Every Outfit Podcast

Episode 257: On Sex and the City: "All or Nothing"

Release Date: January 23, 2026

Hosts: Chelsea Fairless & Lauren Garoney

Episode Overview

This episode is part of Every Outfit's monthly Sex and the City rewatch series, with Chelsea and Lauren doing a deep dive into "All or Nothing," a Season 3 episode centered around Carrie’s affair with Mr. Big, Samantha’s flu-induced vulnerability, and Charlotte’s prenup predicament. While weaving in their own recent personal drama—a bout of illness that paralleled some themes in the show—the hosts unpack the fashion, cultural moments, and social commentary delivered through the lens of this iconic episode.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why This Episode Now?

• Chelsea recounts a "near-death" flu experience that led Lauren to perform a “Samantha” by bringing supplies, sparking a parallel to the show’s friendship moments.
• Chelsea: "I was like, on my knees, vomiting and sobbing and shaking. Like, it was, like, so fucked up." [03:15]
• Lauren: "So it was an unfun ayahuasca trip." [03:40]
• The illness resulted in a Sex and the City binge and inspired revisiting "All or Nothing" ([07:29]).

2. The Episode’s Significance

• Lauren calls it "maybe one of the strongest episodes in Sex and the City history.” [02:26]
• Focus is on the aftermath of Carrie's initial infidelity with Big: “once could be a mistake. Twice, not a mistake.” [08:28]
• Written by Jenny Bix—“our all time fave. Our queen.” [08:37]

3. Cultural Context and the Turn of the Millennium

• Carrie and Aiden’s “girl’s night” banter highlights Wiccan trends of the late 1990s/early 2000s and pop culture references from Buffy the Vampire Slayer ([10:29]-[11:06]).
• Delivery services like FreshDirect, the evolution of the Meatpacking District, and how SATC shaped perceptions of New York real estate/fashion ([14:20]-[16:00]).

4. Themes of "Having It All"

• Samantha’s admission, “At my age, my mother had three kids and a drunk husband” launches an exploration of the iconic 'having it all' narrative—for careers, love, and independence ([17:24]).
• References to Helen Gurley Brown and Candace Bushnell cement SATC's status as a meditation on female aspiration, independence, and the costs of both ([17:59]-[18:33]).

5. Cheating, Guilt, and Justification

• Carrie’s struggle following her first infidelity with Big: “How could it feel so good when it’s so bad?” [24:41]
• Samantha offers non-judgmental support, highlighting SATC’s stance on female non-judgment.
• The hosts praise the episode’s handling of the chemistry between Carrie and Big: “watching two charismatic people with incredible chemistry behaving badly, I’m instantly on their side.” [43:28]
• Analysis of gendered double standards regarding cheating—audiences are less forgiving toward female characters ([44:09]).

6. Carrie’s Emotional State

• Carrie's behavior oscillates between rationalization, guilt, and self-sabotage—smoking relapse, obsessive cleaning, distraction techniques, and ultimately, further cheating ([37:29]–[43:03]).
• Lauren: "Are we a generation of women who can't choose just one from column A? Did we all have too much to handle or was Samantha right? Can we have it all?" [38:14]
• Chelsea speculates Carrie’s “version of having it all: Polyamory. She gets both of them.” [39:21]

7. Fashion Deep Dives & Details

• Carrie's asymmetrical thrifted top, trousers, and “I shot Junior” vintage white jean jacket—a Dallas reference ([19:18]–[20:23]).
• Costuming signals mood and character arcs—Carrie’s “adult baby” Oshkosh shortalls, her haunted engagement party “double bun” hairstyle, Big’s midlife crisis palm print shirt ([49:59], [59:12], [64:36]).

8. Charlotte and the Prenup

• The hosts break down the absurdity and sexism in Charlotte’s prenup (“$500,000 over 30 years is $16,666 a year—doesn’t even cover her shopping habit”) and the added payout for birthing a boy ([33:29]–[34:02], [34:13]).
• Charlotte’s “Pollyanna” view on marriage vs. harsh WASPy realities and family politics.

9. Samantha’s Vulnerability & Comedic Genius

• Samantha, bedbound with the flu, discovers it “was easier to find a guy to screw her than one who’d screw in her curtain rod” [36:47].
• Kim Cattrall’s performance hailed as some of her best comedic work—ill, whiny Samantha is rare.
• Samantha’s riff: “Honey, I can hardly blow my nose, let alone blow you.” [29:37]

10. Miranda’s Phone Sex Woes

• Miranda’s date turns out to be juggling “tandem phone sex” with multiple women—hosts dissect the logistics and absurdity of this subplot ([48:38]–[49:49]).

11. The Fallout: Lies, Lost Dogs, & Coming Clean

• Carrie’s desperate cover-up: “Like any good junkie, I knew how to hide the evidence. No, you didn’t.” [50:52]
• Tension ratchets when Aiden returns, confesses his love while Carrie is fraught with guilt ([52:14]–[54:22]).
• Pete the dog’s disappearance and Carrie’s rain-soaked existential crisis serve as the emotional climax ([67:17]–[68:25]).

12. The Big–Carrie Dynamic

• Host analysis: Big’s lack of guilt, narcissism, and belief that what he and Carrie share is superior to his marriage ([42:05], [66:10]).
• Notable exchange:
  • Big: “Don’t talk about him and her like it’s you and me.” [66:07]
  • Lauren: “He regards him and Carrie above his relationship with his own wife.” [66:43]

13. Memorable Quotes and Banter

• Chelsea: “What did Paco Rabanne even smell like?” [43:16]
• Lauren: “Girl, that was on you.” [56:52]
• Carrie (character): “I had slept with both of them in the last 48 hours.” [57:52]
• Samantha: “You hear that, New York? We have it all!” [74:02]

Timestamps of Notable Segments

• Their “Carrie/Samantha” sick weekend, real-life crossover: [03:15]–[07:29]
• Carrie’s Guilt and Samantha Confessional: [24:05]–[27:09]
• Discussion on “Having It All” and 90s womanhood: [17:24]–[18:33], [38:14]–[39:21]
• Charlotte, Trey and the WASPy Prenup: [32:08]–[34:13], [61:08]
• Cheating and Consequences, Carrie & Big: [43:03]–[54:22], [66:07]
• Samantha’s Illness Saga: [36:47], [55:32]
• Carrie’s Cover-Up and the Great Dog Escape: [49:59]–[68:25]

Fashion & Pop-Culture Notes

• Carrie’s White Jean Jacket: “I shot Junior” (nod to Dallas) [20:13]
• Engagement Party Outfits: Color-coded fairy godmothers, Donna Karan & 1950s chartreuse dress [59:12], [75:02]
• Big’s Depression Shirt: Palm print, “Charlie Sheen in Two and a Half Men” vibes [64:36]
• Hairstyle Shock: Carrie’s double buns, described as “vaguely Hocus Pocus/Bjork/Princess Leia” [59:12]–[59:45]

Hosts’ Best/Worst Awards & Final Thoughts

• MVP: Tie between Carrie (dramatic) and Samantha (comedic), though Charlotte also acknowledged for standing up for herself ([73:22]–[74:18])
• Best Line:
  • Chelsea: “Wood chips and Paco Rabanne.” [75:37]
  • Lauren: “It’ll look lovely under the ramen we’ll have to eat due to my outstanding loans.” [75:40]
• Worst Vibes: Mr. Big for being “a prick” [74:43]
• Best Dressed: Carrie’s chartreuse/“celery” chiffon dress at the engagement party [75:02]
• Trigger: WASPy party and Carrie’s refusal to wash sex sheets [76:25]
• Hot Take:
  • Chelsea: “Carrie called Big because she wanted to fuck him again.” [76:49]
  • Lauren: “Aiden should have broken up with Carrie after the dog incident/lying.” [77:19]

Notable Quotes

• On cheating:

  • Lauren: “Getting the thing we thought we wanted and still we want more.” [26:31]
  • Chelsea: “As Courtney Love once said, I get what I want and I never want it again.” [26:31]

• On friendship:

  • Carrie (character): “Oh, we are not all alone. We have each other.” [58:02]
  • Lauren: "Yes, Carrie and Samantha. You have each other until, you know… Carrie decides to stop paying Samantha's monthly publicist rate..." [58:08]

• On decision fatigue:

  • Chelsea: “Being an adult is psychologically taxing because you have to make all these choices all the time and do all this adult stuff that just slowly, slowly chips away at you.” [40:09]

Overall Tone

The episode is filled with sharp, irreverent humor, insider fashion observations, and an obsessive attention to SATC canon. Chelsea and Lauren mix personal anecdotes (vomiting, Erewhon, friendship rescues) with critical insights about gender roles, New York real estate, prenups, and pop culture, while never taking the show—or themselves—too seriously. Banter about everything from dog acting to leather pants to “adult babies” keeps the tone lively, self-aware, and often laugh-out-loud funny.

This summary intentionally focuses on the core content and opinions; all advertisements, sponsorships, intros, and outros are omitted.