Masculinities in Contemporary Science Fiction Television

Through a comprehensive analysis of popular contemporary science fiction television series, this book underscores the genre’s unique potential to both reflect and shape cultural perceptions of masculinity.

Each of its essays, written by a host of international contributors, analyse key series ranging from Firefly (2002) to Star Trek: Picard (2020-23). Employing anti-patriarchal and pro-feminist perspectives, they scrutinize the limited diversity among male characters in science fiction television, shedding light on the underrepresentation of non-heteronormative, non-white, and transmasculine characters, while also highlighting notable exceptions such as Altered Carbon (2018-20), Doom Patrol (2019), and The Umbrella Academy (2019).

Against the backdrop of current discussions regarding toxic masculinity, this book highlights the ways in which divergent masculinities shape and are shaped by the science fiction genre. In doing so, it argues the significant role played by the genre in ongoing discourse surrounding traditional and alternative forms of masculinity.

Michael Pitts is Lecturer at the University of New York in Prague, Czech Republic. He is author of Alternative Masculinities in Feminist Speculative Fiction: A New Man (2021). His research interests are positioned at the intersection of gender theory, speculative fiction, and utopian studies.

Sara Martín is Senior Lecturer in English Literature and Cultural Studies at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain. Her books include Masculinity and Patriarchal Villainy in British Fiction: From Hitler to Voldemort (2020), Representations of Masculinity in Literature and Film: Focus on Men (2020), American Masculinities in Contemporary Documentary Film: Up Close behind the Mask (2023). She is co-editor of Detoxing Masculinity in Anglophone Literature and Culture: In Search of Good Men (2023, co-edited with M. Isabel Santaulària).