On Jan. 11, Colourpop Cosmetics released a collection inspired by the Twilight series, a series that is celebrating 20 years. The collection went live at noon and by 12:10 pm, the entire collection had been sold out.
As it’s been almost 20 years since the first book in the Twilight saga was published, and the story is still a large and prominent center in Teen and Adult Pop Culture. Despite not being a required reading for middle, high school, or college students, the book is still being checked out at libraries and purchased at chain book retailers.
Romeo and Juliet, The Great Gatsby, and other fictional classics hold up for so many years after publication because of their compelling, character-driven stories, so how does Twilight remain a title that is still in reading rotations today?
“There is a certain element of them that is just so BAD that it’s good.” said senior Audrey LaFountain. “They become easy comfort movies and books because there is nothing complex about them at all.”
The story follows 17-year-old Bella in her move from Phoenix, Arizona, to Forks, Washington, to live with her father. When she gets to Forks, she meets vampire Edward. It’s the typical cliche dynamic only with the addition of vampires and werewolves.
The first Twilight movie was released on Nov. 21, 2008, just three years after the initial book release. The film features Kristen Stewart as Bella Swan, Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen, Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black, Billy Burke as Charlie Swan, and the other Cullens being played by Peter Facinelli, Elizabeth Reaser, Ashley Greene, Jackson Rathbone, Nikki Reed, and Kellan Lutz.
The films allowed for the beloved page characters to come to life on the screen. Although these characters may not all be quite living and breathing themselves, they have been given a tangible person to envision these characters, play out their actions, and execute the lines from book to script.
The movies also introduced a new wave of Twihards (a fun name to describe fans of Twilight). Of six people who filled out a form about the series, all six had seen the movies or been introduced to the series through the movies.
In the eight years since the release of the Breaking Dawn (part 2) film and 12 years after the book was released, in 2020, author Stephanie Meyer released a new book in the Twilight series, Midnight Sun.
The book is the plot and storyline of Twilight told from the perspective of Edward as opposed to Bella. It allowed fans to get to see the inner workings of the brain of the vampire and also get many questions about his actions throughout the book explained in more detail through his thoughts.
Although it has been almost 20 years since its initial release, Twilight has held up because, at its core, it is a coming-of-age story. The story has elements of relatability and people are connected to the different characters whether it be Bella coming to terms with life, Edward’s difficult decisions, Alice’s quirks, or Rosalie’s struggle with not being given a choice.
The connections and love of the story have allowed the saga to continue to gain traction and companies to continue to create collaborations.
Hi I'm Ruby, I am a Senior here at OHS and it is my second year on staff. My activities here at the school include Choir, Rho Kappa, BIONIC, and Youth and Government
Twilight is life. Life is Twilight