S01.E01: Hello It's Me

[Toodleoo]

6 hours ago, qtpye said:

I feel like the Golden Girls were more youthful and cutting edge in their day.

 

Abso-fucking-lutely.

[Yeah No]

On 12/9/2021 at 10:16 PM, Zonk said:

If you are actually deaf, yeah. If you can just pop in hearing aids, it is a minor inconvenience, especially if you are rich, as all the characters on this show are and can afford top of the line hearing aids that are basically invisible and have great function.

We'll see if the writers do anything substantial with his hearing loss. I kinda doubt it.

It's not exactly a minor inconvenience even with hearing aids, but it is true that there have been recent advances in treating hearing loss that would blow people's minds.  My BIL has been mostly deaf pretty much his entire life (he's in his mid 60s now) and due to recent advances was able to get cochlear implants and new hearing aids last year and the result has been nothing short of miraculous.  And insurance covered a lot of it so you don't have to be all that rich these days to afford it.  He definitely is not rich.

[Yeah No]

On 12/9/2021 at 3:15 PM, tennisgurl said:

So this is going to be one of those "Remember that happy ending we gave you? Well forget that, everything sucks now!" sorts of sequels huh? Killing Big off is such a weird, depressing way to start the show, it casts this huge shadow over the whole thing even when they inevitably have to go back to making jokes. 

I agree, but I'm thinking the "everything sucks now" angle is rooted partially in real life.  Because compared to the time of the original series everything now does really suck, especially in NY.  But was dragging us into that reality by figuratively punching the audience in the face the way to handle this series?  I personally think that was a big misstep.  During the first series we had Sept. 11 but the show didn't skip a beat because of it.  Now all of a sudden it wants to get "hip and cool" with the new socially progressive atmosphere but it's not just that, it's doing it by insulting its main characters and devolving them into people they never were even 20 years ago.  And that kind of disempowerment really flies against what women got out of the first series.  That's not what we want to see.  I'm hoping that maybe that de-evolution is supposed to be only temporary and the next few episodes will concentrate on these women getting their prior mojo back, because if it doesn't do that, and do it relatively soon, this show may bomb spectacularly like the second movie did.  It still has time to redeem itself but the clock is ticking.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

[BrindaWalsh]

Oh, and one more thing.  Using the song that they had at the end of the series finale, which was meant to be this amazing uplifting moment about self-realization and the value of the positive relationships in your life, with the added bonus of Carrie finding love...was messed up!  MPK gave an interview where he said that ending scene is the reason WHY he "had to" kill Big because ultimately this show was about Carrie and who she grew to be, not about Carrie and Big (you still didn't need to kill him off, dude), so I suppose that's why they linked that finale song to the credits in this case, but I still didn't like it. It's like in his quest to "fix" what he saw as problematic in the first series, by looking at it through a 2021 lens (I still stand by my statements that this show was groundbreaking for its time), he's also tearing apart the magic of the original run.  

I literally don't know a single person who wanted Big dead, other than MPK.  If the show is ultimately about the evolution of Carrie discovering who she is at all stages of life, then just have them divorce at CARRIE's choice.  Perfectly realistic as well and a similar journey of self-discovery.  

Quote

During the first series we had Sept. 11 but the show didn't skip a beat because of it. 

The show handled Sept. 11 absolutely beautifully.  They weaved the tribute of the city perfectly with Big's exit and mentions afterward were subtle yet everybody knew what they were talking about.  This time, the pandemic anvils were literally crashing onto your head in the first 20 seconds.  It would have been much smoother if they had simply had Bitsy saying her "after the year we've had" angle rather than the whole "remember when legally we had to stay 6 feet apart?" dialogue to open the show (in a restaurant that really wasn't even that crowded).  

Edited December 13, 2021 by BrindaWalsh

[PRgal]

Anyone seeing Peloton ads on their Facebook feed?  It’s constant on mine!

[Jillybean]

32 minutes ago, PRgal said:

Anyone seeing Peloton ads on their Facebook feed?  It’s constant on mine!

I love the new Peloton ad!  Hats off to whoever handles their crisis communication. Damn, they didn't waste any time getting Chris Noth and Ryan Reynolds to do it, either. 

For me, the theme of this episode was cringe. I don't understand why Carrie is doing a podcast that she isn't comfortable with. She doesn't need the money, so she should pick and choose projects that she enjoys and that suit her. Is it a desperate attempt to stay relevant? She always said her columns were more about relationships than sex. I mean this is the woman who fled a party because her date and the other partygoers were bisexual/pansexual...the woman who wears her bra while having sex. As many times as she uttered the phrase "we can't stay who we were," she isn't the right person for this particular podcast. The discussion with Che and especially the masturbation discussion with Big were utterly cringe. Podcast is probably the wrong medium for her, since she had nothing to say to a roomful of Learning Annex hopefuls when given the chance.

More cringing with Miranda's verbal diarrhea in class. I don't believe Miranda didn't know anything about her professor before arriving at class. Come on.

Charlotte's face was also very cringey, but at least the photos released in advance gave us fair warning. I know it's unkind to comment on appearances, but when someone has so obviously screwed up their face voluntarily, I consider it fair game. It's very sad that Kristen D did that to her lovely face and I find it difficult to watch her scenes. But also, what the heck is going on with buying both daughters Oscar de la Renta dresses when one is so obviously not going to want to wear it? How is it that all these years later, Charlotte is still trying to mold everyone around her to fit some specific idea of perfection she has in her head? And what's up with expecting all of her friends and their offspring to attend Lily's concert? Newsflash, no one cares about your kid's performance except you. I'd love it if Rose turns out not to be straight.

I really wonder how the original series will hold up in syndication and on re-watch now that everyone knows that Carrie and Big's journey ends with her watching him die on their bathroom floor rather than at least trying to get help.

Glad to know that Kim is living her best life instead of participating in this trainwreck!

Edited December 13, 2021 by Jillybean

[Chai]

I hate this reboot. I actually started watching the old series right after watching this mess. 
 

it’s not that I’m bothered by them being older. They are acting too old right now and they aren’t true to the characters they once played. No way would Samantha miss Bigs funeral. And as someone said, just say she can’t come because she tested positive for Covid. That’s easy and believable. But they can’t mention the pandemic and show no one anywhere masking/vaccinations etc.

Miranda was not a moron and she was never that out of touch. The way she is portrayed now I wouldn’t have believed she even got into law school.

The old series had hilarious moments. I still find it funny when Carrie had her laptop wrapped in cashmere and Berger was trying to define the problem to the IT guy as “da bomb”

carrie looked at him like she might murder him saying “you are embarrassing me” through clenched teeth.🤣 This reboot has nothing funny.

 

[ifionlyknew]

2 hours ago, BrindaWalsh said:

I literally don't know a single person who wanted Big dead, other than MPK.  If the show is ultimately about the evolution of Carrie discovering who she is at all stages of life, then just have them divorce at CARRIE's choice.  Perfectly realistic as well and a similar journey of self-discovery.  

In Candace Bushnell's recent novel "Is There Still Sex in the City" the lead character is a woman Carrie's age who suddenly finds herself single and it's about how her and her friends navigate their 50s.  If the show wanted to have Carrie be single they should have whatever caused her to be single (widowhood or divorce) happen before the show started.  This series is I think 8 (?) episodes. Not a lot of time to deal with Carrie's grief and hopefully have her able to move on.  I will continue to watch but I don't have high hopes it will be enjoyable.  

I think MPK wants the show to be what he wants it to be. Not what the audience wants or even what would be a natural evolution of the characters.

[PRgal]

3 minutes ago, ifionlyknew said:

In Candace Bushnell's recent novel "Is There Still Sex in the City" the lead character is a woman Carrie's age who suddenly finds herself single and it's about how her and her friends navigate their 50s.  If the show wanted to have Carrie be single they should have whatever caused her to be single (widowhood or divorce) happen before the show started.  This series is I think 8 (?) episodes. Not a lot of time to deal with Carrie's grief and hopefully have her able to move on.  I will continue to watch but I don't have high hopes it will be enjoyable.  

I think MPK wants the show to be what he wants it to be. Not what the audience wants or even what would be a natural evolution of the characters.

MPK should have done some research, maybe even surveyed people.  But hey, he's MPK and he knew the show would get a greenlight regardless.

[qtpye]

38 minutes ago, ifionlyknew said:

In Candace Bushnell's recent novel "Is There Still Sex in the City" the lead character is a woman Carrie's age who suddenly finds herself single and it's about how her and her friends navigate their 50s.  If the show wanted to have Carrie be single they should have whatever caused her to be single (widowhood or divorce) happen before the show started.  This series is I think 8 (?) episodes. Not a lot of time to deal with Carrie's grief and hopefully have her able to move on.  I will continue to watch but I don't have high hopes it will be enjoyable.  

I think MPK wants the show to be what he wants it to be. Not what the audience wants or even what would be a natural evolution of the characters.

I wonder if there will be a time jump?

Truthfully, Carrie should not start dating until she has properly grieved Big for her own emotional well-being. She should not jump into anything and it does not seem like there is enough time to really explore that.

Edited December 13, 2021 by qtpye

[Bookish Jen]

11 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Charlotte wouldn't survive jail or beautifully roast Justin Bieber either!

Charlotte "I'll bring biscotti."

Snoop "I'll bring the weed!"

Now that you mention it, Charlotte high would be hilarious!

I thought she was adorable when she was drunk.

[thesupremediva1]

So, I had low expectations for this, but I was excited for it. 

I am appalled that they decided to use the plot for the third film - which was put in the press years ago - instead of coming up with something fresh. No WONDER Kim refused to come back. Lazy, lazy lazy - and bad, bad, bad. 

Why does Carrie have to be sobbing in these big movies or shows post-series? First the aborted wedding, then the whole Aidan kiss, now Big dies... no thanks.

SATC doing for Peloton what This Is Us did for crockpots. My my, how original. 

There were so many better stories to tell, many of which did not at all require a big time commitment from Chris Noth. How about Carrie dealing with her decision not to have children? The complete move to digital technology that she so pluckily resisted in the series? The loss of the Samantha friendship? The changes in her relationships with Charlotte and Miranda since they both now have teenagers?? Lots of options without killing Mr. Big!

My heart stopped when they played that quick flashback of her running into him at that bar. I remember that scene so vividly, set to her heartbeat. My ex took me there for one of our anniversaries. That scene is an emotional minefield.

Other than that, it was all wrong. Miranda wouldn't be that cringey. Charlotte was more annoying than ever. I will continue hate-watching but I'm sort of insulted that they kept a released plotline and expect everyone not to care. 

[PRgal]

6 minutes ago, thesupremediva1 said:

So, I had low expectations for this, but I was excited for it. 

I am appalled that they decided to use the plot for the third film - which was put in the press years ago - instead of coming up with something fresh. No WONDER Kim refused to come back. Lazy, lazy lazy - and bad, bad, bad. 

Why does Carrie have to be sobbing in these big movies or shows post-series? First the aborted wedding, then the whole Aidan kiss, now Big dies... no thanks.

SATC doing for Peloton what This Is Us did for crockpots. My my, how original. 

There were so many better stories to tell, many of which did not at all require a big time commitment from Chris Noth. How about Carrie dealing with her decision not to have children? The complete move to digital technology that she so pluckily resisted in the series? The loss of the Samantha friendship? The changes in her relationships with Charlotte and Miranda since they both now have teenagers?? Lots of options without killing Mr. Big!

My heart stopped when they played that quick flashback of her running into him at that bar. I remember that scene so vividly, set to her heartbeat. My ex took me there for one of our anniversaries. That scene is an emotional minefield.

Other than that, it was all wrong. Miranda wouldn't be that cringey. Charlotte was more annoying than ever. I will continue hate-watching but I'm sort of insulted that they kept a released plotline and expect everyone not to care. 

I'm hate-watching this Thursday too.  And subsequent Thursdays until the finale.  LOL.  I wonder what MPK was on when he wrote the episode, because he SHOULD know that fans would NOT be amused.  Unless he's mad at us for some reason.

[Mstk3000]

On 12/10/2021 at 6:29 PM, Jane Tuesday said:

But what if the kids realized the adults could only make it through because they were drinking?  That's sad to me.

 

I knew that my piano recitals were torture to my parents (especially my Dad), which actually made it more meaningful to me that they (especially he) showed up and sat through them.  They were happy to listen to my performance, but every year it was a performance from every kid in a music program covering 8 grades.  They were uncomfortably long, even for me, and I was one of the performers!  Luckily, being a pianist, I had to accompany some of the other musicians in addition to my own performance, so at least I had something to do.  Some of the beginners in particular were pretty painful.  If they had had the option to do a little tippling to make the time go by faster, I'm sure they would have, and they wouldn't have been alone knowing my friends' parents.

[ifionlyknew]

10 minutes ago, PRgal said:

I wonder what MPK was on when he wrote the episode, because he SHOULD know that fans would NOT be amused.  Unless he's mad at us for some reason.

I watch another show who's showrunner thought it would be a good idea to kill off the main character's husband shortly after having the audience think yay they are getting their happily ever after.  I'm not only upset about Big's death I'm also upset that we were told there were no deaths.  That was a shitty thing to do.

[PRgal]

7 minutes ago, Mstk3000 said:

I knew that my piano recitals were torture to my parents (especially my Dad), which actually made it more meaningful to me that they (especially he) showed up and sat through them.  They were happy to listen to my performance, but every year it was a performance from every kid in a music program covering 8 grades.  They were uncomfortably long, even for me, and I was one of the performers!  Luckily, being a pianist, I had to accompany some of the other musicians in addition to my own performance, so at least I had something to do.  Some of the beginners in particular were pretty painful.  If they had had the option to do a little tippling to make the time go by faster, I'm sure they would have, and they wouldn't have been alone knowing my friends' parents.

I'm 99% sure the piano teacher I had when I was a kid did two performances:  One for her younger kids and another for older/more advanced ones.  I don't remember having to sit through easy pieces by the time I was ten or so (almost all her kids start very young, like no later than six).  

[OldButHappy]

9 hours ago, LemonSoda said:

LOL! True but the thing with Martha is, she’s always been a hustler. She was the bread winner early marriage. 

She's an OG. I always had a crush on Snoop. The heart wants what the heart wants.

Well, I've calmed down since watching. I'm disappointed because the pretext , "Sexy Cool Girls Aging" was so lame and patronizing. I wanted to see "Wiser Women Flexing:

-Carrie had to grow the fuck up, works in publishing, and runs a program for city kids to get into fashion school and to secure internships at magazines. Big cheated (again) so she tossed him out and kept the apartment. She makes a small fortune renting it to for fashion shoots and movies;

-Miranda said fuck it to corporate law and is now a Family Court Judge. She teaches at City College at night; She and Steve are considering being foster parents;

-Charlotte became a fundraising legend for the children's hospital. She's part of the hard-core fundraising socialite crowd and has to get real about the unspoken racism and anti-semitism that pervades the ultra-rich.

All of those scenarios would allow them to dress well, in beautiful settings, and face all of the human comedy and drama that we deal with.

I forgot about the sex part:

Exactly

I'll daydream about being a Hollywood show-runner now, as I continue to clean up my garage. Livin' the dream....

 

 

 

 

[Chai]

1 hour ago, ifionlyknew said:

I watch another show who's showrunner thought it would be a good idea to kill off the main character's husband shortly after having the audience think yay they are getting their happily ever after.  I'm not only upset about Big's death I'm also upset that we were told there were no deaths.  That was a shitty thing to do.

Me too. He LIED. I won’t be surprised if he receives backlash. 

[funnygirl]

19 hours ago, Chai said:

Me too. He LIED. I won’t be surprised if he receives backlash. 

To think that tptb are reducing the backlash and bad reviews to sexism and ageism is a reach. Sure, there are trolls on Twitter with their sexist and ageist comments, but the majority of criticism and backlash is from viewers who loved the original series and justifiably aren't happy about Big's death, the pandering, and how OOC the three ladies are being. (and, yes, we're allowed to be upset that not only is there no Samantha, but how MPK chose to write her out). 

The core audience for this is rooted in nostalgia. There aren't going to be good feelings when you take large chunks of the show and characters we've loved for two decades and demolish it in service of this new one, maybe two, season revival series. 

I wish MPK and SJP stuck to the original plan which I believe was they were going to do a podcast dissecting each episode of the original series and telling behind the scenes stories, etc. (perhaps they'd even have actors on the show be special guests!) That would've been much better than what we're getting with this revival. I'd prefer Big alive and he and Carrie still together ("Me and You, Just Us Two"), Miranda and Steve going strong, as is the York-Goldenblatt family, and most importantly the true love story that is the friendship of the four ladies remaining solid as a rock. 

Edited December 14, 2021 by funnygirl

[Toodleoo]

9 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I'm thinking the "everything sucks now" angle is rooted partially in real life.  Because compared to the time of the original series everything now does really suck, especially in NY.  But was dragging us into that reality by figuratively punching the audience in the face the way to handle this series?  I personally think that was a big misstep.  During the first series we had Sept. 11 but the show didn't skip a beat because of it.  Now all of a sudden it wants to get "hip and cool" with the new socially progressive atmosphere but it's not just that, it's doing it by insulting its main characters and devolving them into people they never were even 20 years ago.  And that kind of disempowerment really flies against what women got out of the first series.  That's not what we want to see. 

 

This is so spot on and perfectly captures what I disliked about the first two episodes.

[Lethallyfab]

22 hours ago, RedDelicious said:

 

Believe it or not, I thought the Carrie/Big Dies scene was very realistic and was probably the best acting of the entire (really terrible) episode

 

I thought it was some of SJP’s best work of the entire series, even. It’s always been a comedic series with dramatic moments and even though SJP’s best known as a comedienne, I thought she handled the dramatic moments well — I still remember her “you have to forgive me, you HAVE to forgive me” plea towards Aiden, which was so excellently mirrored with Miranda in the first movie.

As far as I can remember/tell, this is the first time we’ve seen Carrie called Mr Big, “John” to his face, which made it doubly wrenching.  Her phone revealed his name in the series finale and I think she read out loud an article saying Carrie Bradshaw was marrying John Preston in the first movie, but I don’t think she ever called him “John” like this until now.

I’m not a podcast person and I’m like 100% over celebs doing their own podcasts of their shows (here’s Pam talking about the Office!  Here’s Beverly Hills 90210!) but I think that that initial podcast idea would’ve been much better than this show, they could’ve gotten so much mileage from various guest stars from different perspectives and the difference in social attitudes between then and now.

Also, I couldn’t help but wonder — when did Samantha actually *work* for Carrie?  In the episode where Sam agrees to hype her book, Carrie says she couldn’t afford Sam and Sam says she’ll do it in exchange for two martinis!  There was no legally binding contract!  This is Samantha Slander, your honor!  The level at which this show wants to have its Sam Is Gone Cake and yet we want Kim to Come Back Cake if she’s willing and yet wanting to insult the character and Kim personally is ridiculous.  Like, I moved to a different state years ago and lost touch with many people, a simple “oh, she’s in London now, so we don’t keep in touch as much” would have been fine.  Miranda was obviously written as the “business” one but Sam was also written as pragmatically career-oriented (okay, fine, except when she betrayed Lucy Liu for a handbag), there is no way she would take Carrie dropping her because the book business is bad as a personal slight.  Heck, she’d probably try to steer her into alternative careers, like podcasting!

[Sweet-tea]

On 12/11/2021 at 5:05 PM, ChitChat said:

I have a friend whose brother is a 911 operator, and he has to give callers instructions on CPR quite frequently (even to children who call in for parents who are non-responsive).  Carrie could've attempted compressions.  They're not that difficult.  Tiring, but not difficult. 

With his heart issues, you'd think he would've had an AED difibrillator in the house (we know they could afford one) and she would've been trained on CPR & how to use the machine.  The Red Cross offers an excellent course in these things.  It doesn't mean he would've survived, but he would've had a better chance.  

I kept waiting for her to call 911 or get his pills. I have heart issues and carry nitroglycerin in my purse. When I had an incident once, the medics gave me aspirin first and then nitro. Carrie knew he had a heart condition. Why didn’t she look for his pills and call 911 while was the running around? 

I know it was a stressful situation. My sister had a heart attack right in front of my mother and me. We called 911. She didn’t make it. : (

Quote

And Carrie not being so blatant and graphic with sex on the podcast makes sense.  Che seems pushy thus far and limited in their ability to think outside the box.  The podcast could be 2 differing approaches to topics...Carrie's more low key approach vs a super open style.

Carrie isn’t known for being graphic with language. I remember scenes in the show of her wincing at Samatha’s language. I read SJP doesn’t like coarse language. I wonder if they wrote Carrie that way for her. Not saying she doesn’t swear, but as a rule she’s not graphic like the woman on the podcast. 

Edited December 13, 2021 by Sweet-tea

[RedHawk]

36 minutes ago, Lethallyfab said:

I thought it was some of SJP’s best work of the entire series, even. It’s always been a comedic series with dramatic moments and even though SJP’s best known as a comedienne, I thought she handled the dramatic moments well — I still remember her “you have to forgive me, you HAVE to forgive me” plea towards Aiden, which was so excellently mirrored with Miranda in the first movie.

As far as I can remember/tell, this is the first time we’ve seen Carrie called Mr Big, “John” to his face, which made it doubly wrenching.  Her phone revealed his name in the series finale and I think she read out loud an article saying Carrie Bradshaw was marrying John Preston in the first movie, but I don’t think she ever called him “John” like this until now.

I’m not a podcast person and I’m like 100% over celebs doing their own podcasts of their shows (here’s Pam talking about the Office!  Here’s Beverly Hills 90210!) but I think that that initial podcast idea would’ve been much better than this show, they could’ve gotten so much mileage from various guest stars from different perspectives and the difference in social attitudes between then and now.

Also, I couldn’t help but wonder — when did Samantha actually *work* for Carrie?  In the episode where Sam agrees to hype her book, Carrie says she couldn’t afford Sam and Sam says she’ll do it in exchange for two martinis!  There was no legally binding contract!  This is Samantha Slander, your honor!  The level at which this show wants to have its Sam Is Gone Cake and yet we want Kim to Come Back Cake if she’s willing and yet wanting to insult the character and Kim personally is ridiculous.  Like, I moved to a different state years ago and lost touch with many people, a simple “oh, she’s in London now, so we don’t keep in touch as much” would have been fine.  Miranda was obviously written as the “business” one but Sam was also written as pragmatically career-oriented (okay, fine, except when she betrayed Lucy Liu for a handbag), there is no way she would take Carrie dropping her because the book business is bad as a personal slight.  Heck, she’d probably try to steer her into alternative careers, like podcasting!

Totally agree with your thoughts about Samantha. Four days since I first watched and I'm still annoyed with the way they (King) handled it. Carrie as Samantha's "ATM"??? Uh, as has been noted, we have the episode where Carrie couldn't afford her so Sam just accepted two drinks in lieu of payment. Don't tell me that Sam jacked up her rates after Carrie married Big (to what they should have been all along) and suddenly Carrie decided she didn't need a publicist. So she let Samantha go and Samantha Jones got her pride hurt and "embarrassed" over it? Nope. Sam is wealthy from her own business and one little lost account from a mediocre writer isn't going to ding her wallet. None of it makes sense and therefore insults us all. There are always two sides to a story and it looks like we won't get Sam's.

And let's go there. Carrie did not make a huge amount of money from her column or her books, so whatever wealth she lives on comes from Big -- if she even inherits wealth or a huge apartment, not guaranteed yet. At this point I hope all she has in the world are her old apartment and some shoes, back to square one. (I guess she can sell the ring...) 

Edited December 13, 2021 by RedHawk

[PRgal]

33 minutes ago, Lethallyfab said:

 

Also, I couldn’t help but wonder — when did Samantha actually *work* for Carrie?  In the episode where Sam agrees to hype her book, Carrie says she couldn’t afford Sam and Sam says she’ll do it in exchange for two martinis!  There was no legally binding contract!  This is Samantha Slander, your honor!  The level at which this show wants to have its Sam Is Gone Cake and yet we want Kim to Come Back Cake if she’s willing and yet wanting to insult the character and Kim personally is ridiculous.  Like, I moved to a different state years ago and lost touch with many people, a simple “oh, she’s in London now, so we don’t keep in touch as much” would have been fine.  Miranda was obviously written as the “business” one but Sam was also written as pragmatically career-oriented (okay, fine, except when she betrayed Lucy Liu for a handbag), there is no way she would take Carrie dropping her because the book business is bad as a personal slight.  Heck, she’d probably try to steer her into alternative careers, like podcasting!

🤣🤣🤣 Sorry...had to.

[RedHawk]

4 minutes ago, Sweet-tea said:

I kept waiting for her to call 911 or get his pills. I have heart issues and carry nitroglycerin in my purse. When I had an incident once, the medics gave me aspirin first and then nitro. Carrie knew he had a heart condition. Why didn’t she look for his pills and call 911 while was the running around? 

I know it was a stressful situation. My sister had a heart attack right in front of my mother and me. We called 911. She didn’t make it. : (

I'm so sorry about your sister. My sister also died of a heart attack right in front of my mom (who still managed to call 911 while tending to her).

We even had Carrie refer to Big's pills when he reached in the drawer for lube, so she knew where they were. I'm ok with the explanation that Carrie went into shock, thinking he was already dead (he first appeared to be so with the glassy stare) and that she couldn't think straight to call or get the pills or try chest compressions. Some people can't manage to do any of those. However, why not have her break down later and question herself over her own failure to act? Why blame Charlotte and yell "I didn't want to!" when she made the choice to go (ok Charlotte laid on the guilt-trip but you're an adult, Carrie, learn to say "No") and she was surprised by and enjoyed Lily's playing. Maybe Charlotte pushed so hard because she knew Lily's piece was worth hearing and she wanted her "extended family" to be there for her triumph.

Once again, Carrie at 55 is still self-absorbed and blaming others. She's learned nothing. Well, we have 8 more episode to see if she grows up.

[Lethallyfab]

 

10 minutes ago, RedHawk said:

And let's go there. Carrie did not make a huge amount of money from her column or her books, so whatever wealth she lives on comes from Big -- if she even inherits wealth or a huge apartment, not guaranteed yet. At this point I hope all she has in the world are her old apartment and some shoes, back to square one. (I guess she can sell the ring...) 

Honestly, call me terrible but the sheer schadenfreude of Carrie having to sell her ring after Charlotte had to give Carrie hers to pawn after she harangued Charlotte for not wanting to offer money for Carrie to buy back her apartment from Aiden, I would find that so delicious…

Did she ever consider selling her shoes in that episode?

I can picture Carrie getting an okay amount of money from the books -  they were published even in France - and from the Hollywood option to make a Matthew McCounaghey movie of her columns, but not enough to live this extravagantly for *years* on her own from either.

Keeping  Big’s place AND Carrie’s old apartment, just because…?  Come on, now!

Okay, I looked that episode up - I forgot that Big completely offers her a check to buy the entire apartment without a second thought and she tears it up.  Honey, you ended up living off his money anyways, so…

(There is the wonderful moment of Carrie having to ride the bus with her ad on the side and another passenger asking her “why do you have to ride the bus if you’re on the bus?”)

I’m totally fine with SATC/AJLT being a rich person’s fantasy, but, like, don’t pretend you actually want to address socioeconomic issues when there’s one episode where Carrie is suddenly poor and it gets resolved instantly.

[Toodleoo]

Regarding Miranda’s regression…

In the SECOND EPISODE of season 1 she is at a dinner party with a date; one of the guests is a Black woman with braids and Miranda clearly gives no fucks/is totally comfortable with her and everyone at the table. I hate what the writers have done with her now. Bleah.

[RedHawk]

16 hours ago, Toodleoo said:

Regarding Miranda’s regression…

In the SECOND EPISODE of season 1 she is at a dinner party with a date; one of the guests is a Black woman with braids and Miranda clearly gives no fucks/is totally comfortable with her and everyone at the table. I hate what the writers have done with her now. Bleah.

I hate it, too.

My take is slightly different. I don't think it was that the professor had braids and Miranda thought they weren't "professional" or ok for a professor to wear. It was that in her photo on the college website the professor was "rocking a short Halle Berry" cut. Miranda did not recognize her, so she first made the mistake of being officious from across the room -- to deflect from her own (unnecessary) embarrassment over being notified that she had sat in the wrong place -- by saying, "Pssst, that's where the professor sits". Then to avoid looking like she thought a black woman couldn't possibly be "the professor" (Miranda knew the professor was black) Miranda went to "your braids" -- because the braids weren't in the photo. But everyone took it the wrong way.

Everything Miranda said on the surface wasn't that bad it's just that the chain within which she said things ended up sounding racist, unaware of gender pronoun preferences, etc. She was aware and kept trying to correct herself in ways that only made it all worse.

Edited December 14, 2021 by RedHawk

[PRgal]

11 minutes ago, RedHawk said:

I hate it, too.

My take is slightly different. I don't think it was that the professor had braids and Miranda thought they weren't "professional" or ok for a professor to wear. It was that in her photo on the college website the professor was "rocking a short Halle Berry" cut. Miranda did not recognize her, so she first made the mistake of being officious from across the room -- to deflect from her own (unnecessary) embarrassment over being notified that she had sat in the wrong place -- by saying, "Pssst, that's where the professor sits". Then to avoid looking like she thought a black woman couldn't possibly be "the professor" (Miranda knew the professor was black) Miranda went to "your braids" -- because the braids weren't in the photo. But everyone took it the wrong way.

Everything Miranda said on the surface wasn't that bad it's just that the chain within which she said things ended up sounding racist, unaware of gender pronoun preferences, etc. She was aware and kept trying to correct herself in ways that only made it all worse.

In this case, I get it.  I don't know what to say at times.  I've gotten in trouble just for SAYING that.  I've also gotten in trouble for NOT stating my preferred pronouns at the beginning of a meeting (not with a group I normally meet with.  It was a social thing for interfaith families.  That got me uncomfortable to the point that I never went to another).  So in that case, yes, I can see that happening.   I wonder if they'll explore how this stresses people like Miranda in future episodes.  Miranda probably should have just apologized. 

[RedHawk]

1 hour ago, Lethallyfab said:

 

Honestly, call me terrible but the sheer schadenfreude of Carrie having to sell her ring after Charlotte had to give Carrie hers to pawn after she harangued Charlotte for not wanting to offer money for Carrie to buy back her apartment from Aiden, I would find that so delicious…

Did she ever consider selling her shoes in that episode?

I can picture Carrie getting an okay amount of money from the books -  they were published even in France - and from the Hollywood option to make a Matthew McCounaghey movie of her columns, but not enough to live this extravagantly for *years* on her own from either.

Keeping  Big’s place AND Carrie’s old apartment, just because…?  Come on, now!

Okay, I looked that episode up - I forgot that Big completely offers her a check to buy the entire apartment without a second thought and she tears it up.  Honey, you ended up living off his money anyways, so…

(There is the wonderful moment of Carrie having to ride the bus with her ad on the side and another passenger asking her “why do you have to ride the bus if you’re on the bus?”)

I’m totally fine with SATC/AJLT being a rich person’s fantasy, but, like, don’t pretend you actually want to address socioeconomic issues when there’s one episode where Carrie is suddenly poor and it gets resolved instantly.

I would love it if we got a callback to that very controversial episode. Many people really hated that Carrie pressured Charlotte to give up her ring so she could loan Carrie that money. We never did hear about Carrie paying Charlotte back, did we? And I thought Charlotte sold the ring, not pawned it, so it's gone. It would thrill me to no end if Carrie had to sell her own ring. But I doubt MPK will go there. Sigh.

And yes, thanks for the reminder that she tore up Big's check that would have solved her problem. And she still kept trying to marry him. Don't tell me his money wasn't always a "big" part of the attraction.

Of course Carrie didn't try to sell her shoes. Why on earth would she sell her own amazing collection of designer shoes when Charlotte had a ring she could sell? Gah, I basically hate Carrie if anyone is still in doubt.

[Chit Chat]

One thing I found very sad about Big's funeral was watching Willie Garson's reaction.  He had sunglasses on, but it seemed that he had genuine sadness and tears behind those shades.  I wonder if he was sitting there thinking about his own mortality and that his time was running out.  

2 hours ago, RedHawk said:

Carrie as Samantha's "ATM"??? Uh, as has been noted, we have the episode where Carrie couldn't afford her so Sam just accepted two drinks in lieu of payment.

Yeah, that was pretty rich considering Carrie had the least amount of money up until her book coming out and marrying Big.  They could've come up with a better line that that.  I didn't appreciate the FU to Samantha.  She stood by Carrie through all of her bullshit.  She wouldn't have abandoned her or the other ladies over something like that.  

[RedDelicious]

Carrie called Big “John” in the first movie when they were still living in their own apartments, before Heaven on Fifth. She came home to his apartment and you hear her call out John? when she comes in the door. She finds him and soundtrack is “Kissing” 😊

Regarding the ATM line, I felt like that was a dig by SJP to Kim because SJP is an executive producer i.e., she was trying to say you had this job because of me, I thought you would have been more appreciative. YMMV, but that’s my take. I am in the camp that doesn’t think SJP is all that nice.

[ifionlyknew]

7 hours ago, RedDelicious said:

I am in the camp that doesn’t think SJP is all that nice.

Come sit by me and we can talk.  I definitely don't think SJP is as nice as she wants everyone to think.

11 hours ago, RedHawk said:

I basically hate Carrie if anyone is still in doubt.

I've always thought SJP (and MPK) took any criticism of Carrie in SATC and the movies as the audience is just misunderstanding her.  Like the audience was wrong for not finding her as adorable as the writers seemed to find her.    So with this show they are having Carrie be the character everyone is supposed to have sympathy for and Miranda and Charlotte (and even Samantha offscreen) are going to do things that will make the audience think poorly of them.  

[qtpye]

16 hours ago, RedHawk said:

Totally agree with your thoughts about Samantha. Four days since I first watched and I'm still annoyed with the way they (King) handled it. Carrie as Samantha's "ATM"??? Uh, as has been noted, we have the episode where Carrie couldn't afford her so Sam just accepted two drinks in lieu of payment. Don't tell me that Sam jacked up her rates after Carrie married Big (to what they should have been all along) and suddenly Carrie decided she didn't need a publicist. So she let Samantha go and Samantha Jones got her pride hurt and "embarrassed" over it? Nope. Sam is wealthy from her own business and one little lost account from a mediocre writer isn't going to ding her wallet. None of it makes sense and therefore insults us all. There are always two sides to a story and it looks like we won't get Sam's.

And let's go there. Carrie did not make a huge amount of money from her column or her books, so whatever wealth she lives on comes from Big -- if she even inherits wealth or a huge apartment, not guaranteed yet. At this point I hope all she has in the world are her old apartment and some shoes, back to square one. (I guess she can sell the ring...) 

 

15 hours ago, Lethallyfab said:

 

Honestly, call me terrible but the sheer schadenfreude of Carrie having to sell her ring after Charlotte had to give Carrie hers to pawn after she harangued Charlotte for not wanting to offer money for Carrie to buy back her apartment from Aiden, I would find that so delicious…

Did she ever consider selling her shoes in that episode?

I can picture Carrie getting an okay amount of money from the books -  they were published even in France - and from the Hollywood option to make a Matthew McCounaghey movie of her columns, but not enough to live this extravagantly for *years* on her own from either.

Keeping  Big’s place AND Carrie’s old apartment, just because…?  Come on, now!

Okay, I looked that episode up - I forgot that Big completely offers her a check to buy the entire apartment without a second thought and she tears it up.  Honey, you ended up living off his money anyways, so…

(There is the wonderful moment of Carrie having to ride the bus with her ad on the side and another passenger asking her “why do you have to ride the bus if you’re on the bus?”)

I’m totally fine with SATC/AJLT being a rich person’s fantasy, but, like, don’t pretend you actually want to address socioeconomic issues when there’s one episode where Carrie is suddenly poor and it gets resolved instantly.

 

13 hours ago, RedHawk said:

I would love it if we got a callback to that very controversial episode. Many people really hated that Carrie pressured Charlotte to give up her ring so she could loan Carrie that money. We never did hear about Carrie paying Charlotte back, did we? And I thought Charlotte sold the ring, not pawned it, so it's gone. It would thrill me to no end if Carrie had to sell her own ring. But I doubt MPK will go there. Sigh.

And yes, thanks for the reminder that she tore up Big's check that would have solved her problem. And she still kept trying to marry him. Don't tell me his money wasn't always a "big" part of the attraction.

Of course Carrie didn't try to sell her shoes. Why on earth would she sell her own amazing collection of designer shoes when Charlotte had a ring she could sell? Gah, I basically hate Carrie if anyone is still in doubt.

 

13 hours ago, ChitChat said:

One thing I found very sad about Big's funeral was watching Willie Garson's reaction.  He had sunglasses on, but it seemed that he had genuine sadness and tears behind those shades.  I wonder if he was sitting there thinking about his own mortality and that his time was running out.  

Yeah, that was pretty rich considering Carrie had the least amount of money up until her book coming out and marrying Big.  They could've come up with a better line that that.  I didn't appreciate the FU to Samantha.  She stood by Carrie through all of her bullshit.  She wouldn't have abandoned her or the other ladies over something like that.  

Yes, Sam is a hard-working woman who never felt entitled to anyone's money.

It was Carrie that thought she was "deserving" of a luxury lifestyle that she could never afford in real life.

She was SHOCKED that Aiden would want her to buy the apartment back...I mean couldn't he just give it to her?

She makes a big speech about Big's check but is annoyed because Charlotte has the audacity "Not to lend HER money".

But shoes...Squeeeeeeee! 

I never find financial illiteracy or entitlement cute.

[ifionlyknew]

1 hour ago, qtpye said:

I never find financial illiteracy or entitlement cute.

Especially when things just magically work out for the financially illiterate entitled person.

[RedHawk]

14 hours ago, ChitChat said:

One thing I found very sad about Big's funeral was watching Willie Garson's reaction.  He had sunglasses on, but it seemed that he had genuine sadness and tears behind those shades.  I wonder if he was sitting there thinking about his own mortality and that his time was running out.  

Yeah, that was pretty rich considering Carrie had the least amount of money up until her book coming out and marrying Big.  They could've come up with a better line that that.  I didn't appreciate the FU to Samantha.  She stood by Carrie through all of her bullshit.  She wouldn't have abandoned her or the other ladies over something like that.  

In one shot of Stanford at the funeral his face looked haggard and it was obvious that Willie Garson was very sick. He must have mustered all the energy he had to try to complete his shooting schedule.[sniff] I respect him for making that effort, which makes me even more sad/mad that his character is acting like such an ass. 

Also, at this point I feel like creating a "Defending Samantha" thread, since the character won't be able to speak for herself. The flowers and card did a great job though.

[qtpye]

Can someone explain to me why Nicole Ari Parker (who is gorgeous) is referred to as "Black Charlotte"?

She seems to have an eclectic more cutting-edge style compared to Charlotte's more traditional looks. She also seems a lot less uptight than Charlotte.

Besides being a wealthy married mother...I am not seeing many similarities. 

[RedHawk]

10 minutes ago, ifionlyknew said:

Especially when things just magically work out for the financially illiterate entitled person.

We'll see. I'm still hoping that Carrie gets a "Big!" shock when the will is read.

1 minute ago, qtpye said:

Can someone explain to me why Nicole Ari Parker (who is gorgeous) is referred to as "Black Charlotte"?

She seems to have an eclectic more cutting-edge style compared to Charlotte's more traditional looks. She also seems a lot less uptight than Charlotte.

Besides being a wealthy married mother...I am not seeing many similarities. 

Is she referred to that way on the show or in the media? I missed it if it was on the show, and if so, ugh.

[LegalParrot81]

12 minutes ago, RedHawk said:

We'll see. I'm still hoping that Carrie gets a "Big!" shock when the will is read.

My guess.......Natasha's back because Big never changed his will and she gets it all.  All Carrie gets are his ashes and she might not even get those.  

[RedHawk]

44 minutes ago, LegalParrot81 said:

My guess.......Natasha's back because Big never changed his will and she gets it all.  All Carrie gets are his ashes and she might not even get those.  

"And just like that, my fabulous wealthy life was reduced to ashes."

[ChicksDigScars]

On 12/10/2021 at 8:55 AM, Sir RaiderDuck OMS said:

Someone at Peloton is getting fired over this fiasco. And I'd bet money that Peloton will not grant permission to use its products in any future TV show or movie without seeing the script first.

Crock Pot sympathizes with Peloton's current predicament, but argues that they managed to kill off a much more sympathetic character than Peloton did. 

 

[qtpye]

5 minutes ago, ChicksDigScars said:

Crock Pot sympathizes with Peloton's current predicament, but argues that they managed to kill off a much more sympathetic character than Peloton did. 

 

Yes, Big was no Saint Jack.

[PRgal]

2 hours ago, RedHawk said:

We'll see. I'm still hoping that Carrie gets a "Big!" shock when the will is read.

Is she referred to that way on the show or in the media? I missed it if it was on the show, and if so, ugh.

Anthony called her that.  And I think it's based on her appearance.  Also, her mother-in-law had that snobby vibe about her that reminded me of Bunny.

[SuburbanHangSuite]

On 12/10/2021 at 7:29 PM, Jane Tuesday said:

The purse wine was amusing, but it made me realize how lucky I am that I don't need alcohol to endure my family and friends.

 

So my mom gave me an actual purse for wine last Christmas.  It's an oblong, insulated, adorable little bag that will hold one bottle.  What was she trying to tell me? 🤔

I just got a chance to watch both episodes.  I didn't love it but I didn't hate it either.  Everyone seemed....rusty.  I hope they ease back into the characters better in the upcoming eps.

I think I like Lily and Rose the best from the new characters.  And my Anthony calling Rose, little Edie Beale?!  More Anthony, please.  

[The Hound Lives]

Okay maybe I am pulling this out of left field but this show is as subtle as a, sorry, heart attack. When Carrie was doing the podcast (which wasn't funny in the least), the camera panned to a really good looking guy twice. I assume he was the engineer of said podcast, since he was behind the controls. When the camera went to him a second time, I took notice and felt that was intentional. 
So, Big dies and Carrie grieves and then the plotline comes in about how soon is "too soon?" for the sex to come back into SATC? I can't see the writers having Carrie grieve all season without some type of romantic possibility coming up. Could this show really focus on the relationships of Miranda and Charlotte and the other newbies, more so than Carrie? Carrie's relationship is with her grief and working through that? I just can't see it. I can't see them not having a single woman in this show to represent the other side of life at 50-something. 
Big had to get out of the way for Carrie to have new material to write about (dating at 50-ish) and new eye-candy to be explored. 
As shit as it is (and I wasn't a big Big/Carrie fan), he had to be sacrificed to keep Carrie interesting. So, back to the engineer, I think he is supposed to be the new man that will be a tease all season. The will she/won't she. Yawn but I can't imagine however many episodes they intend to do without Carrie being some kind of catch. They have always tried to position her that way. 

[RealHousewife]

3 hours ago, qtpye said:

Can someone explain to me why Nicole Ari Parker (who is gorgeous) is referred to as "Black Charlotte"?

She seems to have an eclectic more cutting-edge style compared to Charlotte's more traditional looks. She also seems a lot less uptight than Charlotte.

Besides being a wealthy married mother...I am not seeing many similarities. 

I'm still trying to figure it out too. Is it because she's beautiful and comes across perfect? 

I'm surprised they made that joke when they're going out of their way with the woke stuff.        It didn't offend me personally, but my pigment is closer to Charlotte's. I wonder how many minority writers the show has. 

[Lethallyfab]

Something I didn’t think about until today — the Boss-B Miranda is pursuing her master’s and has seemingly left her firm in order to do more charitable work and go to school, so….who is paying for her family’s expenses and lifestyle?  Is Steve the breadwinner now?  Scout (the bar, not the dog) must be doing really, *really* well.  I hated the borderline alcoholic plotline for her, but I think her having to drink to cope with a complete flip in roles would be an actually interesting, complex plotline.

[Cosmocrush]

On 12/10/2021 at 7:21 AM, Snow Fairy said:

Carrie should have had the instinct to call 911. My dad was also in different mental state, he looked right through us

Who says she didn't though?  We saw Carrie in shock and her instinct was to hold the love of her life as he died. I thought it was romantic and heartbreaking and it left me in tears.  But she did call 911 at some point. 

[Carolina Girl]

On 12/13/2021 at 12:00 PM, Mstk3000 said:

I knew that my piano recitals were torture to my parents (especially my Dad), which actually made it more meaningful to me that they (especially he) showed up and sat through them. 

That brings back memories too.  I always thought my Dad couldn't stand my piano playing and practicing.  After he died, my mother told me that he would often stand in the next room and listen while I practiced my pieces.  Thinking of that still gets me verklempt......

[heatherchandler]

Uugh I gave in and watched.  It is worse that I thought it would be...

 

On 12/11/2021 at 9:54 AM, RedDelicious said:

Same for me, and I’ve intermittently been the odd seat at the table for 15 years, except what happened was first nobody wanted to do anything without their fiancés/husbands, then all the babies came and now they won’t ever do anything without the kids. I go along with it but I mourn my/our former life. I really, really miss going out with just girlfriends. 

I guess they always think the husbands are included because I’m friends with them too. And now when we make plans I look like the nanny at the table because it’s oh do you want to hold Zoe! Oh do you want to hold Braden! No. I really don’t (but I do it anyway, somewhat begrudgingly). I could see Samantha being that way. I can definitely see how their lives would have diverged and I don’t know why the writers couldn’t just send her to London without the negative side story. They did her wrong.

 

I think you need new friends!  I am kidding, kind of, but I have so many friends who don't have kids, and some not married and my girlfriends and I would never leave them out or make them hold my baby.  In fact, we prioritize going out just the gals.  No one needs the husbands around!  

 

On 12/13/2021 at 2:05 PM, ifionlyknew said:

I watch another show who's showrunner thought it would be a good idea to kill off the main character's husband shortly after having the audience think yay they are getting their happily ever after.  I'm not only upset about Big's death I'm also upset that we were told there were no deaths.  That was a shitty thing to do.

What show was that??