TVSquad

Even though TV Squad's very own John Scott Lewinski is fighting his way through hordes of overweight Rorschachs and pre-pubescent Chun Lis to get exclusive interviews and scoops on the newest TV news at the San Diego Comic Con, don't forget that our partners-in-crime from Cinematical are also there covering the latest flim-flam in film.

The movie side of the annual pop-culture cavalcade opened with one of the biggest names in the history of film and what could very well be one of the biggest names in the future of film. Director James Cameron screened a solid 25 minutes of his forthcoming sci-fi epic Avatar. Blogger Todd Gilchrist got a hint of the plot and special effects movie-goers can expect when the film hits theaters later this year and said it "promises to be both hugely entertaining and technically groundbreaking." Man, that's got me worried. That's what they also said about Titanic.

TV Guide has a couple of weekly recap shows about American Idol when it's on, but even so this seems a bit excessive. I know Twilight is a big hit with the kids, but is it big enough that we need a weekly hour-long show to build up to the premiere of New Moon, the second film in the franchise.

"This week we'll interview the cast and crew and show you some sets. Next week we can talk more to the cast and show you another piece of set. Ooh! Ooh! Wanna see an exclusive six second sneak preview of Jacob growing fur and a snout. Enthralling!" Sadly, this will probably work. If nothing else, it will get young girls watching ReelzChannel.

I have no problem with the behind-the-scenes specials we get to spotlight upcoming movies, but an entire series based on one movie seems a bit ridiculous. That said, maybe NBC should look at picking this up in case Leno doesn't work out. Make it a nightly thing. After all, there's more movies coming!

Even before I caught Twilight on the big screen, I was comparing it to Roswell, the great teen sci-fi/romance series that aired on The WB (and later The CW UPN) from 1999-2002. The Twilight ads and trailers seemed to tell the same story Roswell told more than nine years ago: A sensitive girl is saved by a supernatural hunk who makes it his mission to protect her at all costs. The two fall in love, but the relationship is complicated by his other-worldly circumstances.

It's not exactly the most original story in the world. This sort of thing goes back to Bram Stoker's Dracula, (and probably further back than that). Still, after watching Twilight, I was a bit shocked by its similarities to Roswell, especially since Roswell wasn't half as popular as Twilight. I haven't read the Twilight or Roswell book series, so I can't tell you if the similarities persist in print (but my friend Stephanie can). I can only compare the big screen and TV versions.

From major plot points to character motivations, these two franchises have a lot in common, but one clearly stands above the other. Let's compare, and you'll see what I mean: