It’s Time To Bring Back Carrie Bradshaw’s Voiceover

At the end of the first season of And Just Like That…, Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) begins hosting her own podcast, called Sex and the City, and as a loyal fan who spent a good percentage of the reboot grinding her teeth in secondhand embarrassment, I was able to exhale in relief. Surely now, AJLT would be able to achieve what its first season hadn’t: recapturing the magic of the original Sex and the City with the framework of Carrie’s voiceover walking us through stories about love and introducing us to the glamorous elite with whom she shares a social scene.

As it turns out, Aidan and I both need to learn from our mistakes.

In the 25 years since its release, Sex and the City has been rightly celebrated for pushing boundaries, but it also deserves more credit for the ingenuity of its shockingly simple formula: Carrie begins each episode with an insightful, sometimes pun-filled missive on a pithy observation about life as a 30-something in New York City that ends on a universal question she couldn’t help but wonder. “What comes first, the chicken or the sex?” “How much does a father figure figure?” “Are we faking more than orgasms?” From there, that one basic question is explored four times over across Carrie, Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), and Samantha (Kim Cattrall), with them acting as sounding boards for each other at the brunches and drinks events that punctuated each episode.

Carrie’s monologue wasn’t just for exposition; it was our entree into a world that seemed completely inaccessible, at least to me, as an ordinary, fairly plain, middle-class Midwesterner. Without judgment or reservation, Carrie explained the world of Hamptons houses and Plaza weddings. Everyone she came across — Vogue editors, fashion designers, housewives — got an introduction, like she was standing next to you at a party and making sure you knew who everyone was. (“Most people would classify Amalita as Eurotrash. I thought she was fun.”)

I am aware that AJLT is not trying to be a SATC reboot. But Carrie’s voiceover provided an incredibly important narrative purpose: It made each episode thematically cohesive and let the audience feel like we were part of Carrie Bradshaw’s aspirational world.

The plot of the first episode of the season centers around our heroines attending the famous Met Gala, and once again, I found myself wishing that the old Carrie was here to guide us through it. Isn’t the Met Gala a big deal? I think so! And yet, these characters on AJLT act like it’s a dinner party for a colleague they don’t really care about.

If the original series had let ordinary suburban teenagers like me feel as if they were getting a window into an elite world of New York City, this AJLT episode baffled me, a 30-something who has actually lived in New York and worked at Conde Nast: How did they get their invitations? Can you just buy a table? And did they select designers to dress them?

Here’s what I think the old Carrie Bradshaw would have said:

CARRIE (V.O.)

There are a number of holidays that are only celebrated in New York City. The first day it’s warm enough to wear strappy sandals and lounge in Central Park. The day the jitney leaves for the Hamptons. But to those of us who care about fashion like a religion, there’s only one High Holy Day: the Met Gala. This year, thanks to Charlotte’s friend Lisa, I will finally be among the privileged few granted access behind the velvet rope for the very first time.

INT. BRUNCH — DAY

CHARLOTTE

Who do I wear?! The theme is “veiled beauty,” and I haven’t worn a veil since my wedding!

MIRANDA

Relax. They assign you a designer to dress you.

SAMANTHA

I care more about finding a designer to undress me. [NOTE: In this imaginary universe, Samantha is back.]

CARRIE (V.O.)

Getting a designer who wants their clothes shown off in front of thousands of cameras and millions of people was easy. What was harder was trying to find a date.

CARRIE

Are you sure I need to bring a plus-one? I think it’s too soon. It’s only been a year since… Big… and I don’t think I’m ready.

CHARLOTTE

Carrie, you need a date! Lisa Todd bought us the entire table! I told her you were bringing a plus-one. She has to bring a plus-one!

CARRIE

OK, OK! Consider me plussed!

MIRANDA

I forgot to tell you! I met the perfect guy for you at the gym! Tall, handsome — a senior editor at Simon & Schuster.

CARRIE

You’re setting me up?

MIRANDA

Carrie, he’s perfect! You have to call him, or I’ll break up with Che and I’ll call him. Here, I got his card.

Carrie EXAMINES the card.

CARRIE

“Todd Brighham”? I went out with this guy! I went on a date with him in 2002. Kiss goodnight and then we both forgot to call.

SAMANTHA

No sex?

CARRIE

Not that I recall.

SAMANTHA

So no GOOD sex.

CHARLOTTE

It’s been 20 years! Maybe he changed! Maybe you changed? I think you should give him a call!

CARRIE (V.O.)

Charlotte got me thinking. A lot has changed in the last 20 years. Maybe two people who already met could reconnect later and find themselves a better fit. We always dream of “love at first sight” and a lightning bolt moment, but I couldn’t help but wonder: What if the perfect person for you was someone you’ve already Met?

See? Was that so hard?

I know AJLT is trying to be something different than its predecessor, and I shouldn’t be clinging to the past. But if the show is willing to give fans a kick of nostalgia with John Corbett’s return as Aidan Shaw, then bringing back Carrie’s voiceover wouldn’t be all that different. And so, I couldn’t help but wonder: Is there anything wrong with wanting the comfort of the familiar?