Post — Aaron Ngo

Major Spoilers are included in this episode review. Please read with caution.

The third episode of the first season raised the stakes. Appropriately titled “Icicle”, this episode devoted time to Jordan Mahkent (Neil Jackson). The “Prologue” scene—a flashback scene to eight years ago—showed Jordan losing his wife to cancer and promising her that he’ll fulfill their villainous dream—even if it meant destroying anyone who got in the way. It was literally her last words to Icicle. This established why Jordan was being evil in the present day, and why we should feel somewhat sympathetic toward him. The episode also gave us reasons to root against him too based on his ruthless actions.

When Stargirl and STRIPE fought against him later in the episode, their first defeat led to one of Courtney’s classmates—Joey Zarick—being killed. He was the son of William Zarick, a member of the Injustice Society, and the only student who showed Courtney any kindness at school.

This pushed her need to become a superhero more than just being Starman’s daughter. She wanted to keep on fighting so Icicle couldn’t get away with what he did. This devastating loss also cooled Courtney’s hot streak after defeating Brainwave in the second episode. The surprising death wasn’t even Joey Zarick, but his father William—The Wizard—for standing up against Icicle. This was also emotionally devastating.

My heart broke for the only survivor. What will Denise Zarick (Cynthia Evans)—William’s wife and Joey’s mother—do now? Maybe she’ll pick up The Wizard mantle to avenge them. However, Icicle was clearly too powerful to face alone.

As a result of Courtney grieving Joey’s death and wanting justice, Pat showed Courtney the JSA’s former headquarters to convince her that fighting Icicle was impossible on their own. Not even the JSA could defeat him, and they were all killed trying. This actually convinced Courtney to steal all the JSA’s old weapons in order to recruit the next generation of heroes—the next JSA to combat the Injustice Society. Courtney was not the type to give up easily.

Overall, the plot momentum was still going steady. This series cared about its villains as much as the heroes, and the inevitable showdown between Icicle and Stargirl will no doubt be well-earned. There were also scenes that showed Icicle taking a special interest in Barbara—Courtney’s mother—at The American Dream, where they work together. This will definitely lead to problems down the line. Thanks for reading my review, and I appreciate the support.

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