It makes for a welcome addition to the growing collection of DC shows on television.
It seems hard to believe, given the legacy of Smallville, that we haven’t had a live-action superhero series based on a teen in a long time. Enter, DC’s Stargirl, which premieres, quite unusually, on the streaming service DC Universe on May 18, and then on the CW on May 19. Sure we’ve had teenagers featured in some major roles, like in Titans or Black Lightning, but in Stargirl, Courtney Whitmore (Brec Bassinger) is the title character, and she brings all the optimism and idealism of someone young with her whole life ahead of her with her. It shines bright and makes for a welcome addition to the growing collection of DC shows on television.
The show, created by Geoff Johns and Greg Berlanti, is based on the comics character also created by Johns. The show is uniquely personal for Johns given that the character is inspired by his sister Courtney, who died in the 1996 TWA flight 800 crash. In addition to being an executive producer on the show, Johns also wrote the first two episodes.
The series begins when Courtney’s mom, Barbara (Amy Smart), her new step-dad, Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson), and step brother, Mike (Trae Romano), all move to a small town in Nebraska. When Courtney discovers the Cosmic Staff, a relic of the long-dead superhero Starman, in Pat’s stuff and the staff responds to her, she resolves to become a hero of her own making.
