VAMPIRES DON'T SPARKLE discussion

It actually really bothers me when people say that they hated Twilight because there's a weird and forced live triangle and that it's just stupid, but I don't like it for a different reason. In my opinion, Bella was a weak protagonist. She didn't really do anything for the first two books. The first book, she meets Edward and then she is a VICTIM of a vampire. She seemed to really be a victim a lot, and was rarely a hero. New Moon was just flat out depressing for me because it was so sad how they broke up and she had nothing to do with her life after Edward was gone. But like I said, SHE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! In that book, we were introduced a lot more to Jacob. I found Jacob to actually be annoying and because of that, I am Team Edward. Most people love Jacob because they think Taylor Lautner is hot (still true). ANYWAY, I thought Eclipse was actually really good because Bella actually stepped up and said she was willing to fight with the Cullens, and in my opinion, it just had a stronger and better plot. Finally, Breaking Dawn. I read this a year and a half ago, so the summer before 7th grade and the first half was scarring (especially the movie!) and I honestly don't think I was mature enough at the time to read exactly what Edward and Bella do on their honeymoon! Then, there was this huge buildup for the meeting with the Volturi and it just had so much potential for an epic ending for the series with a huge battle, but then, it ends WITH A CONVERSATION!!!!!!! THEY HAD SO MUCH BUILDUP FOR A CONVERSATION!!! Way to be anti-climactic! And it was right when Bella started to be a hero, Stephanie decided to end it with a polite conversation with the Volturi instead of having Bella fight for who she lived and what she believed in.

I was thinking earlier today about this and I realized: this story had so much potential that could have been shown if it was told in Edward's POV because he was the one that was always protecting Bella.

Sorry this was so long, but comment what you thought about Twilight and why you did or didn't like it!

I agree with you about Bella, and apparently so do a lot of people. She's just the most boring and annoying character I've ever read about. I think the writing in Twilight is bad, but my main beef with it is that it almost ruined the vampire genre.

If the vampire isn't up for ripping the throat out of a poor defenseless child for amusement,then it's not a proper vampire! I can just about handle True Bloods basic story line of synthetic blood allowing vampires to reveal themselves, but there are still plenty of bad ones in it. They're descendants of Lilith for crying out loud, and no one watches vampire films or read the books for the nice ones that just want to cuddle!!!! Rant over thank you

Paddy wrote: "If the vampire isn't up for ripping the throat out of a poor defenseless child for amusement,then it's not a proper vampire! I can just about handle True Bloods basic story line of synthetic blood ..."

I think some people do watch for the nice ones that just want to cuddle. But it's more of the "I can change him" variety. It's kind of a longish tradition, in fact. Angel and later Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Both brooding bad boys searching for redemption.
Lestat from Interview with a Vampire. I know many a girl who swoons over the the Kiefer Sutherland vampire in Lost Boys. Most of the characters from Vampire High. Young Dracula (later in the series.) Even Dracula, especially Bela Lugosi's incarnation, is very suave, elegant and alluring.
Vampires are very sexual and are seen as such by much of it's audience. They represent dark/taboo sexual fantasies for many people. Many people do want a vampire to cuddle, they want their vampire to have humanity, they want to root for them in their quest for redemption/soul/humanity, they want their vampire to be safe (although the level of safety varies.) Many series have both good "safe" vampires and bad vampires. That happened way before Twilight was even born.

And of course for the children we have the "nice" vampire. Vampires who do not kill people but are instead good friendly people. Count Duckula, who is quite literally vegetarian. Count Von Count from Sesame Street, who would much rather count than stalk and kill victims. Safe Vampires are common in children's and preteen media. Way before Twilight came along. I could get past Edward's safety, because Twilight is obviously skewed a bit young, as far as the first book is concerned. I could buy him being all broody, I could even buy his feeding on animals schtick (mostly because I read Vampire Diaries as a kid.) But his sparkling was just too hilariously stupid for me to get past.

And Bella is........well yeah, she's a twit.

I wasn't saying that vampires are not sexy, because that's one of their basic qualities. Dracula's wives were voluptuous, glamorous beauties, and both male and female vampires use their sexuality to hunt as a rule, but the Twilight stories and the like just take away everything that a vampire is supposed to be. They have toned them down to a sickly romance/young adult genre. What happened to the Dracula style and 30 days of night vamps. Let us not forget Dracula brought home a baby to feed his wives, and raped lucy in the guise of a beast. Brian Lumley's Necroscope series had vampires that were evil and sex charged, but these are old stories, and there just aren't enough books of that ilk coming out.
Twilight is just a spot on example of slushy,samey, boring vampire dross that the market is flooded with, and I, it seems, manage to buy too often because the write up made it sound loads better then it was. There are some good books being written, like the Dracula Chronicles by Shane K.P. O'Neill, but not often enough. It just seems that the genre is aimed at teenage girls that want to romanticize, rather then those of us that like the violence and blood, the battle of good against evil. I suspect what I've just written is totally not P.C, and if anyone is offended then I'm sorry, just trying to make a point.Perhaps it's just a case of needing clearer categories, I've got no problem with other people reading Twilight and the like, but I don't want too! Next it will be zombies that want to behave in a civilized way!!!!

Great comment Paddy

Paddy wrote: "I wasn't saying that vampires are not sexy, because that's one of their basic qualities. Dracula's wives were voluptuous, glamorous beauties, and both male and female vampires use their sexuality t..."

I agree with you there. I just thought you were saying that safe vampires started with Twilight.
Lol I think zombies are already becoming cuddly. I mean Warm Bodies, anyone?

Somerandom wrote: "Paddy wrote: "I wasn't saying that vampires are not sexy, because that's one of their basic qualities. Dracula's wives were voluptuous, glamorous beauties, and both male and female vampires use the..."

No, just that it epitomises everything that I hate in the genre, and is a perfect example to use that is well known. There are many other books equally as boring out there that give the impression they're not, but are just not as well known. Speaking of Zombies perhaps a few could be written into the twilight films and just randomly start chewing the heads and faces off the cast, that would get my attention LOL

Paddy wrote: "Somerandom wrote: "Paddy wrote: "I wasn't saying that vampires are not sexy, because that's one of their basic qualities. Dracula's wives were voluptuous, glamorous beauties, and both male and fema..."

Ahh I see. That zombie in Twilight idea would indeed make Twilight infinitely better!

Edward POV, or Jacob's. Jacob's POV would actually be pretty interesting. Bella pretty much skips over him. I mean, he has to be the most underrated character ever. From the heir of Ephraim Black(we don't even figure out about this until Eclipse- this is how badly Bella treats Jacob), who turned leadership down, to the boy who got his heart destroyed over and over again by a girl whom he continued to wreck his life form, to finally the person who finds "happiness" and solace once again, unfortunately, with the daughter of that girl whom he got rejected by.... ugghhh (imprinting stupid, Jacob should have gotten with Leah, it's a win-win).