“Sex and the City” fans couldn’t wait for the release of “And Just Like That….,” a revival series available on HBO Max, but it turns out the anticipation was more exciting than the outcome.
The series, which sees Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon and Kristin Davis reprise their roles as best friends navigating their personal and professional lives in New York City, debuted on Dec. 9. It didn’t take long after for fans to call out the show’s writers for the devastating death of Mr. Big, Carrie Bradshaw’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) partner played by Chris Noth.
Another blow to “Sex and the City” loyalists is the explanation surrounding Samantha Jones’ absence. Jones was played by Kim Cattrall but does not appear in the revival. Viewers quickly learn that Jones no longer keeps in touch with her best friends and has moved to the United Kingdom after having a falling-out with Bradshaw.
Although reviews continue to trickle in, early ones essentially refer to the HBO Max series as a flop.
The New York Times released its review titled “‘And Just Like That,’ It All Went Wrong,” where TV critic James Poniewozik calls out the first four episodes of the series for being “riddled with loss.” As of this writing, only the first two episodes have been released.
“And Just Like That…” debuted on HBO Max on Dec. 9.
(HBO Max)
One major thing missing from the revival that was so prominent in the first is the sex, Poniewozik points out. “The only one getting it on in Miranda’s household is her teenage son, whose prophylactics she’s finding on his bedroom floor,” the columnist writes.
In terms of Big’s death, the Times’ review takes aim at his funeral, calling it “oddly paced and grim without managing catharsis.”
Many on Twitter have dubbed the series “woke” due to remarks from characters about cancel culture and current-day events. The Times review draws its attention to an awkward scene featuring Miranda Hobbes (Nixon) in which she “spends her first day of class nervously dropping microaggressions while her younger classmates glower at her.”
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Even as the series has welcomed diverse newcomers, including Sarita Choudhury, Karen Pittman and Nicole Ari Parker, “they don’t pass the racial Bechdel test; they exist only in relation to the central trio, serving to challenge or affirm them while reassuring them and us that they’re trying hard and mean well.”
Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker in “Sex and the City.”
( James Devaney/WireImage)
Guardian critic Lucy Mangan called the first 20 minutes of “And Just Like That” “terrible.” Like many fans online, the critic references Jones’ absence as not at all in line with the morals and personality of her beloved character “Sex and the City” fans remember.
Plus, the wokeness was slammed yet again. “The onslaught of ‘woke’ teachings lends the show a smugly self-congratulatory rather than ironically self-aware air. This does nothing to make it sing like the original, which – even if it was narrow and elite – knew its world inside out and could allow the comedy and the drama to arise in ways that felt effortless.”
Mangan does note, however, that there are a “handful of good lines” and there’s an opportunity for viewers to see Bradshaw “forced to navigate life differently and explore other parts of what it means to grow older.”
ScreenRant called the new series a “clumsy, cringe-inducing revival that fails to recapture the magic of the original.” Writer Sarah Bea Milner accuses the show of having a “tone problem,” calling the writing “stale” and not nearly packed with as much humor as the original.
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Sarah Jessica Parker poses with the cast and crew at HBO Max’s premiere of “And Just Like That.”
(Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
Sophie Gilbert’s review for The Atlantic accuses writers of not allowing the original characters to shine on screen with their well-known quirks and one-liners. Pointing out the racial and gender flubs Charlotte (Davis) and Miranda make when conversing with new, diverse characters, Gilbert writes, “The series doesn’t seem to like or respect its characters much anymore, which makes me question now if it ever did.”
“Rather than examine its characters as potentially changed people, though, And Just Like That seems to want to punish them in front of our eyes,” Gilbert continues.
Meanwhile, a peek at Rotten Tomatoes shows its tomatometer at 60% while 159 user ratings equate to a 33% audience score.
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Sarah Jessica Parker at the “And Just Like That” premiere in New York City.
(Dimitrios Kambouris)
Additionally, the “And Just Like That” premiere dragged Peloton into its controversy as Big was using one of the at-home bikes before his untimely heart attack death. The company responded swiftly with a Peloton ad that’s since gone viral and features Noth.
Fans continue to voice support for Cattrall’s Samantha Jones on Twitter, where several claim the series has assassinated her character.
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The original “Sex and the City” TV show ran for six seasons from 1998 until 2004. Its popularity resulted in two films, which were released in 2008 and 2010.