WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for "The Justice Society," the latest episode of Stargirl.
DC Universe's Stargirl gave the Gambler a serious upgrade.
In "The Justice Society," the latest episode, Courtney Whitmore's new Justice Society of America went on their very first mission. When Dr. Mid-Nite's AI Chuck alerted them to the Gambler's activity, they pursued what they thought to be an easy target -- only for Tigress and Sportsmaster to get in their way.
After school, Courtney joined Yolanda, Beth and Rick under the bleachers. As they discussed their next move, Rick asked Beth to use the Dr. Mid-Nite goggles to decode something in his father's journal. However, they began to flash red soon after she put them on.
"My alarm system has been triggered, Beth. Still using the same signature, I see. Typical. That man has no imagination," Chuck sneered. When Beth asked who he was talking about, he continued, "My arch-enemy. His digital fingerprints are all over this." With that, he brought up a photo of the Gambler, aka Steven Sharpe.
"Someone is trying to hack into the Empire Enterprises system," Beth announced, referring to one of the country's largest communication companies. "The hacker works for the Injustice Society of America! Chuck's main adversary. He's known as the Gambler. He's a master strategist, a genius when it comes to probabilities, a programming whiz. Encrypted networks are his thing. Real Dark Web stuff. He's wanted for fraud, conspiracy and murder."
"The Gambler doesn't have any physical powers of any kind," Chuck added.
In the comics, the Gambler doesn't have much by way of abilities. He is an expert gambler, as his name suggests, and a master of disguise; he's also proficient in several weapons, including throwing knives and the Derringer pistol he has used several times on the show so far. Now, the DC Universe series has turned him into a master hacker, which is a skill he has not had before. This makes him a more formidable villain, in that it extends his reach and gives him the ability to expose anyone who dares cross him -- especially if he were to learn the true identity behind the JSA's new members. Further, he has become more valuable to the Injustice Society, since he became a key player in Icicle's New America plans.
Using Chuck's intel, the new JSA went to confront and stop Gambler. However, Icicle planned ahead and asked Tigress and Sportsmaster to stand guard. So, when the JSA showed up, they encountered two skilled fighters with years of experience between them. Needless to say, the fight did not go the JSA's way, and the Injustice Society members only backed off when Pat showed up in his S.T.R.I.P.E. armor. By that time, the damage was done, and Gambler had finished what he set out to accomplish.
"Wasn't a total loss, Jordan," Gambler told Icicle at the end of the episode. "We have the satellite codes and the equipment Dr. Ito [Dragon King] requested. We have everything we need." However, they need Brainwave to move forward with the New America project, and he is currently in a coma thanks to the Cosmic Staff. The Injustice Society will just have to wait a little bit longer to finish their mission, but at least Gambler got his moment to shine.
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.