Written by Little_Willow

I love Dana for many reasons, and as a L word fan I am sad to see her go. There are many arguments regarding this topic, most of them point towards Ilene herself. Some support her decision, thinking it's brave, some think she sucks big time. I think neither, as an artist Ilene is not so bad, just a bit lack of creativity. However, the main thing that keeps her from my greatness category is her heart.

Just like everyone else, I was a mess as a teenager. I made mistakes, and my parents actually let me make mistake, to learn about life the hard way. Unfortunately there are issues such as drugs and sexual abuse etc and if mommy and daddy are good enough parents, they will teach their child how to understand and avoid drugs without saying " Try Heroin, let it destroy you and you'll learn how dangerous it is"

A good artist, to me, is quite similar to a good parent, who can show us the cruelty of life, the reality of life without being cruel. Honestly I have no idea how dangerous breast cancer is, but there are (although not many) ways to effectively make me aware of it without killing off Dana. Ilene had to make a hard decision no doubt, many creators had to, or else we would never have "clockwork orange" Or "blue velvet" or that Willow and Tara kiss in "Buffy". I applause those people for being bold, and I love them, for being gentle. Kubrick, Lynch, or Joss are quite famous for doing things nobody had dare to do, yet their works touched me because of their hearts. A greatness of an artist is not about how far can he or she go (although this does contribute), but more about his or her capability to use imagination and creativity to make us understand, make us aware, make us embrace the darkness, cherish the sorrow, appreciate the reality without being so literal-just like parents who want their kids to take drugs to learn about drugs. Realism only touches me when demonstrated with kindness. Many artists (or any artist, actually) can be provocative, controversial, or bold if they want to .but not many can be kind. Dana's death showed us Ilene's courage, but not her heart.

So do I applause IC for killing Dana? Yes, I certainly do. She's brave. Do I love her? No, I don't, it's the gentleness that moves me.

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