And Just Like That… (2021-) is a comedy-drama that airs on Max. The hour-long episodes, at the time of writing and shooting its third season, continue the story of the three main characters from the hit series Sex and the City (1998-2004), which aired on HBO. Fast forwarding to a decade-plus after SATC’s series finale and two subsequent movies, AJLT is catching up with how writer Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), attorney Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), and former art gallery curator Charlotte York (Kristin Davis) manage their lives and loves in modern-day Manhattan.
This entry will center on two characters, Miranda and her new love interest, Che Diaz (Sara Ramirez), a stand-up comedian. Since many longtime viewers of these friendships have assumed Miranda was queer-coded, there was great delight in learning she would finally explore being bi in the new series. However, this came at a cost — seemingly the integrity of the character, which for us seemed to be too high a price to pay. First, Miranda starts having an affair with Che while still married to Steve (David Eigenberg), which seems hypocritical since her major arc in the first film was taking a whole year to forgive Steve for slipping up one night (and apologizing right away).
This relationship also leads her to abandon her friends when they need her the most (getting busy while Carrie is in another room in deep physical pain and needs help), as well as objectifying her new lover (“Craving me some Che?” What?!). The other details tacked onto her development in the first season feel haphazard and solved too quickly — a drinking problem she developed over lockdown, she decides on a day to just put away (never going to AA or any other support groups, going cold turkey), among other things.
In short, AJLT took the bones of an incredible, deeply influential character and made her into an emotionally dishonest woman with a serious loss of integrity. Che does not fare well either. While both characters are played by bi people, Che ends up reasserting other bad bi stereotypes. This includes initiating the affair, not getting much development as a character beyond their sexuality, and describing themself as a narcissist.
Part of what makes this so painful is that AJLT sets records for viewing. With this trough of bad bi stereotypes on offer, it gave us serious deja vu of all the nasty, dismissive quips about bisexuality the original series gave pop culture. For her part, Nixon has always believed Miranda was queer, too, and had no interest in joining the reboot unless there was some real reckoning made with her character and the other queer characters in their orbit. She commented in an interview with Variety magazine:
Even though she was only really interested in men, I think that Miranda had many other queer and frankly, lesbianic qualities about her. And I think for a lot of gay women, she — we didn’t have a gay woman! But she was a stand-in for the gay women we didn’t have […] Miranda has always grappled with power, and female power versus male power, and women getting the short end of the stick — and that’s a big issue for women who are queer. I think not having to be under a man’s thumb has always been one of the very appealing things that being with another woman has to offer.
In the same article, Nixon and King also elaborated on whether they wanted to explore Miranda’s queerness, debating on the how and why and recognizing the backlash it had created:
When And Just Like That showrunner Michael Patrick King approached Cynthia Nixon to discuss what her character Miranda Hobbes’ trajectory would be in HBO Max’s Sex and the City revival, he asked her whether she wanted Miranda to be queer. After all, Nixon herself came out in 2004 and has been married to Christine Marinoni since 2012. “I was like, ‘Sure, why not!’” Nixon recalled saying. “If we’re trying to do different stuff, and show different worlds, and show different aspects of these characters, why not do that?” […] For Nixon and King, though, Miranda’s decision to oust Steve for Che made complete sense. King pointed out that when it came to Steve, Miranda got “married against her will almost.” “Miranda was an anarchy character,” King continued. “She was like, ‘Why do I have to wear a dress and go out and pretend guys are smarter than they are?’”
In an interview with Elle UK that was quoted in Attitude, Nixon also notes her hesitation to sign on, but also that she wanted to right some wrongs from the original series:
I was nervous about the whole thing. I was very reluctant at first. I said I probably wasn’t going to sign back on because I felt like there would have to be a sea change to happen to make this show — the show we would want it to be in 2021 and beyond.
As for Ramirez, they embrace that Che is not an easy character to love and that their complexity is actually what drives Miranda’s growth:
What I love about Che is that Che is complicated and messy and human. Che is a great reminder that even when we don’t like someone in our community, they still deserve love, safety, and joy, like everyone else […] But the movement for liberation includes everyone, even people we don’t like. This movement, this fight, this party of pride, isn’t just for the people who make us feel cozy and cute — it’s for everyone.
In conclusion, while AJLT may not be everyone’s cup of tea and feels like too big of a jump from its roots, there are some pluses and big minuses to the characters. These are also stories of middle-aged people, when often, coming-out stories are centered around the youth. But considering what becomes of the characters and how they pursue their passions, it may not be for everyone as far as good bi representation.