Happy 20th Anniversary, Roswell!!!
Written by Erin a.k.a. EJ
I just turned 36, and I love Roswell today, as much as I did when it premiered 20 years ago! I had just turned 16 and started my sophomore year of high school, graduating in 2002, the same year the series ended. Back then, though, our fandom family didn’t have the social networking that we do today. I’m so glad that we found our way to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and blogs, giving us a chance to keep in touch, to talk all things Roswell, and to continue to show our support of the series and it’s cast, even after all these years!
We’re also bringing Roswell to new generations – so cool!
Five years ago, when we were celebrating 15 years, Crashdown.com offered a giveaway for some items from the ATX Festival, including a ’15th Anniversary Flyer’ signed by Brendan Fehr, Nick Wechsler, and Shiri Appleby, along with other goodies! We simply had to leave a reply on their article, explaining why Roswell is so special to us, even after 15 years. (See post here: Giveaway – Win A Signed 15th Anniversary Flyer, July 9th, 2014)
The giveaway was only open for a few weeks, but it was easy to write from my heart. This show truly means a lot to me and while this was written five years ago, I feel the same way today.
July 23, 2014: Why Roswell is so special to you: even after 15 years
Wow! Has it really been 15 years? It’s hard to believe it’s been that long; seems like just yesterday I was watching the pilot airing on TV. It happened at a perfect time of my life, too. In the three years it aired, I was going through high school and I graduated in 2002, the same year the show ended, and the characters graduated.Roswell mixed the teen drama with the science fiction so well and gave me a chance to see that I wasn’t the only one who had drama with friends and family. It showed me it was okay to be different and that I didn’t have to fit into a ‘cookie cutter’ mold of what a real teen should be. It assured me I could be friends with anyone, even those considered ‘outsiders’, because those people can turn out to be best friends. I can honestly say that some of those people I met in high school are still my friends today, 15 years later, because I didn’t judge them for being outsiders or being different; I got to know who they were on the inside, because that’s what truly counts.
Recently, I’ve been able to connect online with fellow Roswellians via Twitter (and other social networking sites) and I’m happy I’m able to make friends across the world who enjoy the show. It makes me wish we had better social networking sites back then!
I had a really good friend back when Roswell was airing on TV. We loved talking about it and we’re still friends, but we’ve been kinda out-of-touch the last few years. Because of the 15th Anniversary of Roswell, her and I have started talking about the show again, like we did back then, and we’re slowly rebuilding our friendship, so I’m also thankful to Roswell for helping bring our friendship back!
A few months ago, I got a chance to watch the series again. I still love it as much as I always have and I think it’s truly timeless. Many of the things the characters dealt with or did in the series are things teens now-a-days still deal with or can relate to – friends, family, relationships, love, romance, secrets, loss of friends, pain and depression, just to name a few. Even now, I struggle with many of these myself and I’m almost 31 years old, so it’s not just a show for teenagers. The Roswell characters may be in high school during the series, but it can be seen as a metaphor for life at any age.
Roswell also helped me keep an open mind about life in the universe. No one can say for sure if there is or isn’t life outside of Earth, our solar system or the Milky Way Galaxy, but maybe one day we’ll find out more. Until then, I’ll keep an open mind and I will always have Roswell in my heart!
(Link to my post: “Giveaway – Win A Signed 15th Anniversary Flyer – Comment“)
Yep, totally feel the same way today!
The Roswell fan/friend I spoke of – her name is Loni. Loni and I met online in 1998, in an *NSYNC chat room and became fast friends. Soon after, Roswell came into our lives and it gave us one more thing we had in common, even if she did live (and still lives) in central Canada and I live (and still live) in Western Washington State in the US. Through the airing of Roswell, we continued our friendship, and in the summer of 2001, her parents drove her out here to visit me! That was so cool! Such an amazing surprise and visit! I even remember going to a video store in the local mall and I ended up getting a huge Roswell poster of Max and Liz, that I still have to this day – still in its packaging!
Like many friendships, we communicated daily through email, chat rooms, ICQ and IM, but after Roswell ended and I graduated high school, our lives continued to get busier, and we slowly grew apart, because we couldn’t be online as often. We’d email as much as we could, but it wasn’t the same as talking every day, though it allowed us to at least know what was going on in each other’s lives. For example: I was one of the first people she told when she got pregnant and I kept her posted on what was going on with my mom’s health when she was sick with cancer and she felt my pain when my mom passed away five years ago; just two months after the giveaway ended.
Roswell was a huge part of our building our relationship and though we’ve gone through many ups and downs in our own lives, because of our love for Roswell (and many other things), we’re back to talking as often as we can. I consider her my sister, even if she lives thousands of miles away! We still ‘fangirl’ and can get into lengthy conversations about fandom related things and I’m so glad for Facebook and Facebook messenger, because I can not only video chat with her, but I can also build a relationship with her son, Max, too!
Yes, her son’s name is Max. His name did not come from Max on Roswell, but I still get a laugh out of it when we talk Roswell (I think she does, too!), because she was/is the Max and Liz fan, while I was always and still am the Michael and Maria fan. That’s probably why I’m so hopeful Brendan and Majandra can get Baron & Toluca picked up by one of the streaming networks! If we can’t get more Candy, we can at least get more of the actors who played them, with Roswell Easter Eggs!
I didn’t say it earlier, because this post is about Roswell, but I was blessed to be the lucky first prize winner of the giveaway five years ago, and to this day I still have everything Lena sent me from Germany – the autographs, shirt, notes, cards, alien guy; and even the tin of Tabasco chocolate – I never had the guts to try it, LOL! I’d never won anything like this before and it is still one of the best things I’ve ever won! Thank you so much, Crashdown, for this opportunity and for all the dedication you’ve had at keeping Roswell alive for our fandom family!
Thank you, Melinda Metz, for sharing your imagination with the world, by giving us the amazing Roswell High books that inspired this TV series!
To the cast and crew of Roswell – THANK YOU!!! You brought characters on paper to life and I’m so proud of all that you did for the Roswell series! It would not have been the same without you!
Today, I’m truly a proud Roswellian and honored to have been a member of the Roswell fandom for the past 20 years and I’m sticking around forever! Roswell will always be in my heart and I’m never getting rid of my Roswell stuff! I have the DVDs, the Roswell High books and some of the others, the necklace and a matching keychain, which has been on my keys since I got it – yep, definitely a loyal fan!
Thank you, to my fellow Roswellians, for letting me be a part of the fandom family and helping keep the Original Roswell series alive!
Cheers to 20 years and here’s to many more!!!
Love you all!!!
Erin a.k.a. EJ
You can find me as @EJ8302 on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!
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