If the title wasn’t any indication,Sex and the Citylargely focused on relationships, and more specifically, the relationships of four gals living it up in the city: Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Samantha (Kim Cattrall), Charlotte (Kristin Davis), and Miranda (Cynthia Nixon). By the time the series finished its run, each character had had their fair share of flings, short-term relationships, and partners that had stood the test of time and became just as pivotal to the show as the ladies themselves. Two of the most focused-on relationships of the show were that of Carrie and her two great loves, Mr. Big (Chris Noth) and Aidan Shaw (John Corbett). Which relationship you prefer is still a hot topic among fans of the show; some think Big was meant to be with Carrie, while others think her true match was with Aidan. She, of course, ends up with Big, and their story continues with two follow-up movies and the reboot series,And Just Like That…
But now Carrie is a widow,after Mr. Big dieson his Peloton in the first episode ofAnd Just Like That…, and her journey throughout Season 1 of the reboot saw her grappling with her grief and struggling to move on in her day-to-day life. Carrie is finally ready to dip her toes back into the dating pool in Season 2, but she isn’t moving on with just anybody. In an iconic reunion 13 years in the making, Aidan comes back, ready to win Carrie’s heart all over again. To celebrate, it’s time to look back on their love story and prepare for a new chapter to unfold.
And Just Like That…
The series follows Carrie, Miranda, and Charlotte as they navigate the journey from the complicated reality of life and friendship in their 30s to the even more complicated reality of life and friendship in their 50s.
How Did Carrie and Aidan Get together in ‘Sex and the City’?
Seasons 1 and 2 ofSex and the Cityfocused heavily on Carrie’s tumultuous relationship with Big, and when it was good it was great, but when it was bad, it was ugly, and the pair split for good in Season 2. Come Season 3, Big is married and a distraught Carrie struggles to get over it, which is where Aidan enters the picture. The pair meet in the episode, “No Ifs, Ands, or Butts,” whenStanford (Willie Garson)tells her about a handsome furniture designer who’s having a furniture expo downtown. Stanford encourages her to talk to him, but before she can, Aidan’s dog comes running towards her, initiating a meet-cute between the two that’s straight out of the movies.
The pair embark on a relationship that—for the first time since Big—feels like something special for Carrie. Aidan tells her that he doesn’t date smokers, which prompts Carrie to quit, and that goes to show how much she wants this to work (up until then, smoking was Carrie’s vice, you know, next to shoes and cosmopolitans). Aidan is also insistent on taking things slow, never initiating more than a steamy makeout session at the end of the night, which shocks her, as none ofher previous relationshipsbuilt an emotional connection before a physical one.
While we, as viewers, could see that Aidan was a perfect match for Carrie and the healthiest relationship we’ve seen her in by far, Carrie naturally struggled with the remnants ofher relationship with Big. When Aidan wants her to meet his parents, she panics and pushes him away, asking for space. He gives it to her and doesn’t call while his parents are in town, and thankfully, she comes to her senses. She realizes her self-sabotaging tendencies, and leans fully into her relationship with Aidan, pushing her fears aside. However, that only lasts for so long, as Big is always going to be inside Carrie’s heart in some way.
This is proven when she and Aidan bump into Big and his wife, Natasha (Bridget Moynahan), at a furniture show. Separately from their significant others, Big confides in her about his relationship with Natasha, telling her how unhappy they are. The admission is something Carrie longed to hear at the beginning of the season, pre-Aidan. Big’s sudden reappearance in her life is unexpected, and though she tells him that she’s happy with Aidan, there’s still a part of her that yearns for Big. This ultimately leads to the pair engaging in an affair, with Aidan and Natasha unknowingly caught in the crossfire. Carrie reveals her indiscretions to Aidan, unable to live with her guilt a second longer. But ultimately, Aidan isn’t able to look past Carrie’s cheating, and he breaks up with her at Charlotte’s wedding.
Do Carrie and Aidan Make It Work the Second Time…or the Third Time?
Come Season 4 ofSex and the City, Carrie tries dating again, but any efforts are squandered the second she and Miranda see their ex-boyfriends together. It turns out thatSteve (David Eigenberg)and Aidan are planning to open a bar together. Though Aidan is understandably reluctant to jump into a romance with her again, he reveals that he also still has feelings for her. It was never going to be easy for the pair the second time around, and these things come to the forefront when Aidan finds out that Carrie and Big are still in touch. Carrie tells him that he’ll either have to forgive her for what she did or they’ll have to break up, and Aidan agrees to give things another try.
Aidan proposes to Carrie later in the season and moves into her apartment with her, even buying the apartment so that they can expand it and make a life together.Carrie’s self-sabotaging waysstrike again, though, and she begins to feel an innate pressure and anxiety as they plan both a wedding and apartment renovations. He agrees to take things slow after Carrie tells him that she isn’t ready to get married yet, but that changes pretty quickly. At a fancy black-tie event, Aidan asks Carrie to elope. She ponders it before realizing that he’s only asking—only rushing—because he still doesn’t trust her after her affair with Big. The pair break up again in front of a gorgeous fountain, a moment that would’ve been picturesque if it wasn’t so sad.
‘And Just Like That’ Loses a Fan Favorite Cast Member Ahead of Season 3
The ‘Sex and the City’ spin-off will look distinctly different next time around.
Of course, Carrie and Aidan have to bump into each other at least once in the time after their breakup—after all, isn’t it a sort of rite of passage to awkwardly bump into your ex? The pair cross paths in Season 6 as Carrie tries to hide from a date; she discovers that Aidan is now married with a son, and he seems genuinely happy. But that wouldn’t be the only time the pair would bump into each other. The two shockingly cross paths again inSex and the City 2, while the girls are on a trip to Abu Dhabi. At the time of their meeting, she and Big are having marital struggles; she bumps into Aidan at a local market, and he asks her to dinner. Over dinner, they reminisce about old times and catch up on new ones, and he shares that he has had two more kids since they last saw each other. They share a kiss at the end of the night but nothing more occurs, and shereconciles with Bigby the end of the film.
Carrie and Aidan Finally Reunite in Season 2 of ‘And Just Like That…’
13 years after their last encounter, Aidan is finally back in the picture. The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived, and in Episode 7 ofAnd Just Like That’s second season, aptly titled “February 14th,”the two reunite. In the previous episode, Carrie sent Aidan an email, checking in and asking if he’d be interested in meeting up; this episode opens with Aidan’s reply, as he asks her for dinner on Thursday, which just so happens to be Valentine’s Day. This sends Carrie into a nervous flutter, and immediately off to a meeting with Charlotte and Miranda. Charlotte points out that his suggestion of Thursday means he’s likely single: why else would he suggest meeting with an ex on Valentine’s Day?
When they finally meet up,Aidan looks just as good, andmaybeeven better than he did all those years ago. They hug like no time has passed at all, and sit cozily in a booth together where they talk and reminisce. Afterward, Carrie invites him back to her apartment and the pair step out of the taxi, with Aidan almost immediately tensing up when he realizes that Carrie still lives in her old apartment. Noticing his apprehension, Carrie asks him what’s wrong, to which he says, “Back at the restaurant, I thought: this is great. This feels really great. We’re back where we started. But this, this is where we ended.”
Carrie tries to comfort him by saying that she’s changed a lot of things inside, including hanging new wallpaper, so it doesn’t even look the same. She tells him that it wasn’t all bad, that they had good memories there, as well, but he tells her that he just can’t go back in. Just when we (and Carrie) think that all hope is lost and Aidan starts to walk away, he turns back and gives her that always charming smile. “F*** it! This is New York,” He says. “They have hotels, right?” He then struts back over with a knowing smile at Carrie, and they meet ina perfect and passionate kiss, thus rekindling the love story of Carrie and Aidan.
What Will Carrie and Aidan’s Relationship Look Like in Season 3 of ‘And Just Like That…’?
The thing is, it wasn’talluphill from that magic moment outside of Carrie’s apartment. While things mostly went well for the pair throughout the rest ofSeason 2, things got a bit rocky after Carrie and Aidan decided to make things official and move into together. She finally says goodbye to her iconic apartment, leaving it for a massive apartment in Gramercy Park that she can share with Aidan, though she might be the only one living in it for quite some time.
In theSeason 2 finaleofAnd Just Like That…, the two have to put their plans to move in together on hold, as Aidan decides to move all the way back to Virginia to be with his son, Wyatt, who’s been having a tough time dealing with his father being away. In what felt like a massive shock, he tells Carrie that he won’t be able to move in with her for five years, which is when Wyatt will no longer be a teenager. Though it’s a tough pill to swallow for Carrie, the two part on good terms, determined to make their relationship work in the long run. This leaves things a bit up in the air for Season 3 ofAnd Just Like That…, whichjust recently started filmingfor its newest season. It seems like Carrie and Aidan are finally committed, but with a plane ride and five years lingering between them, things could really go in any direction for this third season. After all, when it comes to Carrie Bradshaw, just about anything can happen.
And Just Like That…is available to stream on Max in the U.S.
