As 'Buffy's' Dawn Summers, Michelle Trachtenberg was all of our kid sister

The archetypal clip Dawn Summers appears successful “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” she’s greeted with a question: “What are you doing here?”

Portrayed by Michelle Trachtenberg, who was recovered dormant Wednesday astatine property 39, Dawn was introduced arsenic Buffy’s younger sister astatine the opening of the show’s 5th season. Despite seeming to person materialized retired of bladed air, Dawn was treated arsenic if she had been a portion of the amusement the full clip and audiences, including me, initially were puzzled implicit her summation to the story. (Spoiler: It was magic.)

For immoderate of us, Trachtenberg was already a acquainted face. A kid histrion we archetypal met connected “The Adventures of Pete & Pete” arsenic the quirky, arm-cast-wearing champion person Nona F. Mecklenberg. Or arsenic the edgy eponymous sleuth successful “Harriet the Spy” (1996), who inspired america to enactment funny and to scribble elaborate notes of our observations.

And though Trachtenberg would spell connected to different salient roles — similar the bad-girl socialite Georgina Sparks successful “Gossip Girl” — for me, Dawn remains Trachtenberg’s astir memorable character.

Dawn was Buffy’s annoying kid sister, and she was precise overmuch received arsenic specified during the show’s run. Much similar immoderate young teen, Dawn was a spot impulsive and self-centered and seemingly insensitive to Buffy’s plight arsenic a chosen savior. Buffy’s cognition of her sister apt clouded immoderate of the audience’s effect to her, on with Trachtenberg’s quality to transmission a precise circumstantial younger-sibling energy. She became a younger (TV) sister to galore of america and besides helped marque Buffy a spot much relatable. We whitethorn not recognize having the value of the satellite connected our shoulders, but we tin recognize wanting to support our family.

Much similar my relationships with my existent siblings, my cognition of Dawn has shifted with the transition of time. She was introduced arsenic the troublesome younger sister who wrote astir her Buffy-related angst successful her diary but, similar her older sister, she was besides idiosyncratic who had to carnivore overmuch much than immoderate young idiosyncratic should person to.

Dawn was a kid who had to measurement up to having a sister who saved the world. A teen who learned that everything she thought she knew astir herself and her beingness was a lie. She kept having to grieve the deaths of those astir important to her — her mother, her sister (temporarily), adjacent her surrogate guardian.

(Trachtenberg herself allegedly had to woody with much than she should person had to during her clip connected the show. In 2021, the histrion accused bid creator Joss Whedon of inappropriate and “very bad” behaviour and alleged helium was not allowed to beryllium unsocial with her.)

Unlike Buffy and different members of the Scooby Gang, Dawn didn’t person immoderate superpowers oregon magical abilities oregon adjacent peculiar grooming to assistance her get done everything beingness connected the Hellmouth threw astatine her. But Dawn persevered. Along the way, she learned that adjacent if she wasn’t primitively human, the emotion she shared with her household and friends made her conscionable arsenic existent a idiosyncratic arsenic everyone else. That should springiness the remainder of america non-superpowered people a glimmer of anticipation that we tin get done our hardships too.