How was Buffy’s sister brought into the show? Where has she been all this time?
<deep breath>
Buffy doesn’t have a little sister. Dawn (first intoduced in 5.1, Buffy vs. Dracula) is actually “The Key.” The key for what is not known. She’s energy that an order of monks made into a human so that she could be protected from Glory, the Big Bad [sub]TM[/sub] of this season.
Dawn doesn’t know that she’s not Buffy’s little sister. The monks altered the memories of everyone so that they remember her. The only ones who know the truth, at this point, are Buffy and Giles. Buffy found out in 5.4, No Place Like Home, and she informed Giles in 5.5, Family. They decided at that point to keep it a secret. That’s it for this point.
A good episode guide can be found at http://www.enteract.com/~perridox/SunS
<sucking for air>
So… wanna talk about Willow and Tara?
I think Spike was faking and Tara is really a Demon. Would be his style.
She doesn’t? Didn’t she write in her diary in an early episode ‘Wait until she (Buffy) finds out what I really am.’ or something like that?
Or am I totally misremembering…or misinterpretting.
She did. But that’s just because the writers like to screw with our heads. 
Thanks Andygirl for the url and the chance to “catch up”.
WIsh they had Cliff’s notes <g>