DC’s Stargirl Recap: Here’s Everything You Missed in “Summer School: Chapter Four”

On the last episode of DC’s Stargirl, the Justice Society of America confronted The Shade (Jonathan Cake) for the first time to disastrous results, but while the plan to take out the remaining member of the Injustice Society didn’t exactly work the way the heroes had hoped, the episode did end with Beth (Anjelika Washington) and Rick (Cameron Gellman) getting some very important information by way of Doctor Mid-Nite’s goggles. The goggles briefly came to life and warned them about Eclipso, someone the young JSA has never heard of before.

This week, some of the pieces of the puzzle start to come together for Pat (Luke Wilson) and the JSA as they continue to try to figure out what The Shade wants in Blue Valley, but they may have something a little more pressing to deal with first. Crusher Crock/Sportsmaster (Neil Hopkins) and Paula Brooks/Tigress (Joy Osmanski) are back in Blue Valley and it might just make things a little more complicated.

Need to get caught up on the latest plot details of DC’s Stargirl? We’ve got you covered. Read on for our full-spoiler recap of “Summer School: Chapter Four” below but if you haven’t yet seen the episode and don’t want to know everything just yet, turn back now. There are plenty of big spoilers beyond this point.

Locked up

Artemis visits her parents in prison and tells them she can’t stay in the foster home she’s in anymore. They serve mac and cheese, they have bunk beds, only basic cable, etc. She tells him that tryouts are on Wednesday and her parents tell her she’s going to crush it, but Artemis has her doubts. She misses them. The prison guard cuts Artemis’ visit short and then taunts her about her parents being locked up.

At Beth’s house, she tries to get the goggles to work again so she can get more information on Eclipso to no avail. Beth talks to her mom briefly and tries to encourage her mom to go on a date with her dad to a place they used to when they were first dating, but that doesn’t work either. The goggles finally bring up a file on Eclipso, but the file is marked confidential.

Secrets and lies

At the Whitmore/Dugan house, Barbara is freaked out about Eclipso and she and Pat try to decide what to tell the kids about the villain when Courtney comes in and tells them that the goggles warned them about Eclipso, but the files are confidential. Pat reluctantly tells her that Eclipso is real evil imprisoned in the Black Diamond and that The Shade is looking for him. Pat also explains that Eclipso can get in people’s heads and make them see things not there, that he’s made people do things. The longer Eclipso is active, the more powerful he becomes. What The Shade wants with Eclipso is unknown. Courtney reassures her mom that she won’t rush into dealing with this evil.

In the ISA lair, Cindy tells Eclipso that she’s still upset about her stepmother’s death but Eclipso says it’s not really about her stepmother. Cindy then sees her deceased mother and hears her plead with her not to hurt her. Cindy demands that Eclipso make that go away. Eclipso tells Cindy that she needs to put the past behind her and that he only desires what she desires.

Bad day all around

Artemis’ foster mother drops her off at school with a pretty sad processed food lunch and doesn’t pay attention to Artemis, threatening to no longer accept calls from her parents when Artemis asks for lunch money to get something decent to eat. Frustrated, Artemis goes to the football field and throws the ball with superhuman strength. Later, Courtney offers her an apple, but Artemis crushes it and storms out.

On his paper route, Mikey sees a headline about Crusher and Paula breaking out of prison and is confronted by them. They take him hostage. At school, Rick takes another exam and gets another perfect score. The teacher apologizes to him for doubting him. He says it’s okay because it is what everyone does. Isaac Bowin sits alone at lunch and Cindy visits him, flattering him and offering to be his friend because she understands what he’s going through having lost her own parents. 

Unwanted visitors

After getting a message from Mike, Pat goes to the shop where he’s met by Crusher and Paula. They explain that they aren’t there for revenge. They’re in town to support Artemis for her football tryouts and they want Mike’s help. He takes them home and Barbara isn’t thrilled. Crusher suggests to Pat that he start training Mike. They all make small talk. Crusher tells Pat he and his wife never really fit in with the ISA, but when Pat mentions The Shade, he has nothing nice to say about him. Paula shames Barbara for her food options, but they sort of bond a little about their daughters being stubborn.

Out of the shadows

The JSA does research and finds out that Eclipso is from Diablo Island but that it was taken off of the maps a long time ago because no one ever came back. One of the tribes on the island summoned an evil entity of vengeance and trapped it in the Black Diamond. An explorer, Bruce Gordon, went to the island and found that everyone had been dead for decades. Very little else is known.

Courtney visits a place called The House of Secrets and asks for books on Bruce Gordon. She encounters The Shade and accuses him of wanting to team up with Eclipso. The Shade tells Courtney there is a difference between bad and evil and that while he might be bad, Eclipso is evil and explains that Eclipso killed Doctor Mid-Nite’s 10-year-old daughter. The Shade plans to throw the Black Diamond in the deepest part of the ocean so Eclipso can never hurt anyone ever again. He claims he’s doing it because he’s bored, though there’s clearly more to it. He tells Courtney to leave it all to him.

Cindy takes Isaac to the ISA headquarters and tells him about his father, The Fiddler. Cindy tells him that he’ll learn to play his father’s violin.

Crushed dreams

At the school, Crusher and Paula watch Artemis play, but she’s not doing well. They cheer for her, though, and she sees them. It helps her focus and her game improves immediately. Cindy skulks around, though, and uses Eclipso to target Artemis. Artemis hallucinates that snipers are about to take out her parents so she attacks, but she’s actually attacking Courtney.

Later, Paula and Crusher tell their daughter the truth about what they’ve done. They put her first and tell her that they won’t let their bad deeds get in her way. Unfortunately, Artemis later finds out that she doesn’t get recruited by the university football team, and Cindy steps in.

Doctor Mid-Nite lives?

Courtney confronts Pat about Doctor Mid-Nite’s daughter and he tells her that he did know. Later, Pat and Barbara decide to continue to not tell the JSA the full truth about Eclipso and the JSA. But Courtney gets geared up as Stargirl and goes to find The Shade for more information.

Beth continues working trying to open the Eclipso file when the goggles come to life and, once again, the voice on the other end doesn’t know her. However, it’s soon revealed that Beth isn’t talking to Doctor Mid-Nite’s AI anymore. She’s talking to the real Doctor Mid-Nite. He’s alive and trapped in the shadows.