Netflix's The Baby-Sitters Club series managed to avoid the books' biggest mistake in Baby-Sitters Club's season 2. Based on the young adult book series by Ann M. Martin, The Baby-Sitters Club, which was recently canceled, made quite a few alterations in adapting the books for a modern audience. While The Baby-Sitters Club, created by Rachel Shukert, stayed faithful to the spirit of the original series, there was one change made in the Netflix series that benefitted the show for the better.
One of the biggest and most shocking plot points in the Baby-Sitters Club book series is Dawn Schafer, a main character, moving back to California. Dawn originally moved to Stoneybrook, Connecticut in book #4, Mary Anne Saves The Day, which was adapted in the Netflix series' season 1. After feeling a strong bout of homesickness, she decides to return to California in book #67, Dawn's Big Move. Dawn comes back to Connecticut after a few months, but moves back to California for good in book #88, Farewell, Dawn.
However, in Netflix's Baby-Sitters Club series, Dawn does not move back to California, which was the right call for the show. It would have been easy for the Netflix series to write Dawn's character out, especially since Dawn's original actress, Xochitl Gomez, departed The Baby-Sitters Club after season 1 to film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, where she plays teen superhero America Chavez. Yet, getting rid of Dawn's character would've had a profound effect on Netflix's Baby-Sitters Club. Dawn was a fan-favorite character in the books, and her character in the show is similarly beloved, especially since Dawn in the show was changed to be a Latina character who is passionate about social justice issues. Writing Dawn out of the Baby-Sitters Club book series was a mistake because it left a gap in the club members' dynamics and the series wasn't quite the same after she permanently left. Dawn also became an integral character in Netflix's Baby-Sitters Club show, especially since she and Mary Anne became best friends and her mom struck up a romance with Mary Anne's dad.
Instead of writing Dawn out of The Baby-Sitters Club, the part was recast with actress Kyndra Sánchez, who had previously acted in the 2021 movie Finding Ohana. The Baby-Sitters Club makes a humorous reference to Dawn's recasting in season 2, episode 1, "Kristy and the Snobs." At the beginning of the episode, the club members are talking about their summer vacations. Dawn mentions that she spent three weeks back home in California and says, "I feel like a whole new person." This was a great and subtle way to wink at the new actress playing Dawn without making a huge deal about it. Sánchez's casting has also proven to be a benefit to the show. Dawn may have a new actress, but thanks to the show's good writing and Sánchez's charming performance, Dawn feels like the same character, just with a different look.
Netflix's Baby-Sitters Club differed from the books in a few significant ways, from making certain characters more diverse to slightly changing up storylines but the smarted decision was choosing to keep Dawn in the show even after Xochitl Gomez left. Dawn's character added a lot to Netflix's Baby-Sitters Club and it was better for the show that it didn't follow the books and have Dawn return to California. Netflix's The Baby-Sitters Club series will be missed, especially as it means audiences won't see any more stories with Dawn.