‘Sex and the City’: The Most Hated Episode of the Show

Sex and the City is one of the most impactful TV shows of all time. Set in the late ’90s and early 2000s in New York City, the show followed best friends Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall), and Charlotte York (Kristin Davis) as they navigated their personal and professional lives.

The show was revolutionary for its time, but there was one hated episode of the show that still stands out today.

‘Sex and the City’ changed drastically after season 1

When Sex and the City debuted on HBO back in 1998, it was unlike anything seen on TV. The series followed four single women in their thirties (Samatha was in her forties) who all wanted different things out of their romantic lives, careers, and friendships. In the first season of the show, the characters, especially Carrie, often talked directly to the audience.

However, that changed drastically after season 1.

In Jennifer Keishin Armstrong’s book Sex and the City and Us: How Four Single Women Changed the Way We Think, Live, and Love, showrunner Michael Patrick King states: “I want to believe this. I believe her. I think she’s the real thing. But whenever she turns to the camera, I no longer believe this. Can we stop that?”

The most hated episode of ‘Sex and the City’

Sex and the City ran from 1998 to 2004 and spanned six seasons. There are a ton of interesting episodes to dive into. However, according to IMDb via Metro U.K., the most hated episode of the series is Sex and the City Season 4, Episode 4, which is titled “Defining Moments.”

In the episode, Carrie goes out with Mr. Big on a “non-date,” but she finds herself entranced with a jazz musician named Ray. Apparently, viewers hated this, and it turned out that Ray and Carrie had very little in common but a sexual connection.

Also, in the episode, Miranda was horrified to learn that her new boyfriend, Doug, had no boundaries regarding the toilet. Apparently, all of this was just way too much for Sex and the City fans who always rooted for Carrie and Big and who wanted nothing to do with Doug’s bathroom escapades.

Carrie Bradshaw made some awful decisions on ‘Sex and the City’

One of the things that made Carrie stand out among other women characters on TV at the time was her imperfections. She was allowed to be a 30-something woman trying to figure her life out, something that had been typically reserved for 20-something women. As a result, Carrie and her friends could make horrible decisions and have missteps and mishaps in their careers, loves lives, and in their friendships.

Carrie made some shockingly bad decisions that included her tumultuous on-again, off-again romance with Mr. Big. Lying about being a smoker, using all of her money on fashion, then being awful to Charlotte when she was called out on it, and even saying yes to Aidan’s proposal when she meant the exact opposite.

Still, despite her sometimes chaotic choices, Carrie felt very real.