Dawn is Buffy's Sister? by Dominic May

From TN Magazine Issue 130 - August 15th, 2000

Michelle Trachtenberg, who appeared on ALL MY CHILDREN, which also spawned SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR, plays the new BTVS character Dawn in Season 5, and, according to David Fury, "She is, for all intents and purposes when she is introduced, Buffy's sister. But obviously, we know Buffy doesn't have a sister, so there is a mystery that is extended through the first five episodes of - Who is this girl, and why does everybody remember her? Everyone has memories of her being part of Buffy's life. They all know her. She has been living in the house all this time. It creates this bizarre mystery that is not always the focus of the episode. It leaves the audience wondering."

Introduced at the end of the season opener, Dawn Summers will play a pivotal part in the season's story arc, which will not become clear until it draws to a close. She will link into this year's villans, who are promised to be big. According to Fury, "We're moving into god territory. Small g-god. Possibly something along the line of 'The Powers That Be' on 'Angel'. But more importantly, they're not just your run-of-the-mill demon-of-the-week or vampires looking top take control. They're pretty terrible. And ancient and all-powerful." Dawn was first referenced at the end of season 3 during the 'Graduation Day's' dream sequence when Faith referred to "Little Miss Muffet counting down from 730."

Clare Kramer has been signed on to play the major villain in the season.

Co-producer Marti Noxon has said it is very likely that US pop star Britney Spears will show up for an installment, remarking, "She's a friend of Sarah Michelle Gellar's and she loves the show and wants to do an episode."