All eyes are onSuperman, the true beginning of the shared cinematic universe that James Gunn is building, called the DCU. WhileCreature Commandosdebuted first, and 2021’sThe Suicide Squadand thePeacemakerseries have been folded into the DCU,Supermanis the official starting point in what James Gunn callsChapter 1 - Gods and Monsters. The trailers forSupermandrop the audience into a world that is familiar with the existence of superpowered individuals, as opposed to other superhero shared universes that tend to start with the emergence of the superhero phenomenon.
Yet the idea of alived-in DC Universeis not new toSuperman.Stargirl, originally created for the DC Universe app before moving over to The CW, dropped the viewers into a world where superheroes already existed with an established history. The series was imbued with an important (and oft-overlooked) element of DC Comics: legacy.
What Is ‘Stargirl?’
Stargirlfollows high school studentCourtney Whitmore (Brec Bassinger)as she and her mother move with her stepdad and stepbrother to a small town in Blue Valley, Nebraska.Courtney discovers that her stepdad, Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson), used to be the sidekick for a superhero, Starman. When Starman’s sentient staff is drawn to Courtney, she begins to suspect that Starman is her long-lost father despite Pat telling her that is not the case. Courtney discovers Starman was part of a superhero team known as the Justice Society of America, which was killed by a team known as the Injustice Society. Now, the Injustice Society members are living in Blue Valley, looking to enact a plan years in the making.
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Courtney takes the old Justice Society gear and recruits her new classmates to take on these deceased heroes' mantle. These include former popular girl turned outcast Yolanda Montez (Yvette Monreal), who becomes Wildcat; social reject but very friendly and supportive Beth Chapel (Anjelika Washington) as Doctor Mid-Nite; and delinquent Rick Tyler (Cameron Gellman), who takes up the mantle of Hourman from his father. Courtney’s stepfather, Pat Dugan, creates a giant mech suit called S.T.R.I.P.E. and acts as a mentor figure to these young kids.
‘Stargirl’ Explores DC’s Rich Legacy of Heroes and Villains
DC Comics has a long, storied history, and with that comes a sense of legacy.The popular versions of Green Lantern and The Flashmost people know about are not the original versions of the characters (Stargirlnotably features the children of the original Alan Scott Green Lantern, while John Wesley Snipes reprises his role as Jay Garrick fromThe Flashto be part of Stargirl’s Justice Society). Yet, often in the live-action feature films of DC Comics,the more popular version of the character is center stage, with the fun alternate history that DC can provide often overlooked and ignored, and at risk of being forgotten over time.
Legacy is an important part of the DC Universe, andStargirlbakes that into the very idea of the series. While theJustice Society of Americahas appeared in shows likeLegends of TomorrowandSmallville, they primarily focus on the Golden Age incarnations of the heroes, with their successors often being overlooked.Stargirlnot only spotlights the original versions of the classic Golden Age Justice Society members, but Courtney Whitmore’s team is primarily composed of characters introduced in the 1980s seriesInfinity Inc.Stargirluses these new successors to dive into the history of their predecessors while also spotlighting an overlooked roster of heroes and fleshing them out to stand tall as DC legends in their own right.
This even extends to the series' villains. In Season 1, various members of the Injustice Society have children of their own. Much of their villainous actions in the series are motivated by what they believe to be the best outcome for their kids. Some don’t want their children to be forced into a life of crime, like Anaya Bowin, who has taken on the mantle of The Fiddler from her husband. Meanwhile, the Dragon King has forged his daughter, Cindy, into a living weapon.Due to complex motivations and a sense of history, the series makes these villains as compelling as some of DC’s bigger names.
‘Stargirl’ Succeeded Where the DCEU Failed
While the film side of DC struggled,Stargirlwas a new entry point into the DC Universe. Stargirl had a lot in common with the MCU’sIron Manin many ways. It took a moderately popular character, but not one of the comic publishers' leading figures. They crafted a character-centric story around them since they knew they couldn’t rely on brand recognition alone. In doing so, they built the foundation for what could be a larger universe. Stargirl introduced plenty of compelling heroes and villains that could theoretically have spun off into their own stories.It did a better job on a television budget telling a Justice Society team story than the feature film divisionbecauseBlack Adam, which opened in theaters in the middle ofStargirl’s final season,completely missed what made the Justice Society uniqueand turned them into a generic X-Men/Justice League/Avengers knock off.
James Gunn’s DCU is already taking a similar page, dropping viewers into an alternate history and taking full advantage of that.Creature Commandosshows thatthis universe is familiar with monstersand metahumans. Gunn’s Superman is also filled with various details that make it a distinct alternate reality, including the cookies Chocos, the fast food chain Big Belly Burger, and various major corporate conglomerates like LuthorCorp, Stagg Industries, and Lord Tech.
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One of the most significant factors that James Gunn’s DCU can learn fromStargirlis embracing the franchise’s rich history by spotlighting lesser-known characters.Stargirldidn’t need Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Joker, Darkseid, or Sinestro to make an exciting universe, because they fleshed out the characters they had.
The DCU will have the big names, but it is nice to see him alsoincluding roles for characters like Metamorpho, Mister Terrific, and Guy Gardner’s Green Lantern.They already centered an entire project on the lesser-known Creature Commandos. LikeStargirl, hopefully, the DCU is filled with characters from across DC’s vast publishing history. Maybe the DCU can even bring new spins on the Justice Society of America,Stargirlintroduced, because there is now a rich legacy to mine in what might be one of the best live-action DC series ever.
