As powerful and impressive as the Twilight franchise phenomenon has proven to be, no one can deny that the series has its problems, both in film and book form. It has been ridiculed for having a bland "Mary Sue" as its protagonist as well as for being speckled with abusive behavior between teens that should in no way be the #relationshipgoals as they are routinely celebrated as by fans. The teens of the series still need a lot of practice when it comes to managing a healthy relationship, despite the fact that several of them really aren't teens anymore given their actual ages.
If any of the couples in the series seem as if they truly have it all together as an example of a solid, healthy relationship, it has to be Carlisle and Esme Cullen, the family patriarch and matriarch. Carlisle is known as the comionate town doctor, and his wife is possibly the kindest person in Forks, let alone her coven. The two have gone well beyond their pact to simply be vegetarian vampires, refusing to dine on human beings, and strive to improve their community and family as well. Even so, these two still have the issues that we have to grimace over, from their doctor-patient status to the questions about them that are never truly answered in the series.
From their unconventional meeting to their weird decisions as a couple, here are Twilight: 25 Things That Make No Sense About Carlise And Esme Cullen’s Relationship.
He's A Doctor Who Married His Patient
In many circles, a doctor marrying a patient would be considered taboo at the very least. Relationships with power imbalances can be particularly harmful, and lines drawn to keep personal and professional matters separate exist for a reason. Many people in power might take advantage of their status in order to gain the upper hand over a patient, while patients themselves might simply be after a rich and powerful person.
Many might argue that this marriage transcends the normal boundaries of doctor-patient borders, but it doesn't change the fact that he is a doctor who married his own patient.
They Settled In An Area With Werewolves
If you're a family of vampires attempting to keep a low profile, it stands to reason that you would research an area heavily before making plans to settle down there. The fact that the Cullens decided to live in Forks with the shape-shifting Quileute tribe already living there seems rather stupid.
Even with the truce between them on the table, the fact that the enmity between the tribe and the coven exists means that the Cullens were pretty much asking for a war at some point. Research your neighbors before you settle into a vampire-hating area, Cullen family.
What Are The Odds That Carlisle Would Serve As A Doctor In Both Columbus And Milwaukee?
Carlisle Cullen travels around a lot to ensure that no one ever learns his deep, dark secret: he doesn't age. In some way, it's the ideal life for a vampire bachelor who wants to see the world, dine on local fauna without detection and keep a low profile, but it doesn't make sense that he'd meet Esme Platt (nee Evenson) twice in his random travels.
After serving as her doctor in Columbus, he later saved her life and turned her into a vampire in Milwaukee, a city to which she had fled after leaving her terrible first husband behind.
They Adopted A "Kid" Who Is Older Than Esme
It's often pointed out that Esme Cullen is the oldest of her clan, but Jasper is actually older than his own mother. He may be stuck at a younger chronological state than she is, but he was born well before she was, making him older than... his mom.
This is so weird that it's a storyline often poked at when someone marries a person who is younger than his or her own child, making the step-parent younger than the stepson or stepdaughter. It just doesn't make any sense for her to be his mom.
Carlisle Had To Be Sweet On Her When She Was 16
Most fans say that since Esme was 26 when Carlisle changed her, it's not creepy that they first met when she was only 16 years old. If that's the case, why doesn't Carlisle change all of his patients who are ing? He only changed this pretty young thing who left such a big impression on him all these years.
This implies that he harbored some feelings for a long time. He also re the "happy girl" she was at 16, not the somber young woman she's become, as he turns her. This makes his motives suspect as he wants herself has a teen, who was still developing and practically a child.
They Repeatedly Enroll Their "Kids" In High School
If the Cullen patriarch and matriarch are so ive of their "kids," why don't they a better existence for them than the perpetual high school they are doomed to repeat? For anyone else, this is an endless nightmare, and the vamps not being affected by everything from blood spilled during fights to menstrual cycles still makes zero sense.
Why not send their kids on student exchange programs, or encourage them to "dress up" or wear makeup to enter much more interesting job forces? They could always leave and start a new gig when they start to look too young, which would still be more interesting (and meaningful) than repeating high school somewhere else!
She Fell For Him (A Much Older Doctor) At Age Sixteen
Having a crush on your doctor at the tender age of 16 when you're still in development is one thing, but marrying that guy is quite another. For many people, this represents an uneven relationship due to their ages as well as his position of power, resulting in a creepy marriage.
There are entire books, songs and movies written about young women who fall for their professors and other older men in positions of authority, but most of those make it clear that it's inappropriate, not something to be emulated as Esme's feelings are meant to seem in the books.
They Look Different In The Films
Like most of the people adapted from novel to screen, the Cullen family looks quite different from their book descriptions. To be fair, Stephenie Meyer created such impossibly beautiful people that it would be difficult to manifest their doppelgangers, but they definitely don't match on several levels.
Actor Peter Facinelli was much older than the age at which Carlisle was described, and he was supposed to be tired looking, with circles beneath his eyes. While Elizabeth Reaser had Esme's honey-colored hair, her face wasn't heart-shaped nor reminiscent of silent movie era starlets as Bella described in the book.
Carlisle Turned Her To Save Her From Harm
All four of the Twilight books are centered around one huge plot point: Bella Swan's choice. She defeats her own demise several times before the one thing that nearly ends her, her own child sired by her husband Edward, pretty much destroys her agency, leaving Edward with no choice but to turn her if he wants her to live.
It's ridiculous to focus so much on Bella's choice and not give Esme a choice in the matter. With her demise so eminent, Carlisle simply changed her without considering the fact that she'd already made a choice. Some find it romantic that he saved her life while others disagree, arguing that he stole her choice.
Esme Just Flat-Out Accepted Her New Role As Vampire Bride
After Carlisle changed Esme, we're expected to believe that the two hit it off quickly and lived happily ever after without all of the drama that Edward and Bella have going on. For starters, we don't buy it. It's too clean-cut, and it's weird that a woman who had just attempted to off herself was so eager to enter marriage once again (but more about that later).
It's difficult to believe that Esme found being a vampire so easy to accept, let alone being the bride of a man hundreds of years her senior who just conveniently made her into his perfect bride.
