Warning: SPOILERS for DC's Stargirl Season 2, Episode 3 - "Summer School: Chapter 3".

DC's Stargirl season 2 sees the young heroes of the Justice Society of America dealing with the consequences of killing supervillains in a more mature way than in the DC Extended Universe or the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Through Yolanda Montez/Wildcat (Yvette Monreal), Rick Tyler/Hourman (Cameron Gellner), and Mike Dugan (Trae Romano), Stargirl is having an important conversation about what it means when a hero kills a villain, which is something largely absent from the DCEU and MCU.

Superheroes have been killing supervillains in DC and Marvel movies for years. The DCEU began with Superman (Henry Cavill) snapping General Zod's (Michael Shannon) neck and Batman (Ben Affleck) was shown murdering criminals in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) is an Amazon warrior who killed Ares (David Thewlis) and she also beheaded Steppenwolf (Ciaran Hinds) in Zack Snyder's Justice League. In the MCU, the Avengers rarely hesitated to kill their enemies, including Thanos (Josh Brolin). Even Spider-Man (Tom Holland) has an Instant Kill Mode in his Stark Tech Iron Spider suit that Marvel's signature teenage superhero used on Thanos' alien soldiers in Avengers: Endgame.

Related: Stargirl Secretly Hinted Another Justice Society Member Is Still Alive

The fact that some of the JSA had to kill members of the Injustice Society of America in Stargirl's season 1 finale resulted in lingering trauma, which has been a powerful dramatic element season 2 is exploring. Yolanda is suffering the most after she killed Brainwave (Christopher James Baker). She can't just brush off the sin she committed and she is openly struggling with her grief. Even going to confession doesn't give Yolanda the solace she needs. Similarly, Mike ran over and killed Icicle (Neil Jackson), the leader of the Injustice Society of America. Even though it was an accident, Mike is also still processing that he killed a man. Meanwhile, Rick wanted to kill Solomon Grundy because the villain murdered his parents, but upon realizing Grundy is just a mindless brute who was manipulated by the ISA, Tyler compassionately assumed responsibility for feeding and caring for Grundy in the woods.

Stargirl JSA season 2

The careful and considerate way Stargirl is addressing superheroes killing villains is a breath of fresh air since comic book TV and movies rarely deal with the personal consequences of heroes executing their foes. It's even more powerful because Courtney Whitmore (Brec Bassinger) and her friends are just teenagers who know right from wrong. Meanwhile, Beth Chapel (Anjelika Washington) is also coping with a different kind of death as the artificial intelligence, Dr. Mid-Nite (Henry Thomas), was wiped from his goggles. Beth is dealing with the loss of who she felt was her closest friend, and Stargirl is realistically addressing a wide range of trauma stemming from the deaths caused by a superhero's lifestyle.

Stargirl season 2, episode 3, even included a pivotal scene tacitly asking the question, 'What is a superhero's endgame against the villain?' When Pat Dugan (Luke Wilson) briefed the JSA about stopping The Shade (Jonathan Cake), the kids raised the question that after they find him, "Then what?". Meaning, are the superheroes supposed to just kill the bad guy? And what does it mean if they're unable to apprehend The Shade and Stargirl and the JSA are forced to kill him? These are important questions about the life of a superhero which are rarely raised in the MCU and DCEU, but Stargirl is intelligently tackling crucial moral and ethical issues about being a superhero, especially in regards to a team of teenage crimefighters.

Unfortunately, the time-honored comic book tradition that superheroes don't kill their villains never translated to the DCEU and MCU, and the Avengers and Justice League rarely, if ever, show remorse for killing their enemies. Even though Peter Parker had an indirect role in Mysterio's (Jake Gyllenhaal) death in Spider-Man: Far From Home, any grief he may have had was supplanted by the illusionist making his secret identity public. But Stargirl's universe is small - everyone lives in the town of Blue Valley - and, often, when the Justice Society kills their enemies, they're also killing their fellow townspeople who leave behind kids they go to school with. It's laudable how Stargirl is responsibly depicting its young heroes coping with killing their villains in ways the MCU and DCEU haven't.

Next: Stargirl Does High School Angst Better Than Spider-Man

DC's Stargirl airs Tuesdays at 8pm on The CW.