Alright, this is a preview of the Twilight/SPN meta which will accompany the fic.

[bree_black]

You all know that I kind of like Twilight, right? Like, I've read all the books and I go to midnight screenings and stuff? I like it in a very qualified way, where I understand why it appeals but also am very aware of its flaws. I also think the treatment of Twilight fans (including by SPN and its fans) is really messed up and hypocritical and

Comments

[rule_number_7]

I like it in a very qualified way, where I understand why it appeals but also am very aware of its flaws.

This is a very good way of putting it!

[bree_black]

TY! <3

[erivar]

I don't like the idea of Sam as Jacob. Jacob was a rapist in the making douche. So it kind of rubs me the wrong way that he is supposed to be a Jacob stand in. I like it if he was just Charlie because Charlie was very supportive and loving of Bella. Even better, if he was Alice. Alice was awesome. And Jacob never competed with Bella. Wasn't it Edward he competed with? And it was partly Bella's fault(the other being Jacob)) that she couldn't be friends with Jacob. Even with my love for her(both book and movie version) she did a terrible job of laying down boundaries between them and should have given him an ultimatum. Same goes with her being friends with other people. Unlike Dean, she cuts off everyone else from her life in favour of Edward. (Although, some people have argued that Dean does the same in favour of Sam but i disagree as i see it the other way around but hey, to each its own) And what does Bella and Dean have in common besides a martyr complex? I am quite skeptical that Bella's line would sound any better or in-character

[bree_black]

Since I'm only working with the first film, Sam is Jacob in the sense of being Bella's friend. There's no wincest happening at all.

[bree_black]

I really enjoyed reading your comment, even if I don't have answers to all your questions yet (aside from reassuring you there's no wincest).

In terms of what Dean and Bella have in common, I can tell you that 85% of the dialogue I have him saying is identical to Bella's and, at least in my opinion, it still sounds remakably in-character. You may disagree when you read the fic though! I'm glad you'll give it a chance. It may be sort of strange, but fic is for experimenting, right?

I agree with you re: fan-bashing. (Except that I don't think there's anythign wrong with wanting to get into an actor's pants! A little harmless sexual fantasy never hurt anyone). ;)

[aubade_saudade]

You rly think it's easier to take him seriously bc he's a man, or bc he's Dean?

[bree_black]

Both.

[exmanhater]

It's really interesting to think about what changes in the narrative by making the Bella character male - I think you're right that it becomes less problematic, or that we perceive it as less problematic. I think, for me anyway, if Bella is a woman, I read all her actions in the context of what it means to be a woman in a patriarchal world, and so her passivity and emotional care-taking of all the male characters bothers me because the text doesn't question that that is her role. If the character is a man, I can read without that lens, and enjoy the actual narrative. And in general, we are all primed to take a man's actions more seriously, but that first thing is why I love stories with a male character in the role originally written as a woman's, because it means I get to read a story that's subversive even if the narrative is a traditional one. Of course, in a perfect world, I'd also get to read a story that's subversive and has lots of/varied female characters, but... That is what fanfic is for

[bree_black]

I am only working with the first film, as per the rules of spn_cinema, so I get to avoid all the Jacob pitfalls of later books. Which is good.

As for the gender switch, yes, I think you're right about all of it.

[pandafoot105]

Okay, this is really awesome.

Personally, I liked reading Twilight as a high school freshman, though I didn't feel compelled to reread or really get into the series further. I'm definitely on the not-a-fan side of things (mostly put off by controlling behavior on the part of the menfolk), but I'm a tad sick of the bashing. Above that though, really really loved reading your explanation for what you're doing. Because it made me think, and things that make me think - especially if they can go so far as to make me change an opinion - are things I really like. I also respect you for taking this plunge, along with stating that you love Twilight. I know a lot of people who deny they ever read the books, when I know for a fact they read them and loved them and raved about them at in the cafeteria. Muchos kudos for you

[bree_black]

I'm not sure you need to protect Dean/Cas from this fic anyway; it really doesn't do any harm to the ship, I promise!

I think people dismissing Twilight wholesale as completely without value is simplistic and deeply problematic, because it also means implying that all it's readers - overwhelmingly female, often vulnerable adolescent girls or oft-ridiculted middle-aged women - are total idiots, which they hear often enough!

It's much more honest and much more interesting to criticize Twilight while still trying to understand why it's had such an impact on people, and why it means so much to so many.