Last fall, while traveling to California, I blindly snatched a book off of one of the vending shelves to occupy myself on the plane, and like many, I quickly became enamored with the first book in the popular âÄúTwilightâÄù series. I flew from cover to cover. I knew I had to find the second book at the LAX airport to read on the flight home. Like many others, I was delighted to learn after finishing the fourth book that the series would be hitting the big screen. While âÄúTwilightâÄù did not disappoint its female (and maybe some male) fans with recycled, romantic notions, it seems there is something we love even more: Edward Cullen. IâÄôll never forget seeing my peers swoon over Leonardo DiCaprio in âÄúTitanicâÄù or the Hanson brothers. Today, however, when adolescents lay their heads on the pillows at night, they are dreaming about coffins and vampires. While this is certainly odd, there is something else that sets the âÄúTwilightâÄù fascination apart from more typical teen obsessions. The vampire du jour, Edward, has all the women wanting him, and all the men wanting to be him. Yet, this isnâÄôt just because Edward (spoiler alert) literally sparkles. Edward is like the jock; all the girls openly âÄî or secretly âÄî have a crush on him. Bella represents the nerdy girl with glasses, sitting in the back of the class, that the football captain overtly chooses to devote his attention to. The nontraditional fantasy gives every nerd hope and makes the movie irresistibly relatable. It gives the teen girls an opportunity to obsess over someone while avoiding the reality of heartbreak; it gives college women someone to compare their not-so-perfect boyfriends to, and it gives mothers the perfect opportunity to bond with their rebellious daughters while pining over the underage vampire. The concept that any male could be as sensitive as Edward is unfathomable to some devoted fans. He is protective of his love, Bella, almost to a fault. His chiseled features, combined with seemingly unbeatable personality traits, are what help Edward in replacing the concept of a knight in shining armor for a vampire with fangs. This past Thursday, lines outside theaters began at four p.m. for FridayâÄôs 12:01 a.m. release of the newest film in the âÄúTwilightâÄù saga: âÄúNew Moon.âÄù âÄúNew MoonâÄù has women choosing sides and picking fights over Edward and Jacob, the newest hunk in the saga. The âÄúTwilightâÄù mania is apparent in simple presale statistics. Movietickets.com has reported selling out over 900 midnight showings; âÄúTwilightâÄù brought in over 74 percent of the Web siteâÄôs ticket sales for the week. The new flick has even surpassed presale tickets sales for the epic film âÄúStar Wars.âÄù The passes were available for purchase as early as two months ago for some theaters, and entertainment news sources have been covering the movieâÄôs opening passionately. Whether youâÄôre on Team Edward or Team Jacob âÄî or even if you are spraying yourself with âÄúTwilightâÄù repellent âÄî the enormity of the film is undeniable. While crazy, fanatical teen crushes are nothing unordinary, the enthusiasm for all the films in the âÄúTwilightâÄù series is extraordinary. Even if fate had never placed âÄúTwilightâÄù in my hands the day I boarded my flight to California, I would likely still be engrossed in the âÄúTwilightâÄù addiction. Paige Vigil welcomes comments at [email protected].