Being Bionic: The World of TV Cyborgs

by Bronwen Calvert

Overview

The contradictions and complexities of the cyborg therefore hold particular appeal to programme makers of dramatic TV narratives. Bronwen Calvert examines the uses and representations of the cyborg in this ground-breaking text, by looking at its frequent appearance in a wide variety of popular and cult shows: from the iconic Daleks of Doctor Who and bionic female empowerment in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, to the duality of humanoid and distinctly robotic cyborgs in Battlestar Galactica. In doing so, she reveals how television's defining traits shape our experience of cyborgs and help us as viewers to question contemporary issues such as surveillance and terrorism, as well as the function of simulation and ultimately what it means to be human.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781784536480
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/30/2017
Series:	Investigating Cult TV
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.53(d)

About the Author

Bronwen Calvert is Associate Lecturer at the Open University in the North of England.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations viii

Acknowledgements x

Introduction: Troubled Boundaries and Transformative Cyborgs 1

1 Exterminate, Upgrade: Doctor Who 20

2 Resistance, Assimilation and the Collective: Star Trek: The Next Generation and Voyager 45

3 Toasters and Replicas: Batllestar Galactica 68

4 'Between Life and Death': Embodiment and Virtuality in Caprica 91

5 The Cyborg as Action Hero: Bionic Woman 114

6 Us and Them: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles 136

7 Hacking the System: Dollhouse 158

8 Complete Control: Fringe 182

Conclusion: Cyborg Futures 206

Notes 215

Filmography and TV 222

Bibliography 224

Index 237

Editorial Reviews

Bronwen Calvert's Being Bionic is an insightful and comprehensive exploration of a fascinating subject: a treatise that is both instructive and accessible to the general reader. Highly recommended." - Eric Brown, author of Helix and science fiction reviewer for The Guardian #
"Being Bionic considers these bizarre, fascinating and often conflicted amalgams of flesh and machine as presented across fifty years of television, paying special attention to the humanity that may or may not lurk within their cybernetic shells. Author Bronwen Calvert guides our attention, in particular, to the oft-overlooked yet ever-expanding representations of the female cyborg such as Seven of Nine and the Bionic Woman alongside other unforgettable portrayals of cyborgs in popular entertainment.--Dayton Ward, best-selling author of the Star Trek: The Original Series books

Bronwen Calvert's Being Bionic: The World of TV Cyborgs is an important exploration of an important subject. From Doctor Who to Dollhouse, from Battlestar Galactica to Bionic Woman, Calvert's scholarly erudition and probing interpretations illuminate the nature of our cyborgs, of ourselves.--Rhonda Wilcox, Gordon State College, USA; author of Why Buffy Matters

Calvert's Being Bionic offers a much needed critique of the cyborg in contemporary science fiction television. Using both new and classic examples - from series such as Star Trek and Doctor Who, to Dollhouse and Fringe - Calvert convincingly argues that television allows for important and unique commentaries on the cyborg as cultural metaphor. More than film now, the television cyborg is omnipresent, and routinely questions what it means to be human and our relationship with technology. Assimilate this book and enjoy!--Lincoln Geraghty, University of Portsmouth

From the Publisher

Calvert's Being Bionic offers a much needed critique of the cyborg in contemporary science fiction television. Using both new and classic examples – from series such as Star Trek and Doctor Who, to Dollhouse and Fringe – Calvert convincingly argues that television allows for important and unique commentaries on the cyborg as cultural metaphor. More than film now, the television cyborg is omnipresent, and routinely questions what it means to be human and our relationship with technology. Assimilate this book and enjoy!

Lincoln Geraghty

Bronwen Calvert’s Being Bionic: The World of TV Cyborgs is an important exploration of an important subject. From Doctor Who to Dollhouse, from Battlestar Galactica to Bionic Woman, Calvert's scholarly erudition and probing interpretations illuminate the nature of our cyborgs, of ourselves.

Rhonda Wilcox

Bronwen Calvert's Being Bionic is an insightful and comprehensive exploration of a fascinating subject: a treatise that is both instructive and accessible to the general reader. Highly recommended." – Eric Brown, author of Helix and science fiction reviewer for The Guardian #
"Being Bionic considers these bizarre, fascinating and often conflicted amalgams of flesh and machine as presented across fifty years of television, paying special attention to the humanity that may or may not lurk within their cybernetic shells. Author Bronwen Calvert guides our attention, in particular, to the oft-overlooked yet ever-expanding representations of the female cyborg such as Seven of Nine and the Bionic Woman alongside other unforgettable portrayals of cyborgs in popular entertainment.

Dayton Ward