Remember the insanity that is (was?) Twilight? The release of the fourth book, Breaking Dawn, the release of the first movie in theaters, the lines of screaming girls, the requests to Robert Pattinson to be bitten (he’s going to need therapy if people don’t let go of that one)… It all seems to 2008, doesn’t it?

When I first read Twilight, I understood why it had gotten so big with teens and tweens. On the other hand, I also understood why the phenomenon would always be limited to this population and, quite possibly, to this day and age. While Harry Potter books transcend age and gender, Twilight is aimed at too narrow a population. While Harry Potter’s writing is excellent, Twilight’s can only be described as good by the most generous of reviewers. While Harry Potter touches on universal themes of good versus evil, of making choices rather than letting go, Twilight is a romance.

Or at least, Twilight has been limited to a romance, while it could be so much more. Because the one thing Twilight has over Harry Potter is the sheer amount of debate is had created, but this edge hasn’t been adequately exploited. From the lack of purely female-oriented hypes at the box-office to the metaphor of vampires and their effect on feminism, debates were started all around us, but not many were continued nor encouraged on a global scale.

Which is a shame, because while Twilight could engender some life altering discussion amongst the teenage girls it has inspired to spend hours lining up for a movie ticket, the debates seem limited to Jacob vs. Edward. While many interesting articles riding the initial wave surging out of the movie’s premiere had been posted, not many have been followed up, and I have yet o find an online forum inviting such discussions.

I wonder why.