Hot Topic is selling Twilight shwag, but the homemade fashions were much more popular this morning at Tempe Marketplace. The crowd for the 10:30 movie was strictly 30 and over (except for the toddlers and babies eager moms hauled along -- hey, this was local author Stephenie Meyers' crowd, The Moms) but as we were leaving, The Teens were lining up for the early afternoon shows.
Lindsay Komlos, 17, a Coronado High senior, was all about Edward. Her pal Angela Kredlo, 18, an ASU freshman, prefers Jacob. (See them in their tees, above. And for more Twilight pics, see our slideshow from last night.)
Komlos and Kredlo promised they weren't ditching class, but I know plenty who ditched work (hey, I was there in an official newsgathering capacity!) to get an early glimpse of the much-touted movie, and the woman behind us hooted when she spotted our hometown girl, author Meyer, in an appropriate cameo, halfway through the film.
Last night, South Park did its own Twilight episode, complete with an, um, interesting take on Scottsdale.
The Valley was featured in the movie, as well -- in a milder capacity. Camelback Mountain was on display, as well as plenty of cacti and a dance studio I'm guessing is located anyplace outside metro Phoenix, but most of the scenery was up north.
Scenery, schmenery -- the crowd was there to see Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) come to life, and there was general approval from the almost exclusively female audience and some talk afterward about procuring just the right Twilight accoutrement.
Phoenix New Times' favorite Twilight fashions come in the form of silver charms sold by Francine Sumner, a local jeweler. You can find them at Changing Hands Bookstore or on Sumner's site.
And for more about Stephenie Meyer, read our own Megan Irwin's profile.
Although we bought our tickets early, Twilight was playing on so many screens (at Tempe Marketplace, at least) that it wasn't hard to find a seat. Still, expect the movie to be pretty full for a while. Several of my companions announced they intend to see it again this weekend. -- Amy Silverman
