The science fiction genre gathered pace in the 2000s as the decade spawned some of the biggest franchises in history of the sci-fi genre, feeding an almost unquenchable thirst from the viewing public. Here we had some of the most famous comic superheroes appearing on our screens in live action for the first time. Amongst them were the X-Men, Spiderman, the Fantastic four, Iron Man and even Superman returned after an absence of almost 20 years. New series of movies originated in this decade, such as Hasbro's Transformers, Riddick, and Resident Evil, whilst we had 2 more Matrix and Star Wars adventures to feast our eyes on. Remakes and reboots, too, were commonplace with the likes of Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, the Day the Earth Stood Still and War of the Worlds. For me, the decade would see the introduction of computer generated blockbusters like Avatar and two films from the Final Fantasy games franchise. For fans of Dr Who, it returned to the small screen after last appearing in 1989, re-establishing itself as the longest-running scifi tv series ever!

CGI

Final Fantasy

In Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001), Dr. Aki Ross was such a cgi character, and even led to Maxim magazine rating her as one of the most sexiest women ever! Made up of 400,000 polygons and each of her 60,000 hairs rendered individually, she is the most realistic computer-generated women to appear on the big screen at the time. Unfortunately, the technical details of Dr Ross are her most important aspects, as the character, I felt was rather lifeless. A dedicated doctor and pacifist, as well as an expert on phantasms is a brief but accurate description that will suffice for now.

In 2005 the second film was released with characters already established from the poular game franchise of the same name. Here we met Tifa Lockhart, a strong and independant woman who could kick ass when required, being an expert in hand-to-hand combat. Interestingly, the character actually never started in the video game until Final Fantasy VII.

Back to Apes

Women in Black

More shape shifting from Sarleena in Men in Black II (2002). Problem here is that when she isn't the raven-haired lingerie model, she's actually a plant-like hydra and quite nasty! We don't see much of Lara Flynn Boyle in sci-fi, which is a shame because she is a cert in this genre.

The Matrix..

We've met the Matrix in the previous decade where the film fdebuted, but Persephone didn't appear until the second chapter. Taken from Grrek mythology, Persephone is the wife of Hades, god of the underworld or hell as we know it better. She was portrayed by the very beautiful Monica Belucci as a bored wife looking for the meaning of love and became an ally for good.

Kyra

When I first saw The Chronicles of Riddick (2004), I didn't really see it from a sci-fi babe point of view as I just enjoyed what I thought was a good character performance by Vin Diesel and Karl Urban. But the next few times I watched it, Kyra really grew on me, and it's a tragedy that the character, played by Alexa Davalos, was killed off! Kyra is one of the best kick-ass babes there is, with her gymnastic style fighting and athletic build.

The Trinity

I was surprised but happy to discover that Blade Trinity (2004) was listed as sci-fi on IMdB. Happy because it meant I could list Jessica Biel's character, Abigail Whistler. Abby falls into the kick-ass category, or more accurately, kick-vampire-ass category. I can only imagine that Jessica trained for the film, as she appeared very fit, with nicely toned muscles and the fighting scenes were convincing. I particularly enjoyed the scene where Abby put on her earphones and listened to her mp3 player whilst fighting. Here she is...

Aeon Flux

Now, I've seen Aeon Flux (2005) a few times and I still can't get over the genius of the casting of Charlize Theron in the film. Normally a preferred, but gorgeous none-the-less, blonde, she transformed into the dark-haired spandex-wearing Aeon. The character has great combat skills, which, when combined with her gymnastic qualities, makes her an effective assassin.

The Island

I loved The Island (2005) mainly for some great performances, but seeing Scarlett Johansson as Jordan 2 Delta is a good reason to watch it again...she just oozes sex appeal and her on-screen relationship with Lincoln 6 Echo is electric. Not too bright though...

Ultra Violet

More of the beautiful Ukrainian Milla Jovovich, this time as Violet Song Jat Shariff in Ultraviolet (2006). She plays a fairly similar role to her other films, but more sword swash-buckling in this one..

Girl with gun

Here's Tracey O'Connor, playing Gwen Hunter in Girl with Gun (2006). She appears to be an ordinary working girl, but leads a double life as The Nightingale, an assassin who just won't let the innocent get crushed.

Resiklo

I haven't seen Resiklo (2007), but whilst researching for 2010 films, I came across this Philipino film and saw a character called Bianca, played by Jennylyn Mercado. I had to include her instantly. Another one to watch...

Transformers

At first Megan Fox's character in Transformers (2007), Mikaela Banes, seems like the proverbial piece of eye candy. That she certainly is, but there's more to the character than that. A skilled mechanic, biker and overall jaw dropper, she turns out to be a lot cooler than a lot of babes out there. Whatever you think of the character, she has more to offer than most. On the other hand, Alice, a robot appearing as a human and the inquisitive journalist, both added to the characterisation.

Super bitch

This sensual babe is the femme fatale of the Cobra, aka the Baroness. In GI Joe: The Rise of the Cobra (2009), where Sienna Miller she plays the ruthless villainess. Her rival was Afent Scarlett, equally equipped for combat........

Gwyneth

I never really considered Gwyneth Paltrow as a babe until she played Pepper Potts in Iron Man (2008), but she proved me wrong. She appears as an assisitant to Tony Stark, but later develops into the role of CEO and becomes infected with superpowers for a while. The cinema version of Potts does not create the character anything like the comic version unfortuneately.

Watch out:

We have another spandex-wearing babe. This time its Silk Spectre II, played by Malin Akermann in Watchmen (2009). An accomplished fighter, she's probably better known for her feminist views.

Good blood

I actually missed Terminator Salvation (2009) first time round - so here's Moon Bloodgood as Blair Williams. An expert pilot with good combat skills, she had what it took to survive in the harsh robot future.

Avatar

I always thought of Neytiri as something of a wild cat, defending her litter, right down to her hissing and acrobatics. Surprisingly, I thought I'd like this character more, but found her to be a disappointmment..

X-Men Origins

Kayla Silverfox in X-Men Origins, who was an old friend of Wolverine and even gave him that name, had the ability to persuade other to do what she wanted through her touch.

Pandorum

Not really a lot to say about this character. She was an inmate aboard a prisoner spaceship.

Assault girls

I haven't seen Assault Girls, but its another one I have got to see... update when I do...

Ashley Scott Gigilo Jane AI Artificial Intelligence

This was Ashley Scott's screen debut. She played Gigilo Jane, an artificial prostitute. She quite literally appeared for a minute and we know very little about the character. That is a real shame, as the image shows...

On to the small screen...

Bringing up a family in this decade meant little time for TV, although a noteable exception was the long-awaited return of Battlestar Galactica, which did not disappoint. To this end, much of this section needs to be viewed and the site updated, and finding the time for this is hard, just keeping up with the new stuff takes a lot of time. Ah well, at least I've tracked down some images...

Andromeda (2000-2005)

It's great to see the influence of Gene Roddenberry continue on our TV sets. Andromeda is based on ideas he had back in the 1970s.

Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009)

Although Number Six has appeared in different manifestations, it is the statuesque and incredibly sexy, platinum-haired version that Tricia Helfer plays which catches the eye. The character was actually a cylon (robot), designed to be so lifelike that it could infiltrate the human civilisation that survived an initial attempt at extermination. I think Number Six deserves her own page, but I'll leave this here for now..

Secondly, Not to be totally outdone, we also have Boomer/Athena/Number 8. Played by Grace Park, part Korean, part American, but actually a Canadian (work it out for yourself!). Before realising that she is in fact a cylon, she shows great compassion for the human race and meets her demise after disclosing secrets to save the life of a human.

One of the drawbacks of being strict about the sci-fi criteria is that, sometimes, a babe is missed off the list - but the possibility of having any crossover section to this site has occurred to me a number of times. Lucy Lawless is such an actress in question, but thanks to a visitor who pointed out that she played Number 3, or D'Anna Biers in Battlestar, I can now include her.

Cleopatra 2525 (2000-2001)

A very fit looking Victoria Pratt plays Sarge, who belonged to a group called the Dwarks (honestly). She had it pretty rough when she first joined the underground and this turned her into the kick-ass thug-turned-heroine who helps the others to defeat the Baileys..

Dark Angel (2000-2002)

If I've been guilty of harping on about how sexy Tricia Helfer was as Number Six, then I will be as equally vocal about Jessica Alba, particularly as Max Guevera. Max is a genetically enhanced transgenic super soldier (or x-5 for short), who escapes with others and leads an underground life and a double life as a messenger, until she is able to free the other x-5s. Alba had only just turned 21 when she made this, her first entry into sci-fi, unless I am mistaken, and some 4-5 years before she became Sue storm. She's often criticised for her acting ability, and is sexy enough to get a way with it, but I think she does a fair job here..

Birds of Prey (2000)

Barbara Gordon (AKA batgirl - see 1960s TV ) was zapped by that dastardly fiend the Joker in the line of duty Gotham city, leaving her paralysed, which meant she couldn't kick ass anymore. However, as a computer expert, now known as the Oracle, she fights crime from a different angle. I prefer Dina Meyer as Batgirl, even though she only made brief appearances in flashbacks. This is despite the fact that the Joker did  kick her ass, but she gave it her best shot and lets face it a tight leather costume is no match for a lightning bolt!

Another offspring, this time of the Black Canary, Dinah Redmond completes up the team. She's inherited her mother 's telepathic abilities, particularly telekinesis, which means she can throw you across the room simply by waving her hand! Rachel Skarsten plays the character

Firefly (2002-2003)

Now I will be honest and say that I missed this series, but I am, in the sole interest of research (honest) watching it through from the start. I haven't seen a lot of it, so I'll just update this page when I've seen it....

Mutant X (2001-2004)

Shalimar Fox, as the name implies has the abilities of a "feline feral". Well actually more cat-like than fox-like I guess, but don't tell the makers of the show, will you? Victoria Pratt makes a welcome return to our screens to portray the character.

Stargate Atlantis (2004-2009)

I suppose Teyla makes it into the collection, just. Born Rachel Zawadi Luttrell, this Tanzanian-born actress is certainly a looker, but is starting to show her age (sorry, but its true).

V (2009-2011)

I've tried to watch this as I enjoyed the original so much, but found it to be disappointing. The only babe I have seen is the Visitor Lisa, played by the very pretty Laura Vandervoort. I'll catch up with it sometime and update this section, as I'm sure I'm not doing it justice..By the way, Laura also played in Mutant X and Smallville (see below)

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009)

Still to watch through...