‘And Just Like That,’ Carrie Gets Her Mojo Back

Sandra Miska

After 10 episodes, HBO Max’s “And Just Like That” has come to a close. It is not easy to wrap up a season that has brought out so many strong feelings from viewers, but showrunner Michael Patrick King and the cast saw it through, with plenty of cheer-worthy moments, along with some groan-inducing ones.

When the finale, “Seeing the Light,” opens, it has been nearly a year since John (Chris Noth), a.k.a. Mr. Big, died of a heart attack in front of Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker). During an uncomfortable lunch with his brother (James Naughton), she reveals that Big’s cremated remains are still in a box on a shelf by her shoes. Big’s nameless brother puts forth the idea that she entomb them in the family’s plot in Connecticut, but she has other ideas after having a dream about Paris. Although Noth reportedly shot a scene in Paris, he was deleted from the finale due to a string of sexual assault allegations recently made against him. Keen viewers can tell where the cut was made, and it’s awkward, as it would have been a much more emotionally impactful moment in an alternate universe.

In episode seven, Carrie stuck her heels back in the dating pool in order to have a hopeful ending for her memoir about widowhood. Her first date is with nice guy Peter (Jon Tenney), a widower who is also a teacher at the school Charlotte’s (Kristin Davis) daughters attend. The two enter into a “relationship” that moves at a snail’s pace, and by the time they kiss in the finale, sparks don’t exactly fly. As she confesses to her new bestie Seema (Sarita Choudhury), she is turned off by his asking for her permission first. It’s one of those moments that illustrate how out of touch Carrie is, as younger dates are mostly accustomed to, and even turned on by, enthusiastic consent. However, the real problem is that the chemistry just isn’t there with Peter. Grief hasn’t killed her sex drive, as it proves to be alive and well when she gets comfortable with Franklyn (Ivan Hernandez), her podcast producer who offers Carrie her own podcast after Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez) departs to Los Angeles to film a television pilot.

Ramirez’s Che Diaz character has generated much chatter across the internet. While Che, a nonbinary queer character with a successful career and strong personality, is a win for representation, they have not exactly endeared themselves to fans, especially after Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) started an affair with them that leads to her dumping her husband Steve (David Eigenberg). After, it becomes apparent that Che might not be as emotionally invested in the relationship, but they invite Miranda to follow them to California anyway. Miranda decides to go for it, even though the decision means she has to give up a coveted internship secured for her by her professor, Dr. Nya Wallace (Karen Pittman), who has also become a close friend. It’s a bad move, one made even more baffling by Che’s nonchalant attitude and the fact that they plainly admit to Miranda that they are a narcissist. When someone tells you who they are, believe them the first time, Miranda.

Charlotte, meanwhile, has been a consentant bright spot throughout the season. Unlike her friends, Carrie and Miranda, her happily ever after in the season finale of “Sex and the City” has stuck, and she remains a joy to watch as she continues to be a loving wife to Harry (Evan Handler) and devoted mom to her kids, Lily (Cathy Ang) and Rock (Alexa Swinton), formerly known as Rose, while also pursuing new relationships outside of her family that push her out of her comfort zone, including a friendship with fellow mom, Lisa (Nicole Ari Parker). 

While Charlotte’s relationship with Lisa and her family forces her to examine how she thinks about race, nothing pushes her out of her comfort zone more than Rock announcing that they are nonbinary. While it is great to see how Charlotte comes around to support her child, even planning a glitzy gender-neutral bat mitzvah (a “they” mitzvah) that would be any 13-year-old’s dream. However, Rock backs out of the Torah reading they are supposed to do in front of the guests at the last possible minute, stating that they “don’t believe in it.” While a young person sticking up for what they do or don’t believe in is usually a good thing, Rock comes off as a spoiled brat, as their mother has poured her heart into planning the they mitzvah, even securing an awesome trans rabbi, Jen (the marvelous Hari Nef). Fortunately, Charlotte and Rabbi Jen save the day by finding someone else to participate in the ceremony –– Charlotte herself, and it’s a lovely moment.

In the end, Carrie makes the trip to Paris to scatter Big’s ashes. She takes what could have been a downbeat moment and does it with style and dignity, afterward texting Samantha, who is in London, to meet for a drink. In a feel-good moment, her estranged friend agrees. While longtime fans cannot help but hope Kim Cattrall will show up in the flesh, the reunion occurs off camera, and the whole episode wraps up rather quickly, with no update on how the meeting went. However, we do get a glimpse of an old-meets-new Carrie in the final moments of the finale, as her journey comes full circle and finds her back in her element, front-and-center, hosting a new “Sex and the City” podcast. Then she officially gets her groove back when she finally has a steamy kiss with Franklyn in an elevator. And, that’s a wrap.

Although “And Just Like That” was announced as a limited series, one cannot help but wonder when Miranda will have to come back to reality and deal with the fallout of her actions, or how Charlotte will make it through Rock’s first year of being a nonbinary teen. What will happen with Stanford and Samantha’s characters? There are too many loose ends for “And Just Like That” to only be a limited series. And, while there is no official word yet, with the massive audience and coverage the reboot received, old and new fans alike are surely keeping hope that a second season is in the works.“

And Just Like That” season one finaled Feb. 3 on HBO Max.