I like Dawn, but think she is annoying -- just like your own younger sibling, right? She's there to create tension. And a lot of the time I think it's obvious that she's being annoying on purpose -- a lot of her interactions with Buffy feel that way. You can see she's fighting for her own power and the only way she can think to do that is be a pain in the butt.

But I think her being annoying is funny. There's an implication when people say "ugh, Dawn, so annoying" that it's a flaw in the show, and that's where I don't agree.

She does scream a lot when startled or scared -- more of a yelp, really -- and it's very high-pitched, so it really stands out. I think that's what fosters the impression that she's always screaming. By season 5 the other characters don't really scream anymore.