'Stargirl' Season 1 Episode 3: Why a bright pink pen is the most dangerous item in JSA headquarters
Spoilers for 'Stargirl' Season 1 Episode 3 'Icicle'
In an attempt to get Stargirl (Brec Bassinger) to take being a superhero more seriously and perhaps dissuade her from the fight, Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson) takes her to the old JSA headquarters, which have been turned into a museum to honor the team. The headquarters hold various artifacts and costumes used by the JSA, but just as Courtney is about to touch a bright pink pen, Pat stops her, telling her it's the most dangerous item in the place. What is it that makes a shiny pink pen so dangerous?
That pen was wielded by Johnny Thunder and within it perhaps lies one of the most powerful members of all — a genie named Yz. Yz was an important part of the team and worked with Johnny Thunder to fight crime, an important asset to the JSA team. Created by John Wentworth Stan Aschmeier, Johnny Thunder makes his appearance in the same issue as another famous hero — Flash.
Appearing in 'Flash Comics' #1 in 1940, Johnny Thunder is introduced as a person with supernaturally good luck — the seventh son of a seventh son, born at 7 am, 7/7/1917, and given the magic pen on his seventh birthday. On activating the genie inside with the magic word 'Cei-Yu', the genie grants Johnny Thunder his every wish, working so fast that the genie is practically invisible. Courtney steals this pen, along with several other artifacts, including Green Lantern's lantern. This teases the heroes who will be added to the new generation of the JSA, but Johnny Thunder's pink pen is undoubtedly the most powerful artifact of them all.
In the comics, the pen was passed down to Jakeem Williams, who took on the superhero name of Jakeem Thunder, working with Yz. However, the series does not have a Jakeem Williams listed, though there is a Jenny Williams (Ashley Winfrey). We have seen Jenny already, she is the second cheerleader to Cindy Burman (Meg DeLacy). Cindy becomes the villain Shiv in the comics and the show might just be hinting that Jenny Williams may be next in line for an all new generation of villainy. If so, she's worth keeping an eye on because with the power of Yz, she would be the most dangerous threat on the show.
The next episode of 'Stargirl' airs June 8 on DC Universe and June 9 on The CW.
