'And Just Like That…' Season 3 dabbles in dating app fatigue
"I spend every waking hour scrolling, swiping, texting, and it's all just hurtful or meaningless."
In one brief venting moment, over a couple of Gimlets in a crowded Manhattan bar, And Just Like That… Season 3 takes aim at dating in 2025. In episode 2, Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) and her former neighbour Lisette (Katerina Tannenbaum) are catching up in a New York hotspot, when Lisette expresses her frustration at how involved technology is with her dating life.
"It's actually not about him, it's about this," she says, pointing to her iPhone. "My phone is who I am in a relationship with…I'm so sick of it, I'm so done." To drive home the point, Lisette then accidentally tosses her phone across the bar and conveniently hits a handsome stranger, who then buys them both Gimlets, wheels in motion. It's not a subtle message: meeting IRL is the way.
Lisette's not alone at this moment; she's embodying dating app fatigue.
SEE ALSO: Sick of dating apps? Try a dungeon sound bath instead.
"Is it any wonder 79 per cent of Gen Z daters and 80 per cent of millennial daters feel burnt out by dating apps, according to a 2024 study by Forbes Health?" writes Mashable's Rachel Thompson in her book, The Love Fix.
"This is unsurprising given that these apps are now engineered to keep people active on these apps for as long as possible. To the apps, you're at your most valuable when you're an active user — trapped in the revolving door of swiping, matching, chatting. Where's the incentive to make dating apps work better, to allow your most valuable assets to break free?"
Featured Video For You
'Babes' and the portrayal of period sex on screen
Lisette even projects assumptions about single women "having it better" when courting in the 19th century — a trend that rears its head every time a new season of Bridgerton lands. When Carrie mentions that her house in Gramercy was built in the 1840s and that she loves picturing the women who lived there before her, Lisette cannonballs into venting about dating in 2025, describing being stood up by a psychiatrist whose text messages are deeply patronising.
"It must have been so much easier to be single back then," Lisette says. "I mean, it's such a messed-up time to be dating."
"It's no secret that singles have been disenchanted with dating apps lately," Mashable's Anna Iovine writes. "Users complain that apps are copying each other with similar features and encourage bad behavior like ghosting, and they're trying to branch out into IRL activities instead (even dungeon sound baths)."
Sarah Jessica Parker, Kristin Davis, and Cynthia Nixon in "And Just Like That..." Season 3. Credit: Craig Blankenhorn / Max
Sex and the City and And Just Like That… have always dipped a toe in the relationship between sex, dating, relationships, and technology, though the former ended in 2004 before the dating app boom of the 2010s. Sex and the City dabbled in the online dating space in Season 2, episode 12, when Carrie's best friend Stanford (Willie Garson) met user "Bigtool4u" in a chatroom as "Rick9+" then IRL at a bar.
And Just Like That… tried its hand with dating app discourse in Season 1. In episode 7, Carrie, a longtime tech agnostic, tries dating apps for the first time after the death of her husband (her publisher Amanda (Ashlie Atkinson) encourages her to go on a date to give her readers "some element of hope" at the end of her book on grief). Signed up by Seema (Sarita Choudhury) to an ambiguous dating platform, she swipes through a couple of profiles before she matches with 53-year-old widower Peter (Jon Tenney) and goes on a decent date with him (yes, it ends with them puking in the street, but it's still nice).
Here, And Just Like That... missed an opportunity to connect with modern dating as it actually stands, as Carrie's experience really doesn't do justice to the real dating app fatigue users might identify with. Swiping through countless profiles has become synonymous with dating apps, with some apps like Tinder adding swiping limits and others like Bumble prone to cutting you off if they think you're on a swiping frenzy As Thompson writes in her book, "Dating, especially online dating, often feels like a numbers game — with emphasis on 'game.'"
And luckily for Carrie, her experience doesn't include the complex "talking stage," the pressure around meeting up IRL, and the possibility of being ghosted, cloaked, or stood up. It's pretty breezy, right up until they both vomit in the gutter together.
Seema (Sarita Choudhury) has a terrible experience with an IRL matchmaker. Credit: Craig Blankenhorn / Max
Despite flouting real 2025 dating woes, Season 3 of And Just Like That… seems to be actively spurning all forms of digital connection at every turn. In the first episode, Seema quite literally sets her apartment on fire while waiting for a video call from her long-distance partner. But dating IRL doesn't get much easier for our characters — Miranda's (Cynthia Nixon) "dating bingo" goes terribly initially, and Seema's decision to use an in-person matchmaking service is a very disempowering experience for her.
Entirely defined by Aidan's (John Corbett) set boundaries of communication, Carrie's long-distance relationship is portrayed as awkward and solitary — and mostly played out on smartphone. For the most part, branded with an unattainable "easy breezy" Cool Girl energy this season, Carrie is allowed fleetingly human moments of frustration over Aidan's lack of contact, constantly checking her phone for responses that come in mere emoji form.
"Texting and emojis are not a relationship," Carrie vents to Miranda. "A relationship is standing across from someone and saying, 'What you do think?' and then they say, 'What do you think?'"
Phone sex is deeply unsexy in Season 3, with a cringeworthy scene between Carrie and Aidan in the first episode. Thrown off by her staring kitten, Carrie fakes an orgasm on a call with Aidan and feels uncomfortable afterwards, deeming herself disingenuous. "I faked phone sex…and now I feel dishonest," she says to Miranda and Charlotte.
Essentially, nobody wins when it comes to technology, sex, and relationships in And Just Like That... Season 3. It's reminiscent of a broader fatigue beyond the show, and may have people throwing their phones across bars just to fuck around and find out.
And Just Like That... Season 3, episode 2 is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes out Thursdays.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Attenborough's letter delights five-year-old superfan
A five-year-old boy's dream came true when he received a letter from his hero, Sir David Attenborough. Max Evans-Browning from Neyland, Pembrokeshire, drew 99 animals to mark the renowned British biologist's 99th birthday. His endeavours reached "far and wide" and even caught the attention of Sir David himself. After receiving a reply, Max's mum Samantha said he was "doing little flips" on the bed in excitement. Boy draws 99 animals for David Attenborough's 99th birthday Attenborough at 99 delivers 'greatest message he's ever told' "It's literally been a month and I was starting to think we weren't going to get anything," she said. But when Samantha arrived home on Thursday she found a letter which was addressed to Max. "When I picked him up, I acted really casual," she said. When she gave him the letter, she said his eyes immediately went to Sir David's printed name at the bottom. "He can read really well, and he saw the name. "He was doing little flips on the bed and shouting that his card had been in David Attenborough's hands. It was the reaction that I wanted. "Trying to get him to sleep then was an absolute nightmare." Samantha said they would be framing the letter - in which Sir David wrote he "greatly enjoyed" seeing Max's drawings - and hanging it "pride of place" in Max's animal-themed bedroom. "It was so nice that he had hand-written the whole thing. It made that bit more special." She said the reaction from the media and public since she shared Max's drawings had been overwhelming. "People have been so nice, we've seen all the comments and I'm making Max a photo book of them. "When he watches David Attenborough, of course it's all around the world [so] he couldn't get over how many people from different countries could see [his drawings]. "We're usually quite a private family, but I knew there could be somebody who knew where I could send it, and it just went a little bit mad. He's gone a little bit famous. "He couldn't believe it." Samantha added Max can sometimes lack confidence in his drawing, but the experience had been really good for improving that and had reaffirmed his desire to be "the next David Attenborough". "Obviously we are proud of him, but it's just been nice for him to realise all those people who don't know him have made the effort as well. "It's boosted him even more." Sir David Attenborough: 'The world would be worse off without our stories' Postcard finally arrives 121 years after it was sent
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
AEW Dynamite Viewership Increases On 5/28, Demo Also Rises
AEW Dynamite saw an increase in viewership on May 28 as it went head-to-head with the NBA and NHL Playoffs. According to Wrestlenomics, 636,000 viewers watched the show on Wednesday night, and it drew a 0.16 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic. The viewership is up from last week's episode, when 575,000 viewers tuned in. The demo also rose from last week's episode, which drew a 0.15 rating in the same demographic. Viewership for Wednesday's show on MAX is unknown at this time. What happened on AEW Dynamite this week? This week's show kicked off with a promo from Men's Owen Hart Cup Winner, Hangman Page. He was interrupted by Swerve Strickland and Will Ospreay, who wants to unite the three of them against The Death Riders heading into All In. Advertisement Jon Moxley, Gabe Kidd, and Marina Shafir defeated Mark Briscoe, Speedball Mike Bailey, and Willow Nightingale in a Mixed Trios match. In other action, Adam Cole defeated Kyle Fletcher by disqualification to retain his TNT Championship after Josh Alexander interfered. The closing segment of the evening had Timeless Toni Storm going face-to-face with Mercedes Mone in preparation for their title match at All In: Texas. READ MORE: Eddie Kingston Clarifies Comments After Claiming He Knows Who Leaked AEW Info What did you think of AEW Dynamite this week overall? What was your favorite match or segment? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below. The post AEW Dynamite Viewership Increases On 5/28, Demo Also Rises appeared first on Wrestlezone.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
AEW Dynamite Viewership Increases On 6/4, Demo Also Rises
AEW Dynamite saw another increase in viewership on June 4 for the first half of their Fyter Fest special as it went head-to-head with the NHL Stanley Cup Finals. According to Wrestlenomics, 655,000 viewers watched the show on Wednesday night, and it drew a 0.18 rating in the 18 to 49 demographic. The viewership is up from last week's episode, when 636,000 viewers tuned in. The demo also rose from last week's episode, which drew a 0.16 rating in the same demographic. Viewership for Wednesday's show on MAX is unknown at this time. What happened on AEW Dynamite: Fyter Fest this week? This week's show kicked off with a promo from Will Ospreay. He was interrupted by CRU. A match between Ospreay and Lio Rush was made for the Collision portion of the show later in the evening. Advertisement Jon Moxley defeated Mark Briscoe via referee stoppage. In women's action, Timeless Toni Storm and Mina Shirakada defeated Skye Blue and Julia Hart in tag team action. Mercedes Mone watched the match from ringside. The main event of the evening, Kenny Omega successfully defended his International Championship in a four-way against Brody King, Claudio Castagnoli, and Mascara Dorada. READ MORE: Huge Matches Signed For AEW Summer Blockbuster What did you think of AEW Dynamite this week overall? What was your favorite match or segment? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below. The post AEW Dynamite Viewership Increases On 6/4, Demo Also Rises appeared first on Wrestlezone.
