Sex And The City - General Discussion

[RealHousewife]

I still think Carrie made the best heroine despite her flaws and lack of growth.

Charlotte was my favorite, but she also irritated a lot of people. I think her everything must be pretty and perfect ways rub people the wrong way too much for a heroine. It’s somewhat cute and amusing in small doses. Ditto being a romantic. Jumping to “you’re marrying him!” when your friend just met a guy or loudly announcing your friend’s engagement in public and saying how many years it’s been, pushing your boyfriend to marry you, even those of us who are somewhat romantic find all that over the top, cheesy, and embarrassing. She was also supposed to be the prude out of the bunch, so maybe not enough sex in the city either. We are also lead to believe she grew up privileged, and a lot of women wouldn’t feel sorry for a woman with her classic good looks and family money whining so much about being single. 

Miranda was intelligent, hardworking, and showed a lot of kindness to her friends. She was still pretty abrasive to her friends and others at times. She wasn’t much of a romantic. She was pretty content with her career, circle of friends, and getting laid on a regular basis before she fell in love with Steve. Once she had love, at one point she went for several months without sex, then wanted to get it over with. Probably not the best character for a “sexy” show. She was also more businesslike even in her looks and style with her short hair and business suits, so she wasn’t as fun and unpredictable visually as Carrie or even the other characters, who were more sexy and feminine. 

Samantha was a wonderful friend. I don’t recall her ever judging any of the girls. I also loved that the show featured a single, sexy woman her age having a ball. I think if the show were centered that much on sex, it would probably turn away some of the audience. A lot of people loved the show for the friendship and fashion and put up with the graphic scenes. They didn’t bother me because they weren’t as frequent as some made them out to be, but a good percentage of Sam’s scenes were sexual. If Samantha were made the heroine, I think we probably would have needed the character rewritten quite a bit so we’d see more sides to her, figuratively and not literally.

Carrie wasn’t always kind, patient, or considerate, but she had a sweet disposition. She was charming. Her insane spending on clothes and shoes was irresponsible and stupid, but it gave fashion lovers eye candy and even created drama. She had a career, but it wasn’t what made her life. She was no prude and enjoyed sex, but she also wanted romance. Drama queens are no fun in real life, but they can be entertaining to watch on TV. Having all these qualities, good and bad, made for more storylines surrounding her. 

Because this show was essentially about relationships (more so than sex), it’s a bit harder to root for someone who is so picky she rejects a guy over a china pattern, someone who’s so career focused she could take or leave romance, and eventually go without sex just fine too, or root for someone to have a happily ever after, when all she really wants is happy endings. 

[ByTor]

Excellent synopsis of the characters @RealHousewife!

1 hour ago, RealHousewife said:

Charlotte was my favorite, but she also irritated a lot of people.

I mean, even when she irresponsibly let her dog who is IN HEAT off leash at the dog park, all she could do was bitch that "Elizabeth Taylor" would have "trampy unpedigreed" puppies.  As a person with a trampy unpedigreed dog, I find that unbelievably horrible.

[blondiec0332]

2 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

I still think Carrie made the best heroine despite her flaws and lack of growth.

It's the word heroine I have a problem with.  

[RealHousewife]

18 minutes ago, ByTor said:

Excellent synopsis of the characters @RealHousewife!

I mean, even when she irresponsibly let her dog who is IN HEAT off leash at the dog park, all she could do was bitch that "Elizabeth Taylor" would have "trampy unpedigreed" puppies.  As a person with a trampy unpedigreed dog, I find that unbelievably horrible.

Thanks! And lol! 😂

11 minutes ago, blondiec0332 said:

It's the word heroine I have a problem with.  

I don’t personally aspire to have all of Carrie’s qualities myself, but I did appreciate her as a “heroine,” in terms of being the main female character, in comparison to the other three.

[FormerMod-a1]

I'd go with "protagonist" rather than "heroine".

[blondiec0332]

Just now, aquarian1 said:

I'd go with "protagonist" rather than "heroine".

Yes that seems more accurate.

[RealHousewife]

Protagonist is definitely a better word. I only used “heroine,” because someone here used it, wondering why Carrie was the heroine over all the other girls. 

[FormerMod-a1]

Right, but it had evolved into which character was the best "lead".  I do think a lot of folks really do view Carrie as a heroine, though, but I don't.  I don't hate her, but she is my least favorite.  That said, I do think she was best of the four to be the protagonist.

[blondiec0332]

8 minutes ago, RealHousewife said:

I only used “heroine,” because someone here used it, wondering why Carrie was the heroine over all the other girls. 

I used the word heroine in my post about the writers presenting Carrie as such.  Sometimes it seems like the writers were writing for a show that was different than the one we were watching.  I know they wrote and filmed the series several months before each season aired.  I wonder if they had filmed while the first few episodes of a season was airing if they would have adjusted things according to audience response.

[blondiec0332]

2 minutes ago, aquarian1 said:

That said, I do think she was best of the four to be the protagonist.

This is true.  She was more fluid of a character.  Each of the other three had more defined characters. But even with all that freedom to write Carrie the writers IMO didn't do a good job.

[RealHousewife]

3 minutes ago, aquarian1 said:

Right, but it had evolved into which character was the best "lead".  I do think a lot of folks do view Carrie as a heroine, though, but I don't.  I don't hate her, but I she is my least favorite.  That said, I do think she was best of the four to be the protagonist.

Yes, I meant as a lead, I thought she was the best choice. 🙂 Also agree with protagonist and still think of the four, she made the best heroine, even if I prefer to describe her in other terms myself. I don’t hate her either, but I get why many fans of the show don’t love her. I personally liked Carrie because she was a mostly good person who had some ugly moments and bad personality traits. I found her more human and more multidimensional than (my fave) Charlotte and Samantha. I do think Miranda was less of a caricature. With Charlotte it was like, we get it, you’re a romantic. You want to be married and have babies and want it now and think other women all want the same. With Samantha, newsflash, the gal thoroughly enjoys sex. 

1 minute ago, blondiec0332 said:

I used the word heroine in my post about the writers presenting Carrie as such.  Sometimes it seems like the writers were writing for a show that was different than the one we were watching.  I know they wrote and filmed the series several months before each season aired.  I wonder if they had filmed while the first few episodes of a season was airing if they would have adjusted things according to audience response.

Gotcha. I do agree it seemed the writers thought the viewers would find the character more likable and sympathetic than a lot of us did. There were definitely moments I rolled my eyes when I know I was probably meant to admire and feel for the character. For example, were we really supposed to hate on Natasha? It wasn’t her fault Big decided he was open to marriage after all so quickly with her. She never did anything to Carrie, and as Charlotte said, Carrie didn’t know anything about her. 

“Fluid,” is the best way to describe Carrie, and I agree that the writing for Carrie (and despite my love for the show, other characters) could have been better. I really hate to criticize the show when it’s one of my favorite shows of all time. I really think it’s brilliant, but I get all the Carrie criticism, I really do, despite thinking she was fun to watch and that I (mostly) rooted for her. To me she’s that friend who loves you, but can get self-involved. The one who typically has morals, but shockingly hooks up with a married man. And you love her anyway, try not to judge, and want her to be happy. 

[blondiec0332]

18 minutes ago, RealHousewife said:

. I really hate to criticize the show when it’s one of my favorite shows of all time.

Oh me too.  There is so much to love about SATC but it did have it's flaws. Although I do have to say most of those flaws I didn't really notice until rewatching several years after it aired.  I was around their age when it aired so maybe that's why I didn't find fault with some of Carrie's behavior. But now that I'm older when I hear her screech like she is so often does I just cringe.

[RealHousewife]

I was really young when the show first aired, so I actually didn't appreciate it the way I do now that I'm closer to the ages of the women and can relate to some of their issues. When I was younger, the show was simply fun. I definitely analyzed it more later on, and yes the flaws become more visible when you rewatch episodes. 

[BlueMoon81]

On 7/19/2019 at 12:06 PM, RealHousewife said:

Carrie wasn’t always kind, patient, or considerate, but she had a sweet disposition. She was charming. Her insane spending on clothes and shoes was irresponsible and stupid, but it gave fashion lovers eye candy and even created drama. She had a career, but it wasn’t what made her life. She was no prude and enjoyed sex, but she also wanted romance. Drama queens are no fun in real life, but they can be entertaining to watch on TV. Having all these qualities, good and bad, made for more storylines surrounding her. 

That’s where we differ....I don’t think Carrie had a sweet disposition, nor did I find her charming in the slightest. If she had a sweet disposition, I would be able to deal with her fundamental flaws and have some love for the character. I didn’t think she was sweet when she was chiding Miranda for seeing a therapist, or when she described the bisexual guy she was dating as being in “a layover to gay town”, or when she eternally judged Sam with catty digs that she NEVER wanted thrown back at her.

I definitely don’t think she was charming when she was demanding money from Charlotte, or when she was stalking Big’s mother and his ex wife....then blaming Big for “toying with her emotions”. That’s not even getting on the Aidan stuff (the jolting up in the middle of the night because the relationship had no drama, the bringing Big to his beloved country home, the affair, the pretending she was the victim in said affair, the stalking of Natasha, the badgering Aidan to get back together and then running away like the victim when he said “You broke my heart!!”, etc). Also the crap that she did that was never addressed (like betraying Miranda’s confidence about her plans to abort or the disgustingly childish digs at Sam’s face after the chemical peel...while at a party Sam put together for Carrie FOR FREE)

The show tried to push Carrie as the heroine or main protagonist, and it always fell FLAT for me. Sam and Miranda has far more protagonist moments for me, and if the show came out in 2018 and not 1998....I think they would’ve been the co-main protagonists of the show.

Not to mention that Carrie came off as extremely prudish and small-minded when it came to the spectrum of sexuality....despite her being a SEX COLUMNIST. I think SJP had too much input after she became Exec Producer, and the creators of the show capitulated to her because they thought they should 

[andromeda331]

13 hours ago, BlueMoon81 said:

That’s where we differ....I don’t think Carrie had a sweet disposition, nor did I find her charming in the slightest. If she had a sweet disposition, I would be able to deal with her fundamental flaws and have some love for the character. I didn’t think she was sweet when she was chiding Miranda for seeing a therapist, or when she described the bisexual guy she was dating as being in “a layover to gay town”, or when she eternally judged Sam with catty digs that she NEVER wanted thrown back at her.

I definitely don’t think she was charming when she was demanding money from Charlotte, or when she was stalking Big’s mother and his ex wife....then blaming Big for “toying with her emotions”. That’s not even getting on the Aidan stuff (the jolting up in the middle of the night because the relationship had no drama, the bringing Big to his beloved country home, the affair, the pretending she was the victim in said affair, the stalking of Natasha, the badgering Aidan to get back together and then running away like the victim when he said “You broke my heart!!”, etc). Also the crap that she did that was never addressed (like betraying Miranda’s confidence about her plans to abort or the disgustingly childish digs at Sam’s face after the chemical peel...while at a party Sam put together for Carrie FOR FREE)

The show tried to push Carrie as the heroine or main protagonist, and it always fell FLAT for me. Sam and Miranda has far more protagonist moments for me, and if the show came out in 2018 and not 1998....I think they would’ve been the co-main protagonists of the show.

Not to mention that Carrie came off as extremely prudish and small-minded when it came to the spectrum of sexuality....despite her being a SEX COLUMNIST. I think SJP had too much input after she became Exec Producer, and the creators of the show capitulated to her because they thought they should 

I don't either.  For the same reasons. We see so much of her awfulness. That party that Samantha put together and shows up for because Carrie insisted and demanded despite Samantha not wanting too because of how she looked and then Carrie makes fun of her. She put Samantha in that situation and then treats her like crap. She treats everyone like crap. Making fun of Miranda seeking therapy. Who does that? Well, Carrie. The same Carrie who cheats on Aiden then demands they get back together and won't drop Big and brings him right into Aiden's home.  They want us to see everything Carrie does as cute and charming. But its not. Showing up at Miranda's the day after Miranda hurt her back so she can bitch about Aiden and she didn't even bring cream cheese! She never learns anything. Nothing is her fault. This is a woman who stalked her boyfriend's mother and ex-wife and ambushes poor Natasha at her lunch. In that scene she completely expects Natasha to apologize look at her expression when Natasha starts out with an "I'm sorry". What is charming or cute about that? She won't leave Natasha alone but also completely thinks the affair and everything that happened was Natasha's fault. That Natasha should apologize.

I agree it was a big mistake for SJP to get more control over the show. It tilted it and gave us the horrible Carrie. I really liked Carrie in the pilot and most of the first season. She was much more interesting. I liked her exploring having sex like a man in the pilot and rejecting it for her. I liked her meeting Big and at the when she asked him that question about love. That Carrie seemed a mixture of Samantha and Charlotte. She seemed interested in exploring different types of sex and relationships but also still looking for love. Had we kept that Carrie it would have been so great and she probably would have been one of my favorites. 

[RealHousewife]

^ I absolutely don’t think she was charming in those situations. I noted some of them myself. I don’t remember her being consistently bad, but it’s been awhile since I’ve watched a lot the episodes, and when I do, they are the earlier ones, which you guys are saying she was more pleasant in. For me, a lot of her likability was due to SJP. I think she’s a gifted and charming actress. 

I am also a soap fan. In soaps, a “bad guy” can be charming. EJ DiMera was a terrible person on Days (way worse than Carrie at her worst), but he was rather charming at the same time.

[cpcathy]

There is "charming, but flawed" characters (Sam Malone on Cheers, just sayin') and then there's Carrie.

There was a marathon this weekend, I tuned in for about 30 seconds and heard Carrie exclaiming, "why can't you just be HAPPY for me?" There was no period LESS charming than the Petrovsky period. Her being insolent over Petrovsky's friend who had cancer was her worst, IMO.

[ByTor]

8 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

This is a woman who stalked her boyfriend's mother and ex-wife and ambushes poor Natasha at her lunch. In that scene she completely expects Natasha to apologize look at her expression when Natasha starts out with an "I'm sorry".

I agree with all of your post, but I got the opposite impression of this scene.  When Natasha said "I'm sorry too" I took Carrie's look to be one of surprise, like "why are you apologizing to me?"  Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Carrie fan for the most part, and I thought her barging in on Natasha's lunch and guzzling the water (I guess that was supposed to be cute) was completely classless.  And then of course in true Carrie fashion, she has to make it about herself, in that she was responsible for putting Natasha back on the singles scene and will once again be her competition.

[Luckylyn]

Carrie’s inability to accept that the woman whose husband she cheated with didn’t want to have anything to do with her was dumbfounding.  Why force your presence on someone you helped hurt and have no regard for their feelings?  Sometimes when the damage has been done you just have to accept that someone dislikes you.  Natasha’s simple refusal to be in the same room as Carrie was kinder than some people’s reaction would be.  Some people get vindictive when cheated on and Natasha simply wanted to move on.  Carrie refused to give her that.

Edited July 22, 2019 by Luckylyn

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 7/18/2019 at 8:39 AM, blondiec0332 said:

 Before she left NYC she screamed at Big that they were over and then once in Paris and things go to shit with the Russian she sees Big and says OK I want you now. 

LOL.  Memories.  I was sooooooooooooooooooooooo mad when this finale happened 🙂  One of the great things about time and aging is not caring anymore, but boy was I pissed 😂

On 7/18/2019 at 11:54 AM, andromeda331 said:

Freaking out over Big buying a TV. Oh no, not that. 

😂😂😂😂  You guys are so funny!  I love it!  I agree!

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 7/19/2019 at 4:28 AM, BlueMoon81 said:

Yup that’s exactly why Carrie NEVER rang true for me as a heroine, even when the show originally aired (and I was late high school/early college age), and even less now. Add to that the borderline unforgivable (in my opinion) betrayal of how she blabbed about Miranda’s plans to terminate her pregnancy,

And what was her excuse for blabbing?  "I can't keep a secret"??????? Holy shit Carrie it's NOT YOUR SECRET.  What the HELL did it have to do with Carrie and Aidan?  OH my god.  

[Ms Blue Jay]

54 minutes ago, Luckylyn said:

Carrie’s inability to accept that the woman whose husband she cheated with didn’t want to have anything to do with her was dumbfounding.  Why force your presence on someone you helped hurt and have no regard for their feelings?  Sometimes when the damage has been done you just have to accept that someone dislikes you.  Natasha’s simple refusal to be in the same room as Carrie was kinder than some people’s reaction would be.  Some people get vindictive when cheated on and Natasha simply wanted to move on.  Carrie refused to give her that.

Basically her whole shock of Natasha not liking her was supposed to portray that Carrie thinks of herself as a people pleaser, Miss Popularity that everyone loves "I can't have anyone in New York hate me".  Barf!

[RealHousewife]

What Carrie did to Natasha was the worst thing she ever did imo. I agree Natasha handled herself really well. 

[Luckylyn]

2 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Basically her whole shock of Natasha not liking her was supposed to portray that Carrie thinks of herself as a people pleaser, Miss Popularity that everyone loves "I can't have anyone in New York hate me".  Barf!

Just like the Nina Katz thing where Carrie didn’t like that there was someone who had a negative opinion of her due to how she broke Aidan’s heart.  Aidan wasn’t a saint but she’s the one who cheated on him, insisted he take her back, refused to give up Big to the point to of forcing his presence on Aidan at his cabin, and said yes to a marriage proposal when she knew she wasn’t ready.    If Aidan’s marriage proposal had totally blindsided Carrie, I would have understood her saying yes and realizing later it was a mistake.   She wasn’t surprised by the proposal.  Finding the ring in advance gave her time to think.   Once she found the ring it was on her to speak up immediately about what she was and wasn’t ready for when it came to commitment.  She wanted to hold on to Aidan but didn’t want to fully commit.   It’s like she always wanted one foot out the door.   It shouldn’t have shocked Carrie that someone close to Aidan would have a poor opinion of Carrie.   Consider how negatively Carrie’s friends viewed Big at different times over the years.  

Was Carrie was supposed to be Aidan’s Big that relationship that you hold on to too long when it’s clear it may not work?

[Ms Blue Jay]

6 minutes ago, Luckylyn said:

Just like the Nina Katz thing where Carrie didn’t like that there was someone who had a negative opinion of her due to how she broke Aidan’s heart. 

Yes, Carrie can't take responsibility for having sex with a married guy or cheating on Aidan.  EVERYONE must like her REGARDLESS.  They MUST.  And they MUST forgive her for all her sins.  BECAUSE.  She's CARRIE.

6 minutes ago, Luckylyn said:

Aidan wasn’t a saint but she’s the one who cheated on him, insisted he take her back, refused to give up Big to the point to of forcing his presence on Aidan at his cabin, and said yes to a marriage proposal when she knew she wasn’t read.

Honestly, I'm not even an Aidan fan but I thought he was kind of a saint. 😁  LOL.  Especially to Carrie.  He didn't deserve what she did, obviously!

6 minutes ago, Luckylyn said:

  If Aidan’s marriage proposal had totally blindsided Carrie, I would have understood her saying yes and realizing later it was a mistake.   She wasn’t surprised by the proposal.  Finding the ring in advance gave her time to think.   Once she found the ring it was on her to speak up immediately about what she was and wasn’t ready for when it came to commitment.  She wanted to hold on to Aidan but didn’t want to fully commit.   It’s like she always wanted one foot out the door.   It shouldn’t have shocked Carrie that someone close to Aidan would have a poor opinion of Carrie.   Consider how negatively Carrie’s friends viewed Big at different times over the years.  

She's a passive aggressive child!

Edited July 23, 2019 by Ms Blue Jay

[RealHousewife]

I agree Aiden didn’t deserve the way Carrie treated him.

[blondiec0332]

What made Carrie's behavior worse was her friend's very rarely called her out on it.  Miranda did about the bullshit bagels. And Charlotte did about the money but then changed her mind.  But for the most part Carrie was left to being her whiny childish self. Sanford was the worse.  Always sucking up to her.

I really do think SJP wanted her character to be well liked so people would think she was well liked.  Even after Carrie cheated with a married man she still somehow tried to come out of it as less than the villain. 

[andromeda331]

16 hours ago, Luckylyn said:

Carrie’s inability to accept that the woman whose husband she cheated with didn’t want to have anything to do with her was dumbfounding.  Why force your presence on someone you helped hurt and have no regard for their feelings?  Sometimes when the damage has been done you just have to accept that someone dislikes you.  Natasha’s simple refusal to be in the same room as Carrie was kinder than some people’s reaction would be.  Some people get vindictive when cheated on and Natasha simply wanted to move on.  Carrie refused to give her that.

12 hours ago, Luckylyn said:

Just like the Nina Katz thing where Carrie didn’t like that there was someone who had a negative opinion of her due to how she broke Aidan’s heart.  Aidan wasn’t a saint but she’s the one who cheated on him, insisted he take her back, refused to give up Big to the point to of forcing his presence on Aidan at his cabin, and said yes to a marriage proposal when she knew she wasn’t ready.    If Aidan’s marriage proposal had totally blindsided Carrie, I would have understood her saying yes and realizing later it was a mistake.   She wasn’t surprised by the proposal.  Finding the ring in advance gave her time to think.   Once she found the ring it was on her to speak up immediately about what she was and wasn’t ready for when it came to commitment.  She wanted to hold on to Aidan but didn’t want to fully commit.   It’s like she always wanted one foot out the door.   It shouldn’t have shocked Carrie that someone close to Aidan would have a poor opinion of Carrie.   Consider how negatively Carrie’s friends viewed Big at different times over the years.  

Was Carrie was supposed to be Aidan’s Big that relationship that you hold on to too long when it’s clear it may not work?

12 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Yes, Carrie can't take responsibility for having sex with a married guy or cheating on Aidan.  EVERYONE must like her REGARDLESS.  They MUST.  And they MUST forgive her for all her sins.  BECAUSE.  She's CARRIE.

Honestly, I'm not even an Aidan fan but I thought he was kind of a saint. 😁  LOL.  Especially to Carrie.  He didn't deserve what she did, obviously!

She's a passive aggressive child!

That drives me crazy. Its so insane. Natasha hates her. Carrie is so completely surprised by that. What the woman who's husband you slept with multiple times hates you? Who would have thought? Why is she so surprised by that? Then she decides to talk to her. Again why does she do this? Why can't she leave Natasha alone? Any sane person would leave her alone and understand why the woman hates her. Natasha handled that scene so much better then most people would including me if the woman their husband cheated on with sat down at your table to talk to you.

Same with Nina Katz. What someone who knows Aiden hates Carrie? Says bad things about her? Again why is she so surprised? She treated Aiden like crap, cheated on him, badgered him to take him back, but made him accept Big into their lives and into his home. Of course Aiden's going to talk about it with friends and they'll hate Carrie. 

That's really the big problem with Carrie. She does these horrible things to people. But takes no responsibility for it, no blame, learns nothing from it, no guilt, and is shocked that other people could hate her because of what she's done. Even learning that people hate her because of what she did doesn't make her think of anything like accepting responsibility, realizing she's done some pretty bad things and to change or try to. Nope, her only thought is How could anyone hate me? Nope she absolutely believes everyone should like her no matter what she did and she will hunt you down and try to convince you of that.  

[andromeda331]

4 hours ago, blondiec0332 said:

What made Carrie's behavior worse was her friend's very rarely called her out on it.  Miranda did about the bullshit bagels. And Charlotte did about the money but then changed her mind.  But for the most part Carrie was left to being her whiny childish self. Sanford was the worse.  Always sucking up to her.

I really do think SJP wanted her character to be well liked so people would think she was well liked.  Even after Carrie cheated with a married man she still somehow tried to come out of it as less than the villain. 

That's the other hard part. Carrie does all these horrible things and rarely gets called out for it. None of her friends except for a very few amount of times ever calls her out on it. They just accept everything Carrie does as right and great no matter what she does.  She's treated all three of them like crap so many times and they just accept it. Why? Why would Samantha still speak to Carrie with her closeminded opinions about sex? Or after Carrie kicked her out of their room so she could have sex with Big? Or forcing her to go to that party that Samantha didn't want to go because of the peel and then making fun of her? Why didn't Charlotte throw her out for barging into her apartment? Or Miranda for telling Aiden that she was going to get an abortion? How do they not get tired of constantly having to drop everything to rush to Carrie's side no matter what to discuss whatever Carrie decides is a problem or constantly having to turn the conversation back to her? Yeah, friends are there for you but they also call you out on your bullshit.

Edited July 23, 2019 by andromeda331

[RealHousewife]

7 hours ago, blondiec0332 said:

What made Carrie's behavior worse was her friend's very rarely called her out on it.  Miranda did about the bullshit bagels. And Charlotte did about the money but then changed her mind.  But for the most part Carrie was left to being her whiny childish self. Sanford was the worse.  Always sucking up to her.

I really do think SJP wanted her character to be well liked so people would think she was well liked.  Even after Carrie cheated with a married man she still somehow tried to come out of it as less than the villain. 

I do hate how Carrie “won” with Charlotte. Charlotte was 100 right and shoot have stuck to her guns. 

I don’t hate Carrie, but I see where all of you are coming from. She’s that narcissistic person who messes up but wants so desperately to be liked and keep all her friends and not be seen as the bad guy. 

She had a lot of nerve with Natasha and then insisting Big has to be a part of her life forever (as if they had kids or something), cheating on Aiden with Big, and then inviting Big over. 

[blondiec0332]

1 hour ago, RealHousewife said:

insisting Big has to be a part of her life forever (as if they had kids or something), cheating on Aiden with Big, and then inviting Big over. 

Could you imagine if Aiden or Big had told Carrie they expected her to be cool with an ex girlfriend being a part of their life?  Carrie got very pissy when Aiden was just hanging out with the bartender and she wasn't even an ex.

[RealHousewife]

4 minutes ago, blondiec0332 said:

Could you imagine if Aiden or Big had told Carrie they expected her to be cool with an ex girlfriend being a part of their life?  Carrie got very pissy when Aiden was just hanging out with the bartender and she wasn't even an ex.

I know. I get that it’s hard to let go when you love someone, but Carrie didn’t seem to care about Aiden’s feelings the way she’d expect him to care about hers. Big didn’t need to be her close friend forever like that. 

[cpcathy]

The only reason she would ever need Big as a close friend and confidant is if she expected to go back to him if things with Aidan didn't work out. My now-husband and I broke up prior to finally getting married and I had kept him close because I knew I wanted to get back together, duh!

[RealHousewife]

Yeah she couldn’t cut the cord because she still wanted him. 

[andromeda331]

On 7/23/2019 at 2:44 PM, cpcathy said:

The only reason she would ever need Big as a close friend and confidant is if she expected to go back to him if things with Aidan didn't work out. My now-husband and I broke up prior to finally getting married and I had kept him close because I knew I wanted to get back together, duh!

On 7/23/2019 at 2:46 PM, RealHousewife said:

Yeah she couldn’t cut the cord because she still wanted him. 

Yep, while completely expecting Aiden to be completely okay with that. Sure what guy wouldn't be understanding about their girlfriend keeping the guy she cheated on him with close because she really wants to get back with that guy. What Aiden wasn't? What a shocker. Not that it mattered since she didn't care and still did it anyways and invited him into Aiden's home.  What a great girlfriend!

[RealHousewife]

3 minutes ago, andromeda331 said:

Yep, while completely expecting Aiden to be completely okay with that. Sure what guy wouldn't be understanding about their girlfriend keeping the guy she cheated on him with close because she really wants to get back with that guy. What Aiden wasn't? What a shocker. Not that it mattered since she didn't care and still did it anyways and invited him into Aiden's home.  What a great girlfriend!

I can’t argue with this one at all...

Girlfriend 101-don’t cheat on your boyfriend with your now married ex in his wife’s own home, don’t expect your boyfriend to be cool with you being close friends with this man, and don’t have him come over to your boyfriend’s own home either. He was forgiving enough giving you a second chance. Don’t push it. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

Some of us who bitch over Carrie's antics really do love some parts of Carrie.  I include myself in this very much.  The bitching is just so much more fun and it's necessary to vent because the show really pushed Carrie as this untouchable one.  The show already knows what's good about Carrie but we're here to tell everyone WHAT'S BAD!!!  😄

[RealHousewife]

21 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Some of us who bitch over Carrie's antics really do love some parts of Carrie.  I include myself in this very much.  The bitching is just so much more fun and it's necessary to vent because the show really pushed Carrie as this untouchable one.  The show already knows what's good about Carrie but we're here to tell everyone WHAT'S BAD!!!  😄

Haha okay gotcha! That makes sense. 😊 I started to feel like I was the only one who remotely liked her. lol

[cpcathy]

One of my actual favorite moments of Carrie was the argument she had with Aiden over the cramped apartment, her rant on his Speed Sticks and Rogaine was really, really funny.

[Ms Blue Jay]

25 minutes ago, cpcathy said:

One of my actual favorite moments of Carrie was the argument she had with Aiden over the cramped apartment, her rant on his Speed Sticks and Rogaine was really, really funny.

Same.

Their fighting is really funny.

When Steve is over and asking about Miranda, Carrie and Aidan immediately hide in another room and they start whisper-arguing with each other.  Carrie says something like like "It's okay if you told Steve -- I can't keep a secret either - OBVIOUSLY" and Aidan says "You told ME, CHIEF!"  The whole back and forth is very very funny.  

[Ms Blue Jay]

Another good one --

After Miranda proposes to Steve, Charlotte goes nuts with trying to throw Miranda the perfect bridal shower.  She suggests all sorts of gifts but Carrie and Sam say "No" to everything she suggests because they know that Miranda will hate it.  Charlotte suggests a dish and Carrie and Sam mock the idea as usual.

Finally, Charlotte loses it.

Charlotte:  Okay, so why don't I just get a stick and smear a bunch of dog poo on it and give her that?
Carrie:  (Pause).  We'll get the dish.

[blondiec0332]

For me Carrie was more likable when she wasn't having boyfriend issues.  She was such a drama queen about her relationships.  I always felt like Carrie loved the idea of a great love affair more than an actual love affair.  I don't think what she imagined it was supposed to be would ever live up to the reality. She had a pretty good thing with Aidan but didn't want it.  Even after marrying Big she acted like their life together was a let down.

[Jillybean]

2 hours ago, blondiec0332 said:

For me Carrie was more likable when she wasn't having boyfriend issues.  She was such a drama queen about her relationships.  I always felt like Carrie loved the idea of a great love affair more than an actual love affair.  I don't think what she imagined it was supposed to be would ever live up to the reality. She had a pretty good thing with Aidan but didn't want it.  Even after marrying Big she acted like their life together was a let down.

So true. Carrie enjoyed the chase, then when she caught them she'd lose interest. She needed the drama of the hunt.

[libgirl2]

18 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Another good one --

After Miranda proposes to Steve, Charlotte goes nuts with trying to throw Miranda the perfect bridal shower.  She suggests all sorts of gifts but Carrie and Sam say "No" to everything she suggests because they know that Miranda will hate it.  Charlotte suggests a dish and Carrie and Sam mock the idea as usual.

Finally, Charlotte loses it.

Charlotte:  Okay, so why don't I just get a stick and smear a bunch of dog poo on it and give her that?
Carrie:  (Pause).  We'll get the dish.

Oh gosh, that was hysterical! 

My favorite line is still Miranda's with the guy who had a penis like a golf pencil. 

[RealHousewife]

On 7/26/2019 at 10:11 AM, Jillybean said:

So true. Carrie enjoyed the chase, then when she caught them she'd lose interest. She needed the drama of the hunt.

I’m not a dramatic person like Carrie, but I won’t lie-there is something so fun about the chase. I think a loving marriage is what most women crave at some point, but it is fun getting attention from men, the excitement of someone you’re interested being interested in you back. It’s fun flirting, it’s fun when a relationship is brand new, innocent and not even sexual yet. I like all of it.

[BlueMoon81]

On 7/22/2019 at 12:51 PM, RealHousewife said:

I am also a soap fan. In soaps, a “bad guy” can be charming. EJ DiMera was a terrible person on Days (way worse than Carrie at her worst), but he was rather charming at the same time.

I’m a long time soap fan too, so I definitely understand. Some of my all time favorites to watch were the baddies, because of the amazing talent and charm of the actresses/actors playing them ( Roger on Guiding Light, Todd on One Life to Live, Stefano DiMera on Days, Tony DiMera on Days, Dr David Hayward on All My Children, Helena Cassadine on General Hospital, etc)

On 7/22/2019 at 7:46 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

And what was her excuse for blabbing?  "I can't keep a secret"??????? Holy shit Carrie it's NOT YOUR SECRET.  What the HELL did it have to do with Carrie and Aidan?  OH my god.  

Exactly! That was arguably the biggest betrayal by Carrie to any of her friends on the show. The decision to terminate a pregnancy is extremely personal and it was NOT Carrie’s secret to blab. Then that nauseating reaction she gave to Miranda in the pizza parlor, implying that Miranda should have the kid because Carrie herself or Steve or Aidan (or anyone they know who isn’t Miranda herself) thinks she should. Just makes me want to hurl something at the tv every time I watch it 

On 7/23/2019 at 8:10 AM, blondiec0332 said:

What made Carrie's behavior worse was her friend's very rarely called her out on it.  Miranda did about the bullshit bagels. And Charlotte did about the money but then changed her mind.  But for the most part Carrie was left to being her whiny childish self. Sanford was the worse.  Always sucking up to her.

I really do think SJP wanted her character to be well liked so people would think she was well liked.  Even after Carrie cheated with a married man she still somehow tried to come out of it as less than the villain. 

As I’ve gotten older, that’s what grinds my gears more and more as well—all of the instances that Carrie was NOT called out for her atrocious behavior. I think it has to do with SJP getting Exec Producer Power after S1 and deciding that Carrie’s repugnant behavior should be chalked up to “Carrie being Carrie” and that the audience would be so enamored with her charm as a character that they would overlook her crap. There are soooo many instances where Miranda, Charlotte and Sam should’ve individually backslapped the hell outta Ms Bradshaw. If Carrie had been called out on her crap immediately, then learned/evolved from that situation—she would’ve been a more interesting character for my money

[andromeda331]

4 hours ago, BlueMoon81 said:

I’m a long time soap fan too, so I definitely understand. Some of my all time favorites to watch were the baddies, because of the amazing talent and charm of the actresses/actors playing them ( Roger on Guiding Light, Todd on One Life to Live, Stefano DiMera on Days, Tony DiMera on Days, Dr David Hayward on All My Children, Helena Cassadine on General Hospital, etc)

Exactly! That was arguably the biggest betrayal by Carrie to any of her friends on the show. The decision to terminate a pregnancy is extremely personal and it was NOT Carrie’s secret to blab. Then that nauseating reaction she gave to Miranda in the pizza parlor, implying that Miranda should have the kid because Carrie herself or Steve or Aidan (or anyone they know who isn’t Miranda herself) thinks she should. Just makes me want to hurl something at the tv every time I watch it 

As I’ve gotten older, that’s what grinds my gears more and more as well—all of the instances that Carrie was NOT called out for her atrocious behavior. I think it has to do with SJP getting Exec Producer Power after S1 and deciding that Carrie’s repugnant behavior should be chalked up to “Carrie being Carrie” and that the audience would be so enamored with her charm as a character that they would overlook her crap. There are soooo many instances where Miranda, Charlotte and Sam should’ve individually backslapped the hell outta Ms Bradshaw. If Carrie had been called out on her crap immediately, then learned/evolved from that situation—she would’ve been a more interesting character for my money

Same here. I ended up liking the other three better and more interested in them because they grew, they were challenged by what they wanted and had challenges. I hated Carrie because of her horrible behavior that she was never called out on, how she treated everyone which was just ignored for "Carrie being Carrie". Her stories weren't interesting because she did whatever she wanted with zero consequences , never changed, never grew or learned. It would have interesting to see Carrie do more in writing then just her column like trying for other magazines, thinking about writing a book, trying a different writing field. She didn't really have any interests except shopping and going to clubs. I was interested in Samantha giving a relationship a try with Richard, her finding and discovering Smith I really liked watching her turn him into a celebrity it also showed that Samantha really was good at her job and the cancer storyline. I was interested in what Charlotte's 1st marriage because she went into with the wrong reasons and so did Trey, but they started over and it ended up not working out. Its not surprising but this was what Charlotte wanted and dreamed about and she got it and it didn't go at all the way she thought. Also they both rushed into it without really thinking about it and into trying for a baby so quickly after starting over. I was interest in what happened after the divorce Charlotte not wanting to be with Harry because he wasn't what she thought she wanted and watching that change. She fell for someone she didn't expect. I do wish they had done better with Miranda and Steve, I really liked Miranda falling for a bartender who wasn't what she thought she wanted. I still love Miranda explaining why she wanted to marry Steve. I liked that she proposed and had a Miranda wedding. Although I think she should have gone ahead with the abortion I did like her and Brady stuff. Miranda realizing towards the end of the series the apartment was too small and even though she wanted to stay in NYC it made more sense to move to Brooklyn where there was more space.  I liked her and Blair Underwood. All three made mistakes but learned from them in the Samantha realized she was right all along and should be single. Charlotte converted to Judaism and remained after she and Harry broke up.   Compared to Carrie who dated Big and stalked his ex-wife and mother and not learning anything from that. Dating Aiden cheating on him learns nothing from it. Being horrible to her friends oh well they never get mad so who cares. Nothing is ever her fault. I was interested when Miranda called Carrie out on her bullshit bagels hey, I was interested when Miranda wasn't thrilled about Carrie dating Big and told her about it. The only thing I liked about her dating Alek was she finally stopped running after Big when he called. Even at the very end of the series they can't have her realize how stupid it was to quit her life and move to Paris with someone she didn't love or really know. No Big had to "rescue" her. 

Edited July 31, 2019 by andromeda331

[andromeda331]

On 7/26/2019 at 9:11 AM, Jillybean said:

So true. Carrie enjoyed the chase, then when she caught them she'd lose interest. She needed the drama of the hunt.

She really did. I really wish they had her realize this about her. Forget have her ending up with Big. It really makes more sense for her realize she's not interested in relationships and remain dating. That really would have been more interesting. I always thought it made more sense for Samantha and Carrie to remain single and happy about it, going from guy to guy or maybe have a few different guys they can always call when their bored. She enjoyed that part. Samantha enjoyed being with different men. 

[chitowngirl]

And if Carrie was SO unhappy in Paris, she should have just gone back to NY (never mind that she should have just gone to Paris as a guest to get the lay of the land and then see if she wanted to make it permanent). She didn’t need Big to Save her.  And I never thought The Russian hit her intentionally. I saw it as a huge arm gesture that caught Carrie.

[andromeda331]

41 minutes ago, chitowngirl said:

And if Carrie was SO unhappy in Paris, she should have just gone back to NY (never mind that she should have just gone to Paris as a guest to get the lay of the land and then see if she wanted to make it permanent). She didn’t need Big to Save her.  And I never thought The Russian hit her intentionally. I saw it as a huge arm gesture that caught Carrie.

I took it as throwing Alek's character under the bus. Look he hit Carrie! Isn't he awful? The worse! Poor Carrie. Thank God Big showed up to "rescue" Carrie. Like they wanted us to see that Big was better and needed Aleks to look worse then Big. So slap it is. It was so stupid and unnecessary. They could have just broken up. Have Carrie realize she made a stupid decision. The whole move was stupid she knew he was going to be busy Aleks said so. She could have like you suggested just visited Paris to see if she liked and how things went with Aleks if they wanted to make it permanent. She could have gone out to clubs and stuff and probably would have had fun. Nope not Carrie.