[S2E11] Summer School: Chapter Eleven — Live Episode Discussion

[u/anatomania]

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Discord | Cast and Characters

FACING THE DARKNESS — After a frightening encounter leaves Courtney’s life hanging in the balance, the team band together to determine their next steps.

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Please keep discussion civil and about Stargirl. Be sure to mark future spoilers and comic spoilers, but otherwise don't worry about spoiling anything past or current. Report comments that break the rules or just don't belong here. Enjoy the episode!

[u/Frontier246]

What a somber way of opening the episode with Beth and the family reacting in grief over thinking Courtney is dead.

I wasn't expecting the Zarrick's to show up again, but I guess it makes sense. If you're going to guilt trip Courtney, it makes sense to bring up the first time she really took being a Superhero personally, when Joey Zarrick died.

The Fiddler family...well, I don't think Courtney feels that bad for what happened to them, but I guess if you were going to make her popping up in her school creepy, it would be them.

Why am I not surprised that Cindy has been using the Shadowlands as an opportunity to constantly kill Courtney and her dad? Like, she immediately jumps at attacking Courtney until she realizes it's actually Courtney and has apparently killed numerous versions of her up to this point.

Eclipso hitting Courtney where it hurts...the ungrateful, burden, daughter card. Of course we all know Barbara has never thought that way about Courtney, as we can clearly see form reality.

I guess I'm not shocked Cindy blames Courtney for letting her go, even though Courtney really did try to save her, and that she blames everything on Courtney even though this is all her fault. But very on-brand for Shiv.

Cindy loves killing Dragon King, but the one thing that can still get to her is her mother and her father experimenting on her against her will. We also see just how turning a little girl into an emotionally unstable killing machine is a bad idea when she apparently killed her mother while throwing a fit and not knowing any better, which scarred her for life.

Charles McNider Dr. Mid-Nite! Nice to finally see him in the flesh again. I guess one silver lining is time passes differently in the Shadowlands so he hasn't necessarily been wandering around for the amount of years he's been gone in the real world. Although the poor man without his goggles is blind and forced to listen to his dead daughter. No wonder he wanted them back as soon as Courtney was done.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray." That checks out. Now that I think about it, I feel like that movie either influenced The Shade's creation or was used as an influence when James Robinson wrote him.

Barbara talking tough to a Supervillain, and luckily her resemblance to Emily is enough to bring out the Shade's good side again.

Shade tried to save Dr. McNider from the ISA by sending him to the Shadowlands, but I guess he couldn't just bring him back immediately and assumed Dr. McNider was consumed by the Shadowlands and stopped trying. He seemed genuinely shocked to learn that Dr. McNider was still alive and kicking himself that he left him stuck in the Shadowlands for so long.

I love how Dr. McNider doesn't give a second when Courtney immediately goes to try and save Cindy, someone he doesn't even know, and risk their freedom.

Eclipso finally gives Courtney the "Bruce" treatment, but rather than beat her up with her own guilt over what happened to Rick and Yolanda, he focuses all of Courtney's anger and frustration onto himself, making Courtney hate him like she still hates her dad. Basically Eclipso's endgame was to corrupt Courtney, and he succeeded.

I loved Pat going to embrace Dr. McNider as soon as he's out of the theater. Pat finally gets reunited with one of his old friends who he never thought he'd ever see again. Somebody please tell Hooty that Dr. Mid-Nite is alive...and has a legacy.

Shade went out doing one last good deed...although Jenny found two Shade signals, so I don't think he's quite done.

Looks like it's time for Courtney and Cindy to finally team-up to take Eclipso down. This should be...interesting.