3 ‘Sex and the City’ Storylines That the Show’s Writers Got Right
Sex and the City remains one of HBO’s most iconic series. The show is beloved, but it is not without its faults. Over the years, the show has been criticized by fans for its approach to bisexuality, the way the series characterized the few Black characters that it featured, and its not-so-subtle kink-shaming. Still, the show’s team knocked several storylines out of the park. These are our three favorites.
‘Sex and the City’ writers expertly portrayed Carrie Bradshaw’s affair storyline
Not everyone loved that Carrie Bradshaw cheated on Aidan Shaw with Mr. Big. In season 3, when the affair happened, Aidan seemed like the perfect guy to pull Carrie out of her Mr. Big obsession. While the storyline might not be fans’ favorite, if you look at it objectively, the progression of the affair and all of the emotions that went into it were really honest and incredibly realistic. Overall, the illicit romance was well done.
Carrie and Mr. Big were drawn to each other but still felt guilty about how they were treating their other partners. Carrie was racked with guilt. Mr. Big made it clear that he didn’t want to sleep with two people simultaneously. The show beautifully depicted the conflicting emotions involved in a romantic affair.
Even the aftermath of the affair was realistic and beautiful in its way. Carrie and Mr. Big both had to face the consequences of their actions. They lost their respective partners and still didn’t end up together (at least for several seasons).
Carrie Bradshaw confronted the prospect of not having children
Carrie was a pretty free spirit when fans met her in season 1 of the series. She had absolutely nothing figured out, but it felt organic. As Sex and the City progressed and the characters aged, Carrie and her friends confronted some pretty big feelings and massive decisions.
The show handled Carrie’s decision not to have children with a lot of courage. When the series was filmed, the notion that a woman may not want to have children was still taboo. At the very least, very few people spoke about it at great length. In one episode, Carrie questioned, “Why would I sacrifice this whole life with a man for a child I hardly know I want?” The Sex and the City storyline expertly depicts the internal struggle that many women face.
Charlotte York’s infertility storyline was emotional and raw
In the completely opposite direction, the series handled Charlotte York’s longing for motherhood and her infertility journey with grace and empathy. Not only did the series show how infertility can upend a marriage as it did for Charlotte and Trey, but it depicted how individual people might deal with the journey through infertility in markedly different ways.
The show’s writers introduced Charlotte’s fertility storyline in season 4 and carried it through the rest of the show. In the series finale, “An American Girl in Paris Part Deux,” Charlotte achieves her dream of motherhood through adoption. Charlotte’s finale Sex and the City storyline felt incredibly fitting.
