24 Baffling Moments in ‘And Just Like That’ That Defy All Logic
Never, in the history of television, has there been such a resounding consensus about the hate-watchability of HBOâs âAnd Just Like That.â Iâm not sure what we all expected, because itâs impossible to replicate the vulgar, sweet (albeit woefully white) magic of âSex and the Cityâ without Samantha â but itâs bad. And by bad, I mean, we canât tear ourselves away from the screen.
Season 1Â barfed out a few hastily executed plotlines about queerness and gender identity. And while I appreciated the attempt to racially diversify the cast, it somehow panned out that each ensemble character had their own emotional support woman of color. And for fuckâs sake, where was the sex?
Season 2 heard the notes. There was more boning all around, and the writers gave Seema (Sarita Choudhury), Lisa (Nicole Ari Parker) and Nya (Karen Pittman) more substantial stories. Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) even traded in the wigs for her signature ginger tresses. But then there was Che Diaz (Sara RamĂrez). Che did a number on Miranda and all of us, counteracting many of the advancements from the previous season.
And just like that, weâre pitifully hooked on Season 3 with its bright Gramercy Park aesthetics, newly minted Aidan (John Corbett) shenanigans and strategically bulging baguettes. As we all continue to tune in against our own wills, the list of things that donât quite add up gets longer. Weâve been fairly forgiving about some of these (is Lisaâs dad a zombie or something?), but others are getting under our skin.
So time to air out some of these âAnd Just Like Thatâ details that donât make any damn sense, with the assistance of my equally bewildered colleagues, friends and everyone who slid into my DMs to vent.
1. Letâs start with the most maligned one: The double offing of Lisa Todd Wexleyâs father. Either she had two dads or someone in the writerâs room did an oopsy-daisy.
2. Carrieâs sprawling, opulent lower Manhattan apartment (that looks like itâd market for about $20 million in these times) has âall this space,â and yet her kitchen is somehow tiny. And itâs punctuated by a ridiculous little coffee table that seats approximately one person.
3. More Carrie: She walks around, in her apartment, all day ⌠in her high heels? Are your feet made of AI? Do you not care about dragging in rat poop?
4. I get that they wanted to portray a character with hearing loss through Steve, but the writers really did him wrong by portraying him like a bumbling fool at the farmers market in Season 1.
5. Seema was the portrait of a glam, wealthy single gal â how did she get left so high, dry and shallow-pocketed after she left her firm? Is this a case of âSex and the Cityâ Carrie who didnât save? I donât buy it.
6. Charlotte and Harry, also rich, appear to have a full-size bed in their master bedroom. Not a queen and not a king, but something a burgeoning 22-year-old buys at Ikea for their first apartment. Why?
7. An entire podcast studio shuts down because Carrie didnât want to read a cheesy sexual wellness ad.
8. Why does Dottoressa Gianna Amato, played by Patti Lupone, dip in and out of an Italian accent? Pick a side, Hilaria.
9. Speaking of Giuseppeâs mom and ongoing wealth discrepancies on this show, did she really offer to buy her son a literal Warhol at a gallery party? Is she insanely rich and no one told us, or are there sometimes Warhol sample sales?
10. At the end of the karaoke episode, Carrie totally bitched out Miranda for making a playful comment about flirting with downstairs hottie Duncan. I feel like the Miranda I know would not have sat down and taken that irrational mess.
11. Charlotteâs daughter Lily (Cathy Ang) is kind of mean. I get that rich Upper West Side kids can have a way about them, but damn.
12. While weâre on peopleâs kids: The rhetoric around Aidanâs son taking mushrooms felt a little off. Maybe itâs my nuanced understanding of recreational drugs, but they were talking about it like he was shooting heroin.
13. One that many people are pissed about: Aidan asking Carrie to âwait for himâ for five whole human years while he takes care of his son? Sir, you can multitask. Carrie, itâs OK to say no.
14. Carrie essentially kicks Miranda (whose socioeconomic status appears to fluctuate) out of her â once again â enormous house because she ate her last yogurt and spilled her Mexican coke. Girl, get more cokes and yogurts from the bodega down the street and support your best friend.
15. Theyâre all kind of dismissive of Bitsy von Muffling (Julie Halston) when all she does is show up with great gifts and choose solid karaoke songs. Iâd welcome a Bitsy in my life.
16. Charlotte is cool with her teen daughter being in a poly relationship? Sheâs always been so rigid, so this is surprising.
17. Joy knows Miranda doesnât drink â but the fact that Miranda is sober for a reason hasnât come up yet at all?
18. Carrieâs cat, Shoe, is suspiciously calm â like she didnât even flinch when a balloon popped. Cats have more life than this. Trust me.
19. Everyone is too dressed up all the time. I know weâre going for looks here, but designers make sneakers, too.
20. Why did Season 2 weirdly tiptoe around abortion? The original SATC would never!
21. Carrie took Harry shopping. Fine. Why did he pick out those hideous jeans?
22. Why are damn near all of the Charlotte storylines terrible?
23. Carrie has *never* written fiction before (it takes entirely different skills than memoir), and Duncan gushes over it with no notes. Seriously?
24. And lastly (for now), Logan Marshall-Green is hot. Why did they make him so shlubby in this role as Adam the gardener?