Why 'Sex and the City' is an overrated drama made by men for men
There are a handful of shows that you watch growing up and they become such an integral part of your life at the time that you do everything inspired by the show. 'Sex and the City' was one of those shows — the majority of us who watched the series know just how obsessed we were with it.
At a time when women empowerment was not a thing and we didn't know any better, 'Sex and the City' really did sweep us away. The glam and the fashion, the heels, the men and the cosmos...were life goals back then. And by back then, I mean 20 years ago. Before you get your fake shocked faces in place, ask yourself, is it really worth contorting your face over?
Even though it is just two decades old, when you binge-watch it today, it appears older and here's why - the show is archaic in terms of its concept. Today, when I sit through just 20 minutes of an episode all I see is the cringe-worthy dialogues, rampant slut-shaming, no respect for the help and women who are so unaware of their privileges. 'Sex and the City' as a show is overrated.
As the plot itself is deeply underwhelming when you look at it today - four white women in their 30's living their best lives in Manhattan without doing any real work, taking cabs everywhere, going to fancy dinners in Manolo Blahniks. Throw in some penises, rich men, and drama to taste and you have the recipe for 'Sex and the City'.
'Sex and the City' is like an older version of 'Beverly Hills 90210', another flimsy, nonsensical piece of work. No surprise there, since Darren Star created both. The 56-year-old director, writer and producer's work makes you wonder, what is with him and making women look dumb?
Some of the dialogues in 'Sex and the City' are so terrible that it deeply shocks and saddens me that the actors actually went along with it.
For example, Samantha Jones' (Kim Cattrall) famous, "I'm trysexual. I'll try anything once" or "Oh come on honey, nothing is better than sex" or even "Hi, I need something that will make a guy cum in his pants as soon as he sees me". Who talks like that?
Samantha's character evolved quite a bit as the show went on, but there was one thing that was constant - she was always portrayed as a sex-hungry cougar who would do anything for a lucky night. Sam has so much potential - she's upfront, isn't afraid to get what she wants, put herself first and is a rebel. But these qualities do not get highlighted, ever. It's like a sex deprived man wrote things Samantha would say and Kim just played along. Michael Patrick King wrote most of the season premieres and finales along with Darren Star.
Those of you who have branded 'Sex and the City' as a feminist classic, you should perhaps wash your mangled brain of such thought. Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte York (Kristin Davis) and Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall) claim to be besties, "soulmates" even but is real friendship based on the mutual love for peen, alcohol, and shoes?
The characters are so lame too. Carrie Bradshaw, the protagonist, writes about her relationships in her column, right as it is happening. No permission asked anywhere. She is scared of technology, she's unambitious as hell and all she wants to do in life is "run around New York like a crazy person" and find love. Ugh. She has no financial accountability and at one point in the series, she says that she sometimes buys Vogue instead of food, because it feeds her soul. Not to mention SJP's terrible acting — the fake crying and the whole googly eyes — so badly done.
Charlotte York is the little goody-two-shoes who pretends to be a prude, so it's quite surprising how she's been with a significant amount of men through the show. In this aspect, she's quite as hypocritical as Carrie, who had seventeen boyfriends in season six alone. Remeber the catch-up coffee that had, "Charlotte is dating a new investment banker who wants oral and/or anal, much to her dismay." And then these two make comments about Sam's appetite for sex.
Charlotte is like the fluff piece at the end of the news, to be honest. She just exists to add a variety to the stereotype of women who love to shop and have sex. Honestly speaking 'Sex and the City' was never meant for women, it was actually meant for men.
Coming to Miranda Hobbs, the power lawyer, what is really surprising is how free for lunch she is all the time? I thought lawyers were busy. Her career aspect, the work she does is nada in the series, it is all about Steve and his cheating. Steve Brady (David Eigenberg) is anything but special, plus he cheats on Miranda. By making Miranda so nuts about Brady, the show screams out one thing - no matter how amazing a woman is, she's okay with settling. Miranda deserved more than a nice guy and nothing more Steve.
The show also shows her as a bitter, negative, self-loathing woman who is super lonely, simply because she's a little unconventional in comparison. She speaks like a feminist but acts otherwise.
Speaking of the men on the show, how can we miss out Aidan? Aidan Shaw (Jim Corbett), the selfish, clingy and emotionally unstable man that was portrayed as Carrie's one true love? There was nothing great about Aidan - he's not funny, he's not talented, he is surely not clever and neither is he a strong character.
He's just a moderately nice guy. Yet again, 'Sex and the City' reminds us, women, that if a guy is a teeny bit nice to you, you better show your gratitude because it's a privilege. Boys will be boys, says SATC, not grown ass men who take responsibility.
Similar is the case with Jon James "Mr.Big" Preston (Chris Noth), one of Carrie's boyfriends. He's emotionally abusive and unavailable but rich. Carrie puts up with everything in the name of love, plus a nice peen and dollars. Because that's what women do in general, in SATC.
'Sex and the City' is not a celebration of fashion or women - it's a celebration of immaturity and the male genitalia. It's so regressive, it would never make it in this era. Thank goodness, some things ended in 2004.