Only Problem I Have For Season 7 Is

[Joshua]

How in "Grave", Dawn and Buffy were finally forming a bond as sisters and up until the second episode of s7 they just dropped it, they made Buffy back to ignoring Dawn again.

Like all of their bonding in Grave, and Lessons was for nothing.

Make sense?

 

[Robb Stark]

Yeah, Dawn was kind of...directionless in S7. It's actually kind of funny, because despite her not having a specific and season-long arc, that's my favorite season with her. She develops really well from the bratty little sister to the whiny teenager to finally being this cool and very self-reliant girl who stands with any of Buffy's team.

I'm right there with you in the sense that it was a little strange that the big Dawn arc in S6 was her bonding with Buffy, only to have that kind of shunted to the side. I don't think it took away from the season or the character, but it was a little weird. If I could have lunch with Joss (which would be SO cool) that'd be one of the things I'd ask him about. Maybe they just kind of ran out of things to do with her (which is kind of the writing wilderness Xander got lost in over the last three seasons of the show).

In the end, S7 was absolutely packed with plot lines. Between Buffy and Spike, The First, Caleb, Faith, all the drama with the Potentials, the town evacuating, Andrew and about a million other things, I think Dawn sort of fell through the cracks a bit.

 

[Pike]

I think season seven was the only season I can tolerate her. I've tried going back and giving it different approaches.. I'm sure someone in her shoes would have the same baggage.. however, something about S7 alone makes her more likeable. Anyhow.. I do agree with you. Season Six ended with her wanting to show her the world, and season seven picks it up. The second the potentials step in, she slides away.. it may explain her desire to want to be a potential later.. to mean something, if not to herself, or others, but to Buffy.

It wasn't my complaint with Season Seven, but I don't hold it as high as many others do. I was okay with the story of the First, including all the contradicting storylines ive read or heard about. Mine was.. that I wanted more full arcs with all the characters.. I love that the story was left open, but it still needed more closure.. somewhere in the season I get lost in the training and the speeches, and I want more story!

 

[Jules]

I agree with what everyone has said about Dawn being more likeable in this season. I'm going to create my own logic as to why the story arch between Buffy and Dawn was dropped. Here goes:

Buffy is different from other slayers because she has friends and family around to help her fight, but I think Faith points this out to her in a season 7 episode, that being a leader you are ultimately alone. I think Buffy's innate Slayer doesnt allow anyone to really get close to her and as war breaks out in season 7 her warrior instinct goes into full mode, leaving the ''sister'' aspect of her life pushed to the back.

 

[Riley's Way]

Well Buffy was dealing with an apocalypse, it wasn't the time to be bonding with her sister, I think that's pretty logical