TARA MACLAY MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
Written By: AmberBensonFan
Authors Note: This is an article that discusses the character Tara Maclay, portrayed by Amber Benson and contains my own speculation on Taras role as a character on the show, Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Be WARNED... This article also contains spoilers for various episodes from season four up to episodes that are yet to air in season six. I would be very interested in hearing your thoughts on this piece. Email: AmberBensonFan@hotmail.com.
Tara Maclay, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is portrayed by the very talented Amber Benson. For those new to the show, Tara first appeared in season four, episode ten Hush. By episode nineteen, New Moon Rising, we have pretty solid proof that Tara and Willow have committed to each other in a loving relationship, which has progressed nicely over the past few seasons.
The show has now kicked off season six and airs on a new network, UPN, which seems to be granting the show more leniency with their relationship then the old network, WB. Season six is shaping up to be a tough time for the shows couple, including a break-up for an indeterminate amount of time.
Season five leaves off with Buffy dying to save her sister, Dawn, and more importantly, the world. Willow and Tara step into Buffys shoes moving into Buffys house to run the household, care for Dawn, and keep the evil that is the Hellmouth from taking over Sunnydale. This has thrust our young lovers into roles of tremendous responsibility, especially for ones still in their early twenties.
Throughout the past few seasons we have seen that Tara is selfless, has grown more self-assured, and has an undying love for Willow. However, we have seen Willow take a turn that can become a bit more dangerous than she and her friends may be able to handle. Willow has begun to turn towards darker magic, even going so far as to cast forget spells on both Tara and Buffy (after Willow raised Buffy from the dead). Tara has certainly begun to develop as the adult of the two and more of a parental figure for Dawn.
Dawn, herself, has begun to change and is following a road that could lead to dangers if she isnt stopped in time. She has begun to steal and without her sister there to talk to and to help, Dawn could easily find herself in a very bad position. Dawn quickly became attached to Willow, looking up to her, and impressed with Willows strong powers as a Wiccan witch. But with Willow on a path to destruction, she is not the person to look up to, and with Buffy still consumed by her feelings of being dead and then ripped from heaven, the only other person left is Tara. Still, Dawn doesnt see Tara as a strong role model. Why is that?
First, even though Dawn was created just a short while ago, her memories are of knowing Willow for many years, whereas Tara is still a newbie to the Scooby gang. Tara has repeatedly tried to comfort and connect with Dawn, for example, when she went outside the Magic Box to keep Dawn company after the shop keeper was killed in the episode, Real Me, or even as recently as being arm-in-arm with Dawn outside the airport after saying goodbye to Giles (season six, episode one, Bargaining part one). Dawn even expressed, in her journal, how she likes Tara, but things soon begin to change.
Once Joyce, Buffy and Dawns mother, dies (season five, episode sixteen, The Body) Dawn sees Tara as being un-cool or perhaps more accurately, as the disciplinarian and what 14 or 15 year old girl wants to be around someone like that? In the next episode, (season five, episode seventeen, Forever) Dawn expresses how she would like to bring back her mother and wants the help of Willow and Tara, but Tara quickly jumps in as the voice of reason, saying they cannot do such a thing. This clearly pisses Dawn off and though she is also angry with Willow, Dawn seems to forgive Willow more easily. By the end of that episode, Buffy tells Dawn that it was Tara that warned her of the spell to bring her mother back and how dangerous it could be, surely adding more fuel to the fire of Dawn not liking Tara any more.
Once Tara and Willow move in to help raise Dawn and care for the house (during the break between season five and season six for the three/four months Buffy is dead) one can only imagine that Tara has taken on the role as the Boss where Willow has become more of a friendly guardian.
As the show steadily progresses onward, Buffy has returned from the dead but is still completely consumed by her feelings of dealing with her own death, how so many things have changed since shes been gone, the pressures of running a home without the help of her mother, raising a child (Dawn), dealing with the fact that she is now forced to live in hell as opposed to being in the blissful peace of heaven, Buffy seems to have little time for her baby sister. Xander is busy with settling down with Anya and planning a marriage, while Anya has never been one for the sensitive chats. Giles has to not only deal with helping Buffy, but also his own emotions with having to leave Buffy and the gang. Willow, though perhaps being the closest to Dawn at least in Dawns eyes but she, too, is consumed with personal demons. She has begun to show and use too much power and is heading too far into the dark realm and is beginning to become unstable or untrustworthy. This leaves Tara to hold up not only Willow, but also Dawn.
Tara must still play the role of parent to Dawn because Buffy clearly is unable, or rather, unwilling to do so at this point. Dawn needs some serious discipline and Tara seems to be the only one capable at this point in time to do it. In season five, episode 19 (Tough Love) Tara admits to having to care for her brother when her mother died and how she understands Buffy being so hard on Dawn, whereas Willow sees the strictness as being the thing that will make Dawn rebel.
However, during the much heralded musical episode, Willows betrayal of Tara by casting a forget spell on her (to make Tara forget about a fight she and Willow had over the use of magic) is brought to light. This forces Tara to make a decision to stay or to go and sadly, it is to leave. Speculation is that Willow will soon after become this seasons Big Bad and without Tara there to be Willows anchor, one can assume things will not be pretty. One can also surmise that if Willow and Tara break up, Tara will be the one to leave the Summers home leaving Dawn without anyone who is willing to put their foot down.
It is shaping up to be that Tara could very well be the one that will hold the whole gang together in the end. It may be up to her, and her alone, to bring Willow back from the ill-gotten path she is on now and to help Dawn or at least help Buffy open up more to Dawn.
At this point, however, the fans are left anxiously waiting in the wings, eagerly tuning in each week to see how the show, as a whole, progresses. Sadly, Tara has been underwritten for a few seasons now, perhaps because her abilities have been overlooked, but this season could change all that, bringing the role of Tara into the main stream.
(For those of you reading the posts from down to up... there are spoilers in this post for season four through six... mentioning yet-to-air eps... be warned.)
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