Buffy - Real Me 5x02 - Full Reaction

Now that Giles has got his own shop, maybe he will stock Nescafe Gold Blend.

So besides Dawn, Tara, and Willow, and of course Spike and Harmony, who else do you think is a demon? I absolutely love hearing Dawn's thoughts on things. About time, I say. And it's very realistic I think: she loves her older sister, but at the same time is very annoyed by her - and Buffy feels the same about Dawn. But in the end, they band together against the parent. In general I think they did a great job writing the sister relationship. I don't know whether you have any siblings, but it feels very relatable. I also like how the others relate to Dawn. Tara is great, relating to her without condescending. And the others all seem to like her too.

I love this episode for the very relatable older sister/younger sister rivalry. I grew up with two sisters who exhibited this very type of dynamic, younger jealous of older's privileges and independence, older jealous of younger's attention from our parents. Fortunately, after moving away from home and establishing their own families, they ended up living within a few miles of each other and became inseparable best friends. Of course, I was the baby of the family and everyone loved me.😄

I forgot to mention a couple things in my previous comment, so I'll just continue on here in an additional comment. I absolutely love this episode. It's one of my favorites from this season. Considering that cliffhanger ending in 5x01, I love that this episode is from Dawn's perspective, with her narrating her journal writings. It's a great introduction to her character. Plus, Harmony is back! She's such a fun character, so of course I love any episode that features her. I do think Buffy was being a little too harsh on Dawn, but when the gang says "she's just a kid", Buffy brings up a great point as well. Buffy herself was just a kid when she became the slayer. Dawn is 14 and Buffy was 15 when she was activated, so it's not too much of a difference. Sure, Dawn isn't the slayer, so she doesn't have the same responsibilities or need to grow up as fast. However, slayer or not, she's still in that world. She's going to find herself in dangerous situations at times because of who her sister is. Like in this episode, for example. The vamps kidnapped her in order to set a trap for Buffy. It would have been a lot harder for them to do so had Dawn not ran outside after dark. She might be young still, but she does need to wise up a bit so she doesn't get herself or someone else hurt or killed. With that said, a lot of the way Dawn acts is because the character was actually written to be younger. Dawn was originally meant to be 11 years old, but then SMG got Michelle Trachtenberg the role, and she was a teenager at the time. So if Dawn sometimes seems like she's acting younger than 14 years old, that's why.

While Dawn has never been one of my favourite characters, I've got to say Michelle Trachtenberg does an amazing job playing her, especially considering she was only 15 at that time. Also I love all the episodes with Harmony. She's my favourite side character. Everything she says is absolutely hilarious. :-D

I loved seeing your confused expressions and trying to theorize what was happening. This is what is so fun about reactors finally reaching season 5. We get the introduction of Dawn, and there's this mystery surrounding her sudden appearance that we aren't told right away, which builds up curiosity. The show does sprinkle in some little clues though. If I remember correctly, a lot of fans were angry when this season first began airing. They thought the show had jumped the shark by suddenly giving Buffy a sister, seemingly out of nowhere. I believe Joss had to put out a message telling fans to be patient and that all would be explained in time. There was another reactor I watched who also thought that the showrunners just decided to retcon Buffy being an only child just so they could add a new character. You are too insightful for that, Juliette. You seemed to realize right away that there is more to the story here. I'm also glad you picked up on that clue in this episode, when the crazy guy comes up to Dawn and says, "You don't belong here." That goes right over some reactors heads for some reason. lol I look forward to hearing your thoughts and theories as the season progresses. :)

some of your theories regarding Dawn were really good. :)

Some very interesting thoughts and theories Juliette. Let's hope people respect your request for no spoilers! Loved your reaction, very enjoyable as always. Have a great weekend Juliette.

I love your thought process and theories on these shows! It's so much fun going on this journey with you. I typically skip the earlier scenes with Harmony because I cringe every time, and re-watching them here still has that effect 😂 As always, amazing reaction! I may or may not check this page every morning when it nears 7:30am (I'm in Adelaide) on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays in hopes of watching your reaction video while I eat breakfast 🤣 maybe aside from the odd day I forget because I don't realise it's one of those days 🙈