Gender in Post-9/11 American Apocalyptic TV

In the years following 9/11 American TV developed a preoccupation with apocalypse. Science fiction and fantasy shows ranging from<i> Firefly</i> to <i>Heroes</i> from the rebooted <i>Battlestar Galactica</i> to <i>Lost</i> envisaged scenarios in which world-changing disasters were either threatened or actually took place. During the same period numerous commentators observed that the American media's representation of gender had undergone a marked regression possibly it was suggested as a consequence of the 9/11 attacks and the feelings of weakness and insecurity they engendered in the nation's men.<br/><br/>Eve Bennett investigates whether the same impulse to return to traditional images of masculinity and femininity can be found in the contemporary cycle of apocalyptic series programmes which like 9/11 itself present plenty of opportunity for narratives of damsels-in-distress and heroic male rescuers. However as this book shows whether such narratives play out in the expected manner is another matter.