Did Twilight really suck that much?

[Lilani]

Yes, the series is basically teaching women that they need to be co-dependent and rely on a man all the time (hell, Bella tries to off herself multiple times simply because her high-school relationship didn't work out), but at the same time telling women it is acceptable to lead a man on even if you have agreed to marry someone else.

Bella flat out tells Jacob she loves him (and I think she kisses him) not moments after she has agreed to marry Edward, and I know Twilight fans who believe this was perfectly acceptable for Bella to do.

Yes, because females develop their sexuality and perceptions of gender-roles solely through media, just as much as men do. Perhaps we should also get rid of Conan the Barbarian, He-Man, and all those other "Here, I'm the guy so I'll go fight all the baddies so you'd better stay in the kitchen and wait for me, *****" types of shows and comics.

Good God, man it's fiction. I read the books when I was a younger teenager in high school, and they made absolutely no changes to my feelings on sexuality, relationships, or gender-roles. I found it entertaining, and found myself staying up into all hours of the night to read them. One could argue that the younger more impressionable and obsessed folk reading it could gain SOME odd traits from it (I once heard of a girl who dumped her boyfriend because he didn't look enough like Edward), but ultimately that's not how society functions and one way or another they will learn that. They'll grow out of it, because society will demand that they move on. Once the last of the movies are out and the whole vampire trend calms down the 13 year old girls of the next generation will find something else to obsess over, and it will be the Twi-Hards touting the merits of their obsessions.

Twilight actually brought me back to reading after a long time of avoiding them like the plague. In elementary and middle school, I had to participate in this horrible program that required you to read certain books at certain levels, each of which was worth "points" which you earned to get to a goal. The book levels you were allowed to read were based on tests you took, and you could never read books for points outside of that level. Also, it was half of your english grade, so if you didn't hit your goal it was a massive hit to your report card. That whole system destroyed any enjoyment I had in reading, so for several years after I was done with it I never picked up a single book.

Then Twilight came along. It was engaging, easy to read, and best of all I wasn't required to read it. It sucked me right in, and I knew I could read it for fun and there wouldn't be some stupid test I'd have to take at the end. And now I hardly go anywhere without a book in hand. As cheesy as it sounds, Twilight gave me just the push I needed to show me that books aren't evil and can be very fulfilling. I knew it was cheesy, but it was my guilty pleasure. Like a big block of cheap chocolate from the corner store. Cheap, but easy to get and oh so satisfying.

So that's my Twilight story. Now get off your high-horse and let the little girls obsess over whomever they want. Back in my day it was boy-bands, now it's this. 13 year old girls obsessing over men much older than them in a "dominant" position of power (rich singer, vampire, what have you) is far from a new concept, and I know for a fact Twilight will not be the last instance of this.

 

[UnderCoverGuest]

Probably not. It's the effect it created that drove me to insanity.

 

[b4k4]

So I was browsing the forums and I saw a Twilight hate comment. And that brang back memories of other people hating on Twilight. And more. AND MORE. And I have to ask, did it really suck that much? Was it really that bad? i read it and thought it was fine. There were a few good bits, a few bad bits, and Bella is about as emotional as a box, but I didn't want to gouge out my eyes over it. Ok, so it didn't exactly blow my mind. But all it was was average. A lot of books are average! I don't hate (and this is just me looking at a random book that I didn't like all that much) Endymion Spring entirely because I forgot about it 20 minutes after finishing. So why do people hate Twilight so much?

EDIT: The BOOK people. THE BOOK.

Well, I read the books, because I'm one of those people who tries not to be all judgmental of something until I've partaken of it.

My general perceptions of it were that it's not the horrible piece of steaming literary crap that most internet users would have you believe, but it's not the timeless love story of a generation that the fangirls mark it as either. As a book, it's average. If you're the kind of person who's into romance or the whole sexy vampire thing, it's worth a look, but my tastes lie elsewhere when it comes to books. I won't say my life is any poorer for having read it, but yours won't be any poorer for having not read it.

 

[b4k4]

So I was browsing the forums and I saw a Twilight hate comment. And that brang back memories of other people hating on Twilight. And more. AND MORE. And I have to ask, did it really suck that much? Was it really that bad? i read it and thought it was fine. There were a few good bits, a few bad bits, and Bella is about as emotional as a box, but I didn't want to gouge out my eyes over it. Ok, so it didn't exactly blow my mind. But all it was was average. A lot of books are average! I don't hate (and this is just me looking at a random book that I didn't like all that much) Endymion Spring entirely because I forgot about it 20 minutes after finishing. So why do people hate Twilight so much?

EDIT: The BOOK people. THE BOOK.

Well, I read the books, because I'm one of those people who tries not to be all judgmental of something until I've partaken of it.

My general perceptions of it were that it's not the horrible piece of steaming literary crap that most internet users would have you believe, but it's not the timeless love story of a generation that the fangirls mark it as either. As a book, it's average. If you're the kind of person who's into romance or the whole sexy vampire thing, it's worth a look, but my tastes lie elsewhere when it comes to books. I won't say my life is any poorer for having read it, but yours won't be any poorer for having not read it.

 

[Metropocalypse]

I like vampires, I like werewolves, I like fantasy, I actually surprisingly like teen school dramas. Yet I found Twilight to be one of the slowest, most uninteresting, boring films I've ever seen in my life.

No artistic quality, that's fine because there are entertaining mindless non-artistic films. But this wasn't even entertaining, there was no tension... absolutely nothing. Even the plot itself... it didn't grip me... there was no strong theme or anything that made me care about the characters or whatever happened to them. And even if I did, I got the impression they were just making things hard for themselves.

 

[limeyman]

I saw about the first half an hour of the movie and I just couldn't get past it. I do NOT hate the movie though. I don't like it but hate is too strong a word to use for it. It's boring is all I can say. Now what I DO hate is the source material. The novels are terribly written and the characters are just awful. I'm okay with the fact that she tried to update vampires for a more modern medium. Great! It wasn't done well but we need to move on and update for the modern times! But the characters are SO 2-dimensional it frustrates me to no end that this thing actually got a fan-base mostly because (opinion) it appeals to the eye of the teenage girl (and homosexual males coming to terms with their lifestyle if a couple of my friends are anything to go by)

 

[limeyman]

So in summary, it doesn't SUCK but it desperately needs some editing attention from someone with skill in the prose field.

 

[Instinct Blues]

If the movies are anything to go off of I'd say they're terrible because the three leads are the most boring characters. Every single other character is more interesting than the ones that we spend the most time with. I mean they literally do nothing Bella acts like a complete retard for the entirety of the movies. Even though she could have a normal human boyfriend and normal human friends she chooses the vampire for no other reason than she thinks hes handsome.

It'd be different if she was an outcast at school and the only one she related to was Edward, but thats not how it goes. Also Edward only likes her because he can't read her mind, which I admit he should be intrigued by, that doesn't mean he needs to pursue her as a girlfriend. Anyways he probably can't read her mind because theres nothing there to read.

I've never read the books, but from what I can gather from excerpts is they are pretty badly written. Overall the films are average and would have been better if the leads weren't all as boring as watching grass grow, but you can't blame them its just the characters they were given to play. If we spent a little more time with the vampire who was in the Civil War, or the one who was viciously beaten turned vampire and went on a revenge mission. Then the movies would be more interesting. Instead of it going like this "Edward, I want to be a vampire" "Bella you can't be a vampire" *Bella sulks for a day or two* rinse and repeat until you fill up the runtime of the movie.

 

[intheweeds]

So I was browsing the forums and I saw a Twilight hate comment. And that brang back memories of other people hating on Twilight. And more. AND MORE. And I have to ask, did it really suck that much? Was it really that bad? i read it and thought it was fine. There were a few good bits, a few bad bits, and Bella is about as emotional as a box, but I didn't want to gouge out my eyes over it. Ok, so it didn't exactly blow my mind. But all it was was average. A lot of books are average! I don't hate (and this is just me looking at a random book that I didn't like all that much) Endymion Spring entirely because I forgot about it 20 minutes after finishing. So why do people hate Twilight so much?

EDIT: The BOOK people. THE BOOK.

It's a terribly pandering story. I think that's it. That and the vacuous and pathetic attitude of Bella through most of it. Really, Bella? By the end of it I had a hard time believing any woman would still be putting up with all that crap. Ever heard of being happy alone?

However...

When you get past that it is mindless entertainment for those that are into that sort of thing. If you aren't you will hate it. Same as 'Die Hard' like movies/media (CoD anyone?). If you are into mindless explosions and don't care about story, then you will have a good time. If you are into mindless romance with stupid cheesy plots then you will enjoy this. It is absolutely awful, but there isn't anything inherently wrong with that. Everyone just wants mindless entertainment sometimes.

One doesn't have to spend all their entertainment time on literary and theatrical masterpieces. Sometimes you want an excellent and intelligent storyline, and sometimes you just want to rock the headshots. Nothing wrong with that.

Some people will always feel the need to tell everyone else what they should be doing/liking. Why can't you let each have his/her own? I will never understand that.

 

[AVATAR_RAGE]

So I was browsing the forums and I saw a Twilight hate comment. And that brang back memories of other people hating on Twilight. And more. AND MORE. And I have to ask, did it really suck that much? Was it really that bad? i read it and thought it was fine. There were a few good bits, a few bad bits, and Bella is about as emotional as a box, but I didn't want to gouge out my eyes over it. Ok, so it didn't exactly blow my mind. But all it was was average. A lot of books are average! I don't hate (and this is just me looking at a random book that I didn't like all that much) Endymion Spring entirely because I forgot about it 20 minutes after finishing. So why do people hate Twilight so much?

EDIT: The BOOK people. THE BOOK.

People hate it for many reasons, but the main one being the film. Which combined what was a mediocre (at best) story with terrible acting.

Additionally it messed with the concepts of vampires and were-wolves, turning the two biggest beasties in gothic horror into well "a which guy is cuter" contest. And don't say it isn't because it is.

I would like to point out that I actually find the vampires of the Twilight universe infuriating, and not just because they sparkle but because they are relatively two dimensional

 

[soes757]

Yes it is.
I think characters are half of a book.
This character is asking for a boot to the face.

 

[socialtangent]

Twilight honestly isn't the worst thing I've ever seen. I read through the first book out of curiosity, and I'd give it a 5.5 or 6 out of 10. It's by no means a good series, but it's also not the worst one ever written. In my time reading, I've seen worse. Much worse.

 

[funguy2121]

So I was browsing the forums and I saw a Twilight hate comment. And that brang back memories of other people hating on Twilight. And more. AND MORE. And I have to ask, did it really suck that much? Was it really that bad? i read it and thought it was fine. There were a few good bits, a few bad bits, and Bella is about as emotional as a box, but I didn't want to gouge out my eyes over it. Ok, so it didn't exactly blow my mind. But all it was was average. A lot of books are average! I don't hate (and this is just me looking at a random book that I didn't like all that much) Endymion Spring entirely because I forgot about it 20 minutes after finishing. So why do people hate Twilight so much?

EDIT: The BOOK people. THE BOOK.

Laughed at the edit. Folks don't like to read more than they have to

Mediocrity should not be lauded, it should be called what it is. "OK" is not okay. "Fine" is not good enough. Also: see the last Escape to the Movies episode on the Twilight films. What Bob said is true of the books as well. We shouldn't be raising our girls to be soulless whores or to be moralist ice queens. Proponents of both, in the case of the Twilight books/movies the former, are equally deplorable.

Also: vampires who just twinkle in the sunlight. Oh my God, how uninspired. Call me when this author has a coherent, original thought beyond "If I merge elements of genre A with elements of genre B, I'll end up with X!"

 

[Sariteiya]

I read it because I work in a bookstore and had everyone from Tween girls to middle aged housewives telling me I HAD to read it. I figured give it a chance, then at least I'd have an informed opinion.

It was... Pretty bad. There's the skeleton of a decent love story in there, but it's pretty buried beneath all the "Oh my god he's so handsome!" gushing description, and the vampire silliness. I'm not kidding about the description. Every other line with this stuff. She uses the words "Like a Greek God," at least twice.

Also there are some serious flaws in her characterization. We've all heard that Edward comes off creepy, stalkerish and frankly kind of abusive, and it's true. Watching a 16 year old stranger in her sleep is NEVER not creepy. But what struck me is the only personality Bella seems to display is her tendency to be an enormous *****. For some odd reason all the boys at her new school seem to think she's the cat's pajamas, but her internal monologues on the subject clearly state that she thinks they're completely useless and idiotic. She also treats her well meaning Dad like garbage, and has no qualms about his last impression of her being a hurtful *****.

Overall I came off feeling this was kind of a hurtful book for girls to read. There's really not a lot in this book that sets a good example.

 

[sabercrusader]

I actually have read the first book. I thought it was incredibly boring untill the very end. The book was insanely horrible, but I thought it was pretty bad.

 

[Rex Fallout]

I suppose people hate it for the same reason people hate Call of Duty. Because it's popular. Or something.

Oh no it's because it made vampires gay. Remember how freaking awesome Dracula was? He was a BA! Now Vampires are sparkly. Think about it.

I've decided to concede that fine, twilight can destroy the coolness of vampires. But I swear she even touches Dinosaurs and shit is going DOWN!

 

[Boletes Net]

I hated it untill i watched it (the first one) it was really well done and a totally differnt take on vampires im not a huge fan but it was alright

 

[Breaker deGodot]

If the series had a different protagonist than Bella Swan, I wouldn't hate it anywhere NEAR as much. Yes, Edward is a stalker. Yes, Jacob is a pseudo-pedophile. But Bella is pure, undiluted EVIL. The way she uses the men around her make my skin crawl.
Actually, you know what? Twilight is a great series if you assume that Bella is meant to be the villain.

 

[the spud]

Because teenage girls at my school won't shut the fuck up about it. They claim it is the most deep, emotional, and engaging piece of art since Da Vinci's day. It's not, it's just boring.

 

[Yuno Gasai]

Actually, you know what? Twilight is a great series if you assume that Bella is meant to be the villain.

That made me giggle. :3

You raise a fair point, though. Ms Swan isn't entirely devoid of personality.. She's manipulative.

As for my personal opinion of the series.. I'm kind of indifferent. I read the books (though I forget why - think they were recommended to me or something) and wasn't overly impressed with them, if I'm honest. The writing style irked me.

My friends make a point of watching every Twilight film as it's released, so I usually tag along. I find the films to be highly irritating, if only because they're so bad. :3