Stargirl Season 1 Episode 11 “Shining Knight”
Director: Jennifer Phang
Starring: Brec Bassinger, Yvette Monreal, Anjelika Washington, Cameron Gellman, Trae Romano, Amy Smart, Luke Wilson, Neil Jackson, Neil Hopkins, Joy Osmanski
Rating: TV-PG
Runtime: 45 minutes
Spoilers follow:
Wow. It was always clear that whenever Courtney inevitably discovered that Starman was not her father, it would be a devastating emotional blow. But I didn’t expect it to hit quite this hard. “Shining Knight” is easily the best, most emotionally powerful episode of the series so far thanks to its focus on Courtney’s struggle to reconcile her sense of self and worth with the hard truth she’s so firmly been denying. It’s a storytelling triumph full of excellent production, writing, and especially acting choices and it sets an extremely high bar for the show as it moves into the end of its first season and beyond.
The episode is a fairly faithful adaptation of Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #14. Just as in the comic, Sam Kurtis, Courtney’s birth father, shows up, briefly pretends to want to get to know Courtney, and then leaves after having conned her into giving him the locket with a picture of him she cherishes so he can sell it. While this is devastating to Courtney it does help her realize that Pat is the father she deserves and the experience brings the two of them and Barbara closer together, helping to begin healing the rifts that Courtney and Pat’s superhero activities have brought into the family. The writing is strong but the main actors go above and beyond and each brings a ton of depth to their parts. Geoff Stults is a solid choice for Sam. He’s likable enough in his early scenes that you start to hope he might turn out to be an OK guy but he also gives off an untrustworthy vibe that makes the reveal that he’s a scumbag feel inevitable and all the more upsetting. Amy Smart does a lot with a little as she often does. Barbara clearly feels very guilty for contacting Sam, even if her motives for doing so were understandable. Smart’s eyes say a lot about both how sad she is to see Courtney go through such a rough experience and how proud she is that she comes out the other side stronger. But, of course, it’s Brec Bassinger who has to run through a real emotional gauntlet and she does so with impressive skill. Stargirl‘s tendency to cast mostly actors who actually look like high schoolers, even if they are really a bit older, pays off in a big way here. Bassinger maybe a couple of years older than Courtney in real life but she’s always made for a believable teenager and her body language in the Sam Kurtis sequences make her seem even younger, and, therefore, more vulnerable. Look at how she takes a half step back when Sam first walks toward her. Bassinger wordlessly conveys that this isn’t the brash but capable young woman who has been leading a new generation of superheroes. At this moment she regresses to a scared little girl who doesn’t know how to act when faced with the man who abandoned her and her hunched, defensive posture remains throughout much of the episode.
“Shining Knight” isn’t all about the central family reunion, even though I would have been more than satisfied if it was. As the title implies the episode also finally gets everything about Janitor Justin, or Sir Justin as I should maybe call him, out in the open. He’s the Shining Knight, a warrior from medieval times and the former leader of the Seven Soldiers of Victory. This is explained by Justin and Pat, who he goes to for help before a delusion causes him to attack Pat and the JSA kids when he sees them as Dragon King and his minions. Justin came to Blue Valley hunting the villain but Dragon King and the ISA did something to his mind. Mark Ashworth gives a solid performance as Justin and the casual way the show introduces his outlandish history is an example of how comic adaptations can successfully use the wildest elements of their source material if they embrace the right tone but ultimately viewers will probably be antsy during these scenes, hoping to get back to the excellent main Courtney story.
As close as the episode sticks to the specific issue it’s based on it also benefits from one of the ideas exclusive to the show. Courtney’s belief that Starman was her father was created for Stargirl the TV series and it adds a lot to the already emotional Sam Kurtis storyline. Courtney believed that being Stargirl was her birthright and discovering this isn’t the case absolutely shatters her, and her pain is only exacerbated when the Cosmic Staff stops working for her. The direction on Stargirl isn’t usually very noticeable outside of the action scenes but Jennifer Phang does an excellent job in this episode of using camera movement to add to the characters’ emotional development. There’s an utterly heartbreaking shot when Courtney tells her friends that she’s decided not to be Stargirl anymore in light of the revelation about her father. She elaborates on how she feels foolish for trying to be a hero and that her attempts to do so got Henry and Joey killed (which, of course, isn’t true), and as she says all this the camera gradually zooms in from a long shot of the kids’ lunch table to a close-up of just Courtney. The increase in Courtney’s visual isolation reflects how alone and confused she’s feeling. Likewise when Courtney runs into Pat’s arms crying the camera pans from the two of them to Barbara quietly standing on the staircase watching. It’s an important moment, as this whole experience is likely going to help mend Pat and Barbara’s relationship and the elegant movement helps highlight when Barbara recognizes that Pat is the right father for her daughter. And the long scene in which the staff finally works for Courtney again when she has Pat and Barbara standing behind her, with its 360 camera rotation, could’ve easily come across as a bit corny but Phang handles it perfectly. The episode’s main thematic points, that Courtney is Stargirl no matter her background and Pat is her father, are simple but they’re made so effectively and emotionally that it makes the episode a delightful watch.
It’s a good thing Courtney has accepted who she is because Blue Valley and her loved ones desperately need Stargirl to protect them. The episode’s other sub-plot sees Brainwave, now with his memories fully restored, telling Jordan who Stargirl is. Shaken, Jordan snoops through Barbara’s things at work and finds her research on Starman. When Brainwave heads out to kill Courtney, Pat, and Barbara, Jordan, the last shred of decency in him crushed, reminds him to get rid of Mike as well to avoid leaving any loose ends. While a big part of what made this episode so special was how it pretty much excluded any action or spectacle I look forward to seeing Stargirl, Stripe, and company in the fight of their lives.
Notes:
- The one aspect of the main family story that didn’t totally work for me was Pat punching Sam. It was very satisfying to see, of course, but given that the episode’s argument is that Pat is a much better father than Sam it felt weird to include a very glorified moment of the former being violent. It’s a fine TV moment but takes away from the realism of the scenario as in real life a confrontation like that would likely get very ugly.
- Speaking of Pat’s flaws, he’s really going to have to work hard to make up for his neglect of Mike which is exacerbated when he yells at Mike while he’s just trying to figure out what’s going on with Courtney.
- Noting that Barbara deleted her online history was a nice touch but having her do her Starman research on her work computer at all is still a pretty obvious means of confirming to Jordan that she knows about him.
