Sex And The City - General Discussion

[Inquisitionist]

If you have amazon Prime, you can stream the episodes online.  For $99/year, I think amazon Prime is a great deal!  And, no, I don't work for amazon.  ;-)

[ShellSeeker]

Continuing my re-watch, and I really hate how Carrie was the best friend of the other girls. You got the impression that she was the glue that held the group together. 

 

I know, that always bothered me too. Each of the other women, at multiple points during the series, told Carrie that she was their "best friend." It seemed juvenile to me, and even worse, like Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte were always competing to see who Carrie would anoint as her "best friend." 

 

 

And in the second movie they had that scene where they (rather cluelessly) marvel at how women who don't have live-in nannies and housekeepers manage to raise families. As the only parents of the group, they had that to bond over.

 

I did like that scene, but it really made both Miranda and Charlotte look completely clueless and out of touch. But I appreciated it because I thought Miranda was incredibly annoying in the first movie. In just about every one of her scenes was a reference to how hard she had it because she had a job and a kid. And this from someone who is a partner in a NYC law firm with a freaking live-in nanny/housekeeper. Clearly she and Steve were not struggling to make ends meet, so for her to constantly whine about that was ridiculous. And yet she still found time to go spend 3 days helping Carrie pack up her apartment.

[EarlGreyTea]

I did like that scene, but it really made both Miranda and Charlotte look completely clueless and out of touch. But I appreciated it because I thought Miranda was incredibly annoying in the first movie. In just about every one of her scenes was a reference to how hard she had it because she had a job and a kid. And this from someone who is a partner in a NYC law firm with a freaking live-in nanny/housekeeper. Clearly she and Steve were not struggling to make ends meet, so for her to constantly whine about that was ridiculous. And yet she still found time to go spend 3 days helping Carrie pack up her apartment.

 

Yeah, there was this weird cognitive dissonance whenever Miranda would complain she had no time off because of the baby.....while she was at brunch with the girls. She'd be totally exhausted, but still have time to meet the girls.

 

And I hated how Miranda in particular was always up Carrie's ass, more so than the other two. Usually in groups of friends there are subgroups, but this is the first show I've seen where there are literally no subgroups that did not involve Carrie.

Edited October 2, 2015 by EarlGreyTea

[mansonlamps]

I just started re-watching on Amazon Prime having not seen the show in years since I don't have the DVDs and hate the edited version on basic cable.  I think it's interesting that they start off kind of slut-shaming Samantha and her lifestyle, or maybe just making her seem a bit pathetic.  First, they show her in episode one offering casual sex in the club VIP room and getting turned down by Big who then goes on to ask Carrie out.  Sam seems pretty rejected when turned down.  Then in the Modelizer episode, she clearly thinks she is "as hot as a model" in appearance but the guy from Suits makes a point of saying he's making an exception to his rule by filming her having sex with him and is only doing it because she asks him to.  Then Charlotte "plays it right" by going home after her first date with a wealthy guy after going to his apartment and seeing his famous painting.  Said guy then goes back to the club and picks up Samantha who becomes his casual sex partner and is clearly told she is not invited to spend the night because he has an early meeting. Sam seems quite defensive and says she has an early meeting too, but it comes across as hurtful to her.  I think there may be more examples, but those come to mind.

[ByTor]

I tried to rewatch on Amazon Prime, but I just couldn't take Samantha anymore. I have a REALLY hard time believing every man she wrinkles her nose at would want her, with the exception of (from what I remember) Big and that celibate guy from yoga.

[andromeda331]

I kind of leaned towards pathetic in the beginning with Samantha, if she was the confidenate woman we were suppose

to believe then she would have shrugged after Big turned her down or not even cared whether or not the guy was

video taping her. She really seem to need the validation. The comments she made after that hostess wouldn't

let her in really seem to suggest she was hitting a midlife crisis or something, the whole 'that was me' five,

ten or however many years ago.

[ktwo]

New interview with Darren Star, who says he thinks the ending missed the point of the show:

http://jezebel.com/sex-and-the-city-creator-says-ending-ultimately-betray-1753389718

"…I think the show ultimately betrayed what it was about, which was that women don't ultimately find happiness from marriage. Not that they can't. But the show initially was going off script from the romantic comedies that had come before it. That's what had made women so attached."

"At the end, it became a conventional romantic comedy," he concluded. "But unless you're there to write every episode, you're not going to get the ending you want."

Edited January 18, 2016 by ktwo

[ShellSeeker]

I tried to rewatch on Amazon Prime, but I just couldn't take Samantha anymore. I have a REALLY hard time believing every man she wrinkles her nose at would want her, with the exception of (from what I remember) Big and that celibate guy from yoga.

 

Yeah, I had a hard time buying that too. My sister was living in NYC when during the original run of SATC. She said the show nailed the NYC dating scene pretty well, but there was no way anyone would be sleeping with so many different guys, especially Samantha.

 

As the show went on, they seemed to write Samantha as more empowered and independent rather than the pathetic cougar she came off as at the beginning. It could also be that KC became more comfortable with the character too, and started playing her differently.

[AndySmith]

like Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte were always competing to see who Carrie would anoint as her "best friend."

 

And they were all too good for her anyway.

[andromeda331]

They really were weren't they? I often wondered how they didn't get sick of Carrie. I know it

was in the script. But it would be so exhausting to be Carrie's friend. Its always all about her.

Constantly having to drop everything to go take care of her and she always had some

drama going on in her life, usually of her own making. And if they had a problem they

really couldn't depend on Carrie to come and help them. She couldn't be bothered to

come help Miranda when she was hurt.

[Inquisitionist]

I don't really blame Carrie for sending Aidan to help Miranda that one time -- Carrie had a legitimate professional commitment that she couldn't drop out of the blue because Miranda demanded her attention.  BUT, Carrie could have handled the follow-up much, much better than she did.  Miranda was right to call her out on the "bullshit bagels."

[Quof]

 

I don't really blame Carrie for sending Aidan to help Miranda that one time -- Carrie had a legitimate professional commitment that she couldn't drop out of the blue because Miranda demanded her attention

But Carrie did blow off professional commitments all the time. We repeatedly heard her say she was missing her deadline, hiding from editor because she had missed a deadline....How was Miranda supposed to know this really was the time she was going to keep a professional commitment?   

[Inquisitionist]

Did Carrie miss deadlines?  I recall many references to her needing to work to meet a deadline.  She actually seemed conscientious about that.  And I'm no Carrie apologist!  :P

[Quof]

I'm thinking of the episode when Carrie and Charlotte are sitting at a restaurant patio playing 100 when her editor appears and she tries to hide, because she has missed a deadline. I'm sure there are lots of instances, but that's one I recall specifically.

[ktwo]

I'm thinking of the episode when Carrie and Charlotte are sitting at a restaurant patio playing 100 when her editor appears and she tries to hide, because she has missed a deadline. I'm sure there are lots of instances, but that's one I recall specifically.

I don't think she's missed a deadline but she has been ducking his calls. Because she's convinced that the paper is going to drop her column. But of course she's been magically offered a book deal!

[AndySmith]

BUT, Carrie could have handled the follow-up much, much better than she did.  Miranda was right to call her out on the "bullshit bagels."

 

Oh, that is the part that bugged me, not that she sent Aidan. She shows up at Miranda's after and is all "Hey howareyou gladtoseeyourdoingbetter ok enough about you let's talk about ME and MY problems". Bullshit bagels indeed.

[ShellSeeker]

I don't really blame Carrie for sending Aidan to help Miranda that one time -- Carrie had a legitimate professional commitment that she couldn't drop out of the blue because Miranda demanded her attention.  BUT, Carrie could have handled the follow-up much, much better than she did.  Miranda was right to call her out on the "bullshit bagels."

 

Yeah, I didn't think Carrie was out of line there either. She had a work commitment, and also, what would she have been able to do to help Miranda? It's not like she could have lifted her up on her own. I did love the "bullshit bagels" scene because it's one of the few times that Miranda called Carrie on her narcissism.

 

For me, Carrie was at her shrillest and most OTT annoying when she went to Aidan's "country" house and screeched every time she saw a squirrel or a bird. OMG. Newsflash, girlfriend...if you're within driving distance of a freaking drive-thru, you're not roughing it. My husband loves camping, and because I love him, I endure one weekend in the woods each summer, even though my loathing for it increases exponentially with each passing year. No electricity, no plumbing, and sleeping on an air mattress that will inevitably be deflated by morning. That is roughing it.

[Inquisitionist]

There doesn't seem to be a media/news thread, so I'll post this here:  SJP wishes Kim Catrall a happy 60th birthday.

[Maherjunkie]

Quote

 I endure one weekend in the woods each summer, even though my loathing for it increases exponentially with each passing year. No electricity, no plumbing, and sleeping on an air mattress that will inevitably be deflated by morning. That is roughing it.

 

 

 

 

 

Queasy, did you have to endure this this year?

[Quof]

But why, Queasy?  Why????  Why pretend to be homeless??

[ShellSeeker]

Yes, sadly, I did. Memorial Day Weekend. But I ended up being rewarded when I left a day earlier than everyone else, and had 24 whole hours at home, completely by myself. It was heavenly.

[Maherjunkie]

He better be giving you the Jazz Guy treatment.

[zxy556575]

I've always wondered during Carrie and Big's affair why their hotels kept getting more and more low rent and sordid. The point that they had lost the frisson of excitement and were kind of going through the motions, okay, but was Big really not able to afford decent hotel rooms 2-3 times a week? And that eventually just using his apartment was a penny-pinching decision?

[izabella]

I believe Carrie and Big kept downgrading hotels in order to avoid being seen by people who might know them, especially because the nicer hotels would be in areas where people they know tend to be (UES, Midtown, etc.)  I also think it was so fewer questions would be asked...when Carrie was hanging around the lobby of one hotel, one of the Asian businessmen approached her because the thought she was an escort, lingering in the lobby to peddle her wares. 

[AndySmith]

Quote

I believe Carrie and Big kept downgrading hotels in order to avoid being seen by people who might know them, especially because the nicer hotels would be in areas where people they know tend to be

Yeah, that was my impression as well. Don't they mention it at one point that nobody they knew lived around one of those hotels or something? Plus, there was the obvious symbolism of how cheap and trashy their affair was/had become via how cheap and trashy their hotel rooms had become.

Their egos assumed that all of their friends were so high society that they'd never be busted near one of those low rent hotels, so it was fun to see them busted in one of those hotels by Charlotte.

[mamadrama]

On 3/17/2016 at 0:21 AM, AndySmith said:

 

Oh, that is the part that bugged me, not that she sent Aidan. She shows up at Miranda's after and is all "Hey howareyou gladtoseeyourdoingbetter ok enough about you let's talk about ME and MY problems". Bullshit bagels indeed.

I just watched the episode where Miranda is having trouble with Brady's crying. She is stressed and tired and falling apart and here comes Carrie...calling her up and complaining about the woman with "the face." Miranda actually falls asleep while talking to her, yet Carrie blazes right on through the moment, continuing to whine about herself. I really wished Miranda had ripped her a new one that time. "Look, bitch, I am tired, I am stressed, and NONE of you are taking a moment out of your Cosmo lives to give a flying fuck about me. So either do something useful or hang up the damn phone so that I can finish brushing my damn hair."

[zxy556575]

Was that the time Miranda actually encouraged Carrie to natter on? Something like she needed to hear normal conversation to take her out of her own stress, or something. Gawd.

[Maherjunkie]

yes

[JAYJAY1979]

Oddly, the inly one to truly call Carrie in her crap was charlotte of all people..moreso then Miranda and samantha.

I liked the few times when the other women had scenes that didnt include Carrie.  Charlotte being pissed at Samantha for sleeping with her brother then bringing over muffins to apoligize...or when Miranda had to tell charlotte she was pregnant while Charlotte had to tell her that she couldnt have kids...and I loved the heart to heart between Miranda and charlotte in the bathroom at miranda's baby shower...or Samantha quieting Brady with the vibrator..and Miranda wanting the receipt.

[andromeda331]

19 minutes ago, JAYJAY1979 said:

Oddly, the inly one to truly call Carrie in her crap was charlotte of all people..moreso then Miranda and samantha.

I liked the few times when the other women had scenes that didnt include Carrie.  Charlotte being pissed at Samantha for sleeping with her brother then bringing over muffins to apoligize...or when Miranda had to tell charlotte she was pregnant while Charlotte had to tell her that she couldnt have kids...and I loved the heart to heart between Miranda and charlotte in the bathroom at miranda's baby shower...or Samantha quieting Brady with the vibrator..and Miranda wanting the receipt.

Was it more then Miranda though? I remember Miranda going off on Carrie when she wanted get back together with Big, and when Carrie claimed to come over to see how Miranda was after she fell when it was really to talk about herself, and her response to Carrie claiming Aidan's lips said "yes" when she kissed him when she suddenly decided she wanted Aidan back.

I liked seeing the other three girls having scenes together without Carrie. It was nice to see their friendship with each other. 

[JAYJAY1979]

True.....Miranda did call carrie out....but I think there was a bigger impact the few times Charlotte did so.

Oddly...i think by the 2nd movie...Miranda and charlotte were closer since both were married with childrwn...hwnce the drinking scene at the bar.

[Cuore]

In the chapter two of the second season Charlotte dates a guy who wasn't circumcise, it was an issue for her and her friends agree with it (except Samantha). Why is it such a big deal? Does it is a normal reaction between women? Is it right to encouraging the guy to cut his foreskin?

[Maherjunkie]

No, and it is supposed to be more helpful to the woman, so she slighted herself.

[txhorns79]

I had been rewatching some episodes from the third season, and a few things stuck out: 1) Loved Miranda's amazement at the idea a DVD could be delivered to someone's house, 2) the idea that Samantha never had an AIDS test until some guy insisted she have one before screwing him is absurd and 3) I really like the Big/Carrie affair storyline.  It feels very real to me, and I like they aren't afraid to make Carrie look bad. 

[Maherjunkie]

It didn't take much, but I agree.

[Bb78]

On 15/04/2014 at 3:59 PM, Inquisitionist said:

Caught some S2 episodes recently, and my god, did Chris Noth ever look hot, hot, hot.  It's a little difficult to remember, in light of how he looks now on The Good Wife.

He is Hot with a capital H. He us gorgeous!?

On 15/04/2014 at 8:01 PM, WendyCR72 said:

To be fair to Chris Noth, if his birth year on IMDB is right, he is going to be 60 (!) this year. Time catches up to everyone. Sigh.

He looks mighty fine for 60. 

[Bb78]

On 22/03/2015 at 4:35 PM, Bella said:

I didn't give Big a pass, but I focus on Carrie because she's the protagonist. However, he was no prize IMO.

 

In fact, after I watched the first few episodes, I wondered why the writers changed his character so much. He was not as easy or sleazy at first, and with the level of wealth he supposedly had, he wouldn't have been literally bumping into her on sidewalks or had the amount of unencumbered time they gave him. His personality changed, too - he was dumbed down and became less charming. He quickly became an average-rich jerk who was used to getting his way. But he was always a pretty boy, and they tend to get away with murder.

 

YMMV.

In reality a rich guy wasn't going to meet the girl of his dreams on the street. What's he going to say when people ask how did you two meet. Oh on the street cornet. Nice!

[Bb78]

On 20/10/2014 at 11:10 PM, CleoCaesar said:

 

I agree. I live in NYC and even though I consider myself a homebody, I do my best to discover new museums and plays, and just get to find interesting places and activities in the city. What's the point of living here if you don't take advantage of it at least once in a while? It's not like Carrie was burdened with some high-stress, 60-hour-a-week job. To her the superficial image of New York - cultured, beautiful, powerful - was more important than the actual city, it seemed. Same goes, on a smaller scale, for Carrie's relationship with Paris - she spends years romanticizing it and then when she actually moves there, she gets bored in literally two weeks. And actually tells Miranda on the phone that she's "been to every museum, twice". AAAARGH you are in Paris! That's not only impossible, it is just insulting and stupid.

 

If the show had actually explored this idea - that Carrie was not in fact the quintessential cultured New Yorker, and that it was just as much a costume as any of her ridiculous outfits - it might have given Carrie some additional depth as a character.

They did go yo the theater once when Samantha's boyfriend was staring in a show. Lol. Point taken, they never went to galleries etc. But I think the show was focusing on relationships more than mixing it with interests or hobbies.

[AndySmith]

They did seem to attend openings for restaurants and bars and nightclubs more than anything else. But you did see the occasional trips to other places. They went to Charlotte's art gallery when that guy painted Charlotte's vagina. And Carrie and Charlotte did meet Alec in an art gallery. And I remember when Charlotte was with Trey, they went with Carrie to some internet start-up launch party on a boat (Carrie ran into Big while he was with Natasha, I believe). And Carrie did go to the opera with Charlotte where she again ran into Big while he was with Natasha. And Carrie also tried to go the some museum in an early episode of season 5, but it was closed. It does seem like the common denominator was mostly Charlotte, though...

Hey, for some people, the appeal of Manhatten is the night life, more than anything else, much more than the arts and the culture.

Edited February 21, 2017 by AndySmith

[ChlcGirl]

Carrie also took Sanford to the ballet.  I presumed they saw Sleeping Beauty since Sanford said she only liked it because she liked watching someone sleep for 100 years.

[Maherjunkie]

She went there with Big even when he hated it.

[Qoass]

Is that where she's coming from in the opening credits?

[Maherjunkie]

I don't think so.  It was at night, during second season.

[Qoass]

That was a joke:  she's wearing a freakin' tutu.

[RubyRena17]

For some reason I only sporadically watched this show in its original run. Now  I'm watching it in order for the first time, (Up to season 5 so far) It's truly funny and clever. Yes, they take great artistic license. The clothes are largely still in style 16 years later and quirky/cool. I don't know how anyone could manage that much pavement in heels! With that much booze! I never realized how beautiful the non-Carries were. Charlotte looks like Jackie Kennedy. Miranda has a delicate sweet face. I love her red hair, colored or not. Samantha has a rockin' bod (of course), and great comedic delivery. Carrie also has a great body. She has fabulous dancer legs. I like her hair any way she wears it. Long or short or straight or curly.

Now for the men: Big--why couldn't they just call him John and be done with it? That overly cutesy mystery man thing they keep rehashing is ANNOYING! Also he's no prize in the looks department. Too red lips, down-slanting dark tired baggy eyes, too thick brows and TOO FEW WORDS/THOUGHTS! Although I did agree with him in the Moon River scene about that song. Steve: Reminds me of an old NYC boyfriend I had. Sincere but too cloying. Hate his voice and teeth. Aiden: I don't think he would live in Manhattan for a minute. Belongs in Austin, Texas. (The hip city of TX) Hate his name (AIDS) Trey: He was written to be disliked, the spoiled little rich mommy's boy. And that chin... Haven't got to season's 5 and 6 men yet.

Slightly OT: Remember The View when Star Jones was on it? I think she fancied herself as the 5th SATC gal since she had "so much in common" (lawyer, Jones, shoes, hair, NYC, mid-30s then, looking for Mr. Big) Part of her (blech go away) "charm." Have not and will not watch THAT one again!                                                           

[Maherjunkie]

Your thoughts on Mr.Big elude me, but welcome to the forum.

[Maharincess]

@RubyRena17,  I agree completely about Big. I don't think he's attractive at all.  The huge nose and the thin lips that look like he has red lipstick on and the hideous eyebrows, blech!!   I think he's downright ugly. 

[ktwo]

Quote

Big--why couldn't they just call him John and be done with it? That overly cutesy mystery man thing they keep rehashing is ANNOYING!

This cannot be said enough. What a dumb sitcom trope for an otherwise sophisticated show.

[Maherjunkie]

It's a Roman nose!  The eyebrows are a beauty trait on Brooke Shields!  (I wish there were emoticons to show that I am speaking lightheartedly)

[Sun-Bun]

On 4/8/2017 at 2:24 PM, RubyRena17 said:

Now for the men: Big--why couldn't they just call him John and be done with it? That overly cutesy mystery man thing they keep rehashing is ANNOYING! Also he's no prize in the looks department. Too red lips, down-slanting dark tired baggy eyes, too thick brows and TOO FEW WORDS/THOUGHTS! Although I did agree with him in the Moon River scene about that song. Steve: Reminds me of an old NYC boyfriend I had. Sincere but too cloying. Hate his voice and teeth. Aiden: I don't think he would live in Manhattan for a minute. Belongs in Austin, Texas. (The hip city of TX) Hate his name (AIDS) Trey: He was written to be disliked, the spoiled little rich mommy's boy. And that chin... Haven't got to season's 5 and 6 men yet.                                              

Hey now, to each her peach: I thought Chris Noth as "Mr. Big" was pretty hot back then! Granted, I like unconventionally attractive dudes anyway, but I think the whole appeal of his character overall was more about his Old Manhattan-fella style, swagger and confidence. He represented the typical sexy and successful, yet aloof and cool Wall Street businessman that so many Manhattan gals a'la Carrie Bradshaw were lusting for at the time, the quintessential player of players.

Yes, I always thought the "Big" nickname thing was goofy too, but at least Carrie was rather consistent with her goofy nicknames for her boyfriends throughout the show, so I never questioned that stupidity very much((how could we forget "Berger"? "The Russian"? "The Furniture-Maker", etc...))...

The only thing that sorta bugged me about Mr. Big's character as a whole was that he ended up chasing Carrie around Paris and then claiming she was "the one" on the final episode. That completely went against his entire character arc throughout all the seasons, and in real life the actual Mr. Big's *never* allow themselves to fully settle for their Carrie's! But whatever, the show wanted to neatly end on a happy note with the two popular characters finally hooking up for good as a couple, so I get it.  

Edited April 10, 2017 by Sun-Bun