Dear Diary: The Death of "Dawn"
Dear Diary,
Watching the later seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I really disliked Dawn. The character, of course, not Michelle Trachtenberg, the actress who played her. Dawn always wanted to be treated like a grownup, then went on to make the most boneheaded mistakes, like inviting vampires into her house, claiming Xander would beat them up. Ugh, stupid brat!
After all these years of watching and rewatching Buffy, I have to admit: if a character reliably gets under my skin, that says something about the actor's skill. My annoyance isn't easily earned.
Last night I watched an episode of House, M.D., one I didn't remember seeing before: Season 2, Episode 16, “Safe.” Trachtenberg plays a girl whose mother prevents her from living a normal life because she had a heart transplant and was severely immunocompromised. Her performance was outstanding: nuanced, vulnerable, completely convincing.
Michelle Trachtenberg died earlier this year from complications of diabetes. Only three months earlier, she had undergone a liver transplant. That parallel (her House character being defined by a heart transplant, and her own real-life struggle with a failing organ) made the episode hit differently. Bittersweet, really. She was a talented actress.
I wonder if my newfound sympathy for her will soften my feelings toward Dawn on my next Buffy rewatch. I’ll find out in about a year.