You can't stop her: Elektra re-configured

This chapter examines the configuration of the comic book character Elektra Natchios in both the original graphic format, through to the 2005 film adaptation directed by Rob Bowman. An examination of the character's origins in Greek tragedy - specifically the tragedy written by Sophocles - leads to an examination of the character in the comic books. An analysis of key scenes from Bowman's film follows. The article argues that the character's connection with strong females from antiquity, and her complex development through the comic books as interpreted in Bowman's film, paved the way for women in the contemporary Marvel Cinematic Universe (beginning 2008), who tend to give as good as they get to their male counterparts. Furthermore, the performance of the character in key fight sequences of Bowman's film suggests that it is through the action-image, rather than the affect-image, that these strong characters are configured.