Introduction : "where all women wear spandex and know Kung Fu" -- Gender and the action heroine : hardbodies and the point of no return -- Gender, sexuality, and toughness : the bad girls of action film and comic books -- Alias, fetishism, and Pygmalion fantasies -- "Play with me" : sexy cyborgs, game girls, and digital babes -- If looks could kill : power, revenge, and stripper movies -- "She can do anything!" : the action heroine and the modern (post-feminist) girl -- "Exotic beauties" : ethnicity and comic book superheroines -- Kinky vampires and action heroines -- When the action heroine looks -- Conclusion : wondering about Wonder Woman : action heroines as multi-fetish.