WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for "Shining Knight," the latest episode of Stargirl.

Stargirl's father has turned up in Blue Valley, but he definitely isn't Starman.

In "Shining Knight," the latest episode, the Whitmore-Dugan household got a surprise visit from Sam Kurtis. Barbara immediately recognized him as Courtney's absentee father, though Courtney herself was hesitant to believe it at first. Then, when she finally came to terms with that fact, he proceeded to break her heart.

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After receiving Barbara's cryptic email, Sam showed up in Blue Valley with false platitudes. "You once told me you couldn't wait to get out of Blue Valley. I figured, if you had to come back here, then it must have been serious," he explained. "Look, I'm sorry for showing up like this, out of the blue. I replied. I never heard back. I was worried! Is everything alright?"

As Courtney insisted Sam couldn't be her father, he produced his locket -- an exact match for the one she wears around her neck. At the sight of it, Courtney stopped in her tracks, then pulled Pat aside for a private word. This left Barbara and Sam alone for a moment, so Barbara demanded to know why he was really there. "The truth is, I've been thinking about reaching out to you for months now," he told her. "I'm here to get to know my daughter before it's too late. If it's not already too late."

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So, when Courtney returned, he asked her to take a walk with him. As they strolled through Blue Valley's downtown, he admitted she should resent him for his absence and he brought the topic back around to their matching lockets. "You know, I wasn't always with you, but I always kept a picture of you with me. There wasn't a day that went by I didn't look at that picture," he mused. "My mother gave me these lockets and I gave one to you when you were four. Christmas. It was the last time I saw you. We sang Christmas carols together. 'Frosty' was your favorite. We made a snowman out of Styrofoam."

"I remember that," Courtney realized, accepting at last that Sam was indeed her father.

"Courtney, I have no right to have come here, to ask you to hear me out, to say I'm sorry about the things that I've done or haven't done. It's never going to be enough," he admitted. "I just want you to know that I'd give anything if I could go back in time and do things differently. I just needed to say that."

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Reluctantly, she agreed to go to breakfast with him so they could learn more about each other. However, he did most of the talking. He told her how he traveled a lot for work, but nothing worked out. He even invited her to come visit him in California. By the time they got back to the house, they were even laughing together.

"You know, I didn't know it when your grandmother gave me these, but these lockets -- the pair -- they are special," he pointed out as they sat down on the front stoop.

When she said she always wore hers, he continued, "Yeah, I was hoping you had yours. So these lockets, they were made by a fancy designer back in the day, an old-time jeweler to the stars, like Marilyn Monroe-type people. Actually, they're really valuable."

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"I was thinking that if I sold them, then I could put a deposit down on my own place and, once I get that settled, that'll be when you come visit," he proposed. "Yeah, I could buy you a bracelet or some really pretty earrings! We could go shopping together in LA. We'll go to the Grove. Then, when I'm settled in, you can come visit. My place now is like a shoebox; it's barely big enough for me by myself."

As Sam spoke, Courtney's face fell. "Yeah," she replied with a forced smile. She removed the locket and handed it over to him. "You can have it."

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He took it with a grin. "Yeah, that's great!" he said, pocketing it. "I'll be back, Courtney. And when I am, I really want to hear all about you. Honestly! See ya, kid." With that, he shouldered his backpack and began to walk down the street, leaving Courtney alone on the stoop.

Slowly, Courtney stood and went back inside. Pat greeted her at the door and took one long look at her face. "He's gone, huh?" he asked. When Courtney nodded, he forged on, "Look, if you need to yell at someone, you need to let it out, I can take it, okay? Whatever you need, Court -- I'm here, alright?" At that, Courtney rushed forward into his arms and burst into tears.

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After he comforted his stepdaughter, Pat caught up with Sam. "I've got to ask you: what the hell were you thinking?" he demanded.

"I'm just heading home, man," Sam insisted. "Sorry to be a bother."

"Right. It's just -- you know what you did to her? I care about that kid and she loves that locket," Pat said through his teeth. "She wears it everyday. She has since you gave it to her."

"Listen, I'll make it up to her, somehow," Sam shot back.

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"Don't ever come back here," Pat warned, eliciting a chuckle from Sam, who said, "Wasn't planning on it, tough guy. Hey, tell Barbara I said bye. She still looks good! Well, not as good as when I had her."

Pat didn't even hesitate. He whirled around and punched Sam square in the jaw, sending the other man to the pavement. "You're lucky I'm busy," Pat spat, then headed home.

In the comics, Courtney didn't believe Starman was her father, but she did think of her father as a hero who would one day return. When he did show up, she was in for a world of disappointment. Sam turned up on their doorstep out of the blue one day, then asked to speak to Courtney alone. He gave her a long spiel about how he needed her locket, as it was part of a set and could only be sold as such; he told her he desperately needed the money to help out his brother, who was in trouble in Egypt. She gave up the locket and he left, only for Barbara to reveal he didn't have a brother. Courtney was left heartbroken by the incident, but it also helped her move on, as she referred to Pat as "Dad" later that day.

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Sam's appearance on Stargirl appears to have served a similar purpose. Now, Courtney has given up her attachment to the idea that she is Starman's daughter. She has embraced the fact she can be a hero -- and that the Staff chose her -- without being a legacy. Further, she has grown closer to Pat and appears to have accepted him as a father figure in her life. All of this coalesced just in time, too, because the Injustice Society just figured out who she is -- and they're coming for her whole family.

DC Universe's Stargirl stars Brec Bassinger as Courtney Whitmore (Stargirl) and Luke Wilson as Pat Dugan (S.T.R.I.P.E.). The series airs Monday on DC Universe and Tuesdays on The CW at 8 pm ET/PT. It also stars Amy Smart, Yvette Monreal, Anjelika Washington, Cameron Gellman, Trae Romano, Jake Austin Walker, Hunter Sansone, Meg DeLacy, Neil Jackson and Christopher James Baker.

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