Twilight

 

The Twilight Saga Is considered to be one of the most popular teen romance franchises ever. It spawned an absolute obsession over vampires for people mostly from the ages of around 13 to people in their mid-twenties.  While the saga was a world-wide love and obsession for many, there were also many who thought that the extreme lack of relation between the vampires in the story and classic stories of vampires that have been around for centuries made the story simply ridiculous.

          Twilight is about a teenage girl named Bella Swan who moves in with her dad in Forks, Washington after her mother goes way with her step-dad for his job. She is shy, quiet, and plain. Bella goes to high school and, on her first day, is told by other students about the Cullens. They are an unrealistically attractive group of teenagers who were all adopted by a doctor is town named Carlisle. Bella takes particular notice of Edward Cullen. Edward is mysterious and gorgeous, yet takes no notice of any of the girls at school who try and flirt with him.

          Edward and Bella seem to have a strange magnetism, though Edward seems to try and avoid her at all costs. He tells Bella that they cannot be near each other, yet he shows up wherever she is. Of course, they cannot stay away from each other and they fall in love. Edward tells Bella that he is a vampire and avoided her because her blood is much more appetizing to him than anyone else’s.

          The Cullen vampires, while quite dreamy, are much different than any other vampires. They have minimal weaknesses compared to other vampires. The vampires in Twilight have super strength, super speed, and their eyes change color when they are hungry and when they are well fed, almost like a time gauge. Not only do they have these basic vampire abilities, but many vampires have additional powers that are unique to who they are. For example; Jasper Cullen has the ability to control the emotions of people around him, Edward Cullen can read the minds of other, Alice Cullen can see the future, Zafrina can put images of her own creation in the mind of others. The main problem that seem to be with the saga is that the vampires do not burn in sunlight, they sparkle.

          While the saga plays on the most cliché of teen romance and fantasy type stories, I will not deny that I myself became utterly obsessed over the books. I absolutely loved them and understand the obsession. Nothing is more comforting than being loved by a man who is stronger than others around you, can protect you, and will live long enough to love you forever.