5 Reasons Why Twilight Isn’t Completely Awful

21 July, 2014 Musing Musers, Random 31 comments

TwilightTwilight is the punch line to all YA-hate jokes most days. Hell, even I have shit on the series quite a bit (with good reason, I might add!), but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s a series that we all love to hate. It’s our go-to example of what’s wrong with YA. It’s the poster child of How Not To Write A Romance. I get it and I’m not saying the criticism isn’t justified.

There’s a lot wrong with it, but have you ever stopped to consider any of its good points? The other day, I was thinking about Twilight randomly and challenged myself to think about positive things about YA’s redheaded stepchild. Unfortunately, I came up blank and found one half of my brain mocking the other. So I thought on it a while and decided that there are some things that aren’t Completely Awful. Thus, the idea of this post was born.

 

5. The Movies

Yes, I am well aware that they are terrible, but hear me out. Didn’t you laugh your ass off for at least 3 of them? I know I did, especially Breaking Dawn Part 1 and 2.

-Renesmee-Jacob-renesmee-carlie-cullen-34321613-245-245

(This was the point at which I peed myself -Meg)

It’s like after Eclipse they secretly set out to change into a parody. I imagine it went something like this:

Executive: Looks, this whole serious approach isn’t working for us.

Director: You’re right. People can clearly tell we’re grasping at at straws and bullshitting them. I can’t even film this thing was a straight face.

Executive: Let’s change it into a parody and make it so people come see the movies just to have a good laugh at the book’s expense.

Director: Genius! Give Billy Burke more lines!

Looking back, I’ve always enjoyed going to see those movies during the midnight showing because of the die-hard fans’ reactions. It provided the perfect cinematic experience. Was it wrong that I went to the movie theater specifically to laugh at other people? Maybe, but the reactions from Breaking Dawn Part 2’s ending was so fantastic that I regret nothing!

4. Internet Memes, Youtube Parodies, Etc.

The internet is a beautiful thing, but it really spared nothing, not even the children, for all the Twilight parodies and memes. There are so many, you could literally browse the internet for a week and not have seen them all. It’s a thing of beauty. Here are some of my favorites.

Parodies:

The Hillywood Show has some of the best parodies of movies, but I really think they outdid themselves with Breaking Dawn Part 1. So much winning!

The next one needs no explanation. Excessive laughing may happen while watching. “That cake’s my most bestest creation. Why’d you eat it?”

Memes:

twilight-meme-wednesday-wear-pink

stalker love

Twilight-Meme

Gifs:

Dazzle

photo photo-23.gif

 

But what I really love was how creative people go with their Cardboard Edwards:

Creepy Edward

 

(Don’t forget this gloriousness -Meg (again) (don’t mind me I’m just elbowing into Steph’s post)):

aspire_to_be_buffy_not_bella_by_pstaight-d5khpjg(credit)

Twilight_STEAKEDm@u-1

(I don’t know where this originally came from, I’m sorry)

 

3. Shirtless Taylor Lautner

I don’t know about you guys, but I would totally watch Taylor and the wolf pack run around without their shirts for a solid 2 hours.

taylor-lautner-abs

I mean, THOSE ABS THO. How many does he even OWN? I’m counting 8.

Take it off Taylor

PLEASE. DO GO ON.

 (*drools* Okay, leaving now -Meg)

2. Awesome Soundtracks

Regardless of how much the movies suck, no one can deny the awesomeness of the music that has come from them. Because of Twilight‘s ability to truly touch people, several musical artists were inspired to write songs for the soundtracks. In fact, Hayley of Paramore, asked to contribute to Twilight‘s soundtrack with their song Decode. (Off topic: Man, I miss the good old days of Paramore before Josh and Zac left. SO SAD.)

 

There’s also A Thousand Years by Christina Perri and OH GOD I CRY EVERY TIME I HEAR THAT SONG.

crying

WHAT. I’M NOT CRYING. I JUST HAVE AN OCEAN IN MY EYE.

1. It Got a Lot of People Back into Reading… Including Me

As much as I mock Twilight and criticize it for its problems, I can’t deny that it’s what got me back into YA books. I’ve talked about this before and I’m not ashamed to admit this, but I LIKED Twilight before I hated it. I wouldn’t go as far and say I was obsessed, but it’s like something in me woke up and the next thing I knew, I’d discovered this whole community of readers.

Reading Twilight led me to find Vampire Academy, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Unearthly and so many others. Truth be told, if I had never decided to sit down on my couch and dive into Stephenie Meyer’s novels, I may never even have found Goodreads, met Kat and start this blog. It’s a little scary when I think of it like that, but interesting too. From what I hear from others, they have similar stories about about how they found YA. It’s almost like Twilight is this gateway drug to all things YA. Sure, it’s definitely not the best example of the misunderstood genre, but it’s a beginning that holds promises of something even better once you fall into that rabbit hole.

So the next time you see someone mocking Twilight, just remember, we wouldn’t have all these Really Awesome, Not Completely Awful Things thanks to its existence. Right, Bella?

K Stewart

(Man, that one facial expression never gets old!)

31 Responses to “5 Reasons Why Twilight Isn’t Completely Awful”

  1. Natalie Monroe

    This post is amazeballs. I liked Twilight back then too, but then I discovered Harry Potter (I was really late coming to the party for that) and never looked back. 🙂

    I heard the reason why Breaking Dawn 1 and 2 were such a dramatic departure from Eclipse was because Meyer didn’t like what the producers had done to her brain child and got her mitts on the franchise again. Ah well, least we got an abtastic Taylor Lautner out of it.

    P.S Have you watched Cinemasins’ video Everything Wrong with Twilight? It’s freaking hilarious.
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ghPsLcuLHHU

  2. Jill the OWL

    Ok the timing on this is funny since I was just watching the movies yesterday! I completely agree with your number 1 and I’m counted in on that. I got me back to reading full time and for that I’m thankful!

  3. Sugar & Snark

    Fantastic post! This stands out for me: 1. It Got a Lot of People Back into Reading… Including Me
    It’s so true for me!

  4. Lisa (Fic Talk)

    I, too, would not mind watching Taylor and the wolf pack run around shirtless for two hours. Nope. Not at all. *kicks off shoes, leans back in chair*

  5. P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex

    OMG the Breaking Dawn Parody… :O First time I saw it and I love the crazy stuff that come out of Twilight. Also, it got me into reading paranormal, and shirtless Taylor was um, *thumbs up*. This was a pretty spectacular post. 😛

  6. Kristen

    I love this post! I actually never saw either Breaking Dawns. We kept meaning to at least rent them to make fun of them, but never got to it. Maybe I’ll check them out from the library. Love the music in the movies, especially there’s a Muse song I love in it. And your last point is so valid. It brought a lot of readers back around, proving there are all types of books for all types of readers. 🙂

  8. Kayla @ The Thousand Lives

    I love to hate Twilight as well (and still have a running commentary whenever my sister marathons the movies – I’m pretty sure one day she’s going to shave my eyebrows in my sleep), but I do have to agree with all five of these points 😀 Especially the Lautner one! And I think the Twilight movies were the only midnight premieres that I went to besides Harry Potter, and it was the best experience just to see all the super crazy fans go wild.

  10. Sarah J.

    I miss the old Paramore, too. The last point is totally on point though. As much as I hate Twilight, it’s the reason I started reading in the first place so I do love it in a way.

  11. Jenna

    This. Is. Fab. I completely agree with everything…especially the soundtracks and scores.

  13. meghann m

    OMG, the last point it totally me! Twilight was the first series I binge read towards the end of college. After four years of no fun reading this is what launched me back into reading and I can at least be thankful for that.

  15. Liz

    I remember really liking twilight back in middle school(aw Middle school, the bane of my existence) but then I saw the trailer for the first movie and was shocked by how ridiculously stupid it looked. That trailer forced me to reevaluate the book and reread it with a critical gaze in an effort to understand why the movie came off as appearing so ridiculously stupid. I was shocked to find out that yes, the books were bad, I just hadn’t noticed haha so in that sense I am kind of grateful, the movies made me realize how bad the books were!

  16. La Coccinelle @ The Ladybug Reads...

    I never really loved Twilight… but I didn’t hate it at first, either. I gave the first book three stars when I rated it on Amazon years ago. But I read it way back when the YA market wasn’t saturated with copycats and before the hilarious awfulness that is Breaking Dawn. I didn’t become a hater until I read the fourth book and all the awful messages (which I’d tried to overlook up until that point) just couldn’t be ignored anymore. Stalking is good. Sexual assault of their daughters makes fathers laugh. Controlling relationships aren’t creepy. It’s totally acceptable to groom a baby to be your sex-buddy in seven years…

  17. Kristie

    I’m with you here on a few points. Definitely can’t complain about Taylor 😉 Also this was the series to start the soundtracks with original songs written by artists rather than just music. And I do agree with the majority of people on getting back reading books. Especially outside of school.

  18. Rita @ Weaving Pages

    I agree definitely agree with some of this!! My experience with Twilight was getting halfway through the first book before getting my hands on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. That resulted in the abandonment of my copy of Twilight before it volunteered to be turned into a piece of bookish DIY. I have never seen all of the movies- only a bit of the first one -but Taylor Lautner and A Thousand Years are the only Twilight things that I enjoy! I adore that song.. XD Great Post!!
    -Rita xx

  19. Laura Plus Books

    Ahahah omg I love this post so much! The parodies are definitely my favourite things about Twilight. I hate that it gets so much shit but like Twilight is just so funny! But at least the soundtracks are absolutely amazing. I will never forget the moment when I first listened to Supermassive Blackhole. And of course, Paramore! <3

  20. Rosie

    I’m a reformed Twilight hater. I sent years saying it sucked after trying to read the first book and then a couple of years back I read the whole series. There are some ridiculous bits in it, mostly Bella, but it was an enjoyable read.

    I saw the first film and fell asleep but the sound tracks are awesome, especially Christina Perri’s and Paramore’s contributions.

    Rosie x

  21. Rachel

    Hahah, I love this post. I don’t really ever make fun of Twilight, but I totally understand the criticisms. I think the thing that stops me is the fact that that series made up a HUGE part of my high school experience. My life and my friends’ lives were all about the series & the movies for a while, and at the time, it was a ton of fun. Would I ever tell someone “TWILIGHT IS THE BEST SERIES EVER SO LITERARY!11!!” Hell no. But I don’t think the series is allll terrible.

  22. Kristin @ My ParaHangover

    UGH… YES on #1!!! Best post evah! I really don’t need to say anything more, do I?

    “… do I dazzle you??” hahahahahaha!!! Why, yes, Edward, you do!!!

    and Kristen Stewart will never be better than the constipated expression she makes – fantastic!!!

  23. Belle

    I love this post! It’s almost too easy to mock Twilight these days. It’s true there are some good points to it, and I was obsessed with it back in the day! Obviously there’s something good about it that so many of us loved it.

  27. Mariya @ Mystifying Paranormal Reviews

    I love this post and it made me laugh too. I liked it, I’m not afraid to admit, but if I read it today I probably would’nt feel the same as when I read it before years and years ago b/c my taste as greatly improved in books. But one thing is I will always love this series for getting me to read. This was the start of everything where I got to read some of the most awesome reads of my life. Like Vampire Academy of course. And I’ve moved on to a variety of different genres.

    But OMG. I Love the gifs and the meme’s sooo freaking funny. Twilight it used for a lot of jokes and funnies and not what to do but I love it all. Gives me a good laugh. Haha. =)))