Is SATC a “coming of age” TV show?

So, you can tell and iconic show right off the bat when someone names the characters. If someone says “Ross,Rachel, Phoebe, Monica, Joey and Chandler”, you know the show is “Friends”. You hear “ Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie”, the show is obviously “The Simpsons”. Then there is one of the most iconic shows of the late 1990s- early 2000s with the characters “Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte” otherwise known as “Sex and The City”.

If you love sex from a comedic perspective, fashion, feminism, and...well love, then Sex and The City is the right show for you! It helped shaped me as a teen and made me want to be like them; strong, successful women who challenge the norm that only men can focus on sex.

Sex and The City was a show that had comedy, drama, romance and while it’s a stretch, travel. Wherever they were: L.A., S.F., the Hamptons, Atlantic City or even Paris, the show appealed to women all over the world when it comes to the challenges of being a woman in a high end job, to women wanting marriage and children, or women who don’t care about marriage and babies but instead living life to the fullest. This show made me realize that women do have options! I know, I sound very naive but before Sex and The City, I literally thought the “goal” was to be married and a SAHM before I was 30.

Furthermore, call me crazy but I honestly feel like Sex and The City was basically a younger version of “Golden Girls”. Both focused on the friendship of women as well as the pleasure of love and sex. Both shows not only were popular to women, they were iconic in the LGBTQ+ community and are well known in pop culture.

Now, the fashion! As I have stated many times, fashion was a key thing on the show. If you love designer shoes, purses and clothing, then Sex and The City is for you. I have never even heard of some of these fashion designers until Sex and The City. The first time I heard about Christian Loubutin, Manolo Blaniks, and Jimmy Choo, and a Birkin bag was from Sex and The City. Carrie made me fall in love with shoes after all, especially in the episode where Miranda was about to give birth and Carrie had on the Loubutins that eventually were destroyed when Miranda’s water broke. Sex and The City made me want to dress better and have an appreciation for fashion, especially being a young lady.

Besides the obvious comedy that the show provided, drama was another thing the show had. Whether dealing with topics of infertility, to divorce, to infidelity and of course death. One of the most emotional episodes was when Miranda, who is known to be a tough cookie, lost her mother and she finally broke down. Even Samantha, who is one who doesn’t show her emotions as well became emotional. That episode alone was a tearjerker. Or when Charlotte miscarried, but she persisted. I actually felt that the show focused on real issues and made me understand the importance of those who are by your side.

Finally, the show focused- and ended-with romance. In the final season, all of the women, even Samantha had love. Carrie found out that “Mr. Big” was her true love (besides the girls), Charlotte had her perfect family, Miranda got married and Samantha had her rock in Smith. It was one of the best endings in a show.

While I know the show appealed to mainly women and gay men, it is a show for anyone who enjoys a good show. It was so popular that the show even had two Motion Picture movies. Sex and the City not only entertained me, but it gave me hope that as a young woman, I can have it all: great friends, fashion, love and a good job. It still appeals to people of all backgrounds because they focused and asked the questions that many of us wondered in our everyday lives. In my Carrie Bradshaw voice “I couldn’t help but wonder...should I have a Sex and the City marathon?”