The third season of DC’s STARGIRL finds Starman back from the dead and offering to train Courtney while she helps him adjust to his new life in quiet Blue Valley. But when there’s a murder, the mystery will not only have our heroes questioning the former super-villain’s commitment to truly reforming, but lead Courtney, Pat and Starman to a secret that will shock them all.

For previous thoughts on Stargirl, please check out our Blu-Ray reviews of Season 1 and Season 2.

For thoughts on Stargirl: Season 3, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/I-VIuFV2RSo?t=4038]

Video Quality

Stargirl: Season 3 comes to DVD with 13 episodes over 3 discs, which offers a decent amount of room to avoid compression issues. The first two seasons of the show received a Blu-Ray release, so we are especially dismayed that the final season has been sentenced to being only on DVD for the time being. These two seasons looked great on the format, and downgrading to DVD makes the deficiencies readily apparent. The darker moments within the show struggle to maintain as much crisp detail as you would like. Due to the limitations of the format, these episodes are not going to fare as well as they do in high definition streaming, but they remain strong within the limitations of the DVD format.

As mentioned, the black levels are a bit underwhelming with the lack of distinct edge detail, but there is more reasonable depth within the brightly lit environments. Colors are the most enjoyable aspect of this transfer as they radiate with an immense vibrancy. These hues stand out most in the colorful costumes and some of the locations. Skin tones appear natural, and close ups look quite good with some texture within the setting and outfits. There is always a sliver of hope that Warner Archive rescues this for a Blu-Ray release, but we will not be holding on to hope too tightly. Those who do pick it up should find it to be a suitable backup for the series if it were to ever disappear from streaming.

Audio Quality

This DVD comes with a Dolby Digital 5.1 track that showcases this series well enough within its format limitations, but it is less impressive than the lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio tracks on the previous Blu-Ray releases. Dialogue comes through clearly with a focus on the center channel and some stretch into the surround channels when characters are in motion. The rear speakers create a fleshed-out atmosphere as the sounds of various locales create a unique soundscape. Sound effects and ambient chatter never overshadow the dialogue causing lost information. The soundtrack and score flows through the room with an admirable fidelity at all times. Every sound placement sounds accurate within the mix. While this show works better with a lossless track, it does everything it can within its limitations on DVD. There are optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Deleted Scenes: There is nearly four minutes of unused material provided here which was cut for time.

Final Thoughts

Stargirl stands as one of the most consistent properties to come out of the DC universe on television. In a time when so many heroes feel only small degrees different from one another, Courtney and the rest of her circle are a consistent breath of fresh air. The teen drama is not the focus of the narrative, but it adds some personal stakes when it makes sense. The heroics are thrilling and fun in a way that feels unique to the sensibilities of this show. We are a bit crestfallen that this series could not have a longer life, but it is a silver lining that it was not on long enough to see the network ruin what made it special. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has delivered a DVD with a solid enough A/V presentation for the format and a paltry selection of special features. If you are a fan, you will want the security of physical media in case this ever disappears from streaming, but a Blu-Ray release should have been made available to close this one out. Recommended

Stargirl: Season 3 can be purchased directly through MovieZyng or through various other online retailers.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the DVD.

Disclaimer: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.