MAX‘s And Just Like That… is a show that makes me feel like Sarah Jessica Parker‘s Carrie Bradshaw at her absolute worst. Much like how Carrie spent decades locked in the thrall of Mr. Big (Chris Noth), I, too, cannot waver in my obsession with this shallow shallow soap opera that’s completely out of touch with reality. Despite my best judgment, I just can’t stop loving And Just Like That… and I also could not stop binging the first six episodes that were sent to critics recently. It might not be good TV, but I firmly believe it is top tier entertainment.
If you missed the first two seasons of And Just Like That…, the series takes place years after the events of the iconic HBO hit Sex and the City and its two subsequent films. The first season of the show delved into Carrie Bradshaw’s journey to redefine herself after the sudden loss of husband Mr. Big. And Just Like That… Season 2 reunited Carrie with her other great love, Aidan Shaw (John Corbett), only to rend them apart. This time around, it wasn’t mistrust or infidelity that separated the two, but the reality that Aidan’s troubled teen son needed his full attention. AJTL Season 3 sees Carrie attempting to manage this long-distance “situationship” all while settling into her Gramercy Park mansion with adopted cat Shoe.
Elsewhere, Carrie’s core friend group has undergone its latest shuffle. The polarizing stand-up comedian Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez) is gone, freeing Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) to return to her classically awkward dating adventures. In fact, the only way Miranda feels different from her SATC incarnation now is she’s dating girls, not boys. Nya Wallace (Karen Pittman) has also been dropped from the show, but that change feels more like a kindness for Pittman, who has gotten to do juicier stuff on The Morning Show and Forever.
Lisa Todd Wexley (Nicole Ari Parker) continues to be an incredible addition to the core group, mainly as a spiritual twin to Charlotte (Kristin Davis). The friendship that deepens between these two glamorous working Upper East Side moms is one of the best and most beautifully subtle parts of And Just Like That… Season 3. Likewise, Seema Patel (Sarita Choudhury) continues to be the sassy single friend we all need in our corner. Does she still feel a little like a makeshift Samantha Jones? Yes. Do I care? No.
That last point is essential to what works about And Just Like That… I know this show has the depth of a puddle and still I want to dive in headfirst. AJLT is intoxicating, escapist television, perfect for dissociation. Every shot is a candy-colored snapshot of intangible luxury, every storyline is incredibly low stakes, and yet … I can’t stop watching. I have to know what Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and their pals get up to next.
And Just Like That…‘s most powerful storytelling tool is nostalgia. It’s a show that banks on our loyalty to the original Sex and the City franchise, peppering in cameos and references to that still beloved series that first premiered way back in June of 1998. Fascinatingly, AJLT Season 3’s best storytelling swing is letting Carrie Bradshaw actually evolve as a human being. Her new digs have inspired new habits. “Since when do you eat yogurt?” Miranda asks. “Since I turned 50,” Carrie replies. It’s a small throwaway moment, but long-time SATC fans will recognize it’s reflective of a larger, positive trend for the character. Instead of being stuck in the same toxic behavioral cycles, Carrie is finally reassessing her long-held beliefs, be they about romance or “a woman’s right to shoes.” Carrie has finally grown up.
Don’t worry. There are sexy, superficial updates to the saga, too. Logan Marshall Green gets an absolutely swoon-worthy introduction to And Just Like That…, playing a handsome gardener who literally rescues Shoe, the cat. Later in the season, Carrie finally meets her downstairs neighbor, British biographer Duncan Reeves (Jonathan Cake). (In my notes, I referred to him as “Robert Caro meets Benedict Cumberbatch,” which is very hot to a specific type of nerd.)
If you’re the kind of person who loves watching Carrie Bradshaw act messy in high heels, screaming at the latest cringe-worthy Miranda mishap, and rooting for Charlotte’s great, all-consuming romance with Harry (Evan Handler), you’re going to adore And Just Like That… Season 3. Even when their out-of-touch antics are making me lose my mind, I can’t lose my place at their iconic brunch table.