From the category archives:

The Bad

Bella is Not that Great

in Movie,The Bad

As with everything created by man, nothing is ever perfect. (Maybe with the exception of a good air conditioner in the summer time.) But having said that, this includes any of the fictional stories written by those who have the courage and time to attempt a novel, short story, or humorous anecdote. Think about it. Take some of our greatest writers. Mehlville, Stoker, Dickens, Homer (not Simpson, although I am a huge fan); every last one of them have written incredibly original tales with unforgettable characters, and set in times and places that will stay in our memories for the duration of our lives. But, and this is a huge but(t), we can take any one of their stories and say, “Hey, if I had the chance, I would change this or that about this story.” That is what I want to talk about today.

I understand that there are some of you out there who will disagree with me, and forgive me Ms. Meyer, I am not attempting to besmirch your good name nor am I wanting to cast a gloomy cloud upon your story. I am just giving my humble opinion.

The character of Bella gets on my last nerve. There, I said it, it’s out in the open and if you are a teenage girl, I know that you are shouting profanity at your computer screen. That’s ok, it’s good to vent. Get it out, but while you are, let me explain why.

I have read all four of the books, I have seen the first two movies that have been made, and get the same thoughts either way. I think, to begin with, that she is way too stuck on herself. In the first book, she is way too standoffish for my taste. Yes, Kristen Stewart is a pretty girl. Not beautiful, but very pretty. Even with her natural attractiveness, her attitude in the movie and the book just got under my skin. She comes off as unapproachable in regards to the other students at the school. The only people that she initially warms up to are the rich, pretty kids. I know that there a people out there that will attribute her remote personality to “low self-esteem”, but I got to tell you, I think that excuse is more overused than the underwear I have on right now. To be honest, I think the biggest problem people have with self-esteem is an over-inflated one. People who avoid others because, and I quote one, “I’m just not comfortable around people like that.” Or how about this one. “I was brought up to be different.” This is my favorite. “We really don’t have that much in common.” What a load. These are just excuses for certain individuals to avoid those that they feel they are above.

My second reason is that Bella comes off as, not just aloof, but selfish. She never tries to look at the world through the eyes of Edward and his family. Yes, in the end when she becomes a vampire herself, she starts to understand the self-control it takes for them not to kill and consume her and all of the other humans around, but until that time, it’s all, “No, you won’t hurt me. Please, kiss me, hold me, let me be around you all the time, but no way do I want to marry you.” Get over yourself, missy. Give the man some space and believe him when he says, “I want to eat you.”

Along with the Cullens, she displays her selfishness with Jacob. Don’t start cussing again, I know the purpose behind why she doesn’t truly fall in love with him, but she sure does take advantage of his love for her. “Oh, please protect me, Jacob. Please don’t be mad, I want you around, but don’t kiss me, don’t hold my hand, listen to me whine about Edward.” She ain’t worth it, Jacob. Bail out, man.

If you can’t tell, I have been treated poorly by a female in the past, so I am letting a bit of that frustration out. It’ll be ok, though. I’m a big boy. In the mean time, enjoy the books and movies, but if you are a teenage girl, don’t pattern your life after Bella.

Let me know what you think,

The Hairy Piper

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Satanism and the Twilight Series

in Books,The Bad,Uncategorized

Well if this isn’t inflammatory then I’ll buy you a diet coke.  If you have read my last blog, then you may be a bit confused by this title.  Don’t worry, I’m not near as dumb as I look.

Let’s get started.  The topic of Satanism, in and of itself, would be enough to really grab people’s attention, but when we add to that the Twilight Series, a whole new group if readers tune in.  The first thing we must do is establish what type of Satanism is being discussed and examined here.  We could divide it into two categories.

First is religious Satanism.  With this, we are actually speaking specifically about the church of Satan that was founded in the mid 60’s by a man named Howard Stanton Levey.  This man later changed his name to Anton Szandor LaVey.  I’m not going to give his life story here but I do want to shed a little light on a few of their doctrines.  From all that I have read about LaVey, he was actually and atheist and on several accounts actually claimed that he didn’t even believe in an actual Satan.  This may come as a surprise to some people, but it’s not unusual.  Even though he had no belief in anything outside of this life, his writings from The Satanic Bible show a seriously thought out system of belief.  To put it in a nutshell, his version of Satanism taught a form of hedonism coupled with a chilling endorsement of revenge if wronged.  He did teach to do no wrong to another person unless they wronged you first, but whether or not another person has wronged you can be quite a subjective concept.

The second division I would refer to as cultic Satanism.  We have all heard the term “Satanic Cult” and that is exactly what I am talking about.  I am not trying to gloss over or sugar coat LaVey’s religious enterprise, but compared to the satanic cults, he was playing with kid gloves.  These are the hard core folks.  These are the groups of people who not just believe in Satan, Lucifer, the Devil or whatever name you want to give him, but they actively worship him and seek to influence the world around them.  They are the antithesis of Christian missionaries.  They believe and practice violence, “black magic”, and in extreme cases, even animal and human sacrifice.

My father is retired from the Highway Patrol in the state that I live in.  I remember one time when I was around 13 or 14, he came home from work very late.  I stayed up and talked with him about what he had been doing that evening.  Apparently, a man came to the local sheriff’s department, terrified, begging for protection.  He told them that he had belonged to a local satanic cult and that he had done something that angered the leader.  He also said that they were trying to kill him out of vengeance.  I have no idea what happened to this man.  It was many years ago, but don’t fool yourself, this kind of thing is real.

Now, does this have anything to do with the Twilight Series?  That is a tough question to answer.  First I would like to say that everything I have read about the author would lead me to think that she had no intention of creating a connection between her stories and anything satanic.  Does that mean that those people out there who are caught up in the worship of Satan and his demons care?  No, of course not.  Honestly, I am guessing that most of them would view her writing as too tame and, thus, uninteresting.

I do think that there is a good chance that somewhere on this planet that we live on, there is a person or people that have taken her stories of supernatural creatures and killing, and have used it as an excuse to further their spiritual pursuits down a dark path.  It is a path, in my opinion, that will ultimately lead to their own destruction.

I do not think that Stephanie Meyer’s books are inspired by any kind of motive that stems from secret satanic associations, but let us be careful.  I enjoy a good scary book or movie just as much as the next person, but there are others out there who enjoy them in a far more dark and sinister way.

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think.

The Hairy Piper

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