The Pitch: Once upon a time, there were some lovely single ladies living in Manhattan, trying to “have it all,” and while their marital statuses have changed more than once over the years, Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte (Kristen Davis) are still on that same quest. For as they enter the later period of middle age, their friend group has expanded and their children are becoming adults, but it’s still not easy to find love in New York City — or to hold onto it.
New Show, New Manolos: It’s time for another season of the “next chapter” of Sex and the City, and honestly, after a somewhat shaky first season, And Just Like That Season 2 delivers on that promise in the best of ways. The seven episodes provided to critics reveal a show with a great deal more confidence and self-awareness; even if its characters haven’t all found their individual grooves, the show seems a lot more centered and focused.
Perhaps that’s just in contrast to Season 1, which was a lot of things, but “loud” feels like a particularly good descriptor. Beginning with the nuclear bomb of Big’s death, followed by the high drama of Miranda’s journey from married alcoholic to sober woman in a relationship with the non-binary Che (Sara Ramírez), it was a show trying to figure itself out on a number of levels, and shaking up the status quo in order to do so.
Not that Season 2 is lacking in drama, but it’s almost a relief to see the show focus in on the smaller details of these characters’ lives as opposed to huge life changes, which executive producer Michael Patrick King and the writers seem far more comfortable — and happier — exploring.
The new season features Carrie finding her comfort level with dating as a widow, Miranda still figuring out who she is in the context of a new relationship, and Charlotte doing the best she can as the mother of two exceptionally modern teenagers. (You might deduce, from that sentence, that one cast member is getting less meat in her sandwich than the others, but Kristen Davis is so game and committed that Charlotte never feels shortchanged in her storylines.)
The Next Evolution: Nothing speaks to the way in which Sex and the City was ahead of its time like the fact that And Just Like That, while fundamentally still feeling like the same show, also feels very much in line with the light dramedy approach that’s become so very popular in the streaming age.
And Just Like That (Max)
