I’m starting to see a pattern emerging in scifi shows, including Firefly, Blindspot, Zone Blanche, Warrior Nun, Dark Matter, and The Old Guard.  All feature a woman who has died, is in a coma, or is found in a state of shock after some kind of trauma and comes back to consciousness not remembering what happened–or even who she is.

She soon realizes that there is some kind of mystery associated with her that must be solved, because it not only threatens her own existence but that of other people. Sometimes, she has certain knowledge or special abilities but doesn’t know how she came by those things or how to use them properly. She may be so confused that others conclude she is crazy. But in the end, she’s the one who saves the day.

What’s this trend about?

Amnesia is not only forgetting, but a kind of death of the former self. Her journey is necessarily one of self-discovery, but toward the future; whoever she was in the past is someone else. She has to figure out who she is now and go forward from there. She has been remade, and now she has to make her life anew. As the plot unfolds, so does she.

The woman who doesn’t know herself, doesn’t know her own powers, doesn’t know just how big a threat she is to the status quo: is this a metaphor for women in general, only just now waking up to the realization that they can change the world?