How will we mourn the end of the Sex and the City franchise?

CBC

2 days ago

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After 3 seasons, the Sex and the City revival series, And Just Like That…, has come to an end. Are we ready to say goodbye to the inimitable Carrie Bradshaw and her adventures in New York City?
Today on Commotion, culture writers Amil Niazi, Anne T. Donahue and Chris Murphy join guest host Ali Hassan to unpack the end of the iconic franchise.
We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, including the reaction to Taylor's Swift newly announced album, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player.
WATCH | Today's episode on YouTube:
**SPOILERS AHEAD**
Ali: Chris, what did you make of the ending?
Chris: Wow, that is such a complicated question. Because, obviously, there are things about the episode that didn't work, and that are — some might say — not good.
Ali: Some might describe the entire series that way.
Chris: And some have, but still loved it. You could maybe count me as one of those people. But I would not have sent off Carrie in this way. But, I do think ending Carrie's story with her being "single and fabulous" — a little callback to Sex and the City — I do think that's spiritually right. I do think we want, and we need, Carrie to stand in her truth and be single and self-assured and fulfilled and content with herself. And that is actually the spirit of the show. Did I need to see Victor Garber plunging a toilet for two minutes in the last five minutes of Carrie Bradshaw's arc on television? No! But I am happy that Carrie ended up alone. So it was a mix of emotions.
Ali: Amil, the original series was groundbreaking; the way it talked about womanhood, being single, casual sex. It was a pioneering show in that way. Did And Just Like That… make any similar stories, any similar strides for the way we look at middle-aged women and aging as it's portrayed on screen?
Amil: I think so. I think it's still so rare to see women over the age of 40 having sex, talking about their bodies, talking about dating, talking about what it's like to be a widow, talking about what it's like to have a life after divorce, or to change your sexuality. I think, still, in 2025, it's very rare to see women age on-screen. And so I think, in that respect, it did make some strides. And it did show people that you don't just fall off a cliff at 35, and then decide to just hide in your house forever. These women are out there, they're living their lives, they're being bold. They may be ridiculous, but at least we're getting to watch them do it.
Ali: I want to get nostalgic for a second. Anne, tell me one of your favourite moments from the original Sex and the City.
Anne: It's not so much one moment, as the fact that she [Carrie] was one of television's best anti-heroes. We don't really put her in the same category as Walter White or Don Draper, but this woman was all id, all the time. The self awareness was totally skewed to match her ego. If she were written into Breaking Bad, we would be heralding her as the second coming. I think when we think of Carrie Bradshaw, we have to give her credit as the precursor to Tony Soprano — also because Sex and the City did save HBO. So you have to put her in that lineage of the worst-best characters, or the best-worst characters.