Stargirl (TV Series)

This article is about the DC Universe and CW series. You may be looking for the episode or the heroine.

Stargirl is a television series based on the DC Comics character Stargirl. It made its digital debut on DC Universe on May 18, 2020, with a 13-episode first season.^[1] Stargirl's first season aired on both DC Universe and The CW, with its CW debut on May 19, 2020. Every episode was available to stream on The CW's free digital platforms, following its broadcast on The CW Network.

On July 6, 2020, Stargirl was renewed for Season 2 with all thirteen episodes airing exclusively on The CW, since the collapse of DC Universe. The second season began airing on August 10, 2021.

On May 3, 2021, Stargirl was renewed for Season 3 with all thirteen episodes airing exclusively on The CW. The season began airing August 31, 2022.

On October 31, 2022, The CW announced its decision not to renew Stargirl for any future seasons.

Synopsis[]

Courtney Whitmore (aka Stargirl) is smart, athletic and above all else, kind. This high school teenager’s seemingly perfect life hits a major speed bump when her mother gets married and her new family moves from Los Angeles, California, to Blue Valley, Nebraska. Struggling to adapt to a new school, make new friends and deal with a new step-family, Courtney discovers her step-father has a secret; he used to be the sidekick to a superhero. ‘Borrowing’ the long-lost hero’s cosmic staff, Courtney becomes the unlikely inspiration for an entirely new generation of superheroes.^[2]

Cast[]

Seasons[]

Season 1[]

Main article: Season 1 Episodes

Main article: Ratings

Stargirl Season 1 featured thirteen consecutive episodes. It premiered on May 18 on DC Universe, with "Stargirl", and aired its finale on August 10, 2020, with "Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. Part Two". The first season was a hit for The CW, with the Pilot episode garnering the most viewed episode in years. The series had an initial rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Season 2[]

Main article: Season 2 Episodes

Season 2 of Stargirl was given the subtitle, Stargirl: Summer School, and premiered on Tuesday, August 10th, 2021 with "Summer School: Chapter One" and aired its finale on November 2nd, 2021, with "Summer School: Chapter Thirteen". It aired exclusively on The CW and featured thirteen episodes.

Season 3[]

Main article: Season 3 Episodes

Season 3 was given the subtitle, Stargirl: Frenemies, and premiered on Wednesday, August 31st, 2022 with "Chapter One: The Murder" and aired its finale on December 7th, 2022, with "Chapter Thirteen: The Reckoning". It aired exclusively on The CW and featured thirteen episodes.

Infinity Inc Spin-Off[]

Season 3 featured a two-part episode titled "Chapter Seven: Infinity Inc. Part One" and "Chapter Eight: Infinity Inc. Part Two". These episodes focused almost exclusively on Mister Bones, Jennie-Lynn Hayden, Todd Rice, and The Shade. While fans speculated about the series being a backdoor spin-off, nothing was officially stated until after the series ended. During an Instagram live after the series finale, Shawn McBee confirmed the theory to a Stargirl Wiki admin.

Geoff Johns later went into depth about the spin-off in his post-finale interview with TVLine. Geoff explained that the series would have included the nieces, nephews, sons, and daughters of the Golden Age JSA who had power they hadn't unlocked yet. It would have followed Jennie's JSA - a group of characters with powers they inherited - instead of Courtney's where "people who became superheroes through artifacts and not necessarily a bloodline." The Shade would have served as a mentor to the team and had a redemption arc through creating a superhero team.^[3] Because The CW canceled DC's Stargirl it also passed on the spin-off.

Awards and Nominations[]

Year	Award	Category	Recipients and nominees	Outcome
2021	Saturn Awards	Best Superhero Adaptation Television Series	Stargirl	Nominated
		Best Supporting Actor on a Television Series	Luke Wilson	Nominated
		Best Performance by a Younger Actor on a Television Series	Brec Bassinger	Won
2022	Saturn Awards	Best Fantasy TV Series Network/Cable	Stargirl	Nominated
2022	Saturn Awards	Best Performance by a Younger Actor	Brec Bassinger	Won
2023	Saturn Awards	Best Superhero Television Series	Stargirl	Nominated
2023	Saturn Awards	Best Younger Performance in a Television Series	Brec Bassinger	Nominated^[4]

Merchandise[]

DC's Stargirl: The Complete First Season - Released on September 29, 2020, it contains all 13 episodes from Season 1 in both Blu-Ray and DVD formats.
DC's Stargirl: Season 1 Original Television Score - Released August 21st, 2020, it contains all songs written by composer Pinar Toprak from Season 1.
DC's Stargirl: The Complete Second Season - Released on February 8, 2022, on Blu-Ray and DVD. It contains all thirteen episodes from the second season of Stargirl. It included a gag reel and special featurette.
DC's Stargirl: Season 2 Original Television Soundtrack - Released on November 2, 2021. It contains all songs written by composer Pinar Toprak from Season 2.
LEGO Stargirl Figurines - As part of the DC FanDome merchandise release, a Stargirl Lego figure was made and is sold exclusively as part of two sets. The first is the DC Super Heroes Series Complete Box which has 60 mini-figures within and at least one complete set of the 16 heroes. The second is the DC Super Heroes Series, which includes the 16 heroes from the set which Stargirl is part of. She is featured in an ad alongside Superman as the 'Flying to the scene' heroes. Both sets were retired after their initial release.
Road Trip - The fourth issue in The CW's six-issue approved comic series following the individual stories of the heroes from their 2021 television slate. The stories build to one giant final issue where all of the "Arrowverse" characters unite to face one epic foe. Road Trip is loosely based on the appearances of DC Stargirl's cast, and seemingly takes place after the events of Season 2. The comic is written by DC's Stargirl writers James Dale Robinson and Paula Sevenbergen and is available for purchase as of May 17, 2022.^[5] It was confirmed that comic is canon in the season 3 premiere.

Notes and Trivia[]

Stargirl is the only DC Universe series to also air on The CW.
- Because of this, the first seasons budget is noticeably bigger than other superhero shows on The CW.^[6]
- This budget was slightly altered for the second season, though Max picked up part of the budget in a joint agreement with The CW.
Stargirl's suit is designed by costume designer Laura Jean Shannon, who also designed the costumes for DC Universe's Titans and Doom Patrol, as well as, Black Lightning.
Episodes aired on DC Universe were longer than episodes aired on The CW, due to editing cuts for commercial breaks.
The prop and costume department, among others, were able to build a real fifteen-foot armored robot for Pat Dugan's alter-ego, S.T.R.I.P.E. The armor is so realistic and sturdy, that visitors can climb on the robot and sit inside the pilot controls with the doors either open or shut. The robot is used for still shots, while the scenes of the robot moving are added in with CGI.^[7]
On January 14, 2020, Courtney and the Modern Age Justice Society of America made a brief cameo during The CW's Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover event.
- During the crossover, it was confirmed Stargirl resides on Earth-2 post-crisis, in the new multiverse.
- On March 30, 2020, Arrowverse boss Marc Guggenheim who explained that the DC Universe/"Earths" "was created with the "expectation that they never have to participate in a crossover on The CW". Furthermore, there would be "creative assurances” that they should secure before appearing in large crossover events in the Arrowverse. Accordingly, the cameo appearances of the DC Universe characters in the Crisis crossover [is] a one-time thing."^[8]
On January 28, 2020, the season episode titles and screenwriters were revealed. However, they were not listed in the order of airing.
On March 25, 2020, The CW began marketing Stargirl as "DC's Stargirl".
On March 26, 2020, DC Universe and The CW moved the official air date of Season 1 from May 11-12, 2020, to May 18-19, 2020.^[9]
On June 30, 2020, DC Universe released an official Stargirl merchandise store. The merchandise included mugs, t-shirts, posters, and puzzles. It can all be purchased from the DC Universe shop, located at this link.
On September 20, 2022, Brec Bassinger seemingly confirmed rumors of her appearing in the HBO Max series Titans as Courtney Whitmore/Stargirl.^[10]
- The crossover takes place in Season 4 episode seven of Titans, directed by Eric Dean Seaton.^[11]^[12]
- Filming for the episode began on September 13, 2022, and wrapped on approximately September 22, 2022.^[12]
- Director Eric Dean Seaton teased the episode by describing it as, "a mind trip ride of action, heart, growth, love, loss, pain and tears", further teasing the universe by saying, "I have so many photos of this universe (hint) that I will share when I’m allowed". ^[13]
- In an interview with Screenrant, Titans showrunner Greg Walker spoke about the potential crossover, which might happen in episode 7, "Dude, Where's My Gar?". Greg left Toronto and Geoff Johns came up and then, "crazy stuff started happening". At the time of the interview, Greg hadn't seen the episode, but thought they'd be lucky to have Stargirl on their show. He added there is, "secret rogue units of Titans working without my knowledge".^[14]
Laura Jean Shannon was the specialty costume designer for Stargirl while Emily Gunshor was the costume designer for Season 1.
During StarFury Conventions on May 6, 2023, Brec Bassinger revealed that after the completion of the series, all of the supersuits were burned to protect the integrity of the series and to prevent them from being sold to a third party.