TV Reviews: FTN Reviews Stargirl Season 3 Episode 8: Infinity Inc Part 2

Well, it was good while it lasted! I really wanted to hope we’d get a string of good episodes from Stargirl, but “Infinity Inc. Part Two” really didn’t do anything special, unlike Part One. If anything, they dragged the plot along so they could fill a whole episode for it. Think about it like this. Last episode had the operation to find all the cameras, Yolanda being forced to leave her home, the attempt to free Todd from Helix, and more. It was a multi-layered episode. Here, we didn’t have those stacking layers to flesh everything out. We had three “plots,” but only one of them was really meaningful, and the others were dragged out or had obvious conclusions.

Fittingly, on the day that she got a Saturn Award for her performance as Stargirl, Brec Bassinger did a stellar job as Courtney tonight. Granted, there were some “classic Courtney” moments that I had to roll my eyes at, but her speech to Mr. Bones, and Jenni, and then Pat at the end was great. It took her two and a half seasons, but she sees the power in just being Courtney, and not just Stargirl. I liked her speech about how isolation wasn’t a valid option, and it was true. It’s unclear (especially with a certain change in structure at WBD) whether the teased Infinity Inc. will be formed (I wish they had dropped the name because some people won’t get the reference from the comics), but it’s nice to think about.

The Shadowlands plot was hit-or-miss. I liked how Shade lost his powers due to the green fire’s corruption, but Shade didn’t really grow in the episode outside of that last scene with him, Todd (still no relation) and Jenni. And that was because Pat forced him into it! What’s more, him saying, “I don’t feel anything” is a lie, and we knew that last season with how he acted on his deathbed and how he treated Barbara. Meanwhile, Pat facing his father was interesting…but it didn’t get fleshed out like it should’ve. Why didn’t Pat hate his dad? It wasn’t made clear at all. Also, that bit about Mike “always wanting his dad’s attention” just rang hollow. Not the least of which is because Mike’s an idiot, and a jerk and self-absorbed. Recall in Season 1 that Pat could barely control Mike, and when he tried, Mike got mad. I still hate that scene.

As for Jenni and Todd, while I’m glad they’re back together, I feel there should’ve been more than what we got. Most of the episode was Jenni being locked away from him, and then it was painfully easy to “make him better.” I did love the reference to The Sandman, and hopefully we’ll meet his nephew too soon enough.

The final tease about the stalker didn’t add anything either. Great, it’s a cloaked individual, so what?

You notice how this review is shorter than normal? It’s because “Infinity Inc. Part Two” didn’t really have much to talk about. Next episode likely will be different based on the preview. I’ll try and maintain hope for a bounce back.

3/5