Question: [Spoiler alert] I reluctantly agreed with your negative review of the new Sex and the City sequel, And Just Like That … which left me cold and annoyed. Why come back only to spoil Carrie’s happily-ever-after with Mr. Big in such a dreary fashion? The rest of the group are mostly acting like idiots and I thought the worst thing about the reboot would be the absence of Kim Cattrall’s Samantha. I was wrong. Why did they even bother? —Arly
Matt Roush: These days, it’s all about the I.P. (“intellectual property”), and reviving this franchise was probably inevitable. Everything old is fair game anymore, and the premiere of And Just Like That … delivered the big audience HBO Max had hoped for, which is what counts in a time when it’s so hard for anything to breakthrough. Whether people will keep coming back is another story, but much the way Sex and the City helped put HBO on the map, they’re hoping the same is true for the streamer. I was skeptical going in because the network kept screeners from critics until the 11th hour — which I now somewhat get because of the big plot twist in the first episode, but this is also the sort of show that’s more or less critic-proof. So I’m on the fence about whether to hate-watch the rest of the season when so much else will be happening in January. I do, however, hope that this is the show’s last gasp.
To submit questions to TV Critic Matt Roush, go to: tvinsider.com