The 10 Best 'Sex and the City' Episodes
Sex and the City does one of Carrie’s weird little skip leaps onto Netflix today, opening the show up to a whole new audience who never have seen Samantha swallow “the funkiest tasting spunk” before. As a millennial who grew up being made to cover my eyes during the sex scenes when I watched the show during its original run, the concept of someone seeing the girls conquer Manhattan for the first time is mind-boggling. I’ve watched this show in its entirety more times than I can count, whether that was live on HBO, on my DVD set of the complete series, or streaming on Max. Every era of my life has been accompanied by Carrie’s affair with Big, Samantha’s brief stint as a lesbian, Miranda’s surprise pregnancy, and Charlotte being called a “fucking bitch” and “fucking whore.”
As a primer for any newbies who may be starting their Sex and the City journey on Netflix—or more likely a way to stir up controversy among those who have already seen Aiden and Big’s homoerotic wrestling match—I’ve compiled what I believe to be the 10 best episodes of the series. Well, it might be 11. Sue me! I look forward to arguing in the comments.
Season 2, Episode 4 - “They Shoot Single People, Don’t They”
My favorite SATC episodes tend to feature a single Carrie, and this is the ultimate single Carrie episode, in which our heroine winds up on the cover of New York magazine looking like she was run over by Beyoncé’s horse. Sandra Bullock’s husband from Practical Magic makes an appearance as one of Miranda’s hottest suitors, Samantha kisses a busboy who will later play Seema’s father on And Just Like That, and Carrie makes out with Bradley Cooper.
Best look: Carrie’s pink disco pants
Season 2, Episode 7 - “The Chicken Dance”
I have promised/threatened my best friend that if he ever gets married I will read Carrie’s poem at his wedding. Early seasons of the show were at their best when they placed the girls in opposition to other women of their age and social class, making them feel like outsiders and misfits even though they were rich, white, cishetero, and beautiful—this is perfectly encapsulated by how out of place they are at the wedding, culminating in the incredible shot of the bouquet landing at an unimpressed Carrie’s feet. I have spent far too many hours searching for Miranda’s dancing frogs on eBay, and I will own them or die trying.
Best look: Carrie’s gauzy wedding guest dress
Season 3, Episode 1 - “Where There’s Smoke”
It would have been easy to fill this list with season openers and closers because they are almost uniformly fantastic. Carrie, still reeling from her second Big breakup, takes a chance on politician John Slattery, arguably her hottest trade. Cynthia Nixon’s delivery of “If she falls over I will never stop laughing” still sends me to this day. The girls dancing to Donna Summer, Samantha sliding down a fire pole—this episode is chock full of some of the show’s most iconic scenes. Spoiler alert, but Carrie should have (literally) sucked it up and peed on John Slattery.
Best look: Samantha’s firehouse ensemble
Season 3, Episode 13 - “Sex and Another City”
I’m a little biased here, because I watched the Los Angeles episodes on a loop while preparing for my own move to LA in 2020, so they might be iconic mostly because of that. But I love a vacation episode, and seeing these girls out of their element is always fun. Sarah Michelle Gellar and Matthew McConaughey slay their guest appearances—is Matthew the only SATC guest star with an Oscar?
Best look: Carrie’s mismatched shoes smoking outside the hotel
Season 3, Episode 15 - “Hot Child in the City”
I love when Sarah Jessica Parker has to act drunk or stoned. She’s not necessarily good at it but it’s always fun. Sometimes a given SATC episode’s theme, based around Carrie’s column, is shaky at best in how it applies to each of the women’s storylines, but this one nails it as everyone deals with their version of teen drama. I live for Jenny Briar and her teen pussy posse, especially the girl who says she’d “fuck N’SYNC and their gay boyfriends.’ God was in the writer’s room that day.
Best look: Miranda’s braces
Season 4, Episode 1 - “The Agony and the Ex-Tacy”
Fun fact: I modeled my 35th birthday dinner after Carrie’s disastrous evening at Il Cantinori, a real restaurant near Union Square with questionable food but great vibes. It was the best birthday I can remember, even though none of my friends tried to fuck a priest!
Best look: Carrie’s capelet and red bustier in the first scene
Season 4, Episode 2 - “The Real Me”
I don’t really have anything new to add to the discussion about the universally beloved episode, but I will say this: Sarah Jessica Parker looks crazy long before she falls on the runway. I’m still haunted by her and Heidi Klum together in the backstage mirror. Also, bring Margaret Cho’s character back on AJLT!
Best look: Carrie’s feathered sweater at brunch
Season 4, Episode 8 - “My Motherboard, My Self”
Some people cry when Samantha mouths “I’m sorry” at Miranda’s mother’s funeral. Some people cry when Carrie joins Miranda, ensuring that she won’t have to walk alone behind her mother’s coffin. But I cry when Miranda spies Steve in the crowd. Moments like that ensure that I will never forgive And Just Like That for their assassination of that relationship.
Best look: Carrie’s laptop wrapped in a pashmina
Season 5, Episode 5 - “Plus One is the Loneliest Number”
Season five is the worst season of Sex and the City. Not my least favorite, the worst. I was very close to leaving it out of the list entirely, but I do have a huge soft spot for Carrie’s book party. Berger is a walking red flag right from the start, but so is Carrie, so maybe they’re meant for each other. Samantha’s chemical peel is one of the best sight gags of the show, but I’ll admit that she looks sickening in her veil. If and when I publish a book, you best believe the launch party will be modeled after Carrie’s, down to the sugar shoes on beautiful little cakes being passed around by beautiful little waiters.
Best look: Samantha’s bee-keeper party ensemble
Season 6, Episode 7 - “The Post-It Always Sticks Twice”
“The day I got arrested for smoking a doobie,” plays on a loop in my head at all times. Carrie Bradshaw is such a monster for not just upstaging Charlotte’s engagement by announcing her breakup via Post-it, but placing said Post-it over her engagement ring and asserting that “paper covers rock.” Why are these women friends with her?
Best look: Miranda’s skinny jeans
Season 6, Episode 18 - “Splat!”
Lexi Featherston forever!
Best look: Carrie’s Marc Jacobs party dress
Honorable mentions:
S1E5 - “The Power of Female Sex”
S2E3 - “The Freak Show”
S2E15 - “Shortcomings”
S4E16 - “Change of a Dress”
S4E18 - “I Heart NY”
S6E9 - “A Woman’s Right to Shoes”
Sex and the City is streaming on Netflix.
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