Hank Summers

[LadyLavinia]

Why didn't the Scoobies tell Hank Summers that his daughter had died in "The Gift"? Or tell him that she was dead? I realize that he was never a great father. But really . . . they kept Buffy's death a secret from him? They decided to raise Dawn on their own . . . by dumping the responsibility on Spike? They "take control" of the Summers house? And Willow and Tara take possession of Joyce Summers' bedroom? Really?

What if Willow's resurrection spell had not worked? How long would she and Tara decide to maintain control of the Summers household and keep Buffy's death a secret from Hank, if the spell had not worked?

 

[WileyDairyGnome]

If they told him Buffy died, he would have taken Dawn back with him, and none of them wanted that. It was worse enough that Dawn lost her mother and sister who she loved, that she didn't need to be taken away from the closest thing she has as family (the scoobies) and be stuck with the father who never was.

 

[PrincessBuffy16]

As much as I remember, I think they said they never told him about her death because he would take Dawn to live with him.

 

[forget]

I thought they were never able to get a hold of him?
I remember them trying to reach him about Joyce's death I think and all of the numbers they had for him were discontinued..

 

[prophecygrrl]

If they had told him about Buffy's death, they probably would have had to tell him about the circumstances of her death as well. He probably would have taken Dawn in, but there's also a chance that he wouldn't have. When Joyce died, he just let his two daughters live on their own. He didn't even offer to help them. I don't think telling Hank Summers would have helped anything, to be honest.

 

[BuffyElevated]

If they told him Buffy died, he would have taken Dawn back with him, and none of them wanted that. It was worse enough that Dawn lost her mother and sister who she loved, that she didn't need to be taken away from the closest thing she has as family (the scoobies) and be stuck with the father who never was.

Exactly... Why would they want Dawn to live with a man who clearly had never really given a rat's behind about his daughters? Even though Sunnydale was dangerous, at least by living with the Scoobies she was with people who would take care of and love her.

 

[ticonderouga]

Its pretty much what people have said, and I think Dawn herself pretty much wanted to stay in Sunnydale with Willow and Tara. Has anyone else every noticed that Dawn never talks about her father, in fact the only time their father is mentioned in relation to her comes from Buffy. She mentioned that Dawn cried for almost a week after the move to Sunnydale, so I think it was always a sensitive subject for Dawn.

 

[Willow My Love]

Could they even get a hold of him? Buffy said she called when Joyce got sick, but he never got back to her.

And I don't think it's fair to say he never cared about his daughters. He did care, for a while. It seems we just never saw him again after s2. But in the first two seasons, he was a loving father.

 

[WileyDairyGnome]

Hm, I wonder. Maybe Hank was a loving father at the beginning when it was just Buffy, but maybe after Dawn was put into the picture and changed everything, maybe having two daughters changed Hank and made him a less loving father than when it was just Buffy. ...If that makes any sense. 😛

 

[LadyLavinia]

If they told him Buffy died, he would have taken Dawn back with him, and none of them wanted that. It was worse enough that Dawn lost her mother and sister who she loved, that she didn't need to be taken away from the closest thing she has as family (the scoobies) and be stuck with the father who never was.

I'm sorry, but . . . so what? So what if Hank had taken Dawn with him to Spain. He was her legal guardian. Her father. He may not have been a great parent, but he was her parent, all the same.

Even though Sunnydale was dangerous, at least by living with the Scoobies she was with people who would take care of and love her.

And take over the family's home as if they owned it and not Dawn.

Hm, I wonder. Maybe Hank was a loving father at the beginning when it was just Buffy, but maybe after Dawn was put into the picture and changed everything, maybe having two daughters changed Hank and made him a less loving father than when it was just Buffy. ...If that makes any sense.

The problem with Whedon's characterization of Hank was that he did nothing with the character. He never explained why Hank ceased contact with Buffy. And her burning down Henley High back in L.A. just doesn't cut it.

 

[ticonderouga]

I do think that they never really explained Hank Summers simply ignoring his family. The last mention that we have of any contact is in Angel, I Will Remember You, when is going to see her father and stops in to talk to Angel. So to me this has always been a glaring hole in the overall series plot and was sort of waved aside.

 

[Willow My Love]

Hm, I wonder. Maybe Hank was a loving father at the beginning when it was just Buffy, but maybe after Dawn was put into the picture and changed everything, maybe having two daughters changed Hank and made him a less loving father than when it was just Buffy. ...If that makes any sense. 😛

Then maybe what we saw didn't happen once Dawn came into the picture. Maybe he ceased contact when Joyce moved away with them. I've never thought of that before.

 

[ticonderouga]

This actually makes a lot of sense, because Buffy later tells Giles' about when their father bailed on them. Which up until this point was not really the relationship that was described in earlier seasons.