Sex And The City - General Discussion

[Scarlett45]

57 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

T Summer figured out who I meant.  It's Ray the Jazz man.

 

I have to say I did love SJP/Carrie's hair in season 3. The cut was very cute and the length  suited her. I liked her with the short Season 5 hair too, but I liked this better.

[Jillybean]

On 8/28/2021 at 4:57 PM, T Summer said:

IDK, did it read as Carrie and Aleks had great chemistry to other viewers? With her little speech about ridiculous all consuming love I guess we were to believe that but for his shutting her out of his art studio  and discipline at times... they had that?

No. No, they had zero chemistry. I found him quite unappealing, for as sexy as viewers were apparently supposed to think he was. And I remember when MB was on posters back in the day. He did nothing for me. I also thought she had no chemistry with Berger.

When Carrie decides to blow off her party to hold Alek's hand, she says she doesn't have anyone's number to let them know. Why doesn't she simply call the bookstore where they worked, or the restaurant where the party was being held and ask them to pass along a message?

[buttersister]

Quote

When Carrie decides to blow off her party to hold Alek's hand, she says she doesn't have anyone's number to let them know. Why doesn't she simply call the bookstore where they worked, or the restaurant where the party was being held and ask them to pass along a message?

LOL, there were so many other reasons I hate the hell out of that storyline that this one escaped me. Merci!

I'd seen Baryshnikov dance in person a couple of times (in ballet and in the White Oak Project). One night, after that performance, in a nearby restaurant, when there were only two tables still occupied and after our companions each had gone to the restrooms, he turned around and looked directly at me. Ka-Boom. On my part, not claiming his.🤣

[ifionlyknew]

18 minutes ago, Jillybean said:

No. No, they had zero chemistry. I found him quite unappealing, for as sexy as viewers were apparently supposed to think he was. And I remember when MB was on posters back in the day. He did nothing for me.

I always thought they cast him because Candace Bushnell married a ballet dancer. I thought it was a nod to that.  

Personally I think there is any number of older actors they could have hired that would have been more attractive.  

[T Summer]

Remember when Big and Carrie announced they were getting married and Charlotte squealed with delight in that restaurant? When everyone turned and looked she said she has been going out with the man for 10 years! That was in the 1st dreadful movie, right?

So are we to think they went on seeing each other during  years 6 to 10? or did they live together? I'm confused, because weren't they making wedding plans in the same apartment at times? I recall them making dinner together, talking about whether he wrote his vows whilst reading in bed and  discussing the guest list  as Big walked in and out of the bathroom. So was Carrie just staying over during those times? I can't remember now.

Charlotte specifically said she has been going out with the man for 10 years and I can recall Big and she were looking at apartments  for   them  him to buy.

 

Anyway, more important than that...can you imagine marrying and hoping to grow old with someone who took 10 years to decide you're the one? Someone you'd seen date other women and even marry someone else? That has got to make for some tense conversations around the breakfast table.

 

 

[ifionlyknew]

At the end of the series Big was moving back to NYC from Napa.  When he moved to Napa he had put his apartment on the market IIRC.  So he would have bought another one and Carrie kept her apartment.  Most likely she stayed at his place a lot.  I always assumed they had continued to be in a relationship from the end of the end of the series to the movie.   I don't remember if an explanation was given for them looking for a new apartment at the beginning of the movie.  

[RealHousewife]

29 minutes ago, T Summer said:

Remember when Big and Carrie announced they were getting married and Charlotte squealed with delight in that restaurant? When everyone turned and looked she said she has been going out with the man for 10 years! That was in the 1st dreadful movie, right?

So are we to think they went on seeing each other during  years 6 to 10? or did they live together? I'm confused, because weren't they making wedding plans in the same apartment at times? I recall them making dinner together, talking about whether he wrote his vows whilst reading in bed and  discussing the guest list  as Big walked in and out of the bathroom. So was Carrie just staying over during those times? I can't remember now.

Charlotte specifically said she has been going out with the man for 10 years and I can recall Big and she were looking at apartments  for   them  him to buy.

 

Anyway, more important than that...can you imagine marrying and hoping to grow old with someone who took 10 years to decide you're the one? Someone you'd seen date other women and even marry someone else? That has got to make for some tense conversations around the breakfast table.

Yes. I loved Charlotte, but boy I wanted her to stfu. lol I know they were squeals of delight, but way to embarrass your friend in front of a bunch of strangers. 

I never get women (or men) who really want to be with someone who's not as into them. You don't need to be a Charlotte and think you're going to marry someone you had one date with, but it should not take a decade, especially at their ages. 

[T Summer]

As someone who said they'd NEVER get married or have children practically from the time I could speak... I now find myself a long time married. It's funny, my mother never stops reminding of my former stance on marriage. As a long married person I can tell you if images of my husband  out on dinner dates with other women, stressing over some movie star he was gone over that didn't return his affections or actually marrying a woman 12 or so years younger than me  popped into my head from time to time  it would be very troubling. Especially as they would have happened during our years of heavy involvement, I'd never be able to trust he didn't tire himself out with all other available options before settling for me. I know they tried to put a romantic spin on it at the end of the series where Big realizes she's the one and crosses the Atlantic Ocean  to proclaim his love but... meh

Then it takes him 4 more years to say why don't we get married? Nah... he could keep it at that point.

[Scarlett45]

2 hours ago, T Summer said:

So are we to think they went on seeing each other during  years 6 to 10? or did they live together?

It was my understanding that they were seeing each other. Carrie still had her apartment and Big had his, Carrie might have been "living there" as in "spending more nights out of a month there than at her own house" but to me they were long term BF/GF during that time. 

Thats why Big buying that new apartment for them was such a big step.

[Scarlett45]

2 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

I never get women (or men) who really want to be with someone who's not as into them. You don't need to be a Charlotte and think you're going to marry someone you had one date with, but it should not take a decade, especially at their ages

I think there are a lot of people that do not want to be alone, and humans can be sexually lazy. "Hunting" for a new partner (doesnt matter if you are male/female, straight or gay etc) takes EFFORT. People get comfortable and if the person they are with isnt awful (for example abusive, violent etc) and some of their emotional needs are being met, people are happy to keep with the status quo. 

 

2 hours ago, T Summer said:

As someone who said they'd NEVER get married or have children practically from the time I could speak... I now find myself a long time married. It's funny, my mother never stops reminding of my former stance on marriage. As a long married person I can tell you if images of my husband  out on dinner dates with other women, stressing over some movie star he was gone over that didn't return his affections or actually marrying a woman 12 or so years younger than me  popped into my head from time to time  it would be very troubling. Especially as they would have happened during our years of heavy involvement, I'd never be able to trust he didn't tire himself out with all other available options before settling for me. I know they tried to put a romantic spin on it at the end of the series where Big realizes she's the one and crosses the Atlantic Ocean  to proclaim his love but... meh

Then it takes him 4 more years to say why don't we get married? Nah... he could keep it at that point.

Edited to add: As far as being able to trust the husband in your hypothetical- dont forget he had a history of cheating on wives, turned you into his side chick, brought you home to have sex in the bed he shared with his wife and let you disrespect their house by staying and eating out of their fridge......

 

I have said it before on this forum, Big did not want Carrie. I think Big got older (I am not saying mid 50s is old) and his health scared him, and he was tired of "hunting" for women to meet his sexual, emotional and social needs- Carrie was there, and he did "enjoy her" and knew that she had always been mad for him.

[RealHousewife]

2 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I think there are a lot of people that do not want to be alone, and humans can be sexually lazy. "Hunting" for a new partner (doesnt matter if you are male/female, straight or gay etc) takes EFFORT. People get comfortable and if the person they are with isnt awful (for example abusive, violent etc) and some of their emotional needs are being met, people are happy to keep with the status quo. 

I get that, but Carrie was a cute woman with a nice figure who had her choice of men. They actually wrote her somewhat of a man magnet too. Aiden didn't take nearly as long to consider Carrie the one. I thought it was ridiculous of her to want so badly to be with Big. I don't know if it was one of those "can't help who you fall for" things, her addiction to drama, a combination or what. 

2 hours ago, T Summer said:

As someone who said they'd NEVER get married or have children practically from the time I could speak... I now find myself a long time married. It's funny, my mother never stops reminding of my former stance on marriage. As a long married person I can tell you if images of my husband  out on dinner dates with other women, stressing over some movie star he was gone over that didn't return his affections or actually marrying a woman 12 or so years younger than me  popped into my head from time to time  it would be very troubling. Especially as they would have happened during our years of heavy involvement, I'd never be able to trust he didn't tire himself out with all other available options before settling for me. I know they tried to put a romantic spin on it at the end of the series where Big realizes she's the one and crosses the Atlantic Ocean  to proclaim his love but... meh

Then it takes him 4 more years to say why don't we get married? Nah... he could keep it at that point.

100%. 

[Scarlett45]

15 minutes ago, RealHousewife said:

I get that, but Carrie was a cute woman with a nice figure who had her choice of men. They actually wrote her somewhat of a man magnet too. Aiden didn't take nearly as long to consider Carrie the one. I thought it was ridiculous of her to want so badly to be with Big. I don't know if it was one of those "can't help who you fall for" things, her addiction to drama, a combination or what. 

I do not understand why Carrie wanted Big either! The first breakup I understood, but the second......(and all that drama after).

I think it was a combination of things. I have seen more people who are attractive and successful but have low self esteem (for whatever reasons) attach themselves to someone that doesnt treat them well. Being attractive and having a lot of sexual options doesnt mean you'll aways make the most emotionally healthy decisions.

[T Summer]

25 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I think there are a lot of people that do not want to be alone, and humans can be sexually lazy. "Hunting" for a new partner (doesnt matter if you are male/female, straight or gay etc) takes EFFORT. People get comfortable and if the person they are with isnt awful (for example abusive, violent etc) and some of their emotional needs are being met, people are happy to keep with the status quo. 

 

Edited to add: As far as being able to trust the husband in your hypothetical- dont forget he had a history of cheating on wives, turned you into his side chick, brought you home to have sex in the bed he shared with his wife and let you disrespect their house by staying and eating out of their fridge......

 

I have said it before on this forum, Big did not want Carrie. I think Big got older (I am not saying mid 50s is old) and his health scared him, and he was tired of "hunting" for women to meet his sexual, emotional and social needs- Carrie was there, and he did "enjoy her" and knew that she had always been mad for him.

Yep. I said something similar he only got with her in something permanent after he tired  of 30  years of the NYC bachelor life.

Couldn't be me.

[Scarlett45]

3 minutes ago, T Summer said:

Yep. I said something similar he only got with her in something permanent after he tired  of 30  years of the NYC bachelor life.

Couldn't be me.

Me either. But as my Mom says "She wanted him."

[ifionlyknew]

Big also afforded Carrie the lifestyle she wanted.  Carrie might have gotten a lot of money from her book but Big had major bucks.  And I think in her mind she thought in for a penny in for a pound.  She had been with him so long may as well stay with him.

[T Summer]

30 minutes ago, ifionlyknew said:

Big also afforded Carrie the lifestyle she wanted.  Carrie might have gotten a lot of money from her book but Big had major bucks.  And I think in her mind she thought in for a penny in for a pound.  She had been with him so long may as well stay with him.

Absolutely.

That's why I say I think of Carrie as being  quite materialistic.

Don't you love the image of her picking up the rough cut Diamonds from the necklace Petrovsky gave her as she's fleeing from him because he hit her!

But for Big being a mogul worth possibly 100's of millions, I  think the character we'd gotten to know over the years would have happily ended it with that speech she made when he drove up to her apartment the night she was leaving for Paris. He took way  too long and jerked her around way too much.

...and then he took 4 more years after they got back together  to propose?

It probably explains why she was so bitchy to him in dreadful movie #2.

 

[buttersister]

4 minutes ago, T Summer said:

ended it with that speech she made when he drove up to her apartment the night she was leaving for Paris. He took way  too long and jerked her around way too much.

 

A highlight of the series for me, even though I knew she didn't have the self-respect to mean it.

I was pretty sure that Aiden's income was a major reason he wasn't the one.

[Scarlett45]

1 hour ago, ifionlyknew said:

Big also afforded Carrie the lifestyle she wanted.  Carrie might have gotten a lot of money from her book but Big had major bucks.  And I think in her mind she thought in for a penny in for a pound.  She had been with him so long may as well stay with him.

Yes. If he was just a “regular guy”- I consider Aiden & Harry regular guys, they were successful but they had to work for their income in order to afford their lifestyle; no way would Carrie have waited and pined that long. 
 

But I would’ve demanded a marriage and a nice prenup with a fidelity clause so that I would be protected if he cheated again or got bored and left. That’s why I think Carrie liked to “pretend” she wasn’t into being kept when she very much wanted to be kept!

[T Summer]

It's kind of odd that they only showed Big giving Carrie one gift that I can recall, the crystal duck purse. In contrast  they showed Aleks giving Carrie that 55k rough cut Diamond  +  Platinum  necklace. Apparently Fred Leighton designed the necklace for the SATC series at SJP's request... so a good amount of thought went into it.

Were the writers and producers  making a statement that Aleks was generous and Big was not? Remember in dreadful SATC movie #2 she's still having to tell Big "a piece of jewelry would have been nice" when exchanging anniversary gifts.

[Scarlett45]

29 minutes ago, T Summer said:

It's kind of odd that they only showed Big giving Carrie one gift that I can recall, the crystal duck purse. In contrast  they showed Aleks giving Carrie that 55k rough cut Diamond  +  Platinum  necklace. Apparently Fred Leighton designed the necklace for the SATC series at SJP's request... so a good amount of thought went into it.

Were the writers and producers  making a statement that Aleks was generous and Big was not? Remember in dreadful SATC movie #2 she's still having to tell Big "a piece of jewelry would have been nice" when exchanging anniversary gifts.

I think Big was generous in the sense that he was willing to finance their lifestyle and let Carrie tag along (vacations, fancy dinners things like that), but that was because HE enjoyed those things. 
 

No way would he think to spend money on shoes or jewelry just for Carrie to enjoy. Not that he would be AGAINST IT, but Big was selfish and self centered. His stance would be “you never asked.”

[Ms Blue Jay]

Big is just not old school romantic.  Aleks is.  Big is a wealthy American.  He doesn't think like that.  Minuscule gestures coming from him might mean a lot, I'm not sure.

Finally in the first movie he was making huge gestures with the closet and blah blah blah but then again Carrie did specifically ask for it.  LOL.  

It was actually sweet that Big gave Carrie that crystal duck purse thing.  It's just that he has no idea about fashion.  Meanwhile Aleks knows exactly what to buy a woman.  He's a woman's man.  LOL. 

Big's done other sweet things too like making sure to save her shoes when they were giving up the apartment, stuff like that.  

Edited August 31, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[T Summer]

Even Smith bought Samantha a 50k Diamond cocktail ring. Considering Big's money and years of experience with women, I'd say he's a s-l-o-w-w-w learner.  If his character was really patterned after a NYC real estate magnate whose name was a household word (even at that time), buying jewelry like that would be like most dudes buying their girlfriend a purse; and not a Birkin, either. He's been through a lot of women not to know what they'd find a romantic or memorable gift.

[Ms Blue Jay]

Well he's also based on Candace Bushnell's ex-boyfriend Ron Galotti.  

https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/culture/a21095035/ron-galotti-meet-the-man-who-inspired-mr-big/

I mean, he is a slow learner.  He's not that type of guy - with Carrie, anyway.  Smith is different.  Also, Samantha basically CREATED Smith's career for him.  Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it was nice of him to make that gesture.   Smith had been pursuing something serious with Sam from the beginning.  He wanted to hold hands and be lovey dovey and all that.

Edited August 31, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[T Summer]

13 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Well he's also based on Candace Bushnell's longtime partner Ron Galotti.  

https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/culture/a21095035/ron-galotti-meet-the-man-who-inspired-mr-big/

I mean, he is a slow learner.  He's not that type of guy - with Carrie, anyway.  Smith is different.  Also, Samantha basically CREATED Smith's career for him.  Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it was nice of him to make that gesture.   Smith had been pursuing something serious with Sam from the beginning.  He wanted to hold hands and be lovey dovey and all that.

...and  that wasn't even one of the top five most memorable romantic things Smith did for her! Samantha  might have helped him up his sex game with her breadth of experience, but I think Smith was a very self possessed self aware twenty something. He knew from jump he wanted to get to know her and be in a serious monogamous relationship even when given a hall pass.

Also he stuck by her through her illness and treatment when she lost her sex drive and didn't look her best and all that. 😪😪😪😪 He waited for her to see her home when she went upstairs with Richard because he knew she was doing something self destructive... for God's sake!  Let me stop. You all know by now I think the guy was a Saint.

 

MsBlueJay

I jumped to Smith's defense there because I missed the word career when I first read your post. I read it like she basically created him. Sorry, now I see what you meant

Edited August 31, 2021 by T Summer
explaination of post

[Ms Blue Jay]

I understand.  I agree, Smith is a saint.  I can't find fault with him.  They certainly got their signals crossed in LA though.  I'll see how I feel when I rewatch those movies.  I did feel bad for Sam when she did the sushi.  LOL.  

[T Summer]

1 minute ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I understand.  I agree, Smith is a saint.  I can't find fault with him.  They certainly got their signals crossed in LA though.  I'll see how I feel when I rewatch those movies.  I did feel bad for Sam when she did the sushi.  LOL.  

When I read your post above like she created him, I heard Samantha's convo with Carrie in my head where she said Smith has moves, most of them I taught him. They'd been discussing Carrie's budding romance with Aleks... a real power player in Sam's words.

When I read she basically created his career, it made a lot more sense, because she did throw all her P.R. experience and abilities behind him and made him a star, not just some unknown actor who's good at what he does. International movie star at that! So a decent thank you gift was indeed   appropriate.

 

[qtpye]

34 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Well he's also based on Candace Bushnell's ex-boyfriend Ron Galotti.  

https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/culture/a21095035/ron-galotti-meet-the-man-who-inspired-mr-big/

I mean, he is a slow learner.  He's not that type of guy - with Carrie, anyway.  Smith is different.  Also, Samantha basically CREATED Smith's career for him.  Sorry to put it so bluntly, but it was nice of him to make that gesture.   Smith had been pursuing something serious with Sam from the beginning.  He wanted to hold hands and be lovey dovey and all that.

I don’t think Big was a slow learner. I think he just never bothered.

His looks, wealth, and charm has allowed him to get away with a lot in his life when it comes to woman. Certainly, Carrie was more than happy to receive scraps of affection from him. 
 
I think Aleks’ character was a plot device that did the following :

1. Allow the final season to play with being an over the top fantasy.

2. Make Carrie not look like a gold digger when she went with Big.

It was kind of like see, Carrie had another insanely rich man crazy about her so she’s not just picking Big because of his bank balance.

[Ms Blue Jay]

18 minutes ago, T Summer said:

When I read she basically created his career, it made a lot more sense, because she did throw all her P.R. experience and abilities behind him and made him a star, not just some unknown actor who's good at what he does. International movie star at that! So a decent thank you gift was indeed   appropriate.

I said that, but I don't think Smith meant it like that.  I think Smith was just being over the top affectionate with Sam.  He really did love her and wanted to spoil HER for once.

[T Summer]

4 minutes ago, qtpye said:

I don’t think Big was a slow learner. I think he just never bothered.

His looks, wealth, and charm has allowed him to get away with a lot in his life when it comes to woman. Certainly, Carrie was more than happy to receive scraps of affection from him. 
 
I think Aleks’ character was a plot device that did the following :

1. Allow the final season to play with being an over the top fantasy.

2. Make Carrie not look like a gold digger when she went with Big.

It was kind of like see, Carrie had another insanely rich man crazy about her so she’s not just picking Big because of his bank balance.

We all saw right through that! [you're right though]

 

Now to finish flogging this dead horse:

Big being clueless, not terribly generous or just a rapacious thoughtless user of women... when they got back to NYC at the end of the series would have been the time for a romantic traditional  marriage proposal  on a grand scale with an appropriate engagement ring. Instead he did what, for the next 4 years? Dated her? Had her sleep over sometimes?

Then in dreadful movie #1 when  it's been 10 years and they discuss whether they should get married, doesn't he ask her should I get you an engagement ring? To which Carrie answers just build me a really big closet.

This dude doesn't have a romantic bone in his body!

 

[Ms Blue Jay]

Yeah, Big was just concerned about how he had already been married twice before and it's bad press 😄    Ouuuuuuch for the woman who waited for 10 years for him to commit!

Edited August 31, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[T Summer]

5 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Yeah, Big was just concerned about how he had already been married twice before and it's bad press 😄    Ouuuuuuch for the woman who waited for 10 years for him to commit!

Ouch is right!

I always wish they'd have cast someone else in the role of Big so I could really hate on him, but I find the actor Chris Noth so likeable. He's like an old familiar  TV friend from years of watching so many Law and Order episodes. I've seen him in a movie or two as well.

but, dam! Big's actions are that of a spineless unromantic jerk who demands everything on his terms. Throughout the series does he even say I love you to Carrie? Possibly in the finale... or does he just tell her she's the one?

[Scarlett45]

7 hours ago, T Summer said:

Big being clueless, not terribly generous or just a rapacious thoughtless user of women... when they got back to NYC at the end of the series would have been the time for a romantic traditional  marriage proposal  on a grand scale with an appropriate engagement ring. Instead he did what, for the next 4 years? Dated her? Had her sleep over sometimes?

My mom noticed that there wasn’t a wedding proposal at the end of the series. Shes someone who enjoyed the show but wasn’t a huge fan like me (she saw the movies on cable). 
 

Yes- for the next four years they dated, and he told her “You are the one.” Like she wanted back in Season 1. 

6 hours ago, T Summer said:

but, dam! Big's actions are that of a spineless unromantic jerk who demands everything on his terms. Throughout the series does he even say I love you to Carrie? Possibly in the finale... or does he just tell her she's the one?

Yes when he “rescues her” from Paris. 

6 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Yeah, Big was just concerned about how he had already been married twice before and it's bad press 😄    Ouuuuuuch for the woman who waited for 10 years for him to commit!

That was awful. He was so selfish. And then he leaves he’s at the alter 🤬🤬🤬 with the bullshit “I am not coming.” When she is STANDING THERE in her wedding dress. 
 

[qtpye]

30 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

My mom noticed that there wasn’t a wedding proposal at the end of the series. Shes someone who enjoyed the show but wasn’t a huge fan like me (she saw the movies on cable). 
 

Yes- for the next four years they dated, and he told her “You are the one.” Like she wanted back in Season 1. 

Yes when he “rescues her” from Paris. 

That was awful. He was so selfish. And then he leaves he’s at the alter 🤬🤬🤬 with the bullshit “I am not coming.” When she is STANDING THERE in her wedding dress. 
 

 

6 hours ago, T Summer said:

Ouch is right!

I always wish they'd have cast someone else in the role of Big so I could really hate on him, but I find the actor Chris Noth so likeable. He's like an old familiar  TV friend from years of watching so many Law and Order episodes. I've seen him in a movie or two as well.

but, dam! Big's actions are that of a spineless unromantic jerk who demands everything on his terms. Throughout the series does he even say I love you to Carrie? Possibly in the finale... or does he just tell her she's the one?

The problem was it never mattered what he did because she always took him back and eventually ended up with him.

She never held him accountable and someone like Big always would rather have a challenge.

[Scarlett45]

30 minutes ago, qtpye said:

The problem was it never mattered what he did because she always took him back and eventually ended up with him.

She never held him accountable and someone like Big always would rather have a challenge.

This is true, Carrie was always there no matter what he did or didnt do. The fact that he had to fly to Paris (he was a multi millionaire, big whoop) to get her back was the most effort he really put into anything. 

Chris Noth was a great actor because I completely bought Big's surprise when she was beating him with the flowers. (of course I don't condone violence, but I understood her perfectly in that moment) He could not believe that she would actually be humiliated that he told her "I am not coming" when all the guests were sitting there waiting, and she was in her wedding gown.

The speech she gave him during part 1 of the series finale actually was what the audience had saying to about the situation all along. "Six years of things never being different."

[qtpye]

22 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

This is true, Carrie was always there no matter what he did or didnt do. The fact that he had to fly to Paris (he was a multi millionaire, big whoop) to get her back was the most effort he really put into anything. 

Chris Noth was a great actor because I completely bought Big's surprise when she was beating him with the flowers. (of course I don't condone violence, but I understood her perfectly in that moment) He could not believe that she would actually be humiliated that he told her "I am not coming" when all the guests were sitting there waiting, and she was in her wedding gown.

The speech she gave him during part 1 of the series finale actually was what the audience had saying to about the situation all along. "Six years of things never being different."

I also think a small part of her loved the drama because it kept her as the center of attention in her friend group.

[Scarlett45]

1 minute ago, qtpye said:

I also think a small part of her loved the drama because it kept her as the center of attention in her friend group.

I could see that. "Poor Carrie was the victim of Big."

They were always comforting her and reassuring her about Big. Remember in the beginning of Season 2 when Miranda suggested she see a therapist to deal with things? Carrie was most offended. I know 1999 is not 2021 in terms of the availability and mainstream attitudes towards therapy but that did crack me up.

Everyone likes to have the people they love pay attention to them, but Carrie could take it to a little too far.

I am not a fan of Big, but I can honestly say he didn't "DO" anything to Carrie that she wasnt 100% willing to participate in. He did not lie to her and deceive her (like he did his wives), he never let her believe that she was more important that she was.

Remember when they were friends and she came over to his apartment and he was leaving for Napa in 2 days and hadn't even said anything, and then just LEFT the apartment empty with a plane ticket? (weren't they supposed to go out to dinner, but Brady was born right?) Now of course the man had a right to catch his scheduled flight, but if I was moving out of state I wouldve let my "friend" know with more than a few days time!

[Ms Blue Jay]

9 hours ago, T Summer said:

but, dam! Big's actions are that of a spineless unromantic jerk who demands everything on his terms. Throughout the series does he even say I love you to Carrie? Possibly in the finale... or does he just tell her she's the one?

He does say I love you throughout the series a few times.  Carrie said it first in like Season 2, and then he didn't, and then he called her and said "I fucking love you okay?"  (I think that's how it went.)

I think he might have said it during their affair and maybe after his heart episode but I could be wrong on both counts.

[T Summer]

20 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

He does say I love you throughout the series a few times.  Carrie said it first in like Season 2, and then he didn't, and then he called her and said "I fucking love you okay?"  (I think that's how it went.)

I think he might have said it during their affair and maybe after his heart episode but I could be wrong on both counts.

I wonder if Big calling and saying "I fucking love you, alright" is cut from the  edited version shown on  the E channel I usually catch?  because when I try to remember what happened after she said it, all I can recall is him saying look, it's just something I have to do in my own time. I could be wrong though. I'm thinking of the episode where his NOT saying it holds up their going away together.

Edited August 31, 2021 by T Summer
cut last line, it was redundant

[ifionlyknew]

12 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

But I would’ve demanded a marriage and a nice prenup with a fidelity clause so that I would be protected if he cheated again or got bored and left. That’s why I think Carrie liked to “pretend” she wasn’t into being kept when she very much wanted to be kept!

When they did get married no prenup was mentioned right?

Carrie might have acted like she was so above being kept but you are right. It is what she wanted. She just didn't want it to be blatant.  Like when the guy left her money.  Or Big offered to loan her the money to buy her apartment. Which I doubt he would have expected her to pay him back.    She did think Aidan was unreasonable for asking to be paid for the apartment he paid for. Like he was just supposed to give it to her as a goodbye gift.   She had no problem with Alek paying for everything in Paris.  

Out of the four women Carrie was the least independent. She never would have said it or probably not even admit to herself but I do think her goal was always to find a man to take care of her.  

 

[T Summer]

1 hour ago, Scarlett45 said:

Remember when they were friends and she came over to his apartment and he was leaving for Napa in 2 days and hadn't even said anything, and then just LEFT the apartment empty with a plane ticket? (weren't they supposed to go out to dinner, but Brady was born right?) Now of course the man had a right to catch his scheduled flight, but if I was moving out of state I wouldve let my "friend" know with more than a few days time!

In my head I'm hearing    Fathead Newman [Ray Charles' trumpet player played by Bokeem Woodbine in the movie Ray] say "That's cold".

[ifionlyknew]

2 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

I am not a fan of Big, but I can honestly say he didn't "DO" anything to Carrie that she wasnt 100% willing to participate in. He did not lie to her and deceive her (like he did his wives), he never let her believe that she was more important that she was.

I agree with this but I have been in Carrie's shoes.  I have been involved with men who treated other women better than they treated me. That shit hurts and affects your self esteem.  However I wised up and said no more.  Carrie just kept going back.  He married Natasha.  He was crazy about the movie star (Willow?).   But with Carrie he just took her for granted she would be around. And she usually was.  

Edited August 31, 2021 by ifionlyknew

[Ms Blue Jay]

The scripts are online for our convenience.

Episode 210:

Listen...I know what you're really pissed off about.
It's just something I gotta do in my own time. Okay?
I fucking love you. All right? You know I do.
Good morning.
It's just a tough thing for me to say...
...because it always seems to get me in trouble when I say it.
Okay?
Okay.
Are we okay?
We're great. I love you, too. I'll call you later, okay?

Episode 212:

Maybe I can't do this anymore.
I understand.
I bet you do. You said you loved me.
I do.
Then why does it hurt so fucking much?

Episode 309:  (The Affair)

 Why is that?
- Go lay in your beige bed.
Carrie, wait, wait. I haven't explained this very well. Wait a minute. Listen. The thing is, fuck, I miss you.
- Too bad. Do not come in here. Don’t follow me in here.
- I have to talk to you.
- What? What is it you have to say?
- I made a mistake.
- Fuck you.
- I love you.
Fuck you.
My mind was yelling how angry I was, but my heart...
Fuck me.
And just like that I lost my head.

He didn't say those words when he had the heart episode I don't think so I was wrong about that one.

Edited August 31, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[T Summer]

1 minute ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Episode 210:

Listen...I know what you're really pissed off about.
It's just something I gotta do in my own time. Okay?
I fucking love you. All right? You know I do.
Good morning.
It's just a tough thing for me to say...
...because it always seems to get me in trouble when I say it.
Okay?
Okay.
Are we okay?
We're great. I love you, too. I'll call you later, okay?

Episode 212:

Maybe I can't do this anymore.
I understand.
I bet you do. You said you loved me.
I do.
Then why does it hurt so fucking much?

Oh yeah, E cut just about all that from s2 ep10!

Now I remember the s2 ep12 part.

[ifionlyknew]

1 minute ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Episode 210:

Listen...I know what you're really pissed off about.
It's just something I gotta do in my own time. Okay?
I fucking love you. All right? You know I do.
Good morning.
It's just a tough thing for me to say...
...because it always seems to get me in trouble when I say it.
Okay?
Okay.
Are we okay?
We're great. I love you, too. I'll call you later, okay?

Episode 212:

Maybe I can't do this anymore.
I understand.
I bet you do. You said you loved me.
I do.
Then why does it hurt so fucking much?

I've never been one of those women who wants a man to say he loves me.  Just because he says it doesn't mean he means it.  Did Big love Carrie at that time?  Maybe.  I don't think he loved Natasha.  Did he love Carrie in Paris?  Probably.  I think her telling him she was done outside her apartment might have knocked  some sense into him.  But honestly I don't think he was ever going to love her more than he loved  himself.

[Ms Blue Jay]

12 minutes ago, T Summer said:

Oh yeah, E cut just about all that from s2 ep10!

Now I remember the s2 ep12 part.

That's terrible.  They  could just bleep the "Fucking" and leave in the rest.  So silly.

I only watch SATC on HBO because they won't cut anything.  Easy for me to say though it's included in my building fees 😄

[T Summer]

7 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

That's terrible.  They  could just bleep the "Fucking" and leave in the rest.  So silly.

I only watch SATC on HBO because they won't cut anything.  Easy for me to say though it's included in my building fees 😄

I'm being lazy not taking the time to figure out  how to fly HBOMax which comes with our subscription.  This should give me even more motivation. I've already been wanting to do it to watch the HBO series ROME.

Edited August 31, 2021 by T Summer
typo

[Scarlett45]

2 hours ago, T Summer said:

I'm being lazy not taking the time to figure out  how to fly HBOMax which comes with our subscription.  This should give me even more motivation. I've already been wanting to do it to watch the HBO series ROME.

I get HBO Max with my cell phone included. I would check with your internet/cell provider, and log in with those credentials after you download the app on your smart tv or device. 

[T Summer]

1 hour ago, Scarlett45 said:

I get HBO Max with my cell phone included. I would check with your internet/cell provider, and log in with those credentials after you download the app on your smart tv or device. 

Thanks so much.

It requires signing in to the cable/internet provider w/ my mum's account log in and password. Either getting her to find her password (in a dedicated book, no less) or change it to a new one is quite challenging. Just went through it with her yesterday with Paypal.

See she's getting a bit forgetful, so I suggest she write the new password down FIRST in the book with the website and the date... but of course I'm incorrect  and  there is no need. She inevitably chooses some  jumble of her children's b'days and her street number from where she grew up in London and she proudly proclaims  I know I'll never forget  that.🙄

I tend to put shows I've seen many times Like SATC , Law and Order etc on in the background when I'm on the computer.

 

 

[qtpye]

My apologies if this has been posted before but it goes along with what we were talking about.

They discuss how Carrie was addicted to Big's rejection and Aiden's availability made him boring for her. She just did not want a healthy relationship.

They also point out that when she is married...she finds out that Big is boring because there is no longer any excitement for her.

I did not know that Carrie was supposed to be television's first female anti-hero. A fascinating character that we might not actually like.

On a shallow note...all the women were really stunning in their own unique way.

Carrie had a darling figure.

[Ms Blue Jay]

19 minutes ago, qtpye said:

I did not know that Carrie was supposed to be television's first female anti-hero. A fascinating character that we might not actually like.

I don't know if I believe the writers if they now pretend that they always intended for Carrie to be an anti-hero.  😄😄😄😄  Haven't we seen them defend Carrie's actions as if everything she does is the right thing to do in that situation?  Maybe it's more like, they saw how angry the real fans got over her actions and reacted by saying "Well yeah she's an anti-hero so ....."😄

From Wikipedia.  I had nooooooooooo idea her name was Caroline Marie.  That must be from The Carrie Diaries or something.

Quote

Caroline Marie Bradshaw is the protagonist of the HBO franchise Sex and the City, portrayed by Sarah Jessica Parker. She is a semi-autobiographical character created by Candace Bushnell, whose book Sex and the City was adapted into the franchise. Carrie is a New York City columnist and fashionista; her weekly column, "Sex and the City," provides the narration for each episode. In the CW prequel series The Carrie Diaries, Carrie was portrayed by AnnaSophia Robb. Parker will reprise the role in the HBO Max series And Just Like That...

When the series premiered, the character was praised by critics as a positive example of an independent woman in the vein of Mary Richards. However, retrospective analysis tends to place more emphasis on the character's repeated and often unrepentant infidelities, with many critics instead viewing her as narcissistic.

Quote

Critical reception[edit]

Critical reception to Carrie tended to be positive during the show's run and in the years immediately thereafter. In 2004, Carrie Bradshaw was listed as number 11 on Bravo's 100 Greatest TV Characters.[3][4] In 2009 The Guardian named Bradshaw as an icon of the decade, stating that "Carrie Bradshaw did as much to shift the culture around certain women's issues as real-life female groundbreakers."[5] In 2010, Carrie Bradshaw was listed as the 2nd in TV Guide's list "25 Greatest TV Characters of All-Time". AOL ranked her the 41st Most Memorable Female TV Character.[6] TV Guide named her the most fashionable TV character.[7] Her relationship with Mr. Big was included in TV Guide's list of the best TV couples of all time.[8] Parker received one Emmy Award, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards for her performance. Reportedly,[9] she earned from third season on 3.2 million dollars per episode, becoming the highest paid tv actor of all time.

In retrospective analysis of the show, critics have generally reassessed Carrie Bradshaw as an unsympathetic protagonist, despite the show's portrayal of her as a positive figure. In 2013, Glamour magazine called Carrie "the worst" character on the show, saying that "her brattiness and self-absorption eclipsed her redeeming qualities and even her awesome shoes."[10] In a 2010 retrospective about the previous two decades in pop culture, ABC News named Carrie one of the ten worst characters of the past twenty years, calling her a "snippy, self-righteous Manhattan snob" and citing the character's actions in Sex and the City 2 as evidence that she was beyond personal growth or redemption.[11] The New Yorker, looking back on the show a decade after it went off the air, felt that while the character began as a "happy, curious explorer, out companionably smoking with modellizers," from the second season on she "spun out, becoming anxious, obsessive, and, despite her charm, wildly self-centered."[12]

 

Edited August 31, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay