A Still From the New Season of “And Just Like That...” Has Taken the Internet by Storm. It Seems After All, Carrie and Aidan End Up Together
Think about it: it’s been almost two decades since the viewers of Sex and the City learned Mr. Big’s name, 15 years since Carrie became Mrs. Preston, and 13 years since she met her former love, Aidan, somewhere on the edge of the desert and kissed him. To this day, however, fans of the franchise continue to argue over who Carrie should have ended up with, John or Aidan.
Neither the main character’s marriage to John, nor Aidan having a family and kids has put an end to this debate. Again and again, the creators of the show forced Carrie, and with her, the audiences, to flit between two flames, wondering with whom her true happiness lies. The release of a new season of And Just Like That... is scheduled for 2023, with handsome Aidan back on the horizon. And, you know, this time it seems like a happy ending to the story is finally possible.
Briefly about Carrie and Aidan’s romance
It would seem that the show’s creators showed us clearly from the very first season who the main love in Carrie’s life is: Mr. Big (aka John Preston). However, the arrival of the charming furniture designer, Aidan, in season 3 forced viewers to wonder who she was supposed to end up with.
From the beginning, this romance was different than the one with Mr. Big. Aidan and Carrie led different lifestyles, had different hobbies, and dreamed of different things. For the first time in the show, Carrie found herself in a relationship where she was cared for, where the person dreamed of marrying her. And, as we remember, she herself sabotaged it all. First, she had an affair behind her boyfriend’s back with her ex (Big himself). Then, she refused to get married to the Aidan, who had forgiven her.
However, the show’s creators were in no hurry to put a final end to this relationship. At first, they showed the viewers that, after Carrie, Aidan did start a family and even had a child, but later, they brought the former lovers face-to-face in Abu Dhabi. And that’s when the couple, and all the fans of the show, started wondering, “What if...?”
Arguments in favor of Aidan
You must admit, it’s not often that the viewers fundamentally disagree with the main character’s choices in their favorite show. And no matter how much the creators of Sex and the City showed us different sides of John Preston, many viewers’ opinion never changed: he’s not the hero of Carrie’s love life.
Yes, Bradshaw had a lot more in common with Mr. Big. But that’s where the problem lies. They were both easy-going and neither of them tried to take responsibility. Even after years of being in a relationship and being married, the two still had no interest in each other’s work, rarely spent time with each other’s friends, and were in no rush to get to know each other’s parents. Aidan, on the other hand, was very down-to-earth. He knew how to cool down the fiery Carrie, he could make important decisions for her in crucial moments (such as buying an apartment).
Aidan is often called the complete opposite of Mr. Big. And this is evident in absolutely everything. For example, the former may go out in a ripped T-shirt and jeans, while the latter wears couture suits. The same distinction can also be seen in the men’s work lives. While Preston sits in a beautiful glass office in Manhattan, Shaw rolls up his sleeves and makes furniture.
That’s why, when there were difficulties in Carrie’s life, Aidan wasn’t afraid to fix them with his own hands. After all, he renovated her flat! Big was simply incapable of that.
Carrie dreamed of Mr. Big’s love throughout the series and the subsequent films. She wanted to live with him, to be his wife, to know his family and his past. But the businessman always seemed unsure about taking the next step when she needed him to.
In contrast, we have Aidan. Here, look, I’m capable of caring for those around me, whether it’s a pet, a beloved woman or a child. I’m letting you into my family. As viewers noticed, everything Carrie wanted from Big, she got from Shaw. But she just couldn’t appreciate him.
In the end, as many have noted, it was with Aidan that Carrie found peace. She was no longer afraid of uncertainty as she had been before. Everything finally became clear for her. Perhaps these feelings were what led many to believe in this romance. But the show’s creators decided otherwise, pushing John Corbett’s character out of sight for a few years.
However, they couldn’t get him out of the viewers’ hearts quite as easily. So Aidan had to be brought back in the second Sex and the City movie, even if it was in the form of a holiday fling for Carrie, swapping Mr. Big and Shaw’s roles in this triangle. After this, among fans, an opinion developed that stuck for years: Bradshaw was simply not worthy of this man. He was just too perfect for her.
One more chance for Carrie and Aidan
When the creators of Sex and the City decided to make a sequel to the story, John Corbett, along with Chris Noth, were among the actors confirmed to return. In addition, Corbett himself confirmed that he was going to return to his character. And now the first season of And Just Like That... has come and gone, but he still hasn’t made an appearance in the new series.
It turns out this was because the show’s creators didn’t want to bring Aidan back in the season dedicated to Carrie’s grief over the loss of John (who, according to the script, had a heart attack). It’s one thing for the men to compete for the lady’s heart, and quite another for one to win due to the passing of the other. That would have been emotional overkill.
So, after giving the main character enough time to say a proper goodbye to her love for Mr. Big, in the second season of And Just Like That..., Aidan is set to come back into her life. And maybe this time, everything will work out between the Manhattan party girl and the charming furniture designer. After all, for years, millions of fans of this saga have been plagued by this very question: “What if...?”