Stargirl is known for addressing the topic of absent parents. Season 1 addressed Courtney’s daddy issues and why she couldn’t accept Pat as her father figure. Now, Season 2 has touched on Mike’s absentee mother. However, this time, the subject is bought up via Eclipso, masquerading as Cameron Mahkent, the son of Icicle. What’s more, is after Jordan was mowed down by the youngest of the Whitmore-Dugans, the guilt has slowly been creeping back up.
Mike’s guilty conscience returned with a vengeance when Eclipso targets his family, making them see or relive their worst nightmares. For Pat’s son, it was confronting Cameron over what happened with Jordan. What’s more, is the youngest Mahkent still has zero clue of what occurred that day.
However, this is not what we wanted to discuss. It’s what the Eclipso-induced vision of Cameron mentions, which happens to Mike’s missing mother. While it should be asked as to how the spiritual parasite knows about this, that is not important. What, is what could’ve happened to her.
We’ve been asking ourselves this since “Shiv Part One” back in Season 1. Ultimately, this occurs when Mike takes a swipe at Courtney for spending time with Pat and had no idea that his father and stepsister were superheroes. Now that he knows, things are much better than they were. The siblings are now much closer than they were and accept each other as brother and sister.
In the last couple of episodes, Mike has taken the step of calling Barbara his mother. Meanwhile, Courtney has told Pat she loves him. But let’s dive into what could’ve happened.
What Has Been Mentioned About Mike’s Mother?
Admittedly, there has been almost nothing mentioned about what happened to Mike’s mother. Before “Summer School: Chapter Nine”, the only reference there has been to her is what Mike told Courtney. He said that he and Pat had been through a lot before Barbara and Courtney became a part of their family. He didn’t mention anything else.
Moreover, his mother hasn’t been in his life for a long time. However, it is unclear when she left. Since Mike has few memories of her and doesn’t talk about her, it’s possible she disappeared from his and Pat’s lives when he was a baby. Essentially, this is similar to Courtney not having contact with her father. However, the difference is that she was five when Sam abandoned her.
The Eclipso Vision
Summer School: Chapter Nine opened a huge can of worms. With the JSA separated with Yolanda having left and Rick in prison for assaulting his uncle, the only ones left standing are Courtney, Beth, Pat, and Mike. Eclipso believes that he is winning by eliminating the team one-by-one. However, he goes a step further and takes the Whitmore-Dugans in a bid to corrupt them against each other.
While Pat and Barbara are fighting against their own pasts, Mike is confronted with his guilt over running down Jordan… in the form of a powered Cameron. When he suddenly shows up at the house, the Prince of Darkness cuts straight to the chase.
Eclipso-Cameron says a load of horrible things to Mike. One of these is how his mother abandoned him. Ultimately, this has made us think, why would Eclipso choose to bring this up? Outside of the obvious, “he’s evil” mentality, it’s clear that he was doing more than showing the young Dugan what Cameron’s reaction might be to the truth.
Mike has always shown a great love for Barbara and has started to call her “mom”. In return, she loves him the same way she does Courtney. Outside of Mike’s fear of Cameron’s reaction, he also doesn’t want to be abandoned again.
What’s more, is this goes back to when Mike feared his father and stepmother were going to divorce after Barbara discovered that Pat and Courtney were superheroes. Furthermore, it’s that moment, which makes us realise that he wanted to full-fledged family with two parents, the pet and a sibling. Eclipso was feeding off it, knowing that it would push him to consider himself to be a lonely kid who doesn’t deserve love.
Mike’s Mother Is A Sore Spot, And Who Was She In The Comics?
Just the mention of Mike’s mother is a sore spot and Eclipso knows it. So, we decided to do some digging as to who she is in the comics.
In the comics, Mike’s mother is Maggie Shaw, according to Mike’s New Earth DC Fandom page. From what Pat’s page on the same website says, Maggie left at some point in Mike’s youth and Pat was left to raise their son on his own. However, it isn’t clear how long Pat and Maggie were married or how old Mike was when she left.
Finally, we need to point out that when we catch up to Sylvester in the Season 2 premiere, he goes to a diner where the waitress who serves him is named Maggie. He knows who she is as he asks if she knows where her ex-husband is. When she questions which one, he says the one who liked Stripes. While it’s clear this woman and Pat have a history, could she be Mike’s mother? While she might be, there needs to be an onscreen confirmation before we can say for sure.
