tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post7377968341264806728..comments2024-03-27T19:04:14.544-05:00Comments on The Absorbascon: Stargirl, Season Two: I Hate Stargirl LessScipiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16217376618860561999noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post-25617061805869455882021-09-10T11:08:21.664-05:002021-09-10T11:08:21.664-05:00I used to enjoy "Supergirl" immensely; n...I used to enjoy "Supergirl" immensely; now it doesn't know how to make me care about what's going on. Supergirl sometimes inspires hope, and that much is right; but J'onn has lost all connection with his comic book version (wise pater familias tinged with loss) and mostly the show is a bunch of stuff happening that I find hard to get invested in.<br /><br />Which is more or less where I was with "Stargirl" season 1, with the added obstacles that 1) we were to believe that plucky teenagers could prevail against career villains primarily through teenage pluck and 2) it was very much a Mary-Sue-athon. (It's easy to call any protagonist you don't like a "Mary Sue", but I would argue that the stories were in service to showing us how wonderful Courtney was rather than Courtney being written to tell a story, which is about as clear a definition as you'll get.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post-51124580741050813042021-09-10T09:12:59.634-05:002021-09-10T09:12:59.634-05:00"DeLacy is a very close second"; their a..."DeLacy is a very close second"; their attempts to make her character sympathetic with a sad backstory backfire for me. Basically, she's just choosing to be terrible person at every opportunity, for no apparent reason, when her every experience should direct her differently. <br />Scipiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12112155718721908876noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post-43755577390087753172021-09-10T01:10:08.625-05:002021-09-10T01:10:08.625-05:00This season is marginally better than the first, b...This season is marginally better than the first, but that's a bar so low a snake in a hat couldn't get under it.<br /><br />Because of her little-girl voice and characterization, Bassigner will always be the weak link on this show, though DeLacy is a very close second. I'm sorry; I'm not 14 and don't see a mean girl as a plausible villain. But then, that's always been the problem with the show; Inifinty Inc. was full of kids and teens, but they were smart and capable, rather than a bunch of troubled teens. This bunch is just plain dumb, because the Arrowverse demands that its main characters have IQs hovering around room temperature and never learn from their mistakes.<br /><br />The only real saving graces to the show are its deep cuts to JSA and DC history, Cake as The Shade (truly a delight), and Hopkins and Osmanski as The Sportsmaster and The Tigress. The whole parenting thing is a nice change of pace.<br /><br />As bad as Stargirl is, though, it's like The Wire compared to the train wreck that Supergirl has become. That show can't end too quickly.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14383234713692495686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post-23428201010408349042021-09-09T17:11:01.656-05:002021-09-09T17:11:01.656-05:00The Mike/Yolanda distinction reminds me of how, ov...The Mike/Yolanda distinction reminds me of how, over on <b>Flash</b>, it was never innately a problem when someone gained powers--<i>including</i> when someone like Wally was given the powers he wished for by the season's villain--until Caitlin got powers. Then, it was a source of fear and shame, until her "power" turned out to just be another character...or whatever the heck that situation is supposed to be. I feel like part of it also stems from the fact that Monreal is basically playing half her age, and "I'm sure my debilitating PTSD will get better on its own, so I'm not even going to mention it" seems silly from a woman her age.<br /><br />To be (mildly) fair to the dramedy aspects, though, my mother pulled the "surprise vacation" thing on my sister and me, <i>twice</i>, when I was around that age. Granted, that happened in a different century, a weird time when DC was pushing Rick Tyler, Beth Chapel, and Yolanda Montez as the new generation of heroes, as other titles were working out the aftermath of <b>Crisis on Infinite Earths</b>, and...huh, déjà vu. Anyway, Courtney and Mike took it better than I did.<br /><br />But yeah, in our world, searching for Patrick Dugans that are around Luke Wilson's age in the United States only turns up about a dozen addresses, which wouldn't be hard to check. On the other hand, Pat basically moved three or four months ago in the show's timeline, so it could take time for the profiles to update, especially if the house is in Barbara's name.<br /><br />And yes, the Crocks were a highlight of the show so far. After last season, I didn't expect to enjoy their episode at all. To give them all space to grow, I still wish that the previous season's plot wasn't so heavy-handed, though, with the "sure, they're doing good things, but people might get hurt when they do it--plus the word Injustice is in their name--so we need to stop them violently. Helping them do it without hurting people, I think we can agree, is entirely off the table, even though we allegedly have the same goals..." Hopefully, Eclipso won't turn out to be the "evil environmentalist" trope who just hates light pollution.John Chttps://john.colagioia.net/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11737441.post-27581193893556496352021-09-09T14:44:34.073-05:002021-09-09T14:44:34.073-05:00I'm a sucker for anything Justice Society (loo...I'm a sucker for anything Justice Society (looks over at the set of JSA action figures next to my desk) so I'm all in for Stargirl. Yes, there are too many CW moments (like the family vacation, or lying to each other, or heck, Courtney, just kiss the boy before you run off to your JSA alert -- you'll get there 30 seconds later). At this point I treat them like I treat commercials and completely ignore them. <br /><br />The Shade is a delight. The show is 200% better any time he's on the screen. <br /><br />I liked the emphasis on the Thunderbolt being a genie and taking things literally. It's a good check on his omnipotence if his master has to stop and think before wishing. I still prefer "say you" to "so cool" though. <br /><br />I like the sentient Cosmic Rod. I like the sentient Midnight goggles. I love the character of Hourman (I always like heroes with specific limitations who have to THINK before acting -- Ultra Boy falls into this category for me too), but I'm not sold on this version yet. Wildcat is completely meh. The guilt business is getting old fast. <br /><br />But I'm still watching. Bryan Lhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04358102127982954750noreply@blogger.com