"And Just Like That's" Approach To Abortion Has Sparked Backlash As Fans Pointed Out Its Unplanned Pregnancy Storyline Is Less Progressive Than A 20-Year-Old Episode Of "Sex And The City"
"This was a perfect opportunity to show a woman making a thoughtful life choice about whether to carry a pregnancy or not."
In 2001, Sex and the City aired what is largely considered to be one of its most progressive episodes, "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda."
The Season 4 installment of the popular show followed Miranda's reaction to finding out that she is pregnant, and her initial no-nonsense approach to having an abortion.
As soon as she tells Carrie that she is expecting, Miranda bluntly says: "I'm not having it," and later adds: "This is not in my plans right now."
Later in the episode, Miranda's decision is supported by Samantha as well as Carrie, with Samantha speaking casually about having abortions herself. She says: "It's less than a desirable situation but it happens, we've all been there. I've had two, Carrie, how many have you had?"
At this point, Carrie reveals that she had one in her 20s.
Carrie then accompanies Miranda to a clinic to get an abortion. Although the episode ends with Miranda ultimately changing her mind and deciding to keep the baby, the matter-of-fact exploration into abortion as an option has always been praised by fans of the show.
Which is probably why they were so taken aback by Sex and the City's sequel series, And Just Like That's, approach to the same situation more than 20 years later.
In last week's episode of the HBO show, viewers learned that Charlotte's friend Lisa — who mostly goes by LTW — is pregnant.
It was made immediately clear that the pregnancy was a surprise to both LTW and her husband, Herbert, and that it couldn't have come at a worse time as LTW's career is finally taking off after she put her professional life on hold to raise their three children.
Confiding in Charlotte in this week's episode, LTW shares her heartache over the fact that she will likely have to turn down lucrative job opportunities because of the pregnancy and the toll of raising a newborn.
She is then shown being restless during the night and punching a pillow before lambasting her husband for not getting a vasectomy like she'd asked eight years earlier, after the birth of their third child.
At this point, Herbert alludes to abortion and asks: "Should we be having the other discussion? It's your decision, Lisa, whatever is best for you. That's what I want."
"I really appreciate you saying that," LTW replies. "I thought about it, but I can't. I mean, I'm really grateful that I have that option but... I just need to wrap my head around this new reality. I will."
And LTW making it strikingly clear how much she doesn't want another child — not to mention the detrimental impact that it will have on her hard-earned career — yet not choosing to have an abortion left many viewers confused, with it being argued that the AJLT showrunners had missed a golden opportunity to normalize the procedure.
"If LTW doesn't want to be pregnant why can't she just...stop being pregnant??" one person asked.
"They really dropped the ball with LTW's pregnancy storyline," one more agreed. "This was a perfect opportunity to show a woman making a thoughtful life choice about whether to carry a pregnancy or not. It's nice that they chatted about the option for 2 seconds, but they could have done more."
They really dropped the ball with LTW's pregnancy storyline - this was a perfect opportunity to show a woman making a thoughtful life choice about whether to carry a pregnancy or not. It's nice that they chatted about the option for 2 seconds, but they could have done more. #ajlt
— Katie Porter's Whiteboard (@craffingKelley) August 17, 2023
Someone else wrote: "When will 'progressive' shows like #AJLT finally walk their talk and let a character go through with an abortion? Chickened out with Miranda in SATC…K. Now we have LTW dreading another kid, and we’re acting like she doesn’t have a choice. This IS a 'woke' show sooo? Let’s see it."
When will “progressive” shows like #AJLT finally walk their talk and let a character go through with an abortion? Chickened out with Miranda in SATC…K. Now we have LTW dreading another kid, and we’re acting like she doesn’t have a choice. This IS a “woke” show sooo? Let’s see it
And fans were left further dismayed when the storyline appeared to conclude with LTW’s unwanted pregnancy ending via a miscarriage instead.
Later in the episode, she is shown waking Herbert up and telling him: "Something's not right, I'm bleeding."
As Herbert prepares to take his wife to the hospital, she says: "OK, but, uhm... I think it's too late."
While it is widely assumed that LTW has had a miscarriage, that is not confirmed in this week’s episode.
"Just watched an episode for a supposedly progressive feminist TV show where they would rather write a character as going through a miscarriage, to avoid her having another kid, than electing to have an abortion... cowards!!!" one shocked viewer tweeted.
Just watched an episode for a supposedly progressive feminist TV show where they would rather write a character as going through a miscarriage, to avoid her having another kid, than electing to have an abortion... cowards!!! https://t.co/WmDqFVVUSM
Another added: "This week's ep of one show sure did remind me how annoyed I am every time a woman on TV actively HATES the idea of being pregnant but doesn't choose to have an abortion and then 'conveniently' miscarries. JUST LET THEM DO THE THING."
This week's ep of one show sure did remind me how annoyed I am every time a woman on TV actively HATES the idea of being pregnant but doesn't choose to have an abortion and then "conveniently" miscarries.
And someone else compared the episode to "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda," and concluded: "it's wild that an ep from 2001 is more progressive than an ep from 2023."
I rewatched "Coulda Woulda Shoulda," the Sex and the City abortion episode in prep for watching tonight's #AJLT and I have some abortion TV researcher ~thoughts~.
Mostly: it's wild that an ep from 2001 is more progressive than an ep from 2023.
"It takes 5 min for them to say 'abortion' in the old ep," they went on. "In today's, they never even say it. What always annoyed me is the averted abortion — Miranda changing her mind, which just made no sense. But what was interesting is Carrie and Samantha talking about their past abortions."
"In today's #AJLT (spoiler alert) they barely mention abortion (& just w/euphemisms), she 'can't# even consider it, and then just happens to have a convenient miscarriage??" the thread continues. "What a 90s retro abortion plotline. Unless the writers are really up to something, this is just...boring."
In today's #AJLT (spoiler alert) they barely mention abortion (& just w/euphamisms), she "can't" even consider it, and then just happens to have a convenient miscarriage?? What a 90s retro abortion plotline. Unless the writers are really up to something, this is just...boring.
They then rounded up: "In 2001, they had Miranda rage about how her regular doc wouldn't perform an abortion, & Carrie accompany Miranda to the clinic and tell her the abortion wouldn't hurt. That was — and still is — huge. That they couldn't even mention the word 'abortion' in the 2023 ep is astounding."
In 2001, they had Miranda rage about how her regular doc wouldn't perform an abortion, & Carrie accompany Miranda to the clinic and tell her the abortion wouldn't hurt. That was--and still is--huge. That they couldn't even mention the word "abortion" in the 2023 ep is astounding.
While LTW's apparent miscarriage was not discussed in this week's episode of the AJLT companion podcast, The Writer's Room, the team did speak about how important it was for them to have Herbert suggest an abortion to his wife.
Writer, director, and executive producer Michael Patrick King said: "It was very important to the women in the room."
Writer Julie Rottenberg explained: "It was very important to us, and we debated how to approach it. We wanted to be true to these characters and what we thought was real, but we also wanted to touch the scary third rail of abortion — and the fact that it isn't legal in a lot of states right now."
Consulting producer and writer Susan Fales-Hill added: "Also that most women who have abortions, 90% of them already have other children and so the ambivalence about motherhood was a brave topic to touch on, and the reality of what it means to bring yet another child into the world even with all the means that these people have at their disposal."
Supervising producer and writer Samantha Irby agreed: "Culturally, it's sort of like: 'Oh, welfare moms having too many babies, that's why they're getting abortions.' It's not just poor people."
"And the decision is a big and heavy one whatever your financial circumstances," Susan concluded.
The subject of abortion has become particularly contentious of late, with the Supreme Court overturningRoe v. Wade last year. This left the right to abortion federally unprotected, and prompted 15 states to criminalize abortion, while others have severely restricted access.
