Courtney Whitmore

When teenager Courtney Whitmore discovered her stepfather Pat Dugan's past as sidekick to the original Star-Spangled Kid, she cheekily claimed the Cosmic Converter Belt to rebel against him. She later inherited Starman's Cosmic Staff, becoming Stargirl and a proud member of the Justice Society of America.

Bursting onto the scene in 1999 courtesy of writer Geoff Johns and artist Lee Moder, Courtney Whitmore made her debut in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #1 as one of DC's most spirited young heroes of the Modern Age — a character clearly built with both heart and legacy in mind. Over nearly three decades of publishing history, she's proven her staying power by turning up across landmark titles like JSA, Justice League of America, and 52, sharing pages with titans of the DC Universe including Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman himself. With four key collector issues to her name and 91 catalog appearances spanning 1999 to 2026, Courtney is no footnote — she's a genuine thread woven through the fabric of DC's modern era. If you love characters who carry the weight of comics history while feeling vibrantly alive on every page, she absolutely belongs on your radar.