- "Who are you supposed to be, sweetie? The new Star-Spangled Kid?" -Icicle
"It's Stargirl!" -Stargirl Absolute Justice, Part 1
Courtney Whitmore is the teenaged protege of The Star Spangled Kid who became a super-hero known as Stargirl.
She is currently a member of the Teen Titans.
Early life[]
Courtney Whitmore had a normal life as a student at Blue Valley High and with her mom and Step-dad, Pat Dugan. Then, everything changed when she opened Pat's footlocker and discovered his well-guarded secret: Pat Dugan had once been Stripesy, teenage sidekick to the Golden Age hero Star-Spangled Kid.
Originally so she could annoy the overprotective Pat, she made a costume designed after Star-Spangled Kid's and began a career as a superhero. Eventually, Pat introduced her to the other surviving Justice Society members. Courtney became Sylvester's protege, during which she trained with him. As a result of her training, she dropped out of school for roughly three weeks. After his death, Courtney inherited his Cosmic Control Belt and Staff, by stealing them from the police evidence locker.
Season Nine[]
- "So, what do you call your team, anyway?" - Courtney, to Clark, Absolute Justice, Part 2
Courtney learns of Sylvester's death.
Courtney was in the hospital after Sylvester Pemberton died. Clark Kent tried to console her, but she assumed that he just wanted a story after she saw his press pass. Courtney took the Cosmic Staff from evidence and was confronted by Oliver over it. Kent Nelson arrived and used the staff to teleport himself and Courtney away.
Stargirl and Dr. Fate.
Later, she went to see Carter Hall and Kent Nelson. After donning her Stargirl uniform, she tried to draw out Icicle but was intercepted by Green Arrow. However, Icicle still came and the two battled furiously, but Courtney was saved by Green Arrow when Icicle sent ice daggers straight at her. Courtney and Fate convinced Carter to work with Clark Kent and his team of heroes, (Chloe, Oliver and John Jones) and together they were able to stop Icicle.
Stargirl joins the battle.
Stargirl joined Clark and Chloe's team of heroes to battle the Kandorians, along with Hawkman, John Jones, Cyborg and Black Canary. She was distraught after learning of Clark's plan to leave Earth, but decided to support his choice after Clark's speech. She saluted him and then returned to the battle.
Season Ten[]
Courtney at Lois and Clark's engagement party.
Courtney was among the guests who attended the engagement party for Clark and Lois at the Watchtower. Later that night, she came to Oliver's aid along with Carter Hall when Oliver was being attacked by a mob of civilians. The three escaped from the mob when Courtney used the Cosmic Staff to teleport them back to the Watchtower. She was subsequently present when Clark decided to shut down Watchtower.
Stargirl places Hawkman's helmet on his tomb.
She later attended Carter Hall's funeral dressed in her Stargirl costume with the rest of the Justice League where she lead the funeral and placed Hawkman's helmet and mace onto his tomb. She has built a connection with Dinah Lance because she was there for support. She was rendered unconscious along with the other heroes in attendance by the unknown object that emerged from Carter's grave. She along with the rest of the heroes would held captive by the Government, but would be freed thanks to Chloe Sullivan and the Suicide Squad.
Courtney at the Watchtower.
Months later, Courtney was working with John Jones to investigate Marionette Ventures, only to get herself under their control to commit crimes when they implanted a device on her neck. Clark and Lois were able to stop her and save her by removing the device. Courtney was present at Watchtower when Tess was analyzing the device and discovered that it was made by Winslow Schott. Courtney informed the team about the members of Marionette Ventures. She later got Clark and Tess a ferry ride to Stryker's Island to confront the Toyman.
Season Eleven[]
Stargirl visits Rose Wilson's house.
Stargirl assisted Jay Garrick in approaching potential recruits for his team. One of the candidates of the houses she visited, unbeknownst to her, was Slade Wilson's daughter. Rose. Rose, having a vendetta against superheroes and blaming them for her father's comatose state, found it as an opportunity to take the team of young heroes down so she opened her door holding a gun against Courtney.
While attacking Jay Garrick's team, Rose told Jaime Reyes that she found the location of the team's headquarters from Courtney and implied that she might have hurt her. It was later clarified by Conner that Courtney survived the altercation.
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The Justice League attacks.
During the Crisis, Superman delivered a rousing speech to the assembled heroes, among whom was a recovered Courtney. Determined to fight for their Earth’s to survival; Superman, Luthor and all of Earth's heroes attacked the incoming Manhunters.
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The Legion and the Titans head to Smallville.
During the battle the Monitors’ automatons suddenly changed direction and raced to reboot Smallville. Superboy gathered all of the youngest of heroes to combat them, and but Superman ordered him to stand down, knowing the odds of survival and not wanting the youth to risk their lives. At that moment the Legion arrived to provide backup, and with Superman's blessing the two teams rushed to stop the reboot in Smallville.
Three weeks later LexCorp held a major press conference in which Lex introduced the public to a new monument built on the former Watchtower site. In a massive turnout Lex publicly admitted that if it weren't for the heroes of earth the universe would have been lost. Superman also made a speech that was broadcast all over the world, and that Teen Titans are also watched from their new base.
The Justice League welcomes a new family member.
After her son's birth, Chloe worried about the dangers in the world and the rise in heroes. Oliver reminded her they all fight for justice and would ensure their new baby would have a safe and healthy upbringing. Chloe lamented that family should be here for their big occasion, and Ollie, smiling, wheeled her into the waiting room to be greeted by their 'family' composed of the heroes that they met over time.
Physical Appearance[]
Courtney Whitmore
Courtney is an attractive, young teenage girl. She has long blond hair, blue eyes and a slim build.
Stargirl
While in civilian clothes, she is usually seen wearing white, red, or blue: a combination of her costume's primary colors.
In the guise of Stargirl, she wears a fabric costume, with leather shorts, very similar to her mentor, The Star Spangled Kid's costume. Her costume is navy blue, adorned with stars on the chest and sleeves, with red gloves and a red belt (Whether this belt has the same abilities as in the comics, is unknown). To hide her identity, Stargirl wears a blue leather mask that covers the top part of her face.
She also carries with her the Cosmic Staff.
Powers and Abilities[]
As an ordinary Human she has no powers herself, however, the Cosmic Staff allows the following abilities:
Stargirl using the staff
- Teleportation: - Courtney used the staff to teleport herself, Carter Hall and Oliver to the Watchtower. (Icarus)
- Energy projection: - She could manipulate and blast energy with the staff.(Absolute Justice, Part 1)
- Flight: - She was able to defy gravity while fighting Icicle in Watchtower, only landing when he hit her.
- Super dexterity: The wielder of the Cosmic Staff becomes more dexterous and mobile.
- Super strength: The Cosmic Staff grants the wielder superhuman strength.
Abilities[]
- Skilled combatant: Courtney is also very capable of handling herself in combat, as she was able to swiftly dodge and land hits when she battled Icicle as well as do many acrobatic flips and maneuvers.
- Power mastery: Courtney is very adept in using her powers, due to her training with Sylvester Pemberton.
Appearances[]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | # | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 9 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | X | X | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | X | 3 | ||
| Season 10 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | X | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | X | - | - | 2 | ||
| Total | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
- Smallville Miniseries: Titans (flashback only), Continuity
In the Comics[]
Stargirl as she appears in the comics.
Courtney Whitmore, the stepdaughter of Pat Dugan, finds the original Star-Spangled Kid's gear in her stepfather's belongings and dons the costume in order to annoy him as partial revenge for marrying her mother Barbara and supposedly forcing the family to move from Los Angeles to Blue Valley, Nebraska. Dugan, a skilled mechanic, designs and builds S.T.R.I.P.E., a robotic suit which he rides in to accompany and protect her. During her time in Blue Valley, her frequent nemesis is the young villainess known as Shiv, daughter of the immortal Dragon King. The two had their most recent rematch in Infinite Crisis.
Eventually, Courtney joins the Justice Society of America and after being given Starman's (Jack Knight) cosmic staff, changes her identity to Stargirl.
Later, she confronts her predecessor's killer. Solomon Grundy, driven further into madness by the Joker's chemical assault, attacks the JSA headquarters with the head of the Statue of Liberty. With the aid of only Jakeem Thunder, Courtney fights him in the streets and into the tunnels below. The two heroes barely defeat Grundy. Jakeem's Thunderbolt fixes the statue. Grundy would later return, having developed an obsession with Courtney.
Courtney has succeeded Sylvester Pemberton as the Star Spangled Kid.
Courtney encounters Merry Pemberton, the sister of her predecessor. Originally, tensions existed between the two as Merry had feelings about her brother's legacy and also did not like the fact young superheroes operated on the same field as adult ones. These problems were resolved when the two were part of a larger battle against the forces of Klarion the Witch Boy. Courtney even saves Merry's life from an attacking Amazo. During this incident, Courtney temporarily has the body of a much more mature adult. Later, she discovers her biological father (Sam Kurtis) working as a common thug for an incarnation of the Royal Flush Gang. They would personally confront each other during one of the Flush Gang's robberies.
Despite a glimpse into the future, which shows an adult Starwoman married to Albert Rothstein (a.k.a. fellow JSA member Atom Smasher), Courtney briefly dates another JSA member, Captain Marvel, who in his true identity of Billy Batson is the same age as her. However, Captain Marvel is, by all appearances to those not knowing Billy's secret, an adult and the relationship between Marvel and Stargirl drew the attention of JSA members Jakeem Thunder and Jay Garrick, the original Flash. After being confronted by Garrick over the issue, Marvel chooses to leave the JSA - and Courtney - instead of telling the team his secret. Marvel reappears in the JSA and revealed he can't give out his true identity due to the wisdom of Solomon blocking him.
During the Black Vengeance storyline, Courtney's family is murdered by agents of Per Degaton. She travels with the rest of the JSA back to 1951. The time-traveling adventure features the Modern Age successors to Golden Age JSA members meeting and fighting alongside the originals to try to save her family and the future. During this adventure, she finds herself forced to work with Atom Smasher again, for the first time since he defected to Black Adam's rival team. Following this, she apparently forgives him, but Atom Smasher is then nearly murdered by the Spectre. Though Atom Smasher is saved, the events clearly revealed the depth of feeling she has for him. She is quite relieved to return after this time-traveling adventure to see that her family was still alive. Later, Atom Smasher is tried and convicted for actions he took while working for Black Adam and during a TV appearance, Courtney states that even though Al was in prison, she would "be there for him... no matter how long it takes."
During the Infinite Crisis storyline, Courtney is approached by the Shade, who tells her of the final demise of her biological father. The tragedy and the witnessing of the mother-daughter love between Liberty Belle and Jesse Quick leads her to rethink her family life. She discovered that she couldn't hate her biological father for being an absentee, a slacker, and even a supervillain thug and also learns from the tragedy to accept Pat Dugan as the first true father figure in her life. Stargirl is also part of a makeshift team, consisting of the JSA, Doom Patrol and Teen Titans that attacks a rampaging Superboy-Prime in Smallville, Kansas. Superboy-Prime kills several of the Titans, including Pantha and Baby Wildebeest and maims Risk, removing his arm. Stargirl later attends a memorial service for heroes who had died in the Crisis.
Afterward, she begins attending college. She has changed her equipment: her rod now compresses to a small cylinder and when she activates it, her costume and belt appear while the rod grows to full size.
During the One Year Later storyline, Courtney rejoins the new roster of the Justice Society, currently composed of legacy heroes, representing both Starman's and the Star-Spangled Kid legacy, albeit no longer with S.T.R.I.P.E.'s assistance. Now a seasoned hero despite her young age, she forges a bond with her young teammate Cyclone. The two bond over witnessing the death of Mister America. Courtney suggested Cyclone create a new superhero costume and name. She resumes her role of mentorship for the youngest heroes by helping Jefferson Pierce's daughter, Jennifer, into coping with her imperfect grasp over her powers and her isolation.
Stargirl in the New 52.
Following a massive supervillain attack, the JSA is split in two. Power Girl convinces Courtney to join the JSA All-Stars splinter group. She later expresses a deep feeling of regret over siding with the All-Stars, claiming that she feels more at home with the original roster. Karen talks her through these doubts, telling her that she needed Courtney on the team because all the other teen members of the JSA look up to her.
In the New 52, Stargirl has joined the Justice League of America. Her purpose on the team is to take down Cyborg, who is a member of the Justice League, even though Stargirl is not aware of this. When Stargirl joined the JLA she was the spokesperson and the face of the team because she was popular with the people. She had regularly missed out on team missions because if she got hurt A.R.G.U.S. would get in trouble. Amanda Waller said to Stargirl that her job on the team was to be the spokesperson. Stargirl sneaked away to join the rest of the team to find the Secret Society of Super-Villains in Minnesota.
Notes[]
- Prophecy is the only episode where Courtney doesn't appear in her Stargirl costume.
Other Faces of Stargirl[]
