THE TWILIGHT SAGA: An In-Depth Look by Christian

It has teenage girls screaming, fantasizing, and even crying. Footnote: it’s not the Jonas brothers. When was the last time you saw the Jonas brothers with fangs? Last time I saw them they were in some tight pants belting out a bunch of acronyms with their purity rings on. Then who, might you ask, has won the heart of every teenage girl in America? That title would belong to Robert Pattinson (R-Patz), who plays the vampire hero, Edward Cullen, also known as that British guy your sister is obsessing over.

Ever since Stephanie Meyer’s newly acclaimed, bestselling Twilight series has hit both the bookshelves and the movie theatres alike, teenage girls have been swooning, fainting, and even sobbing over the mysterious and “sexy” Edward Cullen. The story focuses on two star-crossed lovers, Edward and Bella, who are so passionate for each other that it’s almost unhealthy, but it still manages to captivate the heart of every girl who reads or watches it and paints the ideal image for “true love”. Basically, it’s like Romeo & Juliet with vampires, which I’m sure has Shakespeare rolling in his grave. Are you kidding me? When did interspecies love get so popular? What did I miss here?
Despite the fact that they may sound like the ordinary couple head-over-heels in love with each other, Edward and Bella are not the norm at all. Let me assure you that they are actually the complete opposite. Edward is a vampire, (who has been around for hundreds of years), while Bella is a pale, neurotic, seventeen-year-old (I smell a felony). After seeing this day-walking vampire at school, Bella becomes enthralled with Edward and it doesn’t take long for the two to fall madly and irrevocably in love. Three movies and a laundry list some of the worst movie lines in history later, the Twilight franchise still remains very much alive and, like the immortal vampires it centralizes around, seemingly undead.
However, conflict seeps through the cracks when a trio of other bloodthirsty vampires catch a scent of Bella’s tasty, nom-nom worthy blood, causing Edward to vow to protect her, even if it means he spends the rest of eternity hunting down the vampires that yearn to suck her blood so much. In the end, Edward prevails and so does love. As if this wasn’t predictable enough, the franchise still has consumed teenage girls worldwide and for some reason has become the biggest phenomenon to hit tween America since Miley Cyrus. Need I say more?
Because of its worldwide effect, there is no denying that the Twilight Saga is an international phenomenon. Through this global intrigue, a subcategory of fans have emerged, like the website TwilightMoms.com and a staggering amount of LiveJournal users that dedicate much of their free time to immersing themselves in the Twilight universe. Although males make up for a miniscule fraction of the primarily female fandom, they are still out there, further showing how Twilight does not discriminate against gender. However, Twilight is also viewed by a significant portion of males as one of the worst things to hit this planet since Justin Bieber. As a result, websites poking fun at the franchise have emerged. They are, in my opinion, a comedy goldmine because it's such an easy target.
One of the most notable aspects of this series is the love triangle between the main characters – Bella, Edward, and Jacob. After Edward leaves Bella in New Moon so she can be safe, Bella falls into intense depression and turns to Jacob. As a result, the two of them fall in love until Edward eventually decides he wants to come back (shocker!). The third installment, Eclipse, focuses on the love triangle and Bella’s choice: the mortal werewolf with airbrushed abs or the immortal, smoldering vamp with feathered hair and porcelain skin? Much to my everyone’s surprise, Bella chooses Edward (*insert sarcasm mark here*). However, in all seriousness, this is one of the most fascinating aspects of the story to me. The Team Edward-Team Jacob dynamic is, in itself, a pop culture phenomenon because it implicates that everyone get involved and voice their opinion on who Bella should choose. In fact, this past summer, when Eclipse was being marketed for its theatrical release practically everywhere I went, there was a Burger King commercial that centralized around the Team Edward-Team Jacob dynamic, encouraging people to get involved and win some sort of sweepstakes.

While its safe to say that most fans have sided with Edward, there are those that sympathize with broken-hearted Jacob. Me? I haven’t even read the books, but I’ll admit I’ve seen the movies. The bottom line is that I don’t really care who Bella chooses. But it feels like everyone else does – and I’m not everyone, am I?