for Icicle's murderous plans. Reemerging years later to ensure Eclipso's Black Diamond is safely disappeared, the Shade retains his charismatic affability as he slowly gains the trust of the suspicious Whitmore family to aid them in fighting the demon. Despite tricking the new JSA into recreating the Black Diamond to restore his powers when he is injured, the Shade nonetheless helps the heroes escape the Shadowlands and, after faking his death for no reason other than "a flair for the dramatic," returns to save Beth's parents and help stop the demon for good. Going on to mentor the other children and legacies of the JSA, the Shade ends the series a full-fledged hero, fighting beside his newfound friends and ensuring their own legacies live on forever.
Memetic Badass: Believe it or not, Mike of all people became one when the season one finale had them perform two majorly awesomeBig Damn Heroes moments. Namely, saving Pat's life by stabbing Sportsmaster with a drill in "Part One" and ultimately being the one to kill Icicle by ramming them with a truck just before the latter can kill the rest of the heroes in "Part Two". For some fans, it's not a question on if he will join the JSA and inherit a legacy, it's which one.
Bobbie Burman, due to her Broken Bird interactions with Cindy and her And There Was Much Rejoicing scene in season 2, dancing through her kitchen as "Just Wanna Have Fun" plays.
Jordan was already firmly a villain in the series premiere when he led the attack on the JSA's headquarters and mortally wounded Starman, and then episode three when he uses his powers to get the Adorkable Joey Zarick killed simply to punish his father, then murdering William Zarick himself when he confronts him. However, the fact he saw Barbara as a Morality Pet and had so many Even Evil Has Standards moments, along with his sympathetic backstory, at least ensured he was solidly an Anti-Villain. He cements himself truly as a monster, however, when after discovering Courtney's identity and Barbara's apparent knowledge of who he is, he gives the go-ahead to kill not just Barbara, Courtney, and Pat, but also Mike, simply to ensure that they don't leave a legacy behind to cause problems later. When he comes back, he still proves how irredeemable he is by killing the reformed Crusher and Paula Crock, his former ISA members.
Brainwave firmly cements himself on the other side of it in "Brainwave Jr" by murdering his own son. The same episode also reveals that he killed his wife to prove his loyalty to the Injustice Society so he'd arguably crossed the MEH much earlier.
Eclipso plowed right through the MEH before the series even started by murdering Dr. Midnight's daughter for no other reason other than he could, causing the entire JSA to cross it themselves by murdering Bruce Gordon, leading to their split-up. And that's not even going into the laundry list of things he does in the present.
Lily Mahkent crosses it in "Frenemies Chapter Nine" when she murders Mr Deisinger for having the unmitigated temerity to... tell Cameron's grandparents that he's worried about the latter losing his passion for art.
The Ultra Humanite crossed it when he, the Dragon King, and Icicle dig up Starman's body, make sure he's awake and aware enough to know what's happening, stuff the former's brain into it, then return to Blue Valley to divide the JSA and get Pat killed—all so the Humanite could throw his lot in with the heroes and rise up to become a prominent enough figurehead that would force all of Jordan's desires on humanity.
Narm: The added tiger sound effect when Tigress was fighting Starman.
The opening battle where Pat calls out the name of every superhero as they're fighting. EVERY SINGLE ONE. You'd be forgiven for thinking his name was Exposition Lad.
Brainwave's death is relatively stupid given that he chose to play mind games with Yolanda instead of simply killing her. He had not been shown to toy with his enemies beforehand.
Yolanda's talk to Rick about not killing rings hollow when she chooses to murder Brainwave minutes later. Especially since she's the religious one.
Pat having a heart-to-heart with the Staff during "Shiv Part 2". A scene that would be completely goofy if not for Luke Wilson somehow selling the whole thing.
The first episode: As noted above, it's a Cliché Storm of young adult tropes, but Brec Bassinger's compelling performance pulls it off.
The costumes; the show proudly uses brightly coloured, comic-accurate costumes for almost everyone who's supposed to have one, with little to no Movie Superheroes Wear Black, Hell-Bent for Leather, or other tropes used instead, as has been done to death by just about every otherlive-actionsuperheroworkinthe lastfew years. While these are all quite flamboyant and even garish, it immediately, visually shows the audience how much the show just fully embraces the comic book lore. Especially for comic fans who are sick of hearing how some characters' looks "wouldn't translate onto the big screen", it's a great demonstration how this only matters if you care about making something "real world", as the show just gleefully embraces the fact it's set in a superhero fantasy world.
Particularly, while Eclipso's costume can seem over-the-top to some, it also shows how evil and monstrous he is.
Courtney's adamant belief that she's Starman's daughter was one of the show's weakest subplots, especially as it was a major deviation from the comics for a show otherwise staying Truer to the Text. However, Episode 11 brings this to a halt and Courtney tearfully has to accept she was deluding herself with a fantasy, and not only is Starman not her father, but her actual father is a sleazebag. Though it's the climax of a derided subplot, it's such a heartbreaking story that it more than makes up for the weak setup.
So far, Johnny Thunder has only appeared in a couple of brief flashbacks, but his snappy suit, feelings of insecurity, friendship with Pat, and status as a wielder of the genie Thunderbolt make his cameo a pretty well-received one.
Season 2 ends with the legendary Keith David as the voice of the fan-favorite Mr. Bones, leaving fans clamoring for more.
Jay Garrick only appears properly in one episode, but he left a great impact by virtue of being played byJohn Wesley Shipp, as well as being The Heart of the original JSA. Rather appropriately, the series ends with Jay making a surprise appearance to call The Shade for assistance.
Portmanteau Couple Name: Hournite for Rick/Beth (Hourman/Doctor Mid-Nite) and Camney for Cameron/Courtney.
For those who complained that Cameron got only a little Ship Tease with Courtney in the first season, the second has several more scenes of them spending time together and awkwardly flirting, while the third also shows him gaining more Character Development and chemistry with Courtney.
For comic fans who loathed the In Name Only treatment of the character on The Flash (2014), The Shade getting a much more faithful and very nuanced adaptation was well received.
The Truer to the Text nature of the show in general, compared to the rest of CW's DC Comics programming, which have long been criticised for They Changed It, Now It Sucks! issues. Though Stargirl isn't without its changes and deviations, it's been much warmer received for feeling more like the comics, with less reliance on tropes that the CW is infamous for (IE, Romantic Plot Tumor, Arc Fatigue, Monster of the Week, Angst Aversion, Too Bleak, Stopped Caring, Unintentionally Unsympathetic, etc) and more focus on capturing the tone and spirit of the original comic (even down to the costume design) while still being its own thing. Since the showrunner is also the creator of Courtney Whitmore and also has a history of writing the connected characters, he has more familiarity with the material being adapted (whereas a frequent complaint from fans were how the Arrowverse's showrunners were often ignorant of the comics, sometimes openly, and to the point of Memetic Mutation), and has also been writing the show similar to how he writes his comics.
A cross-medium example, but in the original comics, fans often perceived Mike Dugan as Unintentionally Sympathetic, being that he was treated as a spoiled brat and entitled jerk because he resented that Courtney inherited the Star Spangled-Kid mantle instead of him, and many fans felt he had a point that his dad spent more time hanging out with his stepsister than him. It was intended for him to get Character Development and become the new S.T.R.I.P.E., but since the comic got cancelled and Courtney jumped to the JSA book, Mike got Demoted to Extra and so his character never got to move past that. Here, the show makes efforts to better develop Mike as a character, his resentment of Courtney is played much more sympathetically as Pat is genuinely overlooking Mike, him and Courtney put aside most of their potential animosity early on and become a much closer pair of siblings, and his development into "S.T.R.I.P.E. II" gets developed further.
As a common complaint during the first two seasons (particularly the first) was that Cameron/Courtney was overshadowed by potential Courtney/Yolanda, the third gives Cameron more depth and more meaningful interactions with Courtney, showing just why she would want to date him. Their romance also becomes an increasingly relevant part of the plot, whereas it was almost completely overshadowed during the first, and to a lesser extent the second season.
While they haven't had many interactions in the show, many people are pairing Rick and Beth together due to their relationship in the comics. This goes nicely with the growing Courtney/Yolanda ship, motivated by the pair's great chemistry and how people notice Courtney bringing out Yolanda's fun side again. By the end of the show, Rick/Beth is official.
Similarly, Cameron/Artemis is shipped despite the two not even interacting, largely because the two were Happily Married in the comics and it nicely keeps Cameron out of the way of Courtney/Yolanda.
Ship-to-Ship Combat: One where one of the ships' leads hasn't even appeared. There's a lot of buzz from comic fans wanting Jesse Chambers/Jesse Quick on the show, due to her role in the modern Justice Society, how useful a speedster would be on the team, and due to frustration with the in-name-only version that previously appeared on The Flash (2014) being a major case of They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character on that show. However, since Jesse married Rick Tyler in the comics, there's some conflict with the Hournite shippers (Rick/Beth), and the two are getting heated, especially as there was already a Broken Base around Jesse/Rick due to the Strangled by the Red String nature of it in the comics.
A minor example since it isn't a huge detail, but the scene where Mike plays a Nintendo Switch gets pretty amusing once the camera shows that the console clearly isn't on.
In one notable shot during the season finale's big battle, it's pretty easy to tell that Icicle is being played by Neil Jackson's stunt double, as the camera gets close enough to show his face.
Tainted by the Preview: The announcement that Season 2 would be exclusively broadcast on the CW made many fans fear it would lose the qualities that drew them to the series, particularly that the writing would begin to resemble the general Arrowverse formula or that the special effects would drop in quality due to a lower budget. Many also dreaded the show would be placed under the Arrowverse umbrella by the CW (similar to Supergirl when it had its Channel Hop), involving such things as being forced into crossovers rather than remain in its own growing universe, or Stargirl never getting to have (hopefully) Truer to the Text depictions of certain Justice Society-related characters who had previously appeared in the Arrowverse in less-than-accurate manner (such as Mr. Terrific, Obsidian, Jesse Quick, and others). Calming at least some fears, it's been stated that Geoff Johns is staying onboard, as many were under the impression that the Channel Hop meant taking the show away from him. Additionally, it was stated on Twitter that while the second season will be cheaper to produce, it will not dip in quality thanks to creative choices.
They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Downplayed, but the alterations to the JSA's powers and their legacies has caused some minor complaints from JSA fans, primarily because the show is otherwise so much Truer to the Text that these deviations stand out.
Ted Grant/Wildcat losing his Resurrective Immortality to instead be a man wearing a Black Panther-inspired Clothes Make the Superman suit, though it doesn't factor into much other than exposition, annoyed some fans who were hoping his Nine Lives could be used to bring him back in the future.
Rick's hourglass being the source of his Hour of Power rather than Miraclo isn't really an issue for most, as Miraclo is a very poorly-aged explanation for his strength ('Want superpowers? Take drugs!'); however, the hourglass is the source of his future-sight power, and some are disappointed that this side of his powerset has been overlooked to instead market him as The Big Guy. The fact as well is that he's also became closer to Damage in terms of backstory and personality has annoyed some who liked his lighter personality and backstory from the comics (though he's since become much kinder and gentler).
In the third episode, Joey is a decently developed character with nice interactions with Courtney and her friends, in addition to being the son of one of the villains. Any potential this had is lost when he is quickly killed off for little more than Cerebus Syndrome when the death of his father in that same episode could have given him the motivation to get more involved in looking into it and possibly joining the heroes.
William Zarick/The Wizard. A classic supervillain from the Golden Age of Comics and a member of the Injustice Society with the ability to perform real magic, he is killed by the Icicle in the third episode without ever getting the chance to go up against Stargirl and S.T.R.I.P.E., wear his costume in the present day or even use his magical powers onscreen aside from one brief instance in the opening (though it's possible that that's why he had to die). He was also a Parental Substitute for Cam in the comics, making it sad that Cam's father is the one to kill him.
The deaths of the Justice Society of America in the opening create this. Though killing Sylvester Pemberton is somewhat required for Courtney's story, the others aren't, especially Jay Garrick, Ted Grant, and Alan Scott, especially since Jay doesn't have his legacy being continued in the show while Ted was a mentor and father figure to Yolanda, who here is Unrelated in the Adaptation. Jay does show up hale and hearty at the very end of the show, however.
While the style and tone of his departure from the show received some praise if nothing else, the timing of Henry being killed could have been better given how subsequent episodes could have had him spend more time dealing with the knowledge that his father killed his mother, use his telepathic powers to the heroes, help Courtney through her discovery that Starman isn't her father and they aren't cousins and meet his uncle once it turns out Starman is still alive.
Isaac Bowin was already rather underutilized, having had just a few short scenes in all of Season 1. He starts getting more attention in Season 2 when Cindy recruits him, and as he becomes the new Fiddler, he displays a unique battle style that his mother lacked. However, he is killed by Eclipso after only his first outing as the new Fiddler, rendering him unable to realize his full potential. Isaac was also in the dark about his mother and father's past with the latter's status never being confirmed to the audience, leaving his legacy relatively unexplored in the show. Isaac also dies before his mother's killers (and his teammate Artemis's parents) get out of prison and move back into town, robbing him of any tension-filled interactions with them.
Jenny Williams is completley absent from season 3, despite how her estranged former friend Cindy's Heel–Face Turn and her younger brother's involvement with the JSA both had the potential to suck her back into the plot and let her grow as a character.
Given how rarely used Atom Smasher, Jesse Chambers, Cyclone, and Citizen Steel are in DC media and how closely tied to Courtney they are in the comics, it can be disappointing that they never show up to join Courtney's JSA when, at the very least, they could have been name-dropped in the Distant Epilogue.
Mary Kramer being Demoted to Extra can be disappointing given her comic role as Courtney's closest non-hero friend having some interesting moments and how the show could have utilized her Aborted Arc of being a potential Legacy Character to Merry Pemberton.
Pat's relationship with Merri Pemberton is rarely if ever discussed, even though he worked for her parents when she was younger and worked alongside her brother when both Merri and Sylvester were superheroes, so he obviously must have known her.
Given that Rick has an interest in fixing classic cars and begins Season 1 as a known delinquent with a terrible home life and an anger management problem, it's odd that Pat never thinks of offering him a part-time job at the Pit Stop to keep him out of trouble.
The "Infinity Inc." two-parter sets up the existence of the eponymous Super Team and their traditional enemies, Helix, but nothing ever came of it. Since Geoff Johns was known to have at least a five-season plan for the show, it's possible he meant for this development to pay off in a later season that never materialized.
When the show was still in development, many expected the "new JSA" that Courtney was founding to be include her contemporaries from the comics; Cyclone, Damage, Jakeem Thunder, etc. Almost nobody expected them to use Rick Tyler, Beth Chapel, or Yolanda Montez; the former at least has a history with Courtney as a teammate, but Beth and Yolanda were both long dead before Courtney was created.
Shining Knight definitely caught people by surprise because of the character's relative obscurity; even people who read Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. largely expected him to be Adapted Out as their role in the backstory was given to Rex Tyler, and most believed the Seven Soldiers of Victory's role in the backstory would be completely replaced by the Justice Society of America.
Likewise, after it became known the Seven Soldiers of Victory were going to be established, most didn't expect their membership to include Green Arrow and Speedy, due to Arrow having only just ended shortly before the show started and the fact the characters were previously Adapted Out of the team when the universe was rebooted for Crisis on Infinite Earths (in Post-Crisis, Alias the Spider took their role as the team's archer hero). It was assumed that Stargirl would avoid a hero that important to the Arrowverse, even if their only appearance is a grainy photo.
Though she doesn't appear, "Brainwave Jr" establishes that Henry's late mother was Merri, Girl of a Thousand Gimmicks, a particularly goofy Golden Age character. Though there's some solid justification as Merri is Merri Pemberton, Starman/Sylvester Pemberton's sister, and ergo gives a familial link between Henry and the Dugan-Whitmores, it's still surprising to see her even involved.
It's probably fair to say that no one expected to see Sylvester Pemberton show up alive and healthy at the end of Season 1.
Who would have ever expected a live-action version of Mister Bones, voiced by Keith David no less?
Season 3's "The Monsters" features the live-action debut of DC's first supervillain, the Ultra-Humanite.
The show's effects have been rightfully praised as damn near movie quality. Things like the Cosmic Staff, the S.T.R.I.P.E. suit, or Icicle's frozen skin could easily have been the stuff of critical derision, but the show pulls them off with style. Geoff Johns had previously worked on the DCEU movies, and apparently took great care to bring his experience of working with movie-quality effects to this show.
The fight sequences are often considered to be one of the show's biggest highlights, particularly due to the impressive Wire Fu paired with the smooth and seamless choreography.
Courtney grew up with a Disappeared Dad, before she's forced to move to a new town away from her only friend when her mom remarries. In this new town, she's immediately labelled a loser at school, struggling to make any friends, but after she stumbles into a superhero legacy, she convinces herself she's Starman's daughter. This, however, earns her the wrath of the Injustice Society, leading to her being hunted and thrashed by them repeatedly. Because of this, she ends up witnessing the death of a classmate, one who was of the very few who had been nice to her, gets beaten within an inch of her life when her over-confidence gets her in trouble, and then witnesses the death of someone whom she believed was her cousin. Then she finds out she's not Starman's daughter at all, and she's just been deluding herself with this fantasy, and she now blames herself for both Joey and Henry's death. By the time of the two-part Season 1 finale, Courtney really needs a hug.
Yolanda pretty much had her life ruined by Cindy and Henry Jr., to the extent that she is an outcast at school and her own parents are ashamed of her. Even months after the event when she pleads for them to forgive her and let her move on, they refuse and continue to shun and mistreat her. The worst part is she largely blames herself for the humiliation because everyone else has blamed her, with Courtney being the first/only person to not blame her and treat her with any open kindness. After Henry dies, it very clearly hits her hard.
Rick's parents were murdered by the Injustice Society and he was left to be raised by his incredibly abusive uncle Matt, who blames Rick for holding him back from being a "Silicon Valley billionaire." He's spent his childhood being financially, verbally, and physically abused by Matt, and shunned by the town because he has a reputation for being a delinquent. He's full of so much anger he feels like he's poisoning himself and doesn't know how to handle it.
Beth is a friendless bookworm who puts up a cheery front, but even her own parents find her annoying and try to distance themselves from her. Beth remains nothing but nice to anyone who'll interact with her, but its very apparent her No Social Skills means she's never had any friends, and the first person to ever treat her kindly is the A.I. duplicate of a dead man (about the equivalent of someone's best friend being Siri or Alexa).
Bobbie, Cindy's stepmother, who lives terrified of both her husband (if he even is that) Dragon King, and her stepdaughter Cindy, who is intensely mean-spirited towards her. Even though she's a drone like all of Dragon King's servants, she's clearly aware enough to be scared of both Dragon King and Cindy, and it's made especially sadder in that she clearly cares for Cindy and shows it, but Cindy couldn't care less and instead is abusive towards Bobbie. When Pat and Beth end up inside her house to investigate, Bobbie is very happy to have visitors and even makes a pass at Pat, showcasing that, drone or not, Bobbie has feelings and is clearly starved for affection and for attention that isn't abusive.
Justin the Janitor, or rather, Sir Justin, the Shining Knight. Once upon a time, he was a trusted member of King Arthur's court, before he ended up in the present, where he lead the Seven Soldiers of Victory. However, Dragon King captured him, subjected him to horrible torture and Mind Rape that left him utterly fractured. Now, due to his odd behaviour and troubled memory, the people in town seems to treat him with disdain, as he stumbles around half-remembering who he is, and suffering painful headaches whenever he comes close.
Charles McNider, by virtue of being an unfailingly sweet Nice Guy who nonetheless has suffered greatly. His young daughter was targeted and killed by Eclipso, something that devastated him and his wife and led to an incident that broke the JSA's spirit. He was subsequently targeted alongside his teammates, most of whom were murdered before his very eyes, before he was dragged into the Shadowlands by the Shade in a failed attempt to spare him. The Shade was unable to find him after the fact, and he is only able to escape more than a decade after, during which he's missed much of his second child's early childhood as a result. He wouldn't let this harm his spirit, though.
Sylvester Pemberton, aka Starman. Or at least, the real one. On top of losing his sister and his teammates to the ISA, he's brought back to life against his will by the Ultra Humanite, the Dragon King, and Icicle to stick the former's brain inside of Sylvester's body, allowing him to act as Jordan's mouthpiece while he turns the JSA against each other and eventually builds up a big enough of a reputation to become President of the United States. All of this while Sylvester's real brain is stuck inside a jar, forced to hear his final words begging to know what happened to Pat play back over and over again for nine months. The final scenes do indicate the JSA was able to rescue him and restore him to his old self, but God knows how he took the whole thing.
Eclipso's costume and design has been somewhat mixed in terms of reception; though it's an impressive example of practical effects, the actual look borders on being too edgy to the point of coming off as Narm, not to mention its a lot more layered and bulky than the character is known for. It doesn't help that it seems to restrain his movement, making the bits where he suddenly sprints and climbs around in an animalistic manner veryConspicuous CG.
Jay Garrick's costume when he actually appears in-person, though it can only partially be blamed on the show. They reuse the costume John Wesley Shipp wore to play the character in The Flash (2014), despite it being unclear if this is meant to be the same character or not, which itself is a case of this in that show itself. It stands out mostly because Stargirl and The Flash have very different costume aesthetics (Stargirl dressing the characters primarily in comic-accurate fabric tights, whereas The Flash tended towards leather jackets and pants suits). This is despite every photo or image of Jay before this showed him wearing his comic-accurate costume, implying that they have that costume on-hand and yet chose not to use it, even though it makes Jay look rather odd compared to the rest of the JSA and particularly impractical for his powers (which was a big reason why the Hell-Bent for Leather aspect of the CW Flash suits were so derided in the first place).
" by The Killers, an Awesome Ego song that both makes him sound awesome while also encapsulating his delusions that he's the hero.