RedHawk

Or show them having ONE discussion that revealed they both are dissatisfied with the current state of their marriage. We already knew from the movies that Miranda wasn't that into sex with Steve anymore. How does he feel about that?

I had those same ones, and the Little Women plus Marmie, given to me by my aunts, my dad's much-older sisters. Mom still has my dolls boxed up at her house, and if I had had kids I would have probably put the dolls on shelves in their room as well, but of course allowed the kids to decide when they didn't want them on display anymore. I also give respect to SJP as an actress for allowing herself to look like an actual woman in her mid 50s who is grieving her husband's sudden death. I hope that as Carrie starts dating we'll see her taking more care with her appearance, maybe even cutting her hair, which will be part of transitioning out of mourning. She might even wear an outfit that makes sense! She was preparing salmon in the first episode with Big, although it looked as if Big still needed to walk her through how to do it. Like, sheesh, how long have they been married and she still doesn't know basic fish prep? Looked to me like she was again making salmon in the "light box" apartment. Why does she want a new apartment when her old one is just fine? Because it's too small! I mean, she has a ton of stuff, not just clothing and shoes either, and she was used to living in a larger space. So either she downsizes drastically to stay in cozyville or she finds an apartment that can hold her possessions. The original apartment represents the young Carrie -- she even put on the "Carrie" necklace again, which isn't right for a 55-year-old, it's kinda teenage on a 35-year-old. She feels comfortable in her old neighborhood. (Did she never feel comfortable in her new one, even after living there for a decade?) So she's gone back to being "young Carrie" for awhile, perfectly ok after the shocking life upheaval, and needs time to process and heal. But why live in that small apartment forever when she can afford a more spacious one -- well, most New Yorkers long for more space, so it just makes sense to me. She'll always keep the small apartment, but it doesn't have to be her primary residence.

Also, rewind and turn on your closed captions. Most of the time in current shows my closed captions identify the singer and the song title.

There were prominent inventory labels on the boxes, not sure why Carrie was so shocked to find the records. She could have just read the labels. I think it's ridiculous that Miranda is suddenly sober after quitting cold turkey. And just like that, she didn't feel the overwhelming urge to anesthetize herself with alcohol again. Oh, well she transferred her addicted to her vibrator, I guess. Anyway, it's not even responsible of the writers to depict Miranda having a serious problem with alcohol yet one that she can suddenly be "over" by just deciding to quit. It happens, but why did the show introduce it and then treat it this way? I imagine maybe she'll have a big, dramatic relapse, but with these writers I can't be sure her addiction won't just be hand-waved away. Oh, and I hate the "we were all drinking too much during the pandemic" bullshit excuse for problematic drinking. Yes, many people increased their drinking, and for some it became a problem they had to face as things got better. Others chose to decrease their drinking or even stop. Not "all" drank excessively to deal with the stress. I actually saw the point of that severe pulled-back bun in the park. It gets all that hair out of her way. But it's still a bad look and ages her terribly. I realized that maybe she does it because she's in mourning and sometimes depressed and at times just doesn't care how bad/sad/old she looks. Ha ha, "sufferin' in Suffern!" I always liked that joke.

And was he told he'd be playing a doddering, deaf old man?

But it was congenital!

Came here to say the same thing. It's been three months, and now she's telling Charlotte, so has she told Steve? She sent a text to Che hoping they would get together again. Is she going to tell Steve? She apparently has no remorse or concern about her marriage, and I guess doesn't think a finger and a lot of fantasizing is cheating. Sure, Miranda. Now that I recall, in the first movie I thought her explosive anger at Steve and insistence on immediate separation actually was her way to get out of the marriage at that point. She had to talk herself into staying with him, and her momentary "what if he doesn't choose me?" while waiting on the bridge was just ego. She was a little bit in love all those years ago in the closet (ha!) but after finally reconciling in Movie #1 they stopped growing together, stopped having sex (again), and became co-parenting "pals", with Steve now apparently somewhat ok with that. (Not that I believe he's really ok with a dull, sexless marriage.) Che awoke Miranda's long-repressed attraction to women, and here we are. That's my new interpretation.

I hated Carrie with Big from the moment she stalked him accompanying his mother to church. She was the original "How to lose a guy" gal who broke all the "rules" within the first three dates. Anyway, I sure wish the writers had figured out a better way to get Che and Miranda drunk and in a somewhat private space so they could have their first (and only?) bang. I don't get the point of having it be at Carrie's home so they could be offensive on so many levels. I mean, Che brought vodka. Did she think she and post-surgery Carrie were going to do shots? I first liked Che and thought she had good manners at the funeral (ok, aside from giving Brady a hit of her joint) but her behavior has gone way down since then. And that whole "my family basically shrugged when I came out, they love me for who I am". Since we're checking all the boxes, why not have her story be that they didn't accept it and how she made her way and found her "family" afterward. Family estrangement happens still, quite often. I have a friend (who turned 50 yesterday) whose father thew him out of the house when he came out at age 17, in 1989. He got a full scholarship to a prestigious university and is now a CEO. Has a husband and young son, and a wide group of friends, a good and happy life. Still no relationship with his family; his dad died last year. Maybe with hateful dad gone now he can rebuild something with his mom? That's a story. Che's? Not so interesting.

You know why Seema can't get a man? Because she smokes! I get that some wealthy women still smoke on the sly as a tool to stay super-skinny. However, most people now think it's a nasty habit and don't want to date someone who smokes. (Hi, Aiden!) Of all my friends and acquaintances, I think only 1 still smokes. It's not cool, and it will put the age on you, too.

So I actually related to this episode. I totally understand Carrie's jokes about too much sun and wearing sunglasses indoors. I moved from mostly eastern-facing windows to floor-to-ceiling western-facing windows with a totally unobstructed view -- that lets in ALL the sun. I just had not thought about how much sun would come in. I actually have to wear sunscreen even when I'm not stepping outdoors, and I had to move bookshelves and things due to fading. I love my views but I was right with her on the "Maybe there's too much sun?" because that's what I think every time there's an apartment with huge windows and someone cooing "Oh, there's so much light!" Also, the beeping was hilarious because it WAS my dishwasher. And of course it kept happening in the middle of the night. No amount of pushing the button would "cancel" it. I wash dishes by hand (I cook about as often as Carrie does) and fortunately the DW is on its own separate fuse so I just went to the fusebox and flipped it to OFF. Didn't need the flashbacks to Miranda's big sexual awakening with Che, but they did tell us that she and Che haven't done anything since then. If I was Miranda I'd be more upset about that than anything. I did like the fight at the picnic; it seemed real, especially the comments about dying hair and getting work done. The scene in the plastic surgeon's office felt right out of real life. Most are very attractive because they've all had work done! And the way they reel you in by being first sort of flirtatious and saying how good you look and then suggesting how you could look so much better. I haven't been there but it rings true to what I've heard. Like, he flattered Anthony but suggested Botox and was quick to move right over and set up the injections. It's a business. I did like how Carrie saw herself as 15 years younger and faced (pun intended) that she's changed. I feel about the same when I see photos of myself 15 years ago and realize how good I looked versus how "tired" I look now. "The Age" hit me in my mid 50s just like it's hitting these women. I've advised a couple of younger friends that a healthy diet, good sleep, and giving up alcohol (they both drink daily, yeah, problematic) can be very helpful in postponing some of the effects. And Miranda actually mentioned menopause!

Sex and the Widow? Save us.

I couldn't help but wonder. . . if you haven't matured at 55, are you ever going to?

A prenup is not just for a wealthy person to keep all the money from a spouse in a divorce. In fact, a prenup like that wouldn't hold up. Most states say that there has to be an equitable, though not necessarily equal, division of assets. Few lawyers would allow a client to sign a prenup with a very wealthy person that didn't guarantee a reasonable settlement. A prenup is not for one spouse to keep all the assets, it's to specify and clarify how they will be divided if there is a divorce, and thus is useful and smart for both parties. If you know and agree in advance to the financial aspects of divorce, it tends to keep things from getting ugly and expensive in a drawn-out legal battle, and the spouse who came in with less money can feel secure that they won't be left with nothing after years of marriage. If reality were part of this series and the films, Miranda (especially) as well as Samantha and Charlotte would have strongly encouraged Carrie and Big to have a prenup!

Well, that's one thing that's in line with the original series, in which Carrie managed to live on writing one column a week! Also, Carrie doesn't need several other jobs, she's been married to a wealthy man for more than a decade, so I assumed it was her way of keeping her name out there as "relevant" for her writing career. Maybe she would say that writing is her real job. Apparently she wrote another book? Wasn't that allegedly the reason she and Samantha fell out, that Carrie didn't think she needed Samantha to promote her new books? I read that also and although the series turned out that way, the original arc, as I've read elsewhere, was that Big would be gone for good after moving to Napa. But as these things go, their relationship was such a hit with the fans that he was written back in, and I guess the writers decided somewhere along the line that he would be her "person" (UGH) and they'd eventually be together. I'm not buying that it was the plan all along. I think the decision was made when the series was nearing the final season.

Someone is going to accuse Carrie of cultural appropriation (check the box!).

I would have preferred Rose/Rock being a rising TikTok influencer, much to the amazement and confusion of both parents, to the way they're handling the gender uncertainty issue.

Yes, Carrie moving on from the podcast would at least show some growth. I guess since we jumped three months that we won't see her and Che having any discussion about Che's behavior. I started listening to a podcast yesterday and although it was on a financial topic and somewhat serious the two hosts (a man and woman) were interspersing their info with stories about buying and taking drugs and they were cackling and interrupting each other with dumb, unfunny remarks, just like Carrie's stupid podcast! Do they really think this gets listeners? It might have been informative but I wasn't going to wade through their giggly crap. It was such a turnoff that I turned it off.

When Rock talked with Charlotte I had a problem with her saying "I don't feel like a girl" because there was no "I feel like a boy". So for Rose/Rock it seems more the lack of a certain feeling (which many of us would say is a social construct anyway), and many women would say "well, I don't always feel like a girl either, but I'm not a boy". I was born female and I'm gender fluid, to use a term of these times. I don't really use it (I'm not in any situation where I need to) because, yes, I feel like me, which is often "male" and sometimes "female", and I've felt this way since I was a little kid, when I felt mostly like a boy and dressed and behaved like a boy. It wasn't a body thing; I didn't and don't want a penis or dislike being in my female body. It's the way my mind works, my way of being and interacting in the world, etc. So for me having her not say "sometimes I feel like a boy" didn't ring true to the actual feelings of being gender fluid or transexual. Does that make sense? I do acknowledge that for some, the "I am not this!" maybe is much stronger than the "I am this" feeling that I had. Whatever, again the show disappoints me with bringing in a big issue and handling it, IMO, poorly. Who is advising these writers?!

We'll see how the writers handle this now, because Carrie is much closer to the age Enid was then and yet the show seems to be signaling that the handsome podcast producer (who may be in his early 50s to mid 50s) is going to be her love interest.

I totally expected to see Miranda tipping a little of one of those Tito's bottles into her coffee. I'm pretty sure she isn't suddenly sober. And yeah, SATC Miranda wasn't so stupid that she wouldn't know Carrie can't drink coffee immediately before surgery. But I guess AJLT Miranda is that stupid. I guess we could say that she was being polite and offered out of habit, but really, so much of the surgery story was unrealistic and annoying, which is what I'm saying about too much of this series. And the podcast has got to go! Who in that world is actually listening to it -- Brady and his girlfriend? Oh, and now Miranda, so maybe they can bond over that. It's like the worst of '80s-'90s shock-jock radio brought into 2021. UGH. Too funny that anyone thought Samantha would hear about the diaphragm story -- no one in Samantha's fabulous London circle (as I imagine it) is listening to that stupid podcast or is at all aware of it. And no one she still knows in NYC would bother listening either!

Thanks to Twitter I was tipped off about this first pilot episode shot for AJLT.

I will say that "Since forever. Well, it feels like it..." gives the show an out to now have Miranda and Steve actually talk about what's happened with their relationship. I can buy that Miranda feels like it's been forever, but no, it simply has not been forever. If the show goes that way, I'll join the chorus of those truly angry over the retcon of the long Steve-Miranda arc. And yeah, if somehow Miranda now justifies cheating when she threw Steve out and slammed the door on any discussion after his one incident, which he tearfully confessed to and apologized for, then I'm so totally over these writers! ETA: I'm so annoyed by this, and yet I never bought that Miranda loved Steve in the way you should love someone you marry. I actually thought her whole story with Steve was wrong for her, especially the move to Brooklyn and becoming a "family woman" lifestyle. She was contorting herself, I felt. But the show and movies wanted me to see it as love and growth of Miranda as a person so I went with it. Now they're apparently yanking that away and I'm pissed. (Pissed is such a good word for this episode!)

It's almost as if BIG was the one who has been accused of abusing women, another blurring of the lines between character and actor. It's weird -- as if after Big died, several women came forward with accusations against him and Carrie now has to deal with it. Actually, that would have made for a much better (and more realistic) story line for this show. Carrie was all about helping women? Does this mean we're going to see her involvement in the charity world in the next episodes, maybe making a huge donation to a domestic violence shelter or something? Otherwise, I'm not aware of Carrie helping women other than her closest friends and her assistant. She only went to the women in publishing luncheon to be seen by Natasha, basically a jealous, mean girl move. She even said she never went to those things, meaning she didn't participate in professional organizations that help other women in her field.

Charlotte instigated the Excel spreadsheet caring-for-Carrie thing, so I don't put that on Carrie. Carrie could have hired a nurse, however, for the more intimate needs. The surgery gave the writers a chance to put out there that Carrie's got no man to help her now, but Big would not have been carrying her up the stairs or to the toilet. He'd have hired round-the-clock nurses, stopped by the recovery bedroom to say "Hey, kid, how's it going?", and got on with his life. Also, where's her walker? There's no way a real post-surgery patient would be half-dragged to the bathroom, she would be using a walker as soon as possible, or she would have been assisted in walking by someone (even her friends) trained in the correct way to help her safely get out of bed and across the room. So ridiculous, nonsensical, and unrealistic that they inserted this hip-surgery plot situation and I still don't know why.

I am still laughing about the transformation of Carrie into Bunny MacDougal, the most hilarious thing in the show so far, and it was apparently unintentional. Did the writers, director, and costume person even notice? I would have died laughing if Charlotte had made a comment about it.