voices: ♪ Happy birthday to you ♪
♪ Happy birthday, dear Stacey ♪
♪ Happy birthday to you
[all whooping]
[laughter]
[laughter echoes]
[eerie music]
[children's laughter echoing]
♪
[indistinct chatter]
- Hey, kids, come on inside.
We're gonna cut the cake soon.
- Please, Mom. I want to go to the party.
- No, Rebecca.
- Why not? - You know why not.
You made a scene at the store today.
- I just wanted that doll.
- I spoil you too much, as it is.
- Daddy would let me go.
- Well, your dad's out on call, so you're stuck with me.
[door opens, shuts]
[dramatic music]
♪
[kids cheering in distance]
[chatter, laughter]
[somber music]
♪
[wind whistling]
♪
[wind chimes ringing]
- [laughs]
Hi.
- Hi.
- I'm Bruce. I just moved in.
What's your name?
- Rebecca.
- Do you want to go to the party, Rebecca?
- I can't. - Why not?
- My mom said so.
[uneasy music]
- Well, I don't see your mom.
[indistinct whispering]
Come on. It's right across the street.
It'll be fun.
[ominous tones]
♪
Come on!
♪
[children chattering]
- Yay! - Yay!
[chatter, cheering]
- What's that for? - That's a donkey tail.
We're gonna play pin the tail on the donkey in a little bit.
- When can we open presents?
- We'll open presents after we have cake and ice cream.
- All right, children,
I think it's time for cake and ice cream.
- Yay! - Whoo!
- You should take one.
Susie has so many presents,
and you didn't get anything today.
I bet there's a doll in there somewhere.
Go on. No one's looking.
♪
[chatter, laughter]
I wonder what it is.
[dramatic musical sting]
♪
Hey.
You stole that.
[dark music]
♪
Bad girl.
[chimes ringing]
- Rebecca?
That girl.
[dark music escalates]
♪
[screams]
Ahh! [whimpering]
No!
[Alan Jackson's "Summertime Blues"]
♪
- ♪ Well, I'ma gonna raise a fuss ♪
♪ I'ma gonna raise a holler
♪
♪ About workin' all summer
♪ Just to try to earn a dollar ♪
[engine whirring]
♪ Sometimes I wonder what I'ma gonna do ♪
♪ 'Cause there ain't no cure the summertime blues ♪
[thud, clattering]
♪
- All clear!
- She said all clear, guys.
- So, no supervillains?
Did you check inside the trash can?
- [chuckles]
Sarcasm. Duly noted.
So I've got 27 minutes until curfew.
How 'bout we do one more loop around the Sub Shack?
Beth, any sign of trouble?
- [clears throat]
Goggles. Checking in.
Again. Ha.
Anything out there?
electronic voice: Searching. - Hello?
- Searching. Searching.
- These things just aren't as much fun without Chuck.
- Searching. Scanning complete.
- Yep. Nothing.
No trouble alerts. No trace of the Gambler
or Cindy Burman or Solomon Grundy.
- Hey, guys.
I've beat Grundy, okay, and the Gambler's a wimp,
and Cindy Burman probably got crushed with Brainwave
when the dish caved in.
- I doubt it, and the others could--
- What others, Court?
Icicle was shattered into a thousand pieces.
Dragon King is dead.
Tigress and Sportsmaster-- they're locked up.
The ISA are done. All of them.
- I think we should call it a night, Court.
- Me too.
- Yeah. Come on.
- We're the Justice Society of America.
We can't quit.
- We're not quitting. We're still the JSA.
And if something happens,
we'll suit up, and we'll be there.
But right now we're protecting a town
that doesn't really need it.
- Okay. Maybe we can cut patrol back
from seven nights a week to six.
[light music]
♪
- Good night.
- Later.
- Well, I'm gonna do that last loop,
so if anyone changes their mind,
meet me at the Sub Shack in ten.
Okay. No problem. I got it.
[chuckles] See you tomorrow.
You'll never quit on me, will you?
[warbling]
- Court? It's 4:00 in the morning.
What are you doing down here?
- Going through the JSA files.
- Please don't tell me you've been up all night.
- We agreed to be honest with each other, so...
I have been up all night, yes.
But with good reason.
- Okay, well, what about your history final?
- Oh, I'll ace that. What happened to Per Degaton?
- Per Degaton?
Uh...the Flash banished him to an alternate timeline.
- Whatever...that means.
Uh, okay, um...
Black Briarthorn.
- Uh, Green Lantern destroyed him in '88.
- Uh...
Baron Blitzkrieg. - That's enough, Court, okay.
- It's not nearly enough, Pat.
I've got a responsibility as Stargirl to stay vigilant.
- Okay, look,
you got a responsibility as Courtney Whitmore
to focus on normal life instead of this stuff, okay?
- This stuff is my destiny.
- Your destiny isn't just about being Stargirl, okay?
It's about going to school, getting good grades,
working towards a career.
- A career as Stargirl.
[sighs]
Pat, just...
the Staff chose me when my own dad didn't
for a reason that clearly goes beyond the Injustice Society.
I mean, look at the obvious.
We stopped the ISA, and the Staff is still lighting up.
It's still working, so that means I have to be.
- Okay, well, it's not that simple, Court.
Being a superhero doesn't mean that the rest of your life
takes a backseat.
It's about finding a balance.
Taking advantage of times like these.
The fact that things are quiet? That's a good thing.
- We just think it's quiet.
Just because we don't see it doesn't mean it's not there.
If we want to find and stop the bad guys,
we're gonna have to turn over some rocks.
- Well, I think you've turned over enough rocks for tonight,
so time to hit the sack.
- But what about Gentleman Ghost?
♪
- Go to bed.
♪
[whirring]
[suspenseful music]
♪
[bright music]
- Okay, Pat, let's work it out here.
Right here.
Oh, hey. - Hey.
- Take a gander at this. - What am I gandering at?
- Our family trip, because this, my friend,
is exactly where my dadtook me
the summer after I graduated from junior high.
That's Yellowstone National Park.
- Is that camping? 'Cause I don't want
to do camping-- anything but camping.
- Oh, it's even better, 'cause your old man
cashed in his new gas grill fund
he's been saving up for the last seven months.
Very selfless act, I might add, for--
wait for it--
two weeks at a lake house, huh?
Not just any lake house.
Dig these perks-- speedboat, jet ski,
outdoor kitchen where yours truly is gonna be
grilling up hamburgers, hot dogs,
and the best damn barbecued chicken
this side of the Atlantic.
And here's the kicker. Pets are welcome.
That's right. That's right.
- Sounds semi-tolerable,
but let's just table that for a second,
'cause I was hoping we'd start off the summer
maybe you showing me the ropes.
- Ropes to what? - The family business.
I figured maybe I could go down to the garage
and learn how to fly the robot, fire the giant fist.
JSA stuff, you know?
I got a future to think about,
and this paper route thing-- it ain't it.
It's all going digital, Pat.
- Responsibility. Commitment.
That's what's important, okay?
And you're not gonna quit your job.
- How am I gonna deliver papers at Jellystone Park?
- I already talked to Mr. Williams about it.
Your buddy Jakeem--he's gonna take over the paper route
until we get back.
- Back from where? - You didn't tell her?
- Not the details.
- The details about what,exactly?
- Dad's summer vacation. - Two weeks of rest,
relaxation, family fun,
no Cosmic Staff, no S.T.R.I.P.E.
Just some well-deserved time off for everyone.
- Yeah. - Two whole weeks?
- Yeah. - Can we do a vote?
- Love that idea.
- All in favor for ditching this vacay
because we got like real work to do here?
- Hold it a second. All in favor of a family trip
that'll live on in our memories
and our scrapbooks forever say aye.
- Aye! - Aye!
- Two to two.
[barking]
- Three to two. Pack your bags.
- Yes! - Traitor.
both: Yellowstone. Yellowstone. Yellowstone. Yellowstone.
- It'll be fun.
[giggles]
♪
[whirring]
- Morning, Mom. - Hey, Beth. I am so late.
- Committee meeting this morning--I have to run.
- I figured. Made breakfast to go.
French toast for you, Dad, and eggs Benedict for you, Mom.
- Thanks, Beth. - That looks great.
- It's the last day of school.
- Oh, well,
good luck on your, um... - Your test?
- Pre-calc and American Literature.
I studied all night.
- You'll do great, I'm sure.
- Yeah. - Thanks.
- Well, gotta get going, honey. - Okay.
- Bye, honey. - Bye. See you later.
[quiet music]
♪
[channels changing, static] - Hey, can you believe
what's happening in Blue Valley?
Oh, lock your doors--we've got ourselves a crime spree.
[bell ringing] So last night, a bear
broke into the Taco Whiz
and ate 200 pounds of nacho chips.
[crunch] 200 pounds.
And this is one busy bear, folks.
So earlier this week,
Waffle World suffered a similar fate
when its manager arrived
to find every jug of syrup missing.
Guess that old grizzly has a sweet tooth, huh?
[boing] Ha, ha.
Yogi Bear, look out.
You've got some competition here in Blue Valley.
[light, suspenseful music]
♪
[bell tolling]
- [sighs]
- Do you want to talk today, my child?
- I think I'd just like to sit again, if that's okay.
- Of course.
[somber music]
♪
- [sniffling]
♪
[eerie tones]
[ominous music building]
♪
[labored breathing]
♪
- Are you all right?
- Can you believe that? Two weeks stuck in a cabin.
I'll have my phone, and if there is
a kind and loving God, reception.
Maybe the Staff could come get me
as soon as something happened.
Or I-I could give you my house key.
- Yeah, sure.
- Hey, you okay?
- I don't know, Court.
Maybe it's a good thing that you're taking a break.
Maybe we all should for a while.
♪
You know, I still hear Brainwave.
The sound he made when I heard him die.
It's like--it's all I can think about.
It's like it's stuck in my head.
I don't know if I deserve to be Wildcat.
Like, Ted Grant would never do what I did.
- You do deserve to be Wildcat.
You are Wildcat, Yolanda.
Look, the JSA doesn't work--
this JSA doesn't work without my best friend.
♪
Brainwave could have killed us.
He would have.
- Okay, so let me ask you something.
Does that make what I did okay?
- I--
- Yes or no, Court?
- I wasn't there, Yolanda.
I don't know what else you could have done.
♪
- Oh, my God. Cameron's back.
- What do I say to him?
- You say nothing, Court.
- I-I want to see if he's okay.
- If you get too close to Cameron,
and he figures out that what happened wasn't an accident...
I mean, think about what that would do to him.
Henry might still be alive
if he didn't find out about his father.
[rock and roll music playing]
♪
- Morning, Dugan. - How you doing, Zeek?
Thanks for coming by.
- So taking the whole family on a trip, huh?
- Yep. They need a break.
I need a break from them needing a break,
so there you have it.
Anyhow, there's just a couple projects
that I'd like to keep moving while I'm away.
- [whistles] This '48 is a real beaut.
- Thank you. Thank you.
Yeah, I'm rebuilding the transmission.
Got these oil coolers I was gonna put in.
You're welcome to take a shot at that.
- What's that? - What's what?
- Employees only. Is that the lunch room?
What kind of goodies you got hiding in there, Dugan?
- No, uh... that's just storage.
There's nothing in there to concern yourself with.
To be honest, it's kind of a mess.
So, uh, what do you say, Zeek?
Can you mind the store for me?
- Well, Dugan, lately, I've had a full plate.
I'm inundated.
- Can you do it or-- - But multitasking
is one of my specialties,
so I guess that makes us partners.
- Partners? - Yep.
- Till I get back. - Whatever you say, Dugan.
[school bell rings] - All right, prairie dogs.
Off you go to your last lunch break of the semester.
As a reminder, please have your lockers
cleaned out by 3:00 p.m.,
and be sure to have a safe and healthy summer vacation.
- Mr. Harris.
- I go by Rick Tyler now.
- You got every single question on the final correct.
Tell me how you did it.
- What?
- Where did you get the answers?
- I studied. - This test is from last year.
It has different questions,
so we'll see exactly how much studying you did.
You're going to take it right now,
and I'm going to be watching your every move.
- I saved you.
[chuckles]
I saved everyone in this stupid town.
- Excuse me? - You know what?
Fail me.
- I will, Mr. Harris.
- I just went online doing research on time travel.
- Time travel? - I figure this JSA villain
Per Degaton--he could still be a threat now,
even though the JSA technically stopped him years ago.
- What are you even talking about?
- Paradoxes. - $5.00, please.
- I think you're looking for trouble, Court.
- Yeah, well, in our business, trouble seems to find us.
Oh! I'm sorry. Sorry.
So sorry.
Hey, Beth. Where's Rick?
- Oh!
I don't know.
- What's up?
- Just those last-day-of-school blues, you know?
- You think it's cool to have your parents in prison?
- Come on, Artemis. That's not what I meant.
- It is. Scares the hell out of the other team.
It was a total frame job for some Bonnie and Clyde robberies
way before I was even born.
Someone set them up.
♪
- Hey!
- What the hell are you doing, Whitmore?
- What the hell are you doing? - I was giving Jerome
back his stick, you blonde pinhead.
[somber music]
♪
- Courtney Whitmore,
come with me.
- So what did she do?
- Well, it's more about what she didn't do, Mrs. Whitmore.
Now, I know from personal experience
that moving in the middle of high school isn't easy,
but the good news is,
Courtney's managed to acclimate.
I mean, she's made friends.
A few questionable choices in that department,
but she seems to have found her place at Blue Valley High.
Just as I have, in the past few months.
Leaving aside that incident today in the cafeteria
with Artemis Crock.
- What happened with Artemis Crock?
- It was a misunderstanding.
- Okay, well, what kind of misunderstanding?
- I thought she was...
Going to swing a hockey stick at my head.
- Why would she do that?
- Well--
- Well, it sounds to me they had, like,
what we would call back in our day
just a good old-fashioned catfight.
[chuckling] Right?
Which is wrong.
- Back to the point. Courtney's struggled.
- Struggled, but prevailed.
- You failed some classes.
- What? N-- [chuckles]
Which ones? - History.
- History? - Okay, no.
That's impossible. I studied.
For a very long time, it felt like.
- And English too.
I'm afraid, if Courtney wants to continue on to junior year,
she's gonna have to enroll in summer school,
starting tomorrow.
[voice fading] Rachel outside'll have the details.
- You promised me schoolwork would come first.
- I know. I thought I had all my bases covered.
I really did. - I was really looking forward
to the trip, Courtney. So was Pat.
- I'm sorry. Sorry. - You really have to decide
if putting on that mask
is worth messing up everything else in your life.
♪
- Court, what are you doing getting into fights
with Artemis Crock?
- It was an honest mistake.
- You could have gotten expelled.
And now you gotta go to summer school.
And the vacation that your mother was so excited about--
that's now been canceled.
The JSA--
it's not the only team that you're a part of.
Our family's a team, okay?
- I know.
But the Staff is still lighting up.
- Yeah, it still lights up, but that doesn't mean
that there's a bad guy around every corner.
- Yeah, but they're somewhere.
- And why are you so convinced
that it's up to you to stop them?
- Because like the Staff, I won't ever quit.
Not like you did.
Pat, I-I'm sorry.
- It's okay.
You're putting Stargirl away for two weeks.
- What? - It's for your own good.
- But what am I supposed to do without Stargirl?
- Pass summer school,right?
[dramatic music]
♪
- Well, it's another sweltering day here in Nevada.
Temperatures should reach 92 here in the high desert,
but don't look... - Afternoon there.
- Hi...Maggie.
- What can I get you, hon?
Earl makes a country-fried steak
that you will be telling your grandkids about.
I have it four or five times a week, myself.
- Well, who could say no to that?
- [chuckles] Need anything else, handsome?
- Yeah.
I'm, uh...
I'm looking for your ex-husband.
- Which one?
- The one who likes stripes.
[quiet music]
♪
- Hi, Cameron.
- Courtney.
Hi.
- So you're back.
- Uh, I am.
- Uh, what are you doing?
- Well, I thought it could use a makeover, for my dad.
- That's really...nice. - Thanks.
- Any summer plans?
- Bye.
♪
- Hey, Zeek.
Looks like we won't be taking that trip, after all.
Zeek.
[drill whirring]
Hey, Zeek.
- Dugan! [chuckles]
I knew you were building something.
A robot.
- Yeah-- - Don't tell me what it's for.
I don't need to know.
Sometimes, a man just needs himself a robot.
- The thing is-- - You know, I built
a flamethrower out of a propane tank and a BB gun.
I bet you could fit one
right in the palm of that there robot's hand.
- What? A flamethrower?
- Yes, sir. To start.
- Okay, well, the thing is, Zeek,
this is a private project. - Yeah. Right.
- It's kind of a hobby that I'm...
- Mm-hmm. Okay.
- Kind of keeping to myself... - Right. Great.
- That I really... - I will go get my tools.
- Rather other people didn't know about it.
- Lovin' this partnership.
I'll be right back.
[door closes]
[birds chirping]
[light music]
♪
[wind howling]
[thump]
[growling]
[quiet piano music playing]
♪
[phone buzzes]
- Hey, Mom.
Thought you'd be home early, but I--
- I'm sorry, honey. I meant to text you.
I'm stuck at the hospital.
- But I made a really nice dinner for you and Dad, and--
- I hope your last day was great.
Love you.
- Love you too.
- Hello? [static crackles]
- Oh, my gosh. Chuck!
Chuck. Chuck, you're back.
- Hello, who is this? - It's me! It's Beth.
Oh, my gosh, Chuck. I missed you so much.
- Beth? - Beth Chapel.
- I don't know you.
- You don't know me?
Hello? Chuck.
Chuck? Please don't go.
Please don't forget me, Chuck.
♪
[crickets chirping]
[ominous music]
♪
- Cindy.
[glass shattering]
[suspenseful music]
♪
[intense music]
♪
- Aah!
[grunting, yelling]
- Who are you?
- I'm Green Lantern's daughter.
[dramatic music]
- What is going on?
- Oh, awesome.
- I-I think there's been a misunderstanding.
- Yeah. You seem to be having a lot of them today.
[Charli XCX's "Break the Rules"]
♪
- ♪ You catch my eye
♪
♪ Girl, you wanna fly?
♪
♪ I'm so alive
♪ Never stop, it's how we ride ♪
♪ Roller coaster till we die ♪
♪ I don't wanna go to school ♪
♪ I just wanna break the rules ♪
♪ Boys and girls across the world ♪
♪ Putting on our dancing shoes ♪
♪ Going to the discotheque
♪ Getting loud and getting late ♪
♪ I don't wanna go to school ♪
♪ I just wanna break the rules ♪
♪ I don't wanna go to school ♪
♪ I just wanna break the rules ♪
♪
- Hmm.
- ♪ I don't wanna go to school ♪
♪ I just wanna break the rules ♪
[intense musical buildup]
♪
- I am ready to serve you.
- Yes.
Let's go do some recruiting.
[both laughing]
[Charli XCX's "Break the Rules" continues]
♪
- Greg, move your head.