282: On Sex and the City: Drama Queens

Summary

EVERY OUTFIT Episode 282: On Sex and the City: Drama Queens Release Date: July 17, 2026

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Main Theme Overview

In this episode, hosts Chelsea Fairless and Lauren Garroni dive into a detailed rewatch and analysis of the classic "Sex and the City" episode "Drama Queens" (Season 3). The pair, known for their sharp fashion and pop culture commentary, revisit not just iconic wardrobe moments but also the relational dynamics that kick off the pivotal Aiden-Carrie-Big love triangle. With lively banter, deep cultural references, and comedic asides, Chelsea and Lauren peel back layers on character psyche, early 2000s fashion lore, and memorable plot lines that defined the series.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Episode Context & Legacy

• "Drama Queens" as a Turning Point: This episode marks the full cast assembly of Sex and the City's most consequential boyfriends: Steve, Aiden, Big, and Trey. It's the start of the Aiden–Big–Carrie triangle and Charlotte meeting Trey. (01:19)
• Behind the Episode: Directed by Allison Anders (celebrated for Gas Food Lodging and Mi Vida Loca) and written by series creator Darren Starr. Starr’s edgier, more grounded tone is evident before Michael Patrick King (“Daddy MPK”) takes the reins. (01:37)
• Favorite Era for Rewatch: Season 3 is repeatedly lauded as “peak rewatch comfort,” with hosts noting they often start at Aiden’s introduction. (02:24)

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2. Fashion Deep-Dive: Iconic Costumes & Y2K Aesthetics

• Dior Saddlebag Frenzy: Carrie sports an unprecedented three (possibly four) Dior saddlebags in distinct prints and a standout denim style, igniting debate on plausibility and PR loaner culture versus real-life accessibility. (23:35, 24:48, 41:41, 63:01)
• Galliano for Dior Trompe l’Oeil Tank: Worn by Carrie to bed in a brief montage. Chelsea and Lauren highlight its significance in both high fashion and pop culture, referencing its place in the infamous Giselle–Rhea Durham ad campaign, and association with hip-hop icons of the era. (03:24–04:53)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 04:16): “This tank top was so iconic because it was in the ad campaign… They were literally scissoring but with clothes on.”
• Carrie at Barneys: Carrie’s existential longing is visualized with her hands pressed to the glass, staring at Dolce & Gabbana sandals. Compared to Wyeth’s Christina’s World, with a dive into fashion as emotional language. (06:07–07:23)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 06:16): “There is no more striking image on Sex and the City than Carrie Bradshaw with her palms against the glass of the Barney's window, staring longingly at those Dolce sandals.”
• Charlotte’s Prada Lipstick Skirt: The skirt’s origin story, connection to Kristen Davis, and hosts’ IRL encounter with it at a live screening. (53:46–55:13)

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3. Relationship Dynamics & Character Analysis

Carrie & Aiden

• Carrie’s Anxiety: The start of her spiral over “nothing being wrong” in a healthy relationship with Aiden, after only three weeks of dating. (03:16, 38:15)
  • Quote (Lauren, 08:52): “For the first time in her life, she was in a relationship where nothing is wrong. Absolutely terrifying, this poor bitch.”
• Unhealthy Attachment to Drama: Carrie’s inability to accept happiness without “obstacles.” Analysis of her self-sabotage and “need for drama,” culminating in her “I couldn’t help but wonder…” monologue. (36:44–38:47)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 36:48): “Do we need drama to make a relationship work?”
• Aiden’s Red Flags: Hosts argue Aiden’s “good guy” persona masks controlling tendencies (wanting Carrie to quit smoking, pushing intimacy quickly, etc.), sparking debate on whether his “chill” is supportive or passive-aggressive. (27:12–28:40, 64:22)
  • Quote (Lauren, 27:05): “He’s telegraphing all of his red flags... He wants her to change herself...”
• The Hat Incident: Extended comedic breakdown on the travesty of John Corbett/Aiden’s oddly fastened backwards hat at the climax. (59:47–61:06)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 59:47): “Aiden comes out wearing a shocking hat... like the last peg is in the last hole of the hat... This is one that I can’t imagine ever being a thing.”

Miranda & Steve

• Laundry, Domesticity, & Skid Marks: Miranda’s arc centers on the reality of domestic intimacy: folding Steve’s laundry and finding “skid marks.” The hosts dissect realism and cringe of the scene, debating the likelihood of Miranda herself doing housework. (10:32, 32:27–34:19)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 33:19): “When your boyfriend is so comfortable he can’t be bothered to wipe his ass, that’s the end of romance right there.”
• Resolution: Ultimately, sex and convenience win over discomfort – no big talk, just a return to routine. (68:36–68:46)

Charlotte’s Marital Mania

• “This Is the Year I’m Getting Married”: Charlotte’s grandiose declaration sets a manic tone. The hosts analyze “middle school fantasy” misconceptions versus NYC reality and (as a tongue-in-cheek ‘hot take’) speculate on Charlotte being “bipolar.” (29:48, 70:40)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 29:48): “When Charlotte is so delusional about her quest for love that it, like, borders on mental illness. Like, bitch, who are you marrying?”
• Prada Lipstick Skirt & Meeting Trey: The comic twist of being set up, only to be hit on by the friend’s husband, and serendipitously meeting Trey after running into traffic. (56:38–58:45)
  • Quote (Lauren, 57:48): “She’s mad, but she can still make a pun: ‘I’m not interested in starting some married man’s car.’”

Samantha & Viagra Guy

• Recreational Viagra & 90s Context: Samantha’s plot involves dating an ENT doctor who takes (and gives her) Viagra recreationally, leading to “the best orgasm of her life.” Extended riff on late-90s Viagra zeitgeist and politics, from Bob Dole’s infamous commercials to Hugh Hefner. (18:16–21:36, 51:24)
  • Quote (Chelsea, 18:13): “You cannot imagine how much we had to hear about Viagra in the 90s.”
  • Quote (Lauren, 51:48): “This goes with the idea of, like, Samantha’s like a man. So she’s taking Viagra like a man.”

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4. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Miranda’s Skid Mark Revelation (33:19):
  Chelsea: "I tell you one thing. When your boyfriend is so comfortable, he can't be bothered to wipe his ass, that's the end of romance right there."
• Carrie’s Existential Shoe Crisis (06:07):
  Lauren (channeling Carrie): “I realized I was in the throes of an existential crisis, one that not even the sight of this season’s Dolce and Gabbana strappy sandals could lift me out of.”
• Charlotte’s Insanity Mantra (29:48): Chelsea: “When Charlotte is so delusional about her quest for love that it, like, borders on mental illness. Like, bitch, who are you marrying?”

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• 01:19 – Sex and the City’s four main boyfriend arc launches
• 02:20 – Season 3: Why it’s the best to rewatch; Patricia Field’s fashion ascension
• 04:30 – Dior tank lore & high fashion cameos
• 06:07 – Carrie’s shoe window existential crisis
• 10:15 – Miranda’s housework, laundry, and the “laundry as love” debate
• 17:22 – Samantha & Viagra guy: trend analysis and 90s boner culture
• 23:35 – The saddlebag speculation: How many is too many in one episode?
• 29:48 – Charlotte’s delusional determination to get married
• 32:19 – Skid marks: Too real? The propmaster’s task
• 38:47 – The psychology of craving drama in relationships
• 44:07 – Carrie and Aiden: “Maybe we should see each other less?”
• 46:05 – Opera scene: Dolce mini, Charlotte’s look, and the symbolic boredom of Carrie & Big
• 53:46 – Charlotte’s Prada lipstick skirt origin story
• 57:15 – Charlotte’s disastrous almost-date and meeting Trey
• 59:33 – Carrie and Aiden’s “meeting the parents” diner showdown and the infamous hat
• 65:52 – Exit survey: Ratings, MVP, fashion, best lines, and ‘hottest takes’

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Segment: Memorable Analysis & Observations

• Comparisons to Art History: Carrie’s Barney’s window scene is likened to Wyeth’s Christina’s World—Laurent’s “fashion as emotional language” commentary. (06:43)
• Fashion Investment Speculation: Chelsea marvels at how some 2000s Carries’ wardrobe pieces have become financial powerhouses decades later—Dior saddlebags and Dolce dresses now selling for thousands. (48:07)
• Aiden’s “Red Flags” Under the Radar: Lauren notes that Aiden’s “healthy guy” portrayal masks expectations to change Carrie and potentially manipulative moves: “He’s telegraphing all of his red flags. We saw it in their first episode together…” (27:05)
• Cultural Zeitgeist Commentary: Viagra plot as emblematic of late-90s/early-00s culture, appropriated for both comic and “teachable moment” value. (18:06–19:21)
• Hosts’ Live Show Lore: Anecdote about Kristen Davis wearing her lipstick skirt to their Every Outfit screening event, plus behind-the-scenes scoop on how “iconic” fashion moments were selected. (53:52–55:13)

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Closing Survey & Hot Takes (65:52–72:13)

• Episode Rating: Chelsea – 7.5 Manolos; Lauren – 8 Manolos
• MVP: Chelsea votes for Carrie (“does the most, even if annoying”), Lauren for Charlotte (“identified her goal and met Trey”)
• Best Dressed: Both agree—Charlotte in her Prada lipstick skirt (with honorable mention to Carrie’s opera look)
• Most Triggering Moment: Aiden’s backwards cap styling, closely followed by Steve’s skid marks
• Hottest Takes:
  • Lauren’s: The writers were making fun of Kim Cattrall’s real-life love life by naming Samantha’s Viagra guy “Mark” and writing in her orgasm plot as a knowing wink to Cattrall’s then-husband, Mark Levinson (69:03).
  • Chelsea’s: Charlotte displays textbook bipolar mania in this episode (“I’m getting married this year!”)—tying character eccentricity to real-life diagnoses (70:40).

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Final Thoughts

This is a zippy, affectionately critical rewatch full of deep-dive fashion nerdery, psychological readings of beloved characters, and meta quips about how Sex and the City helped shape (and reflect) the hopes, fashion sense, and anxieties of late-millennial womanhood. Chelsea and Lauren’s playful, knowledgeable chemistry makes it essential listening for SATC fans and pop culture fiends alike.

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Notable Quotes Recap

• “I realized I was in the throes of an existential crisis, one that not even the sight of this season’s Dolce and Gabbana sandals could lift me out of.” (Carrie, relayed by Chelsea, 06:07)
• “When your boyfriend is so comfortable he can’t be bothered to wipe his ass, that’s the end of romance right there.” (Chelsea, 33:19)
• “After careful consideration, I have decided that this is the year I am getting married.” (Charlotte, relayed by Chelsea, 29:48)
• “Carrie is a crazy bitch. I really do [love her].” (Chelsea, 49:30)

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Useful If You Missed the Episode Because:

• Sums up both plot and subtext
• Calls out fashion moments and psychological insights
• Captures hilarious and outrageous host banter
• Fits the original tone: catty, affectionate, witty, and deeply knowledgable about SATC and 2000s culture

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Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[B]

Fashion has changed. No, it hasn't.

[A]

Hi, I'm Lauren Garrone.

[B]

And I'm Chelsea Fairless.

[A]

And welcome back to the Every Outfit podcast. We are doing our monthly rewatch of a Sex and the City episode. We are doing Drama Queens, also known as the episode where Carrie almost gets the ick because her boyfriend is too emotionally available.

[B]

It's a really important episode because this episode is the beginning of the Aiden big Carrie love triangle.

[A]

And it's the first episode where we get all four of what I would consider the most consequential Sex and City boyfriends. I mean, Harry and Smith, Jared notwithstanding. But this is an episode where we get Steve, we get Aiden, we get a big appearance, and we get Trey.

[B]

All the main players.

[A]

So I don't know if you clocked who wrote and directed this episode. It was directed by Allison Anders, who directed two episodes in season two and two episodes in season three. This one and then the next episode. We of course love her for her film Gas Food Lodging, which had Fruza Balk and Ione sky in it.

[B]

She also directed Mi Vida Loca, one of the great Los Angeles movies.

[A]

This is also written by Darren Starr, who by the end of this season will leave Sex and the City and then we're in the Daddy Mpk verse. But for now, you can really feel the Darren Starr of it all. It's a little more gritty. There's an edginess to it. Those edges get rounded towards the end of the series.

[B]

Season three is a great place to be and this episode comes midway through

[A]

that season for me, if I'm doing a rewatch and I'm way overdue to do a kind of top to bottom Sex and the City series rewatch. But if I'm going for pure rewatch comfort, I'm doing season three.

[B]

Of course, I think we all do.

[A]

Although controversially, I will start in the episode she meets Aiden and then go straight through to the end.

[B]

So this episode begins with Carrie and Aiden peacefully sleeping in Carrie's Bed until. Until she startles awake in the middle of the night. In her voiceover, she tells us that they've only been dating for three weeks.

[A]

I did want to touch upon this as we get further into the episode in Carrie's storyline, because. Oh my God. Because the episode previous to this, Aiden will not fuck her, right? But now this must take place right after they finally had sex. And I guess their boyfriend girlfriend.

[B]

They've been boyfriend girlfriend for all of three weeks and she is already waking up in a panic.

[A]

She's haunted.

[B]

She is haunted. And I'd never noticed it before until this rewatch, but the first time she wakes up, she is wearing this extremely iconic denim Dior. It's not really denim, it's like a trompe l' oeil tank top that is a very significant piece. Just wearing it to bed casually.

[A]

Yes, we will of course get into the fashion of this episode, but it really. Mid season three, you see that Patricia Field is not at the height of her powers, but it's beginning to ascend of like, oh, now they have access to designers. So much so that they can throw this amazing John Galliano for Dior. It's spring, summer 2000, right?

[B]

I believe so.

[A]

But they can put this very important piece on Carrie for a three second scene that's in a larger montage where she's waking up again and again from a nightmare.

[B]

And I know, it's crazy. And this tank top was so iconic because it was in the ad campaign that starred Giselle and Rhea Durham. They were oiled up. It was very lesbian. Like they were literally scissoring but with clothes on.

[A]

Wait, Raya Durham?

[B]

Is that what her name is?

[A]

Yes. But she went on to marry Mark Wahlberg.

[B]

Oh, see, I don't care about Mark Wahlberg. So. Never knew that. But also, this collection was big because it was really embraced by a lot of hip hop and R and B musicians. Foxy brats wore stuff from that collection. Destiny's Child, what have you.

[A]

And of course, Carrie Bradshaw.

[B]

Carrie Bradshaw. Just to sleep in.

[A]

So it's three bad dreams, right? She's wearing the Dior in the first one. Then she's got a wife beater. Then I think scandalously, she's got just a bra. Cause as we know, Sarah Jessica Parker slash Carrie Bradshaw. Always sleeping in a bra, of course.

[B]

So she's kind of spiraling and in her voiceover she's like, oh, my God, was there a bill that I need to pay? Like, did I miss an appointment? We see her, like frantically searching through her desk drawer, which I don't think we see any other time.

[A]

No, but I did claw. Cause I also had this. The Nars pot.

[B]

Oh, of course she has the nars pot. And then two nars compacts. And that was kind of like early NARS. That was like a mid-90s makeup brand. It was still kind of new then, and it was still very like Fashion Insider at that point. Whereas now I think it's more masked, but obviously still very well respected.

[A]

Well, of course it's now in Sephora. I think I probably learned of that brand from watching Sex and the City. But as Carrie notes, she hasn't even missed a dentist appointment.

[B]

So we then get a truly iconic Carrie Bradshaw quote.

[A]

I realized I was in the throes of an existential crisis, one that not even the sight of this season's Dolce and Gabbana strappy sandals could lift me out of.

[B]

I just want to say there is no more striking image on Sex and the City than the image of Carrie Bradshaw with her palms against the glass of the Barney's window, staring longingly at those Dolce sandals. It's just so visually arresting to me.

[A]

Well, and we know how dire this existential crisis is because the sight of this season's Dolce and Gabbana sandals could not even lift her out of it.

[B]

That's how you know that things are really bad. But I think there's something really beautiful compositionally about this image because we can't see her face. Like, it reminds me of the Andrew Wyeth painting Christina's World, you know?

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And to be fair, she is basically wearing the same colored dress.

[A]

Yes. Christina's World, which has a very tragic backstory. Do you know this?

[B]

I think I know a little, but refresh my memory.

[A]

So Andrew Wyeth painted this of his neighbor, a woman named Anna Christina Olson, who had a degenerative muscular disorder, possibly polio or something, called Carcott Marie Tooth Disorder. And she was.

[B]

Ooh, that sounds bad. Yeah, I hope there's been a cure for that.

[A]

I don't know. But it left her unable to walk. And she was, for some reason, I could not find research as to why, but firmly against using a wheelchair. So Andrew Wyeth was looking out his window and saw her just, like, dragging her body across the field and then painted that.

[B]

Okay. For someone with a degenerative muscular disorder, she was fucking serving that day in that field. Like, that is like Avedon Level posing.

[A]

I believe that his wife served as the torso model, but, you know, an arresting image that for some reason reminds you of Carrie with her hands pressed against the Barney's window.

[B]

You know what would be better, though? If Christina had the little saddlebag, like, tucked under her arm.

[A]

Yes. Unfortunately, painted 60 years too soon for the Dior saddlebag, which does not make its first appearance in this episode. It is the second appearance of the Dior saddlebag, but we may get the most saddlebags per episode in this episode.

[B]

Totally. And the saddlebag that we very briefly see in this Barney scene is like a pink and white and gold, very traditional kind of scarf print. Really gorgeous. But anyway, after a long day of window shopping, Carrie realized the true nature of her anxiety. For the first time in her life, she was in a relationship where nothing is wrong.

[A]

Absolutely terrifying, this poor bitch. And then we immediately go into a diner scene. Because by this point in Sex and the City's run, they've really figured out the algorithm that makes a perfect Sex and the City episode, in my opinion, where you've got the cold open that sets up the episode. And then immediately into a diner scene with all the girls.

[B]

And Carrie's basically like, I'm not used to this. I'm used to the chase. Then Miranda. I mean, Miranda's gone crazy in this scene, in my opinion.

[A]

Yes. Because Samantha correctly points out, like, oh, what is missing is the stomach flip that Aiden is not giving you because he's just there. His intentions are clear. You're not used to this. And Miranda's like, yeah, but that stomach flip is actually just your fear of losing the guy.

[B]

Right? And she's like, you know, I've been with Steve for a while now. He's extremely boring and predictable. But I'm the happiest I've ever been folding his laundry on a Friday night.

[A]

It's a Saturday night, even worse. And yeah, she says, my new favorite thing to do on a Saturday night is Steve's laundry. And I've never been happier. I have always rolled with this statement. We had previously done a VIP episode that breathlessly went into the entire relationship between Steven Miranda. I am a Steven Miranda, Stan. I do not believe that she lowered her standards to be with this man. However, I do not believe that this woman who works 80 to 100 hours a week at a big law firm, who has a housekeeper, that she willingly does domestic labor on her time off. Her brief time off.

[B]

No. When she has time off, she's in that diner with the girls.

[A]

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[B]

Charlotte, of course, is like triggered by everything that everyone is saying.

[A]

Well, they're dysfunctional single, she can't be around them.

[B]

No, she's like, seriously guys. Like now we're dumping guys for being too available. Which to be fair, is a very good point.

[A]

This did remind me of that interaction from season six where it's Burger losing his mind when it's Charlotte and Carrie and Burger and Charlotte's like, ugh, he got me carnations. And then Carrie's like, oh, but I love carnations. And Berger's just like, so no man can do anything right.

[B]

Truly. She then discusses this new book that she's been reading called Marriage Inc. How to Apply Successful Business Strategies to Finding

[A]

a Husband, which Samantha makes the great joke. Chapter one how to Get Ahead by Giving Head.

[B]

Was that even a joke or was that the book?

[A]

No, I think that is not really the first chapter. You're sounding like me on this episode.

[B]

This is not a real book, by the way. I looked it up, incidentally. There is a Harlequin romance novel of the same name, but not a real book.

[A]

I'm sure it is inspired by books that actually exist. I think I've discussed this on the podcast previously. My mother got me the book why Men Love Bitches, which feels like a version of this book, Right?

[B]

Did you read it? Was it good? Is that book helpful to society? Really?

[A]

No. But the funnier thing is my mom was like, I haven't read this book, but it seems like something that might be good for you. I think I flipped through it.

[B]

What do you mean? She's like, at, like, Barnes and Noble. She's like, my daughter's a bitch. This book would be perfect for her.

[A]

Yes. Although I did buy a book. It's called Getting to I Do. Getting to I Do is a relationship book by Dr. Patricia Allen that offered a step by step program for women to attract a committed partner, often within a year, by embracing traditional gender roles and understanding masculine and feminine energies.

[B]

You voluntarily bought this?

[A]

I did. It was at a low point. Look, I was in my Charlotte phase.

[B]

Clearly, I realized that I was the one with the masculine energy after reading that book. Complimentary.

[A]

And then I married a fan, so it all worked out. So Charlotte believes, either from this book or through her own reasoning, that the husbands of her married friends are the ones that know all of the bachelors,

[B]

which is often true.

[A]

I don't know. I feel like, in my experience, I did think maybe it was because of Sex of the City that more of my married friends or friends in committed relationships would introduce me to their friends. But I don't think people want that baggage if it doesn't go well.

[B]

That's true. But it does happen.

[A]

So we get a brief interlude with Miranda and Steve. They are eating plateless leftover lasagna.

[B]

Okay, this scene is literally so disgusting because Steve's like, we have leftover lasagna.

[A]

We should say, for those who have not recently rewatched the episode, he is shirtless, which, Steve has a great body, but, like, I don't know, something about, like, having a big Pyrex of lasagna shirtless.

[B]

It's not the shirtlessness that icks me out. It's the fact that two people could eat out of the same large Pyrex dish full of Old lasagna.

[A]

To be fair, we don't see them eat it. Probably because they would lose us as audience members.

[B]

Exactly. Like, I feel like the only time, like, people eat lasagna out of, like, a large Pyrex dish when you're like Garfield or when you're watching, like, a Lifetime movie about someone with binge eating disorder.

[A]

Like, oh, you. Not as the person watching the Lifetime film. The person in the Lifetime film is eating a large lasagna. Got it.

[B]

It's a very dramatic thing to do.

[A]

My question is, who made the lasagna? Is it Steve's ma?

[B]

Miranda did not make that lasagna.

[A]

We refuse to believe this. I just want to get through their nighttime routine. So we do see them eating ice cream in bed. Then we hear In Carrie's voiceover, eight minutes of no frill sex followed by 12 minutes of Frontline. And then Carrie rounds out the voiceover by saying theirs was the kind of closeness that only came from true intimacy. However, as Carrie is saying this, we see that Steve is asleep in some sort of post nut coma that he's in, while Miranda, she is trimming her toenails in bed.

[B]

If my wife saw me do that, she would unalive me, truly.

[A]

Thank you for using twitch language. We'll get into what Steve does later, which is objectively gross. I'm not saying that Miranda clipping her toenails is grosser than what Steve leaves for Miranda, let's say, but it is. It's not ungross.

[B]

It's almost as gross. But we'll talk about Steve Skidmarks later. Meanwhile, across town.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

Samantha, of course, is about to fuck some guy. His name is Dr. Mark Raskin, an

[A]

ear, nose, and throat man, which we've noted this before. Samantha has a type of guy that she loves to have sex with. This is definitely in the, like, dark haired Italian Staten island variant of the guy she likes to have sex with. I often confuse this guy with the guy that gives her stock tips and gets arrested for insider trading. But that's in season six.

[B]

I think that guy is hotter.

[A]

That guy is hotter. He's more akin to Mr. Too Big. Anyway, this guy is an ear, nose and throat doctor, which makes a lot more sense as he recreationally takes Viagra

[B]

to our younger listeners. You cannot imagine how much we had to hear about viagra in the 90s.

[A]

Oh, you mean old men boners.

[B]

Yes, because it was only approved by the FDA in 1998. So at about that point, like every late night talk show, every Daytime talk show. Every SNL skit found a way to reference Viagra.

[A]

I mean, older men having sex and being virile is just an omnipresent part of our culture. But again, for our younger fuckettes, we cannot begin to explain there was the explosion of Viagra. Hugh Hefner, I remember, had, like, just divorced his wife, and this was the beginning of him having seven girlfriends. And he admitted to taking Viagra. And then there were a lot of movies where guys like Harrison Ford and Michael Douglas were dating, and he sure. Gwyneth Paul. And so it was really high time for, like, let's make sure the old guys are fucking.

[B]

Yeah, exactly.

[A]

But when I think of this plot point, obviously this was in the Zeitgeist, but it reminded me, do you remember that there were these Bob Dole ads? Bob Dole, who ran for president shilling Viagra.

[B]

How could I forget?

[A]

The point I want to make is there are many treatments available for Ed. So my advice is get a medical checkup. It's the best way to get educated about it, Ed, and what can be done to treat it. It may take a little courage, but I've always found that everything worthwhile does. So I went back to pull this ad, and in my brain I was like, he talks about Viagra. That was the whole thing. And then I was shocked to learn that he never says the name of the drug. He talks about erectile dysfunction, and then he urges people to not go to an early website, but to call a 1-800-number. Can you imagine a time where it's like, I'm not going tell you what this drug is that could give you a boner at your old age. Just call this 1-800-number, Pfizer's number, and they'll tell you all about it.

[B]

Well, the Pfizer logo was on the commercial the entire time. So we know what this is about. And he was basically saying, like, yeah, I had prostate cancer, I had some surgery. My dick doesn't work in so many words. But it was a very shocking and jarring thing to see at the time. For those of you who don't know who Bob Dole is, he was a Republican senator, the Senate Majority Leader. At one point, he very iconically ran for president against Bill Clinton and Ross Perot. Remember him? That was like a crazy year where we actually had, like, a third party candidate with skin in the game. Not one that we would vote for,

[A]

but still, I mean, a great figure for Dana Carvey to impersonate, but it would be like, if I Don't know. Mike Pence did boner ads now.

[B]

Totally. Look, any day now.

[A]

Yeah. What's he doing these days? I get that for comedic effect. This character, who I will just call Viagra guy for the rest of the episode, needs to breadcrumb why he's using Viagra because Samantha of course is like, first of all, that's very presumptuous of you. And number two, from what I can tell, and then she grabs his boner. You know, you don't need any help in that area whatsoever. I do feel like this was on the cutting edge, that people who didn't need it for erectile dysfunction were using it to kind of amp up their sex life.

[B]

Totally. And this episode of Sex and the City specifically played a large role in that being a thing.

[A]

Yeah. Who knows if that actually is true? People probably watched this episode and then took Viagra thinking that they would have sex like Samantha.

[B]

Well, she loves getting by. Viagra, man.

[A]

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[B]

So the next scene is a walk and talk with Carrie and Aiden. These outfits are very iconic. Carrie is wearing her second saddlebag of the episode, a denim saddlebag.

[A]

I know this is beside the point, but I feel like, because we've watched these episodes a thousand times, she wears, I believe, three different saddlebags in this episode. Do we think she's friends with Galliano? I mean, that was always Patricia Fields line when daddy MPK would be like, well, how could she afford this stuff? And she's like, ah, the designers loaned it to her.

[B]

I think there's a world where she could be friends with, like, the New York PR girl for Dior who might lend her something for an event. But three handbags? No, I think we're supposed to suspend our disbelief about the saddlebags.

[A]

Do you think this saddlebag, which is denim, is wasted on this outfit?

[B]

No, because we actually get a good shot of it in the scene. At the very least, you know, we can't say that for every saddlebag that Carrie carries.

[A]

Ooh, I like that Carrie carries.

[B]

Also, she's wearing, like, this very nondescript purple top that has a ruched neckline. And this is one of Sarah Jessica Parker's, like, classic fashion hacks. She takes a safety pin and she, like, puts it on the neckline of a shirt to make this sort of, like, 80s ruched look. She still does it today. Like, someone did a TikTok a couple years ago. I think I reposted it. That correctly identified the fact that, like, she does this safety pin trick on this one gray shirt, and she's literally worn this one gray shirt, like, dozens of times publicly.

[A]

I mean, this is where her and Carrie diverge is. Like, she will wear the same thing over and over again. Which I've heard is a paparazzi trick of, like, maybe the photos won't be as valuable because you're just wearing the same thing over and over again. But I think for her, that's a nod to, like, I keep it real.

[B]

Oh, she definitely keeps it real. But I also feel like doing this sort of thing with a safety pin is a very, like, 80s thing to do. It also had a big resurgence in the indie sleaze era. Like, I remember doing horrible things to vintage T shirts with safety pins back then.

[A]

Well, speaking of indie Sleeves. We have not talked about the other accessory Carrie is wearing for reasons unknown, which is a gold lame rosette that she's wearing around her neck.

[B]

Oh, yeah, it's like a choker.

[A]

That's where the outfit loses me.

[B]

It is a lot of Carrie isms at once, I will say that for sure. I also think this is a rare instance where Aiden might be outdressing her. Just maybe because he's wearing this very cool blue bandana print shirt. It's actually a little abstract. It looks like something that Loewe or Bodhi might do.

[A]

I can definitely see that. And because he's so tall, we never get to see what he's wearing at the bottom.

[B]

No. And as he's wearing this beautiful top, Carrie's basically grilling him, like, what's wrong with you? Something has to be wrong with you if you're not married. And maybe it's that he's a crip because he's wearing this shirt.

[A]

You know, to your point about this is a lot of Carrie isms. I think this is the outward reflecting, the inward. Like, she is going full neurotic Carrie in this episode. And he seems to be rolling with it, although he won't answer her question.

[B]

Well, he's really with it because he doesn't, like, fully understand, like, the depth of her, like, dark nature.

[A]

And also he does have an ulterior motive to this conversation. So it's very possible he's not actually listening to her. Because what is more important to him is the fact that his parents are visiting and would she like to meet them after three weeks?

[B]

Is he a nice guy or is he crazy? Like, he's met a crazy woman.

[A]

He's met a crazy woman. And I do have a truly unhinged, hottest take for our exit survey. So I'll just say this here, which is throughout this entire episode, Carrie keeps being like, what is your red flag? I know there's a red flag somewhere, but what is it? And I think because he's different than big, obviously that's why this character was created, but he's telegraphing all of his red flags. We saw it in their first episode together, which is he wants her to quit smoking. Like, he wants her to change herself. He's asking her to meet his parents after, again, three weeks.

[B]

Which could be nice or sinister, depending on how you look at it.

[A]

I mean, clearly Aiden from the start is like, you, I think, are my person. It's his reasoning of why he doesn't have sex with her immediately, as we saw in the previous episode where he's like, I've had sex with people immediately, and I'm still single, so I'm gonna try to not have sex with someone I really like.

[B]

Anyway, Charlotte is having dinner with her married friends Amy and Dennis.

[A]

I know that they quite like Carrie going to the dentist. Like, I know that each of these women have friends outside of the core four, but it's always weird when you see it on the show.

[B]

Totally.

[A]

Who are these people? Yeah. How did you guys meet?

[B]

They can fuck right off. So Charlotte is like, after careful consideration, I've decided that this is the year that I'm getting married.

[A]

It's a great line. It is. Is unhinged. It is undoubtedly very Charlotte to say this. And of course, the response of her friends are like, oh, to who? And she's like, oh, I don't have anyone yet. That's where you come in. Anyway. Do you have any single people that you think I would get along with? A lot has been spoken about of what we have lost in the age of texting. We often say, oh, I talked to this person, but really, we texted this person. But this conversation illustrates what texting has given us because we used to have to have dinner with people to ask this question. If there ever was a texting question, it's this.

[B]

Yeah. Or a voice memo question. Oh, But I love when Charlotte is so delusional about her quest for love that it, like, borders on mental illness. Like, bitch, who are you marrying?

[A]

Phil, of course. Sorry, I had to make sure there's. Dennis is the guy that her friend is married to, but Phil is the guy who they're gonna set Charlotte up with. And Kristen Davis has this great performance. Cause on the page, there's not a ton for her to do. And so she, I assume, has made this character choice to just keep saying Phil over and over again, almost like a mantra. Kind of breathlessly, she's like, phil, Phil. Phil. Yes, Phil.

[B]

I have tickets to the opera, and I'd love to take Phil.

[A]

Okay. I know exactly one straight man who would love to go to the opera, and that is my husband, who spends Father's Day with his mother in law, my mot. The opera.

[B]

Lovely.

[A]

But I don't know if taking a tech bro to the opera on essentially a blind date is a good first date.

[B]

It is a very seductive fantasy, though, for, like, people in middle school, high school, like ourselves, that one day will move to New York and the random straight guys there will want to go to the opera.

[A]

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[B]

So Miranda is doing Steve's laundry.

[A]

And don't believe it, but okay.

[B]

She's confronted with skid marks. I don't know how else to say it.

[A]

Oh, you just cut right to the chase.

[B]

Well, what, are we gonna beat around the bush? Can you imagine, like the prop person having to make those skid marks?

[A]

No, Even better. Could you imagine Alison Anders okaying, like, that's too much. That's not enough. Like she's going full Goldilocks. Like there's just a table full of skid mark options.

[B]

She's like, we. We need a little less on that one.

[A]

She's like, that's getting into, like, maybe a bloody territory. We don't want to think that Steve has gastrointestinal issues, just that he's too lazy to wipe or something. Miranda, we gotta get the toto.

[B]

Oh, God, he clearly needs one. So we then get a walk and talk with Carrie and Miranda. I was wrong.

[A]

There is a point at which a couple can get too comfortable. And I think I reached it this morning, washing Steve's underwear.

[B]

Why?

[A]

What happened? I'm living with skid marks guy. Oh, no. Oh, terrible.

[B]

I Don't get it.

[A]

Why do men get skid marks? Is it laziness or are they just in a rush? I don't know, but whatever it is,

[B]

it goes hand in hand with urinating on the seat.

[A]

I tell you one thing. When your boyfriend is so comfortable, he can't be bothered to wipe his ass. Come on, that's the end of romance right there. I mean, I feel like Whoopi Goldberg and Ghost. Like, girl, you're in danger.

[B]

Just the amount of shit is a red flag.

[A]

I'm not saying that they should have delved into this more, but I just want to note there's no resolution as to why Steve has left Skid Barks.

[B]

I don't think there needs to be a resolution. Like he doesn't wipe his ass sometimes.

[A]

I was going to say sometimes. Because this is the first time she's discovered skid marks, which, I don't know. Do we need to be investigating his laundry before you just throw it into the washing machine?

[B]

Look, to be fair, Steve could have just had one rough day. You know, maybe this isn't, like, Steve's whole vibe.

[A]

Hole is the operative word.

[B]

Stop talking about Steve's hole, I beg of you.

[A]

Well, yeah, maybe the NYU students who want the Amstel light were just, like, really rushing him just to get out of the bathroom.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

We're spending way too much time on this. And not enough time on the fact that Carrie is wearing yet another Dior saddlebag in this scene.

[B]

Yes, this is her third saddle bag. It is pretty much identical to the first one. Also a scarf print, but it's in a different colorway. This is the gold and white and navy blue saddlebag.

[A]

Do you think that the New York PR girl who lent her these bags is, like, calling her, like, there's a scene going on parallel to this on Carrie's answering machine of like, hey, so when I said you could and, like, pick some stuff up, I didn't think you would take three Dior bags. Like, Vogue is kind of calling. Can I get, like, maybe two of them back?

[B]

Look, I hope she did buy them. Because as financially irresponsible as Carrie is, these are actually really excellent investment pieces that are worth more money now than they were at the time, so I couldn't even fault her for that.

[A]

Anyway, we then get into Carrie and Miranda talking about their sex lives. Carrie's issues with Aiden, you know, Miranda notes. I get it. You know, we complain when we don't have a boyfriend, and we complain when we do. And then this is where Carrie invokes Big. Actually, she says, you know how Big used to keep his mother away from me, and it used to drive me nuts? And I'm like, wait, hold on. You mean when you and Miranda stalked Big and his mother at church?

[B]

I know.

[A]

And then as a reward, Big took you on vacation, and then you unceremoniously broke up with him. That Big, who kept his mother away from you? Yeah.

[B]

And she's basically like Aiden's offering up his mom and dad on a silver platter. And I don't even want to meet them.

[A]

We have discussed this, but I did not realize that Carrie literally says, the irony is Aiden's acting exactly the way I wish Big would have behaved. And I'm behaving just like Big.

[B]

Yeah, I forgot that she said that, too.

[A]

And then Miranda astutely notes, maybe you don't believe it's for real unless someone plays hard to get. Which, yes. Carrie's like, it either needs to be me or the person I'm dating.

[B]

And this leads us to the. I couldn't help but wonder, when things

[A]

come too easy, we're suspect. Do they have to get complicated before we believe they're for real? We're raised to believe that the course of true love never runs smoothly. There always has to be obstacles in Act 2 before you can live happily ever after in Act 3. But what happens when the obstacles aren't there? Does that mean there's something missing? Do we need drama to make a relationship work? I don't want to belabor this point because we've already mentioned it several times, but it has been less than a month, Carrie. Like, look, I know you write an article weekly, so you're like, fuck, what's going on in my life that I could maybe work into my weekly article. But, like, just give it two months, three months? Hey, you know my middle name is Cassandra. I'll tell you your future. Carrie. Just wait until Aiden wants to move in with you.

[B]

It's actually crazy to be having panic attacks in the middle of the night when you've been dating someone for three weeks. Like, you actually should break up with them.

[A]

We've talked about this with Burger. In the fact that, like, their relationship was actually never good when we rewatched these episodes. Not a once has the vibe has been great. And I realize now, in rewatching these Aiden episodes, it's like, oh, yeah, you guys are not good together. As you just pointed out, like, you're having panic attacks about this guy. He's already demonstrated that he's like subtly trying to push you more into this traditional mode of what he wants clearly from a wife.

[B]

Right. But also he's happy because he doesn't understand that Carrie is having all of this, like, insane inner turmoil. But I will say I do think that the issue that Carrie's dealing with in this episode is a common one. I know multiple people who sort of feel a sense of unease when a relationship is going well. Either because they've had like fucked up relationships before, or maybe their, you know, family life growing up, their parents relationship was unstable. So they don't feel comfortable when there's no drama.

[A]

I realized in this rewatch that this episode, little 13 year old Lauren watching this episode, gave me a complex as someone who went on to date emotionally unavailable man after emotionally unavailable man. I was like, oh, God, when I get into like a normal relationship with someone who is emotionally available, I'm gonna be like, carrie, I'm gonna be so bored. And no, that didn't happen. She's just fucked up. Yeah.

[B]

I don't think we need drama to make a relationship work.

[A]

I'm not saying that these aren't valid points. And her, I couldn't help but wonder. I'm just saying give it time. Like, honestly, there shouldn't be drama three weeks into a relationship.

[B]

No, absolutely not. So we then get a really psychotic Charlotte montage where she is calling Dennis to inquire about her date with Phil. She hasn't heard from him.

[A]

I needed an additional diner scene where Samantha warned Charlotte not to take her blind date to the opera. Totally an event that is no shorter than two hours. Having been to operas where you are discouraged from talking to the person because we're learning. Like, you have to go through Dennis to get to Phil. Anyway, I love this montage because clearly they locked down Bryant park as a location and were not expecting it to be rainy the day that they went and shot. Because at first she's walking with an umbrella, which completely makes sense. But I forgot that the following scene, she's seated in Bryant park at one of those picnic tables and it is clearly rainy. Everyone has umbrellas around her, the extras that are walking in the background, and she's acting as if, like, clearly this was written to be a sunny day where she's having lunch.

[B]

Right. She's so crazy in this scene. Like the level of, of anxiety that is sort of underlying these psychotic voicemails that she is leaving is such that, like, I wouldn't be surprised if she had like a Mrs. Dalloway type breakdown.

[A]

Well, Also, it's even more humiliating because she's not even calling her potential date Phil's office. She can't even get to Dennis. There is an additional intermediary, which is Dennis's assistant, which prompts Charlotte at one point to almost scream, what is this about? It's about my future husband, Phil.

[B]

So crazy.

[A]

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[B]

So the next scene is in Aiden's

[A]

furniture store, an underused location.

[B]

It's very classy. Carrie's waiting for him like he's like talking to some couple who are presumably about to buy a piece from him.

[A]

Well, as he says to Carrie, sorry, this is taking longer than I thought. Which it's like, can you just leave your own furniture store, I guess to go on a date?

[B]

I guess he doesn't have employees that day. So Carrie's basically like, I'm not gonna wait around for you to sell this chair or whatever.

[A]

She claims she has a deadline. Do we think that's true?

[B]

She always has a deadline. But she's basically like, I came here to tell you that I don't want to meet your parents.

[A]

Yes, she is forced to say that because Eden's like, okay, I'll see you another night. We'll do dinner. Oh, by the way, my parents are getting in tomorrow. They're probably going to want to crash the first night. But then I thought we could all go to breakfast. And she's like, okay, so I got to tell you, I don't want to meet them.

[B]

And he's very chill about it. He's just like, that's fine. No pressure.

[A]

And then he's like, I guess we won't be seeing each other this weekend. I'll miss you. And then she's like, well, maybe that's good. Maybe we should see each other less, and then we'll maybe miss each other more.

[B]

Three weeks in, she goes on to

[A]

say, it's just, you're so available to me, and I'm so available to you. Maybe we're just too, you know, available. To which Aiden goes, carrie, it's not a big deal. I have a life. I'm just making room for you in it. Which should have been the moment where she's like, oh, I'm acting crazy. Like, this person isn't, like, Big.

[B]

Yeah. One would think she would have that reaction.

[A]

By the way, three weeks into a relationship, okay to not see each other for a weekend, Especially if you have parents in town or friends visiting, for sure. When do you think is the right time to meet the parents? Like, if Eden's college roommate was in town and he was like, hey, do you want to meet him and hang out? Like, I think that's fair. For three weeks in.

[B]

I think it depends. I don't think there's any, like, universally acceptable time for meeting the parents. It depends how serious the relationship is. It depends how much time this couple has spent together.

[A]

Have we ever made the point that Aiden and Charlotte would have been a good couple? I know we've said that Big and Charlotte would be a good couple, but you know who would love to meet the parents after three weeks? Charlotte.

[B]

That's true. That does seem like a better match. But, like, he's too, like, granola for her. You know, she'd be grossed out by him. She wants, like, a nasty finance guy.

[A]

Is she the one in season four or is it Samantha? When Carrie's like, I think I might want to be with Aiden again, Is it Charlotte or Samantha that's like, oh, he just needs to get rid of the tummy and the turquoise?

[B]

Yeah, I think that was Samantha. I don't think Charlotte would be that big of a bitch.

[A]

You know what Charlotte is, though? An opera fanatic, which she takes Carrie

[B]

as her date, and she is dressed very traditionally in a white fur cape and, like, some Holly Golightly looking bullshit. And Carrie, conversely, is wearing this very chic, very fab Dolce and Gabbana mini dress that has sort of like this gold lace overlay with, like, beaded fringe around the edges.

[A]

It's really, really good.

[B]

It is really, really good. And it's actually purple. Like, underneath. The gold lace is purple, but you can't really tell in the episode itself. I did find it on first dibs, and it was recently purchased for $9,363, which means it was also a really good investment.

[A]

Oh, Carrie buying this dress.

[B]

Yeah. Because that couldn't have been more than like, like $2,000 at the time. Right?

[A]

Well, don't make me go into the inflation calculator to figure out how much that would be.

[B]

Oh, you would live for that.

[A]

I think a more realistic explanation just kind of like furthering this lore that we've developed about a New York PR person. Like, there are several New York fashion PR people that got fired because Carrie Bradshaw never returned samples that she was able to borrow.

[B]

I'm sure. So the opera begins. Carrie is looking around. What are those things called?

[A]

Binoculars.

[B]

Like, there's a special type of binocular for the opera and that has a name.

[A]

Opera binoculars.

[B]

Okay. I don't fucking know. She's looking in her little gold, like, opera binoculars. Opera glasses.

[A]

Okay, Opera glasses. Or theater glasses also, it is referred to as opera binoculars.

[B]

Okay, well, we've covered our bases then.

[A]

Any and all will do.

[B]

And she sees Mr. Big and Natasha.

[A]

Well, Mr. Big, also bored out of his mind. Like Carrie looking through his own opera glasses. And then they find each other.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Which is a subtle way to say look. They're meant for each other. They're both bored at the opera. Dragged by their brunette girlfriends.

[B]

Might I just say, Natasha looks really good in white. Of course in white. Because she is the bride. Of course, she's wearing this very simple dress that is very much in keeping with what Calvin Klein was doing at the time. I don't know who actually designed this, but certainly she's going for that kind of look.

[A]

And Chris Noth, like, this is a very thankless, essentially cameo in this episode. Obviously, we know he has a larger arc in the season, but. But he has this great moment where, I mean, there's not any words, but you can see in his body language that he's like, oh, should we like make an excuse so we can go to the bar and have a drink or something?

[B]

Totally. And even with zero dialogue, the riz that this man has, you're like, bitch, go and hang out with him.

[A]

Or have sex in the bathroom. It's a two and a half hour opera.

[B]

That would have been hot.

[A]

Okay, so. So Carrie does something equally unhinged as Charlotte's behavior throughout this episode, which is she pretends that she's ill and abruptly leaves.

[B]

She runs away in a panic. In her voiceover, she says she feels like she's just seen the Phantom of the Opera. And I just want to point out that if anyone is the Phantom of the Opera in this episode, it is Aiden, because he is in love with some bitch that does not fuck with him.

[A]

Well, I was going to say it is funny that she's at the opera. She refers to the Phantom of the Opera, which is famously not an opera, it's a musical. Yes.

[B]

Set in an opera house though. So a logical reference.

[A]

We should say the Big runs after her and then the nightmares start again. But at least she knows why she's waking up in the middle of the night.

[B]

I keep thinking he's gonna catch her, but he never does. Aww. She of course, does. One of her like emo Carrie solo walks down the street with her cute little dress and her psycho voiceover. I love this crazy bitch. I really do.

[A]

I mean, if we didn't think she was crazy enough, she calls Miranda at three in the morning.

[B]

I know. And when I saw Miranda like wake up from her peaceful slumber to take this call from Carrie, all it made me think of is like all of those times that Miranda tells Carrie, like, do not get back together with Big. I cannot handle taking these calls at all hours of the night.

[A]

Well, to continue my point about the advances of text messages, this is where having a cell phone comes in. Because Miranda would no longer have a landline so she couldn't get harassed by Carrie in the middle of the night. Instead, she could just put her phone on. Do not disturb.

[B]

Yeah, true. Times have changed.

[A]

Anyway, I love this sort of hint of a scene that happened in between these scenes where Charlotte calls Miranda after the opera. Pissed off bitching about Carrie leaving her.

[B]

I know. And at that moment, I was like, wait, Charlotte and Miranda on the phone. We see it happen so infrequently that it's just not something I think about.

[A]

And Carrie's like, oh, is she mad? And Miranda has this line where it's like, I think she's sworn off women as well. We have completely left Samantha out of this storyline because, as we've noted in these episodes, it is very rare that all four characters. Clearly, all four characters get some kind of storyline. But there's usually a focus on three of the women and who gets shortchanged. This episode would definitely be Samantha. So let's just condense the rest of her plot line because there's not much. Yeah, the guy took Viagra. They have great sex. The next time we see them, she wants to take Viagra, too. And she has an amazing orgasm.

[B]

And I was like, do women take Viagra? You can, but it's not commonly prescribed because apparently, like, it helps with, like, sexual arousal. But it doesn't help if you have, like, a generally low libido or if, like, you have any sort of of, like, hormonal issues, like, related to perimenopause or menopause or something. So I don't know what woman is taking Viagra recreationally.

[A]

I think this goes with the idea of, like, Samantha's like a man. So she's taking Viagra like a man.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I think the only thing that works, which is surprising, we never saw this in a Sex and the City film is, does Samantha get the, like, G spot shot in Sex and the City 2?

[B]

I don't think so.

[A]

You know what it is? If you can believe it, I watched. Is it Cashmere Mafia? That was the show with Brooke Shields that was written by Candace Bushnell.

[B]

It was called Lipstick Jungle.

[A]

There we go. Cashmere Mafia is a different one. Lipstick Jungle. I think it's the actress Kim Raver. She gets the G spot shot. Because I remember watching that episode, and it's like she's in a taxicab that, like, goes over a pothole and she's like, ooh. Anyway, it's the comedy rule of threes, right? So the last beat with Samantha is the guy wants to have sex au natural. And Samantha, also, like a crackhead, is like, give me my Viagra.

[B]

It gets, like, very Valley of the Dolls, this scene. She's like, I need my drugs.

[A]

And so this guy doesn't fuck her anymore, but gives her a prescription for Viagra, which I think could get his license Taken away.

[B]

But whatever, whatever, who cares? It's really funny because obviously the theme of this episode is drama and drama queens. We're seeing Carrie and Charlotte also spiral. And I like how with Samantha's plotline, they're like, we're just gonna make her a drug addict and then she's gonna have a Neely o' Hara esque breakdown.

[A]

So there's a moment where Charlotte calls Dennis and yells at him on the answering machine and is like, I don't know what is so great about Phil and what's so shitty about me that you can't introduce me to him? And then Dennis picks up the phone and is like, sorry, I was on a business trip and I just got home and anyway, anyway, Phil totally wants to meet you. Let's meet at this restaurant.

[B]

So Charlotte shows up in her greatest look ever.

[A]

The infamous Prada lipstick skirt.

[B]

Lipstick skirt. And she also has a Prada bag. I don't know who made the white shirt. It's a very simple shirt.

[A]

We have seen the great Kristen Davis up close and personal in the Prada lipstick skirt. Because that is one of the pieces. One of the costumes she retained. We interviewed her in 2018 for us in Every Outfit History, a historical evening where we hosted a screening of the LA episodes for the 20th anniversary of the show going on air in 1998. And just to drop a little lore, we did this screening. We knew Kristen. We asked her if she would grace us with her appearance. And she was like, yes, of course. And then she was like, do you mind if my friend Jenny and Michael Patrick come too? And so we ended up having this stacked Q and A with Jenny Bix, who wrote the LA episodes and some of our other favorite episodes. Daddy MPK and Kristin Davis at. I don't think I even said the standard Hollywood. So we were screening the LA episodes where the girls stay at the standard Hollywood, at the old standard Hollywood RIP

[B]

to that standard Hollywood.

[A]

But we learned, I don't remember, did we ask her to wear the skirt or did she offer it?

[B]

No, she just showed up in it. She didn't tell us what she was wearing. She surprised us and all of the people that came to that event. Everyone was like, losing their minds, obviously, because you never think that you're gonna see Charlotte in the lipstick skirt with your own eyes.

[A]

And I don't know if we asked her this question or she has since given this in interview about it, but she saw this skirt, I think, in a magazine and told. Told Patricia Field. She was like, this is what Charlotte Needs to be wearing when she meets Trey.

[B]

Yeah, as I recall, she saw the ad campaign. Because it was in the ad campaign. And this is a very significant skirt from Prada's spring summer 2000 collection. Not just significant in the sort of scheme of early 2000s fashion, but significant for Prada to this day. I think it is one of their most iconic and recognizable prints. They have reissued it since. But just an incredible piece during one

[A]

of my most, for me iconic trips to the outlet malls. I believe it was during your and Tat's joint birthday. During the pandemic. They had such crazy deals that they had a clutch with the lipstick print on it that I still have to this day that I'm waiting to wear for something related to Sex in the city.

[B]

Perfect piece. Great outlet mall. Fine.

[A]

Anyway, we never get to see Phil, which I forget about in this episode, because do we think Dennis was ever on a business trip? Or he purposely wasn't taking Charlotte's messages so that he could lure her to meeting Phil at a second location that Phil would never show up at so that Dennis could declare his love for Charlotte.

[B]

I wouldn't be surprised either way. So Dennis comes out. He's like, charlotte, Phil's not coming. I'm in love with you. My marriage isn't working out. Let's give this a go.

[A]

What's even funnier is it seems that if Charlotte had not bothered to have dinner with her friends and be like, will you set me up with your bachelor friends? Dennis would never have been like, oh, I think I want to get with Charlotte. Because he's like, after I saw you that night, I knew I had to get with you.

[B]

After I saw your crazy ass scream at me about how you're getting married

[A]

this year, I was like, you know who'd be a great person to have an affair with? The woman who would like to get married to one of my bachelor friends. I do love this word play that I never noticed until this rewatch where she understandably gets pissed off at him. She's like, you kept all of your great single friends away from me just so you can cheat on your wife? You should be ashamed of yourself. And instead of like. Like a true dirtbag, instead of absorbing that criticism, he's like, you are such a spark plug. I love that about you. To which she says, I'm not interested in starting some married man's car. Nice.

[B]

Good one, Charlotte.

[A]

She's mad, but she can still make a pun.

[B]

But she does, like, hysterically run out of the restaurant into the street. Into oncoming traffic. Yeah.

[A]

I guess this is where it could delve into the beginning of an SVU episode because you get the impression that Dennis is running after her, which is why she runs into traffic.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

And so she falls in front of a taxi cab that stops short. She falls into the ground. I believe that was the whole thing when Kristen wanted to wear the Prada skirt, cuz it had been either beat it out or written into the script that she was supposed to fall into the street. And Patricia Field was like, we're going to need multiple skirts. Like, we can't ruin this Prada sample.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I forget what the resolution is. Obviously she.

[B]

They bought multiples. I forget how many though she told us at some point.

[A]

Obviously it all worked out. And then who gets out of the cab but Kyle McLaughlin. Which must have been so exciting watching this episode live in the year 2000.

[B]

Totally. I got the chills when I saw his name, like, come up in the opening credits on this episode. And that's how she meets Trey. And just like that.

[A]

Which I always forget because it's sort of shoved at the end of the episode. And it's a very brief moment.

[B]

Yeah. So we get another Carrie Aiden scene.

[A]

So we should say for those who have not rewatched the episode recently, she keeps calling him after she has the nightmare again where she's like, oh, I realize what I'm scared of and I should run towards Aiden. She calls him at work, she calls him at home and he doesn't answer. So she decides to show up at the diner that she somehow knows what diner Aiden will be at with his parents unannounced.

[B]

And she like knocks on the window like the stalker she is. And Aiden comes out.

[A]

People love to do the Carrie is a psycho edit and they always use her surprising big. No one uses this moment.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

This moment is a good contender for Carrie as a crazy person with no boundaries.

[B]

Although Aiden comes out wearing a shocking hat, it is just like a very normal snapback hat, but he's worn it backwards and he's like done this insane fucked up styling thing where like the last peg is in the last hole of the hat. So, like the circumference of the hat is as wide as it could possibly be. And I feel like that's not an acceptable thing to do if you're wearing a backwards hat. It's one thing if you have a huge head and that's just like chilling in the back, in the front. Psycho.

[A]

Yeah. I'm distracted during this scene because all I can Think of is how large is John Corbett's head. I've never thought of him as a man with an abnormally large dome.

[B]

Well, that's the thing. It's not even snug on his head. It's big on his head. This is like a crazy styling choice, which I don't understand, because, like, Patricia Field knows how a hat should be worn.

[A]

Yes. But it makes me think that John Corbett was like, this all looks great, Pat. I'm gonna wear this Honda hat backwards.

[B]

Yeah, you're right. This could have been John Corbett's fault. Totally. Let's blame the actor for that one.

[A]

He's like, my actor's secret is that Aiden loves to wear a backwards cap with the last peg.

[B]

Horrifying.

[A]

Another red flag.

[B]

So many fashion faux pas have come into fashion, but this is one that I can't imagine ever being a thing.

[A]

It's funny, given how much Carrie loves fashion and how she can make a mountain out of a molehill, that, like, this was never a boyfriend of the week red flag.

[B]

Well, if anything, like, that hat would give her the ick. Because she is a fashion girl.

[A]

That's what I'm saying. It's funny that we never got a boyfriend that she decides to stop dating because of a fashion faux pas or something she deems as a fashion faux pas.

[B]

Totally. The closest we got to that was the turtle and, like, who Samantha generously gave a makeover to. But I do think that that is, like, a big thing that I hear girls talk about.

[A]

I mean, she did buy Berger a Prada shirt.

[B]

Yeah, but he wasn't, like, gross looking to begin with.

[A]

Okay, let's get into this scene. I know you asked me to be here, and I wasn't sure if I could, honestly, you know, I mean, meeting the parents is so. But then I realized, no, I want to meet the parents. But I didn't know if you still wanted me to meet the parents, because

[B]

I've been calling you and you haven't called me back.

[A]

So then I thought, you know what?

[B]

I'm just going to go.

[A]

Because being in an actual relationship means taking a risk.

[B]

You know, it's just a leap of

[A]

faith, no matter how many times one might have been disappointed in the past. So I said to myself, I'm just gonna show up because you're a good man, A really good man. So why haven't you call me back? You wanted me to be less available,

[B]

so I was trying to be less available. Really?

[A]

Oh, you'll have to do everything I say. Well, you're here now. Can I introduce you to my parents? Are they going to think I'm nuts? Probably. They'll just have to get used to that. Come on, Nat.

[B]

Wait, is that a fourth saddlebag?

[A]

Might be. It's hard to tell.

[B]

Or is it like one of the same ones that she wore earlier? I can't tell from this clip. That's crazy though.

[A]

There's no way that there's a fourth saddlebag. I'm just gonna put that out there. It's also crazy we haven't brought this up yet. I mean, what an embarrassment of riches that we have in the same season. The saddlebag and the Fendi baguette. Like, obviously I associate the Fendi baguette more with season two, but we know that the Fendi baguette plays a consequential plot point in the LA episodes.

[B]

Totally. I think saddlebags were more specific to her Aiden era, actually.

[A]

Oh, absolutely.

[B]

Baguettes. More Mr. Big vibes. Although there was one in this episode. In the furniture showroom scene.

[A]

Yes. A different fashion PR person is calling her answering machine being like, hi, can I get that baguette back? Okay, can we get into this scene? Because counterpoint to what Carrie says to Aiden, he is not a good guy. What he did to her is punitive because she calls him multiple. Okay. She said maybe we should be less available to each other. And it's played off of like, oh, well, I just listened to what you said. If your girlfriend is calling you at your place of work and your home, you can break the no contact. I mean, he willingly misunderstood what she was saying, I think as a vague punishment.

[B]

See, I disagree. I think this is the only time that Aiden has ever been cool. I think it's cool of him to ghost her because he actually listened to what she was saying. And yes, it is a little punitive in the sense that like she ended up looking like an unhinged freak.

[A]

Which is.

[B]

She is the unhinged freak. So I think that that's entirely fair. Be careful what you wish for, Carrie.

[A]

But do you think that this incident gave Aiden the confidence in season four to marry her because she didn't want to meet the parents and then she acquiesced. Do you think think season four Aiden was like. Yeah, I mean, she's not like a traditional conventional girl, but like, I can get her there. I can convince her that we should get married.

[B]

Well, I guess when you're convinced that someone is the one, you'll overlook all sorts of things in service of that goal.

[A]

And I Guess what we're supposed to understand from and just like that is maybe Aiden was the one, was Big a big mistake.

[B]

It didn't work out then either. They've wasted decades together doing this. It's crazy. Anyway, and then the episode ends.

[A]

Well, the episode ends with a Carrie voiceover that says, I realized then that I had made my stomach flip all on my own, and it felt really nice. Hi. So I realized that I could just gaslight myself into making my emotionally available boyfriend emotionally unavailable. And then, like, I got the same kind of contact high I would get from Big, and I did it all by myself.

[B]

Craziness. Okay, exit survey time.

[A]

Well, how many Manolos are we giving this episode?

[B]

I am giving this episode seven and a half. Manolos, obviously. Allison Anders killed it with the direction Charlotte and Samantha. Very funny. Carrie is really annoying in this episode, but it is an important episode because, as I said at the top of the show, this is the beginning of the Aiden Carrie Big love triangle. And also the beginning of the Charlotte Trey arc.

[A]

Yeah, I'm gonna give it an eight. I mean, we're pretty close in our ratings, but I'm gonna give it an eight because we've got Darren Starr writing, Alison Anders directing. And although they all don't share a scene together, we get the major boyfriends, which I guess really happens for multiple episodes in season three. But Trey, Aiden, Steve, Big, and we get Natasha. I mean, it's a stacked episode.

[B]

Yeah, I do love the drama of the opera scene. That is incredible. It's always fun on Sex and the City when we get a really, really major location like that.

[A]

Okay, now time for the exit survey. Who is the MVP of this episode?

[B]

Carrie. She's annoying, but she does the most.

[A]

I'm gonna say Charlotte. She identified what she wanted, a husband, actively pursued it, got led astray, but ultimately met her first husband.

[B]

True. Okay, who are we voting off the island of Manhattan?

[A]

I can't say Phil, because we never got to see Phil. So I'm gonna say Dennis, who never introduced Charlotte to maybe the love of her life. Phil. We don.

[B]

No, I'm also saying Dennis Steve can't wipe his ass, but, like, cheating on your wife is worse than that, I think.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

All right, best dressed Carrie. I'm giving it to Charlotte because this is her series best look, in my opinion.

[A]

Oh, yes, the Prada lipstick skirt.

[B]

Although Carrie also incredible, of course. All right, who are you in the episode?

[A]

I guess Miranda. Minus the skid marks thing. You know, things in my life are pretty placid. I have my own self described Steve Aiden hybrid with Harry tendencies.

[B]

I'm Miranda because she's the least crazy, but also minus the skid marks thing. Best line.

[A]

I gotta say. Usually we pick lines because of the actor's delivery, but I do think, after careful consideration, I have decided that this is the year I am getting married. Is delivered very funnily by Chris and Davis, but is objectively a funny line because it is so unhinged.

[B]

Totally. I am picking. I realized I was in the throes of an existential crisis. One that not even the sight of this season's Dolce and Gabbana sandals could lift me out of. Biggest trigger.

[A]

I mean, we discussed it, but yeah, Aiden's backwards cap.

[B]

Yeah, it's a tie between the skid marks and the hat for me.

[A]

The skid marks. Oh. We didn't even get into the resolution of the skid mark storyline. Which is just like Steve fucks her while she's doing laundry and all is forgotten.

[B]

Right. We don't know if he ever skid marked again. We don't know if Miranda ever confronted him about his skid marks. Clearly not about his shitty, shitty ways.

[A]

If she just had Magda do his underwear from now on, it's hard to say.

[B]

Okay, what is your hottest take?

[A]

Okay. I think the writers were making fun of Kim Cattrall with this storyline. Hear me out. Her date, who I have called Viagraman, is named Mark. He makes her orgasm like she has never orgasm before. Who was Kim Cattrall married to at the time? Chelsea Mark Levinson, who she would later go on to write the Art of the Female Orgasm, which we have, which we have covered extensively.

[B]

More extensively than any two people on this earth.

[A]

If you want to see us covering it, you can go to our Patreon. We did a whole segment about it on the live show. You have to see this book to believe it. There are very graphic illustrations, but any. Anyway, we learned in the book, as I said, in graphic detail, that no one was able to make her come the way that Mark had. This book is released two years after this episode comes out. You cannot tell me that she wasn't on set driving the writers and producers crazy talking about how good Mark dicked her down. And I think they invented this character, named him Mark and had her orgasm comically because she had been talking about how good of a lover her husband Mark was. Was.

[B]

I can totally see that. Actually, I get the vibes that Kim and Mark as a couple were that couple that was just like in public. And making everyone really uncomfortable, you know?

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

So I can totally see that there

[A]

is some sound PA or sound person who is horribly scandalized because Kim Cattrall kept her mic pack on and went to her trailer when Mark paid a visit to set.

[B]

Okay, my hottest take is that Charlotte is bipolar.

[A]

Oh, okay.

[B]

Think about it. Mania is one of the defining characteristics of this disorder, and Charlotte is extremely manic in this episode. Also, a sign of this is often, like, when people are unusually confident. Grandiose. I would say a statement like, I'm getting married this year falls into that category. And therefore, I believe that Charlotte is bipolar.

[A]

Yes. Without having identified the person she's marrying.

[B]

Yeah, exactly.

[A]

Wow. I'd hate to see a depressed Charlotte.

[B]

Well, we did in the miscarriage episode.

[A]

That is true.

[B]

But she was only depressed for, like, an afternoon. And then she put on a little pink mini dress and some sunglasses and got an updo together and felt great.

[A]

So this is an episode where Charlotte, in your lore, has been like, you know what? I don't need the Prozac. I'm fine.

[B]

She needs something.

[A]

She needs a husband.

[B]

I don't think a husband can cure

[A]

her mental woes, but if anyone's going to try, it's going to be Charlotte.

[B]

True.

[A]

Oh, you know, to bring this all back, Trey has erectile dysfunction issues. Instead of suggesting Viagra, do you remember that later in this season, Charlotte suggests that he gets, like, a hydraulic pump installed in his penis?

[B]

Very ill advised. In retrospect, I don't know if, like, the science was there then or is there now, but I think it's probably good that they didn't pull the trigger on that.

[A]

All right, guys, I think we've said it all about this episode.

[B]

We have, and we will be back next week to talk about some other bullshit.

[A]

All right, guys. Bye.

[B]

Bye. Every.