The first season of And Just Like That... saw a new era for Carrie Bradshaw and co, (minus Samantha), showing that their lives are no less complicated than two and half decades ago.
Updating the storylines of the show to reflect New York City in 2021, season one explored how friendships fade and new relationships blossom. We also saw the return of some familiar faces as well as introducing some fresh ones. With plot lines that embraced aging, sexuality, alcoholism, divorce and more, it was a whirlwind ten episodes that had fans crying out for a second season.
Sex and the City alumni, Michael Patrick King, returned to write and direct the show. King certainly got people talking from the very first episode (spoiler alert!). Take a deep breath, because a lot has happened to our familiar trio in this season. One, two, three… let’s go.
Carrie
Bradshaw, now in her fifties, unexpectedly finds herself a widow, following the sudden death of her long-time love, Mr. Big (Chris Noth). Episode one had a lot of us picking up our jaw from the floor.
Apart from coming to terms with her grief, Bradshaw has now gotten into podcasting. Working under one of the series’ much-discussed characters, Che Diaz, (played by Sara Ramirez), a non-binary, stand-up comic, Carrie learns to talk about her grief. Trying to move on, Carrie meets the realtor, Seema (Sarita Choudhury, who some are speculating will take the place of Samantha in the iconic quartet), who sells her and Big’s former home, and helps to acquire a swanky downtown apartment following Carrie’s hip surgery (yep, this show embraces the not-so-glamourous realities of getting older), although she ends up returning to her old home. We also saw Carrie, unsuccessfully attempt to re-enter the dating seen. Sadly, it was not to be, although the season ended with hope on the horizon.
Miranda
Meanwhile, Miranda is struggling with family life, using alcohol to cope with the fact that her son, Brady, is now bringing over his girlfriend, and her own strained (and sexless) marriage with Steve, who’s learning to cope with hearing loss. After hearing Diaz’s stand-up, Miranda wonders whether it’s time for a change, and begins exploring her sexuality. And explore it she does, with Che Diaz no less, which makes things more than a little awkward for Carrie. Miranda’s turbulent love affair is full of ups and downs, but ultimately left her wanting to divorce Steve, who’s grown weary of trying to make the marriage work.
Charlotte
Charlotte’s life is no less complicated. Worried that she’s about to enter the menopause, we spent several episodes exploring what this emotional and physical change might mean to her. However, she’s relieved when her period returns… even if it was at an inopportune moment and in white trouser pants. Also, the show offered up one of the season’s most moving story lines. Charlotte learns to grow as a parent when her 12-year-old, Rose, explains that she doesn’t feel like a girl, and begins exploring being non-gendered under the new name, ‘Rock’. Trying to support her child’s choices, Charlotte even throws ‘Rock’ a ‘They Mitzvah’, but ‘Rock’ decides that it is not for them, leaving Charlotte, who never received her Bat Mitzvah, to take their place.
Samantha
And then there’s Samantha. Long before the premiere of season one, fans were aware that Kim Cattrall wouldn’t be reprising her role. Still, Samantha isn’t quite gone. Now living in London, she still communicates with Carrie now and again.
The first season also suffered a sadness with the death of Willie Garson at the too-young age of 57. Garson’s much-loved character, Stanford Blatch, did make a memorable appearance in And Just Like That..., prior to Garson succumbing to pancreatic cancer, in September 2021. Writer-director, King, had intended to expand Garson’s character, giving him a more prominent role that explored his friendship with Bradshaw, with Cynthia Nixon saying that for her, Blatch was very much the last member of the And Just Like That... quartet.
Like its predecessor, And Just Like That..., season one embraced what it means to be a woman in the 21st century, exploring, love, loss, aging and all the complexities of modern life.
Where to watch And Just Like That… Season 1 in the UK
All ten episodes of And Just Like That… Season 1 are available to watch on Sky. For those wanting to get up to speed, catch-up on all episodes of season 1 here.
And Just Like That… is not available to watch on Netflix.
Episode 1: Hello It’s Me
We begin the series in a post-lockdown New York City, where we see Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda catching up and as close as ever. Carrie and Big are happily married, with Carrie now working as a co-host on an LGBTQ+ podcast, alongside Che Diaz - a non-binary stand-up comic, where she is challenged to be “sexually” open.
Miranda has quit her high-flying role at a law practice and is now studying for a Master of Human Rights degree. Charlotte continues to be a doting mother and the group are invited to attend her daughter, Lily’s, piano recital. Big chooses to stay home and partake in a strenuous Peloton ride, during which he has a heart attack. Carrie returns from the recital to find Big slumped over, before he dies in her arms.
Why did Big die?
After years of dating disasters and having to kiss many frogs, we thought Carrie had found her happily-ever-after with Big. But the first episode of And Just Like That… delivered a devastating blow when Big died of a heart attack after a vigorous Peloton ride.
Episode 2: Little Black Dress
Episode 2 picks up where the previous one left off, with Carrie reeling from the death of Big whilst dealing with the challenges of planning his funeral. Big’s funeral sees old faces return, including Susan-Sharon and Bitsy von Muffling, with Samantha sending her sympathies via a bouquet of flowers. Miranda sees Brady smoking marijuana with Che and storms over to find out what is going on, not realising that Che is Carrie’s podcast boss.
Not knowing how to deal with Big’s ashes being delivered to her home, Carrie invites Miranda and Stanford over for cocktails. Charlotte struggles with her emotions and feeling responsible for Big’s death, as Carrie was attending her daughter’s recital when Big suffered his heart attack. Carrie reassures Charlotte that she doesn’t blame her for Big’s death.
Episode 3: When in Rome…
Carrie is learning how to live without Big, with his death bringing up details she never knew like the fact that he has left his ex-wife Natasha a million dollars. This revelation brings up old insecurities and makes Carrie question whether Big could have been having an affair. Thankfully, Natasha stamps out any worries and reassures Carrie that she and Big never saw each other following their divorce.
Charlotte asks for Anthony’s advice after her twelve-year-old daughter, Rose, reveals that she doesn’t feel like a girl.
Miranda confesses to Charlotte that she hasn’t been intimate with her husband, Steve, for years. Later, Charlotte discovers empty mini-liquor bottles and confides to Carrie that she thinks Miranda might have a drinking problem.
Carrie, Charlotte and Miranda head to Che’s comedy night, where Miranda is starstruck and finds herself resonating with her bit about personal changes. Carrie heads home and finds herself at her old apartment – could she be planning a return? Who knows?
Episode 4: Some of My Best Friends
At the end of the previous episode we saw Carrie returning to her old apartment and episode four begins with Carrie decided to sell the apartment she shared with Big. Seema, her real-estate agent, suggests she stage the apartment in neutral tones to increase its marketability.
Charlotte continues to befriend Lisa Todd Wexley, a high-society figure whose son goes to school with Lily, in an attempt to diversify her and Harry’s social group. After many failed attempts, Miranda bonds with her college lecturer Nya - with Nya sharing her struggle to become pregnant.
With Stanford in Japan with his client Ashley, Anthony reveals to Carrie that Stanford has asked for a divorce. The demise of another iconic SATC couple!
Episode 5: Tragically Hip
Carrie is struggling with a new ailment, making her feel old – and reminding us that we’re no longer watching SATC. Whilst helping Carrie recover, Charlotte is shocked to find out that Rose now identifies as non-binary and is now going by the name “Rock”. Miranda receives a book about quitting drinking and suspects Charlotte sent it to her anonymously to encourage her to open up about her struggles. Miranda complains to Carrie, and refutes the suggestion that she has an alcohol issue.
Carrie returns to podcasting but the pain pills she’s currently taking leads to her accidentally mentioning Samantha – with Charlotte later warning her that she ought to give Samantha a heads-up. Miranda is looking after Carrie when Che stops by. With Carrie asleep, Che and Miranda decide to do tequila shots and before you know it one thing leads to another and they hook up. Carrie wakes up to see their reflections in the mirror and confronts Miranda, who breaks down and reveals that she is unhappy in her marriage. Miranda then realises that she, in a drunken moment, ordered the book about quitting alcohol – a realisation that makes her throw all her alcohol out.
Why does Carrie have surgery and what surgery does she have?
After suffering from back pain – resulting in her using an umbrella to walk upstairs – Carrie makes an appointment to see a doctor, who tells her she has a congenital birth defect of the hip and will need surgery.
She ends up undergoing hip surgery to fix the defect and get rid of the pain. The downside of this…no Manolo Blahnik stilettos for the next couple of months.
Episode 6: Diwali
In search of a fresh start, Carrie buys a new apartment in downtown NYC. Charlotte is taken aback when Rock reveals they want to get rid of all their dolls, cut their hair short and redecorate their bedroom in line with their individual tastes.
Miranda is invited by Nya to join a project where she and other students are renovating old apartment buildings to turn them into displaced women’s shelters. Seema invites Carrie to her family’s Diwali party, where Seema is subjected to an interrogation about her love life.
Carrie accompanies Anthony to a face lift consultation, where she ends up contemplating getting some work done. Later, when catching up with Carrie and Charlotte, Miranda admits to her feelings about Che – leaving Charlotte shocked and questioning what this means for her marriage to Steve. Carrie does a 180 when she decides she doesn’t like her new apartment and returns to her old one.
Episode 7: Sex and the Widow
Carrie’s publisher suggests she add a more positive ending to her book about widowhood. In an effort to do so, Carrie returns to the dating world and meets (virtually) with Peter, a fellow widower. The evening ends with them both vomiting in the street – a sign of a good night in my opinion! Later, Carrie finds herself being auctioned off at a fundraiser with Peter, a teacher at the school, saving her from the humiliation of receiving no bids.
To reinject some passion into her relationship with Steve, Miranda makes an awkward and failed attempt to recreate the moment she shared with Che. The failure of which only serves as more motivation to explore things with Che.
Episode 8: Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered
Che, having discovered that Steve and Miranda were not in an “open marriage”, ends their affair with Miranda. Having been dealt this ultimatum, Miranda is forced to confront her true feelings which results in her deciding to end her marriage with Steve. What follows is a heart-breaking moment, where Miranda finally lets Steve know how unhappy she has been. After many years together and having weathered many difficult moments as a couple – let’s not forget Steve’s affair in the first SATC movie – Miranda and Steve are officially over.
Charlotte has an awkward moment when Lily walks in on her and Harry having oral sex. In an effort to hide what was actually going on, Charlotte says she was checking Harry for cancer but this backfires with Lily worrying her dad is sick.
Episode 9: No Strings Attached
As a stay-at-home mum, Charlotte is not having an easy time. Rock is resisting having a Bat Mitzvah and Lily’s just got her period, which – according to her tracking app – is going to clash with an upcoming pool party. Anthony has got himself a new man, Justin, and he wants to bring him to dinner to meet Harry and Charlotte. On first glance, Justin seems nice but after he claims the Holocaust was a hoax Anthony asks him to leave.
Carrie and Peter are finally getting together for a long-awaited redo of their first date, but they both realise they’re not ready for a relationship. Carrie is deliberating whether she should remove her wedding ring, before putting on Big’s alongside hers. Carrie almost loses Big’s ring down the drain and later puts them away, and messages Peter to arrange another date.
Elsewhere, Che makes it clear to Miranda that they’re not in a relationship and are in-fact “getting to know each other”.
Episode 10: Seeing the Light
In the season finale episode, Carrie and Peter’s romance fizzles out. Carrie is convinced Big is communicating with her posthumously and that he’s angry with her for going on a date. Charlotte has news; a transgender rabbi has agreed to officiate Rock’s ‘they mitzvah’. But later on, Rock refuses to participate in the ceremony claiming that they don’t believe in it.
Che is offered a TV pilot in LA. Could this be the end of Miranda and Che’s non-relationship? Alas, no. Che wants Miranda to come to LA with her and despite Nya trying to persuade her not to, she agrees.
Carrie heads to Paris to scatter – or in this case, hurl - Big’s ashes in the Seine. She texts Samanatha asking if she wants to meet in London, with Samantha replying straight away suggesting the following evening. Back in NYC, Carrie is recording the first episode of her solo podcast before sharing a kiss with her producer.
The trailer
The moment we’ve all been waiting for…our first glimpse at our favourite NYC ladies, back after years.
In the trailer for And Just Like That… Season 1 we are introduced to new Carrie, who is now a co-host of a podcast. But fear not, the old Carrie is still there! From fabulous fashion moments to lunches with the old gang (minus Samantha), we see how Carrie is navigating life in her 50s.
We see Carrie enjoying married life with Big, Charlotte now a parent to teenage daughters and Miranda struggling with wanting to ‘have it all’.
Want to see for yourself, give the trailer a watch here.
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