Stargirl 1x04 “Wildcat” Episode Review
Major Spoilers are included in this episode review. Please read with caution.
This episode opened with a flashback scene—three months before the present day—centered around Yolanda Montez (Yvette Monreal). Yolanda had been a background character since the “Pilot”, but Courtney had been standing up for her against the bullies in all the previous episodes since she arrived in Blue Valley.
In this flashback scene, we learned Yolanda used to be a popular girl that fell down the hierarchy when she sent a topless picture to her boyfriend—Henry Jr, son of Brainwave. Then the picture spread around school, causing the students to tease her for three months—so far—and her parents also shunned her for bringing shame to the family. This was heartbreaking to watch. Stargirl utilized flashbacks very well so far.
This gave us the context we needed to understand why Yolanda’s life had been hell before Courtney came along. In the present day, Courtney had just stolen the JSA artifacts in order to find successors. The first person she decided to recruit was Yolanda after another bad run-in with mean girl Cindy (Meg DeLacey).
Courtney followed Yolanda to the school’s gym afterward, where Yolanda broke down with a powerful emotional scene. Courtney acknowledged Yolanda’s strength and courage—having come back to school every day and facing everyone—and Courtney even admitted that she might not have been strong enough to do the same thing.
The friendship between Courtney and Yolanda was pretty cute once it finally got off the ground. They both needed friends, and they had each other now. Courtney revealed she was Stargirl—daughter of Starman—and showed her new friend the Cosmic Staff. It was nice to see Courtney have a friend after three episodes of just hanging out with a step-father she could barely tolerate. This series was both superhero and teen drama.
The special effects on Wildcat’s abilities looked very similar to Black Panther’s CGI effects from the MCU. I also enjoyed the self-aware moment of Courtney and Yolanda using Wikipedia to figure out Wildcat’s powers. That was hilarious. Also, the Cosmic Staff acting way smarter than Courtney—who had no idea what she was doing as a superhero—during the hospital heist was a nice touch.
Speaking of Pat, he was investigating who the other villains could be in town. He had a run-in with Denise Zarick and helped her out before she left town. She warned Pat that this town wasn’t what it seemed, giving him a hint—her son’s magic stuff in the back of the car—that her husband William was The Wizard. A hint Pat didn’t pick up on. By the episode’s end, Pat found her car in a junkyard. The villains have likely captured her… or worse…
This incident also reminded me of a downside regarding this episode. Joey Zarick was forgotten. Everyone at school seemed to have forgotten this kid recently died and moved on too quickly. This part bothered me the most. Joey Zarick deserved better.
Overall, another excellent episode of Stargirl. Icicle also had a brief scene with another Injustice member Dr. Ito / Dragon King. This new villain was officially on board with Project New America, and he insisted on having William’s dead body. What a creep.