It was less than two weeks ago when Stephanie Meyer and the cast and crew of the upcoming Twilight movie presented a panel in front of thousands of enthusiastic fans. The response to the screening of the climatic fight scene between James, Edward and Bella was apparently so positive according to those who attended the panel that they could barely hear the panelists Q&A afterwards, above all the screams of approval. Deep, intelligent questions asked during the panel included “boxers, briefs, and nothing?” (Okay, trying to resist the snark here, but c’mon, that was just too easy.)

Following this, expectations for Breaking Dawn were running high for many fans. The anticipated final book to the series was released on midnight, August 1, with release parties planned across North America. More than 1.3 million copies sold on that first night.

This reporter attended the local bookstore’s Breaking Dawn release party with her sister and friend (and yes, we did wear body glitter to be properly ‘sparkly’ like any decent Twilight vamp, although we left the more elaborate costumes to others). Although we didn’t pre-order our book, we did take in the festivities happening at the store, which include a costume contest, make-over booth, trivia, scavenger hunt and many, many discussions on whether people were ‘Team Edward’ or ‘Team Jacob’.  

While the majority of attendees at the event were teenage girls, there were also more than a smattering of guys around, as well as a few fans over the age of 18 (including this fan!) Some Twilighter fan views while we all hung out waiting for the book’s release at midnight:

Zachary, 18 years old, and his friend Jordan, 16 years, a couple of the rare male Twilighters  -

“Twilight rules!”

“Freaking right!”

Jordan, 16 years old – “I’m expecting the Volturi to reappear, and for Bella’s transformation. I’m wanting her to come out as a newborn [vamp] and kick a LOT of BUTT beyond belief!”

Catrina, 15 years – “Personally, I don’t want to think about it, I just want to read it and find out.”

Kelsey, 18 years – “I’d like to see her pick Edward. I’d also like to see something quirky and fun happen at the wedding and I want to see what Edward gets Bella after she becomes indestructible.

Molly, 13 years old – “I really want to see her pick Edward, because I’m not too fond of Jacob.”

While the ‘Team Edward’ fans were out in full force during the weekend party, I had to turn to my 15- year-old sister to get a “Team Jacob’ response. Her reason why she prefers Jacob- “Edward isn’t funny. Jacob is.” Her other problem with Edward and Bella’s relationship? “Edward is boring. He’s always apologizing to her, and she’s [Bella] is always apologizing to him, and if she does become a vampire in the end, I think it’d send the wrong message to people. Giving up your life for a guy, I don’t think that’s right.”

(In full disclosure, I should probably admit that my sister and I have discussed these issues before and that we have similar views in terms of the Bella/Edward relationship. Yes, I know! Sacrilege.)  

The count down to midnight came quickly enough, and fans swarmed the tables to pick up their copies, probably staying up all night to read it through.

And then… well, judging from the response online since the book’s release, it seems that many in the fandom aren’t too happy about how the series ended. Also interesting is that it doesn’t seem confined to either the ‘Team Edward’ or ‘Team Jacob’ camps either, across the board it seems that many fans have been reacting to the series ending with disbelief, and yes, anger in certain cases.

Looking at Amazon.com’s listing of the book, the average review is three stars, with most of that average coming from the almost equally split number of reviews giving the book ‘5 stars’ or ‘1 star’. There have also been reports of fans returning their books and asking for their money back at some Borders stores.

Is the ending of the book a let down for fans because of its terrible writing and plot, as many have claimed online? Perhaps. But there may be other answers. Stephanie Meyer has been regarded as the second coming of J.K. Rowling, and expectations have been sky-high for her to deliver a tour-de-force story to wrap up her series. My own theory is that Breaking Dawn is collapsing under its own hype, with many fans expecting Meyer to deliver the perfect ending. But most series endings are rarely perfect.  I remember the issues that I and many other fans had with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, even though I did like the book for the most part. For my part, I haven’t finished Breaking Dawn yet (even I am spoiled for most of the key plot points) so I’m withholding judgment until I finish it completely.

In the meantime, for those fans who have finished, and need a place to laugh off the ending, I suggest heading over to LJ user cleolinda’s recaps. I’ve only read up to where I’ve gotten in the book but these hilarious recaps are probably your best hope to wash out that taste of disappointment in Stephanie Meyer and the Twilight series as a whole. And if you’re one of the fans who enjoyed the ending? Don’t let the haters get you down.

Most of all, Twilighters, play nice with each other! After all, we all have to live in the same fandom once the initial shock of Breaking Dawn wears off.

(Sources: MTV Movie Blog)